WMG / Pokémon Horizons: The Series

Wild Mass Guessing is for theories about future developments, so all spoilers are unmarked.

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Liko has a Dark and Troubled Past related to her pendant

Why else would a native to Paldea be going to school all the way in Kanto? Whatever her pendant's purpose is, it's clear that it's important.

• In the first episode alone, she is coy and unspecific when asked about Paldea, she did not go home when most of the other students did on a "long break", and she knew to immediately run when asked for her pendant, which could be hinting at this.
• In the third episode, Fried reveals that Liko's mother paid the Rising Volt Tacklers to be her bodyguards, but they decide to head back to Paldea to receive further payment from her, meaning Liko is not de-facto exiled from Paldea, which both further indicates, but also muddies, this prediction somewhat.
• Seems to have been Jossed after all, in episode nine. While she seems to have somewhat of an uneasy relationship with both of her parents, her father seems to not know anything about the Pendant and nothing is mentioned about it causing problems for her before going to Kanto, and it appears they're going to have a long stay in Paldea without any objections from Liko.
• Finally completely Jossed in the twelth episode. In Paldea, Friede finally catches up to Liko's mother, Lucca, who reveals she doesn't know much about it and in fact, her mother (Liko's Grandmother) kept it in her possession in Galar until she sent it to Liko right before she set off for the school. Lucca ambigiously says it would be too risky trying to contact said Grandmother via phone, suggesting a complicated situation there. So Liko never had the Pendant until right before the start of the series, the Pendant doesn't actually have anything to do with Paldea, and it's actually her grandmother who might have a Dark and Troubled Past because of it.

Liko's pendant is related to Terapagos

It's design is the same as the top of Terapagos's shell so there could be a connection.

• So far seems confirmed: It houses what appears to be baby Terapagos.
  • 100% confirmed: turns out the Pokemon IS Terapagos. At least its normal form.

Liko will catch a Charcadet that evolves into Armarouge

One trailer shows her battling Amethio who has a Ceruledge. Perhaps to show them as counterparts, Liko will also get a Charcadet but have hers evolve into Armarouge.

Ash will not appear until the very end of the series

They probably can't avoid mentioning The Monarch, but because he'd instantly pull the gravity from Liko the second he'd appear, he will not physically appear until the very end of the series, after everything is already done, in a relatively brief manner.

Nidothing is Bonnie

Because I could totally see her doing something like that.

• Jossed

Liko's roommate, Anne, is either allied with or a full-on member of the Explorers.

She is the only person that Liko tells about her Pendant. But almost right after she leaves, the Explorers arrive and attempt to take the Pendant. Could she have been planted at the school to confirm Liko had the Pendant and brought it there? Her not being present for a justified reason will also ensure Liko will never suspect her barring Anne making a mistake, ensuring they always have eyes on Liko when she is at the school.

