WMG / Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon

Sun & Moon Anime:

Ash's new Pokémon

Ash's Party

• (C=Confirmed)
• Pikachu (C)
• Rowlet (C)
• Rockruff (C) -> Lycanroc Midday (J)
  • There's a strong indication that Ash's Rockruff will follow The Pikachu Effect and evolve into what's being called the "Twilight Forme". (C - Jossed on the name; it's "Dusk Forme")
• Litten (C)
• Pikipek
• The Wimpod from Treasure Island.
• Crabrawler
• An Alolan-form Pokémon.
• Jangmo-o
  • All Pokémon Ash has caught so far has or will have an unique Z-move, so that's why I think he'll get and evolve a Jangmo-o
• Wishiwashi
  • He has a mouse, a bird, a dog and a cat thus far. All that's left is a pet fish.
  • It will be seen in a glass bowl, and will jump out of it whenever it enters a battle and activates Schooling.
  • My god! Ash has become Satori Komeji!
• Poipole (C)
  • It is the only Ultra Beast that is capable of evolving and even its design is the most Pokémon-like of all of them. Naganadel's base stat total is significantly lower than the rest of the Ultra Beast (barring its pre-evolution, of course), thus it doesn't look too overpowered.
• Eevee (J)
  • The poster for the new season seems to hint this one will join Ash in a similar fashion as Poipole. And in the new opening it's seen running towards Ash.
  • It was Lana who ended up catching it.
• Meltan (C)

Ash's Rockruff is going to Discard and Draw a move for Psychic Fangs, and that move will be Bite.

Olivia and Gladion both have Lycanroc as stars of their parties. though in the case of Olivia, her Lycanroc was changed from Midnight to Midday, whilst Gladion's is still Midnight, presumably to associate his appearance with the games. with a leak that he still has a Type: Null from a sticker set in Japan. it's likely that Ash's Rockruff will soon evolve, just that his would also gain an Ash!Greninja-esque Super Mode.

The ending in japan has various characters pulling poses with various Z Crystals. namely Lillie with Ice, James with Poison, Jessie with Normal. but Ash has Psychic, but none of his Pokemon has any psychic moves they could have utilized. logically they could have avoided showing Ash twice and avoided showing Fairy at all. since they shown only a limited number of types. but Ash with his mom's Mr Mime? it's obviously a placeholder until Rockruff evolves. they just can't reveal it now because it's part of a marketing push for Ultra Sun/Moon.

As to how it'll adapt the move. maybe with Litten's help, it can combine its own Tackle, with Litten's tutoring for a elementally-tuned Bite attack. this would push Rockruff into Genius Bruiser territory, especially once he learns how to cause his bites to become projectiles, finally mastering Psychic Fangs. some event in the anime will probably make his Rockruff evolve into a new form under legendary circumstances, that coincidentally has some local legend attached. these Rockruff would have a much more logical presence, including an invokable way to evolve as many as you want in Ultra Sun/Moon, maybe irradiating an evolutionary stone with Wormhole energy? or even evolving it inside a neutralized reality where Solgaleo or Lunala doesn't have clear dominion.

Also, the games only has 3 (4, if counting Smeargle) Pokemon that can use Psychic Fangs, Carvahna can have it bred down via Bruxish, but Lillipup has no way of gaining the move. this may be a predecessor, if in the case where if someone managed to breed a Rockruff with the move in Ultra Sun/Moon and trade it to S/M. and also as an early form of incorporating the legality of moves that USUM may bring once they revamp movesets. they can introduce new forms of Pokemon, but they wouldn't want to alienate people who might have Pokemon bred from one game and placed into another. they may have a brief clause where the latest games cannot be used for competitive. mainly concerning new forms (as the norm) as well as Ultra Beasts and Legendary Pokemon. (including Mythical/Events)

Ash will get a Rowlet as his first Starter

If this Corocoro leak◊ is to be believed, among the starters, Rowlet was the nearest to Ash. So there is possibility.

• Confirmed.

Ash will catch an Alola Form Pokémon.

Probably a Sandshrew, just to be different - it's partly a Steel-type, one of four he hasn't officially owned yet, and the only other native Alolan Steel-types (not counting Legendaries/Mythical/Ultra Beasts) are Togedemaru (which already belongs to one of his friends) and the Alola Form of Diglet/Dugtrio.

• Jossed.

Ash will not get a Popplio.

Even though it is odd for him to have only two regional starters on his team, Lana's Popplio is already well established as the resident water starter. Two Popplios would just confuse things. (Besides, it's not like this is the first time he's only gotten two regional starters - the last time it happened, in Sinnoh, he also got the Grass and Fire starters, while his female companion got the Water-type.)

• Confirmed, pretty much from the get go.

Ash will catch Nebby in the form of Solgaleo.