• In episode 21, Liko tells Anne that she's going to the Galar mine. At the end of the episode, Amethio and his two underlings are shown to have arrived there as well. The fact that twice, Amethio has come to Liko's location soon after she had significant interactions with Anne makes it hard not to believe Anne is a mole to him at this point.
  • However, the scene at the end of the episode suggests Amethio went to the Galar mine after gathering data on his own about Rayquaza, rather than specifically going after Liko.
  • In that next episode, Amethio, Zirc, and Onia do a strategic ambush, Amethio confronting Freide while the other two confront Liko and Roy, both in manners it would be hard to escape from, and the latter two also seeking to still get Liko's pendant. Onia also says "So you are here..." In a way that suggests that she doubted the intel they got. The only source of that intel, the only way they could know they were there, is Anne. It would also make sense that she'd have some doubt in the words of a little schoolgirl. So my hunch is this: Anne told Coral (see the next bullet point), who told Amethio and disclosed the source, adding it was the same source that got him close to Liko in the first place, and then he looked over some weather data to see if it the Black Rayquaza (later revealed to be Galarian Moltres) that Liko was likely near, and deemed that enough to act on Anne's intel.
  • It is possible they simply assumed they would also be following the trail of Rayquaza. And Amethio is working against orders, so its unlikely Coral would be giving him any info. Would likely need to be direct from Anne if true.
  • I saw some on Twitter think that the scene where Dot is posting about her eating at Mitchell's food is what tipped off Amethio and company since Zirc has been established to be a fan of hers. That said, I don't think this is jossed yet because there's still her resemblance to Coral and what happened in the first episode.
• Adding onto this: Her connection to the Explorers is that she's Coral's sister. Both characters notably have Cute Little Fangs, which isn't the most concrete connection, but its a design trope that Pokemon hasn't used much (if at all) and superficial similarities like that are usually how they establish familial connections.
  • Or maybe she just straight-up IS Coral.
  • If she is Coral's sister, I think she will seek to fully initiate Anne because of her intel getting them close to the pendent twice, her initiate trial being to get Liko to a girls night out and walk Liko right into capture. Since Anne has already sold her out twice, Anne will not actually care about Liko if this all plays out and have no qualms, leading to quite a lot of emotional turmoil to Liko when she finds her best friend was an enemy all along, creating the most personal - and nastiest rivalry the series has ever had, and the first one where the rival is truly on the side of the antagonists (Alain was not aware he was advancing the goals of Team Flare when doing work for Lysandere).
• In episode 46, she has transferred to Naranja Academy to learn Terastallization. It doesn't really make sense why she would want to know that, being a Kanto resident and the trainers there don't Terastallize. And she just so happened to do this at the same time Liko enrolled at the school, that's far too much of a coincidence. Also, Coral has infiltrated the Academy, using Chalce to hack Sidian and her into the system as students...and Anne wasn't around when they revealed themselves in their disguises. So I think we will get the reveal that either Anne is Coral or that they are sisters very soon, in this Naranja Academy/Victory Road arc.

Nidothing is part of the Rising Volt Tacklers crew

Because it seems a little strange that a Quaxly is on the airship and we don't see what the room it entered is like.

• Confirmed! Episode 7 reveals that Nidothing is Murdock's niece, Dot, who helped set up the RVT's computer systems.

Liko is somehow related to Dawn

No, I don't think she's the daughter of Ash and Dawn, but somehow whenever I look at her I can't help but think she looks like a younger Joannah.

Liko's Sprigatito (or its evolutions) will be taught the Solar Beam via TM (its line can't learn it naturally) and it will become its Signature Move

But due to its Awesome, but Impractical status, it will be treated as an occasional Finishing Move instead of a Spam Attack just like Leafage. Though Liko might also teach her Sprigatito or her future Pokémons some support moves that will reduce the impracticality of the Solar Beam and make it more effective.

Mollie is a former Nurse Joy

She is said to be the healing specialist, has pink hair like Joys do, has a Chansey, and would not go into a Pokémon Center in episode three. Usually, someone doesn't go to a location because they don't want to be recognized.

• It is greatly implied but not outright stated to be the case. So this is 90 percent confirmed.
• She said her parents were Pokémon Doctors and she was on that path, but she grew tired of only helping owned Pokémon and not ones out in the wild, so she left. However, she does not outright say she was a Nurse Joy, so this could hint at some sort of twist.

Both Professor Sada and Professor Turo are heavily involved in the story.

Given that Koraidon and Miraidon both exist in the present, it's likely that the two Professors were able to use the time machine to further their own ends as in the games. However, instead of just being able to take Pokémon from either the past or the present, the time machine they created is able to do both depending on how it's configured.

• 20+ episodes in and the Professors are nowhere to be seen, and the main cast has long left Paldea and likely won't be returning for some time, plus the focus is on Terapagos and the Ancient Pokemon rather than the Paradoxes. While the Professors and the Legends/Paradoxes can (and likely will) show up at some point, 'heavily involved' seems to be unlikely at this point.

And while the two would still have split up, it would have been because they couldn't agree on whether they should focus on the past or the future.

Instead of it being Liko or Roy, it's Freide who is connected to Ash somehow

Beyond just the obligatory 'Freide is Ash's father', theory, it may be more indirect. Freide is in fact Burnet's brother, with the reason Burnet was able to basically bond with Ash as a second mother is in part because Freide is, as many noted, very similar to Ash. So in an unofficial, non-legal but still legit found family sort of way, Freide is in fact Ash's uncle-in-law.

• Likely Jossed, Freide is from Kanto, not Alola. Likely as it is not impossible Burnet could be from Kanto, as her game counterpart did live in multiple regions in the games, but the anime has given no hint of that.
• That said, in episode 21, Freide tells Liko and Roy that there are trainers who want to get stronger, want to collect Pokemon, and who want to discover brand new Pokemon. Some think he was alluding to Ash, Goh, and Chloe respectively, which could mean he's connected to Ash somehow.

The series is a Continuity Reboot separate from the first 26 seasons

Rather than this being a Time Skip following Ash's Quest for Identity, Horizons will instead be an entirely new canon that adapts Ash and co. out for the sake of not only leaving their futures up to interpretation but also giving Liko and the rest of the Original Generation a clean slate to work off of.

Amethio will pull a Heel–Face Turn midway through the series

With it being clear that Amethio isn't the main threat to Liko for now, he could eventually have enough of how Gibeon treats him and defect to the good guys' side out of kindness.

Liko's mom, Lucca, is an Explorer, the real Big Bad, or more than what she seems

Rather than being hired to protect Liko, the RVT were hired to safeguard the pendant. When Liko returns home, she is greeted by her father with no sign of her mother. The Pendant was also given to her by her grandmother, not her mother. So there must be some reason why Liko's grandmother didn't give it to her daughter before Liko. Her mom might be an even bigger villain than the Explorers who plans to use Terapagos. Lucca was also somehow able to afford paying the RVT as bodyguards, indicating she might have a special job or connections.

• Seems highly unlikely. After all, if she WAS part of the Explorers, why would she hire Friede and the Rising Volt Tacklers to protect Liko and (indirectly) the pendant?
• Jossed. The big bad is a seemingly unrelated character named Gibeon.

Dot will become the tritagonist of Horizons

Liko has Sprigatito, Roy has Fuecoco, and Dot has Quaxly. Future episodes may focus on Dot coming out of her shell, eventually joining the main duo more often.

• Possibly confirmed...! Dot joins Liko and Roy to take back the pendant in episode 16, there is a possibility she will talk to the duo more in later episodes.
• Pretty much confirmed. Dot has been slowly coming out of her shell over the nearly twenty episodes since then, and by the end of episode 45 she decides she wants to learn how to Terastalize along with Liko and Roy. The poster for the Terastal Debut arc more or less cements this.

Dot is a former star trainer who suffered a traumatic incident to make her the way she is

Dot is clearly able to connect to others and knows enough about the trainer craft to pass scrutiny, but she's also a recluse. At some point we'll discover that Dot was once a trainer of some skill, maybe even in that class of wonderchildren that you'd put Ash, Paul, or Nemona in, but something went wrong and she's gone into seclusion as a result. Nidothing is a sign that she still wants to help others, but for whatever reason she is unable to do so as Dot anymore.

• Seems to be a zig-zag. In episode 16, it reveals she hadn't actually caught Quaxly and does so in the episode. However, her videos as Nidothing are still a thing, and she constantly mentions that what she is doing is "IRL" as she uses Quaxly in an experimental manner throughout the episode, implying she learned a lot about Pokemon battles virtually.

Friede doesn't wants to be called a Professor as a result of meeting and working alongside Professor Sada and/or Turo

He got involved in their experiments with Paradox Pokémon leading to him becoming a Professor with a title on his own right, but their more morally questionable actions drove the team apart as did the ideals clash, leaving Friede disillusioned with his mentor(s) and refusing to associate with them even by means of a title.

• Seemingly Jossed, Friede's backstory in Episode 18 indicates that he simply got burned out being shacked up in a lab and doesn't like to think of himself as a "traditional" professor.

Liko's mother is Professor Sada

The way the series has talked around Liko's mother seems like a Suspiciously Specific Denial with her being away from home in episode nine and Liko not talking about her before that, only thinking about her grandmother. Liko's analytical personality and her emotions only rarely becoming expressive could come from Sada. In addition, the school in Mesagoza is Neranja Academy, indicating the game is taking elements primarily from Scarlet, Which is the game Sada appeared in.

• Resoundingly Jossed. Liko's mother is named Lucca and she is actually only vaguely based on the player character's mother, but has Liko's features like black hair and blue eyes.

During their travels, the crew of the Brave Asagi will meet characters from the video games that never appeared in the anime prior.

The games are full of characters that were Adapted Out of the anime for Ash's adventures. If Horizons is going to be traveling the world beyond Paldea then it seems like the best time to introduce characters from these older games. Some examples might include:

• Janine, Will and Karen
• Brendan, Wally, Sidney, Phoebe Glacia, Zinnia and Aarune
• Hilbert, Hilda, Nate, Rosa, Shauntel, Grimsely and Marshall
• Calem, AZ and Emma
• Eilo, Selene and The Ultra Recon Squad
• Milo, Nessa, Kabu, Gordie, Melony, Klara, Avery, Peony, Peonia

One also can't really claim that they're irrelevant since a good number of them are also in Pokémon Masters

• One of these is confirmed! Promotional material released alongside Episode 13 indicates that Kabu will appears soon when they get to Galar, so the door for the rest of them is open.

What if the Ancient Trainer that has caught a shiny Rayquaza is Ash?

• We saw a shiny Rayquaza in M18, and I'd imagine the technology and society advanced since then because a Pokemon Professor is steering an airship with a Pikachu, plus the anime did hint it's moving away from Ash and his generation.
• Alternatively Ash traveled in time, as happens, and he caught the shiny Rayquaza. Ash has done so on several occasions, creating stable time loops and altering the future, why not do it again?
• But that doesn't explain why the Shiny Rayquaza seemed to be partially Terastallized.
  • It probably spent too much time being exposed to the energy offscreen, It's been known to happen to real life animals and their offspring considering how they operate in their respective regions that they stop to make a home in , And perhaps Ash caught the pokemon during a time travel event as theorized later after winning the Galar Championship.
• Episode twelve states the Trainer lived a hundred years ago. If that is the case, the cast we knew and loved from the previous series' are dead and we are seeing the legacy they created.
  • If that were the case, then wouldn't technology have advanced further then what was shown in Journeys? It feels like its the same age, right down to characters using the same Rotomphones that people had in Journeys. Not to mention that with Kabu appearing in the main anime, it wouldn't make sense at all for the timeline for him still being a gym leader in Motostoke well after Ash and all the other characters from that era to be long dead.
    • Tying into the above comment about Rotom Phones: Episode 18's flashback shows characters using regular smartphones instead of Rotom Phones, which would imply its set before Sun and Moon/Journeys when Rotom Phones became commonplace. So if Horizons is indeed set in the same universe as the original series, then the odds of it being any sort of major timeskip are pretty much null.
• Episode 23 shows us what Lucius looks like and he looks nothing like Ash, with different hair and eye colors. If he was Ash he would of had to change apperence drastically as he aged.

Roy's grandfather is actually Lei

• If Ash is the legendary explorer like the guess right above predicts, Lei is the only character who could justifiably still be alive a hundred years after Journeys since he was a newborn then. I know he doesn't look a hundred years old, but that could be handwaved as him being Older Than They Look which happens in a lot of anime. Would also make Roy related to Professors Kukui and Burnett, of course.

Liko and Roy's future Pokemon

What do you think they'll obtain?

• Personally I believe that they'll get Pokémon that few or none of the main characters from all the previous series had caught before. Also since the main plot seems to hint at them traveling to all the known regions to chase that Black Rayquaza, I also believe that their teams will end up a bit like the Brave Asagi and have team members from all the different regions rather then all of them being from one specific one.

Partially confirmed! Roy ended up catching a Wattrel while Liko caught a Hattenna in Galar.

Lucius's Pokémon

We know of two of the six "Pokemon Heroes" (the Black Rayquaza and the giant Arboliva) but what might the other four be?

• It is speculated on various sites that the heroes are Ride Pokémon from Pokémon Legends: Arceus. The monikers they are given the line up with their abilities. If it helps, Paldea and Hisui released very close to each other despite being in different generations , which would likely have anime tie-ins.
• Other than shiny Rayquaza and Arboliva, there is possibly other 4 Pokémon are yet to be determined, like Talonflame, Lapras, Galarian Zapdos and Houndstone, according to the glyphs in the book.
  • The Racing through the sky one is Jossed though, that's a Galarian Moltres.
• One of the drawings looks like a canine, and Liko's grandmother (who gave her the Terapagos Pendant) has an Arcanine. Entirely possible that's another one of them.
  • Jossed, she had it as her main partner since it was a Growlithe.
• Episode 25 confirms the rest of his team to be Lapras, Entei, and Kleavor.

The Next Generation will have a new series and Protagonist as will future ones

Liko and Roy will catch Pokémon that represent each region they visit.

Roy caught a Wattrel while they were in Paldea, while Liko caught a Hatenna in Galar. Following this pattern, Roy will catch another Pokémon that debuted in the region the Volt Tacklers visit after Galar, then Liko will catch a Pokémon from the region after that, etc.

Iris will be the first character from a previous series to appear.

The Teal Mask Expansion of Scarlet and Violet says that Blueberry Academy, the location of the next expansion, The Indigo Disk, is in Unova, and if the series goes there, it would make sense to have the character most associated with Unova in the anime appear, especially since she became much more popular after her reappearances in Journeys. Especially since Terapagos will be at the center of that DLC, like it is with this series.

Liko is descended from Lucius

The brief shot of him in episode 23 seems to show that he has black hair with blue underlights, the same as hers. He also has the same symbol as Liko's hairpin on his glove.

• Episode 26 seems to support this theory as we get to see a much clearer photograph of Lucius. The shape of his hair in particular is very similar to Liko's, as well as Diana's when she was younger.
• Episode 32 gives us this◊ image of Lucius and um... if that doesn't all but confirm it, I don't know what will.

Diana, and by extension Lucca and Liko, are distant relatives of Carmine and Kieran and thus of Kitakami blood

Diana and Liko have a hairstyle reminiscent of Carmine and Kieran, namely, black outer hair and colored inner hair (red for Carmine, violet for Kieran, blue for Diana and Liko), but Diana takes it further by wearing a yellow headband just like Carmine and Kieran. Since Hereditary Hairstyle is a thing in Pokémon franchise, Diana's family and Carmine and Kieran's family may share ancestry, for example, Diana could be the cousin of Carmine and Kieran's grandpa and thus makes her their grand-aunt.

Just for Fun: While Diana's ace Pokémon seems to be Arcanine, she'll also have a Garchomp

This is mostly a joke that makes more sense to English-speaking fans: the name Diana originates from the goddess of the hunt known as Artemis in Greek, and said goddess is often associated with the moon (some sources even forgot that the actual moon goddess is Selene/Luna and not Artemis/Diana). And we have one particularly famous character in the franchise whose name in English is also associated with the moon: Cynthia. And since Cynthia's most famous mon is Garchomp, Diana may also have a Garchomp as an in-joke.

If Ash does appear in this series, he will have a Dunsparce that evolves into Dudunsparce.

It would finally provide a bit of closure to a side-plot from the main series. He tried to catch one a couple times in his series, and given that it's Gen IX that finally threw Dunsparce a bone by giving it an evolution, it would only feel right for Ash to be the one to show off Dudunsparce.

Liko and Roy will occasionally join Dot on Nidothing's streams, with their own personas.

Ascended Fanboy for the both of them, opportunities to bond more with Dot, and potential hilarity seeing Liko and Roy being on a stream in their own costumes. Why costumes? Well, Dot doesn't want other people knowing she's Nidothing still after all, so were Liko and Roy to join the stream as themselves and then get spotted alongside her off the stream, it could cause people to suspect if not her, then another member of the Rising Volt Tacklers, of being Nidothing, which would be more trouble than it's worth, so it would just be safer for all three to do the streams in costumes.

• Liko is easily recognized by the Nidothing fandom as that girl from the hide-and-seek collab with Iono, so it's a start.

Lucius's Entei will be revealed to be Paradox Entei instead

It's highly likely that there will be a Paradox Entei in the Indigo Disc DLC for the games. It will be revealed that what Diana thought was Entei was actually a said Paradox Pokemon instead. With the anime showing regular Entei to avoid DLC spoilers.

• Gouging Fire has been confirmed. Now we just wait and see what the show does.

The RVT will travel back in time through a Space-Time distortion

Since Kleavor was revealed to be one of Lucius' Pokemon, this may require some time-traveling shenanigans to obtain it. Plus it would just give Hisui some much-needed representation in the anime.

Lucius was actually Evil All Along

Lucius is explicitly stated to have searching for a paradise called Rakua. Considering how the legend states that he and his Pokémon lived happily ever after in this paradise after they found it, why are they found in seemingly random-ass locations around the Pokémon World? Perhaps, Lucius sealed them away in the event they would try and stop him, which would add to a reason as to why the Ancient Pokémon, upon being released from their Pokéballs, are so hostile towards other humans - they remember when Lucius betrayed them.

• He might've been under the Pecharunt influence...
• It is suggested in both the Moltres and Lapras episodes that the Ancient Pokémon actually miss Lucius. Which wouldn't make sense if he betrayed them.
• It is possible that Lucius is evil yet able to hide it from his partners - after all, Volo exists.

The Paradise Lucius is looking for, Lakua/Rakua, is actually Area Zero

In Latin, Lucius's name may derives from Latin word lux (gen. lucis), meaning "light" (<PIE *leuk-, "brightness"), related to the Latin verb lucere ("to shine"). Now what else that you can think of that shines brightly? Tera Crystals, which originate from Area Zero. In addition, since Terapagos is believed to be connected to Area Zero in some way, it possibly being its origin point/home, it would make sense that Terapagos would know where this "Lakua/Rakua" is.

• Now that its English name Lakua has been revealed, it doesn't really help much more. I mean, there IS a town in Spain named Lakua, but...

Lucius' Lapras will have the power to gigantamax

It would be more fitting if they found it in the Galar region.

• The titles for episodes 31 and 32 seem to support Lapras being in the Galar region.
• Lapras was found in Galar, but no word or hint as to its Gigantamax capabilities.

Coral will have a similar origin to Liko and try to convince Liko they are actually just like each other

I could see Coral formerly being a lot like Liko before someone in the Explorers molded her into being the Psycho Pink she is now. She might give Liko a "Not So Different" Remark and, if she's a Dragon with an Agenda like Amethio and Spinel, give a We Can Rule Together proposition to Liko.

• Not very likely. Not only is she too spoiled and impulsive to pull off such a thing, but she has openly antagonized Liko and her friends way too many times for that to work.
• Alternatively, she could try this with Anne. Both of them are enrolled in the Naraja Academy's Terastal program, which is rife with opportunities for character interactions.

Just for Fun: "Gibeon" is really Beast Megatron.

He is voiced by David Kaye, he's sending out his minions to do his dirty work (while he's probably hot tubbing with his rubber ducky), he has little tolerance for failure, and he's heavily associated with the color purple. Who's to say he's toying with a bunch of organic lifeforms for grins just so he can obtain the ultimate power necessary to take over Cybertron and the universe? Or, alternatively, if he does show his face, he'll have Pokémon that homages the other Predacons like a Beedrill (Waspinator), a Galvantula (Tarantulus), an Aerodactyl (Terrorsaur), and a Drapion (Scorponok).

• Jossed (and thankfully for Liko's sake). He's not the Predacon leader, but he does have a shiny Zygarde.

Pecharunt will play a major role in the show later on.

With the Indigo Disk DLC finally out, there's a strong possibility that one or more characters might get the Kieran treatment. For example, Lucius might've become so obsessed with finding Rakua that he became the leader of the Explorers, Gibeon. This would make sense as Diana said that Lucius and his friends were called the Explorers as well.

• Or this could happen to Anne, if all the theories about her being the mole are revealed to be true.
• However, the Terapagos Flashbacks hint that Lucius actually successfully found and entered Rakua, so that part might be unlikely.
• But we don't know the full story. Maybe he did, but something could've happened to him there.

The Six Heroes Are All Stellar Typed

The Black Rayquaza has a noticeable rainbow hue around its body at all times. With the release of the Indigo Disk DLC, we now know of the existence of the Terastal-exclusive Stellar type, which is essentially all the types combined (though its only super effective against Terastalized Pokemon). This might be what links the Six Heroes together.

If Kitakami gets explored...

It would be a decent alternative to time traveling back to Hisui time, which would allow for Hisuian forms to make their anime debut.

• Furthermore, one of the Six Heroes (specifically Kleavor, a Hisuian evolution of Scyther) could be found here. Maybe it has a rivalry with the Bloodmoon Ursaluna.

Liko's Terapagos is actually female

It seems bizarre for Terapagos to be given a gender to begin with, when the only Terapagos one can catch is male. This made me start thinking that Liko's Terapagos could be given out via event and confirmed female. The Japanese dub already gives it a slightly feminine voice.

Just for Fun: Liko will only catch female (or genderless) Pokemon.

Liko so far has only caught female Pokemon (other than Terapagos), Sprigatito (confirmed female in ep 36) and Hatenna ( a 100% female species). It would be kind of funny if she just continued to catch more females (and maybe the odd genderless).

Pokémon Horizons takes place a few years after Pokémon Journeys via Time Skip

The real reasons why this series hasn't made direct continuity connections to the old ones is because A) They want this series to stand on its own without the classic characters like Ash, Pikachu, Team Rocket etc and B) They want Ash's return to be a true surprise in that he has aged considerably and has only become more famous akin to Red. And just for Mythology Gag, it would be revealed that Horizons takes place 3 years after Ash defeated Leon.

Pokémon Horizons takes place concurrently with a version of the main story of SV

Nemona had a Pawmo during episode 10, has a Pawmot in the Terastal Debut poster, and one of the promo images for Terastal Debut shows Penny in a video alongside the Paldean Elite 4, implying that she got involved in working for the league. In light of this, it’s possible that some version of the Scarlet and Violet base game plot happened offscreen, with Nemona's appearance in episode 10 corresponding to her challenging Brassius a second time, and with Terastal Debut happening at least after Starfall Street, when Penny would be working for the league to compensate for committing grand larceny, and possibly even after The Way Home, given that Nemona’s Pawmot is fully evolved as well.

Shiny Rayquaza is capable of Mega Evolution

Since we now know it has Dragon Ascent and the new game will have us return to Kalos, this is a great promotion for Mega Evolution to return. Plus Gibeon has a Shiny Zygarde, it has to be promotion.

Gibeon will have a team that parallels Lucius' team

Gibeon—the leader of the Explorers who is implied to have some shared history with Lucius—has a shiny Zygarde in his possession. This means that we now have two shiny legendary Pokemon in the show: a black dragon and a white dragon, both of which had significant roles in the sixth generation (the lack of a Z version at the time notwithstanding) and are shiny. This may be a promotion for the upcoming Legends Z-A. So what if Gibeon had other Pokemon that could act as parallels to the rest of the Six Heroes? Here are some examples:

• If Lucius' Entei turns out to be the Paradox version, Gouging Fire, then Gibeon might have a Paradox version for one of the Swords of Justice. Iron Boulder would be the best fit as it, along with Gouging Fire, wasn't revealed until the Indigo Disk DLC came out.
  • Alternatively, he could just have a normal Terrakion on his team.
    • The anime is a marketing tool for the games. It makes more sense to show off the newest form of a Pokemon than to focus on its original version, especially in this case because all the rumors of a Unova return game for generation 9 turned out to be false.
• As Kleavor is a Hisuian evolution, another Hisuian evolution would make a great counter. Maybe Ursaluna, specifically the Bloodmoon form.
• Either one of the Galarian legendary birds to counter Galarian Moltres, or maybe even one of the Kantonian birds.
  • My guess would be Galarian Zapdos (since its Fighting Type would be a good foil to Moltres-G's dark type) or normal Articuno (the Ice Typing would be a contrast Moltres-G's design).
• Lapras serves the role of seafaring, so another large water-type that can carry passengers across the sea would be fitting. Maybe Gyarados, so that its Mega can be included. Or maybe overlapping with the Hisuian slot to give us Basculegion.
  • Said Pokemon might also be giantic, but the equvialent is anyone's guess.
• Because new lore has stated that he was someone who always sought to be the most powerful, which led him to increasingly greater positions and achievements, I don't think it's too out of the question for his team to be bloated with Legendaries and just generally powerful Pokemon.

Gibeon is Really 700 Years Old

Maybe not literally 700 years old, but his attire being similar to the long missing Lucius could mean that he's from around Lucius's time.

• According to Diana, said age would be somewhere around a century old. As thats when she belives Lucius's adventure happened.

Gibeon is slowly dying from an illness and wants to find Lakua to cure himself

Gibeon's bed confinement and total refusal to see his subordinates at any time could imply that Gibeon is suffering from some sort of illness. It could be possible that he is looking for Lakua to cure himself of the illness, with the six Pokemon and Terapagos being a key to Lakua.

• Alternatively, he's just dying of old age.

Rakurium, the material that Gibeon wants to find Lakua for, is actually something that grants immortality.

Gibeon could perhaps have found Lakua and that's why he's able to survive for a long time, and perhaps he wants to find the elixir to continue his activites and perhaps even live forever. It could possibly also be a way to bring Lucius into the story. In addition, the whole idea of Lakua gives off huge "Fountain of Youth'' vibes to me. It could also explain why some of his Pokemon, despite being long outside their Poke Balls (Lapras, Arboliva) and being from Lucius's time (an entire century ago) are still alive.

Gibeon himself was an old friend of Lucius's who found Lakua with him, and then was defeated and made to forget Lakua's location by Lucius

Again, Gibeon dresses up very similarly to Lucius from what we saw in HZ045 and what we saw of Lucius previously, and the Explorers was originally made of friends of Lucius. It's possible that Gibeon is directly a founder of the Explorers, then upon discovering Lakua and something in it, battled and fought Lucius over the place before losing (likely over Gibeon becoming greedy/corrupt with the power in Lakua) before being cast out and reforming the Explorers as an organisation that eventually adapted to its current goals. He did say that he plans to return to Lakua, as if he's already been there.

Lucius is still alive in the present day

Notably, all of Gibeon's lines related to Lucius state that his adventure "is not over yet". Could this be implying that Lucius is still alive in some way shape or form? This additionally ties into the multitude of theories previously mentioned.

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