Recent promotional artwork has shown Ash with not only a Solganium-Z, but also Solgaleo next to him. In addition, the second intro to the series shows Pikachu running alongside Solgaleo. If these are accurate, then it's likely that Nebby will evolve into Solgaleo and Ash will catch it, getting his first-ever Legendary after nearly 20 real-life years of encountering such creatures.

• Possibly confirmed, Solgaleo is aiding Ash with rescuing Lusamine from Ultra Space, but future episode titles suggest Solgaleo will leave Ash.
• Jossed, as Nebby leaves the group in SM055.

Ash's Rowlet will eventually evolve...but it'll take a longer time and may involve some Rescue Romance coupled with Character Development

So far, Ash already has two pokémon that have evolved at least once in his Alola team, so of course fans will be hyped for another possible evolution. Considering Decidueye's popularity, it's possible that Rowlet will eventually mature past his role as The Ditz and as a Static Character. Rowlet will notice that he's lagging behind his teammates and decides that it's time he takes his battling seriously and eventually starts to become more aware of his surroundings. Plus, the whole "sneaking behind the enemy" technique that Rowlet's develop could be Foreshadowing towards him reaching his final evolution, since Decidueye has the whole silent assassin motif. I'm calling it that if Rowlet evolves at least once, it'll be because he was protecting Mallow's Tsareena from some sort of danger. If he'll evolve just once, then it'll probably be when he saves Tsareena. But if he does evolve twice and becomes Decidueye, then Rowlet's evolution into Dartrix will happen during a battle, and his evolution into Decidueye will be for the aforementioned protection of Tsareena.

• Pretty much jossed in SM095. Rowlet swallowed an Everstone and uses it as ammo to attack with Seed Bomb. There's no way he's gonna evolve now.

Ash's Rowlet isn't being allowed to evolve because of Torterra.

Basically the fiasco behind Jobterra. If there were any plans to evolve Rowlet they were basically scrapped when Hau was adapted and given a badass Mukuthrow as a starter since if Rowlet did evolve it would draw comparisons to Ash's Torterra. Something that that the people of the anime wouldn't want especially with a pokemon as undefined up to this point as Rowlet.

Ash's Rowlet knows "Rest" in its move-set.

It at one point in its life in the flock confused a TM(Rest) for a pancake and accidentally activated it when trying to eat it, learning the move. However, it caused the owl to become narcoleptic as it didn't know what had happened and whenever it sleeps, it recovers HP naturally for as long it sleeps. Due to not even knowing what a TM is, the realization never happened, and it has been using "Rest" on its own initiative whenever it's either low on HP or by accident during the day.

• According to the move-list from the official game, "Rest" actually is one of the moves it can learn, so this being the case isn't that implausible...

Ash’s Incineroar was originally going to be voiced in Japanese by Unshō Ishizuka

The man was cast as Incineroar in Super Smash Bros.. Unlike the other voices, he has never played Incineroar. I assume the voice acting cooperation for the anime suggested him with the intention of also having him voice Ash’s Incineroar, before his passing came to be. (Although Incineroar was planned without the anime in mind, by the time they put in voices the anime writers likely would have had plans).

Ash’s traveling companions

Lillie will be Ash's female companion in Alola.

Given how she's described in the previews, Lillie may be considered a stark contrast to the Kalos crew:

• She researches a good bit like Clemont could, but doesn't seem technologically inclined.
• She seems quite shy, in contrast to the wide-eyed Bonnie
• Given that she dislikes battling, she'd be mistrusting of Ash from the start. If she has an agenda regarding the Legendaries (of whatever sort), then she'd be even more suspicious of him. Direct contrast to Serena, who is loyal to Ash to a fault.

With the prior female companion(s) being so utterly supportive of him, and the one before being so utterly dismissive of him, having the next one be so utterly suspicious of him would be an excellent change of pace. Depending on how severe her views are, she could very well be a female!N without an Animal Wrongs Group to prop her up. I dare say, though, that she and Ash would be on the same side, but they wouldn't know it...

• Lillie is one of Ash's companions, but her anime counterpart is very different from her game counterpart; game Lillie just disliked Pokemon battles, while anime Lillie is outright scared of Pokemon. She also seems to be missing Nebby the Cosmog. She also does appear to trust Ash, though there isn't that much interaction between the two as of now.

As in the game, Lillie will go to Kanto

after the Alola League.

• She might become another assistant to Prof. Oak and appear every so often in future episodes.

Lillie's backstory and personality were changed due to similarities with Bonnie in the Team Flare arc.

The Team Flare arc was about a blonde girl hiding a baby legendary (with a cute nickname) in her bag so that the evil team it was stolen from couldn't find it. And then the baby transforms to help defeat the villain. Sound familiar?

Lillie is a Faller.

In the anime it is revealed that at a prior point she was not afraid of pokemon, but that her fear was caused by an incident she does not remember. In the games, fallers are humans who went to ultra space and returned and of those we know of (five, the PC, Lillie, Lusamine, Mohn, and Anabel), two lost their memories prior to the incident. Furthermore, ultra beasts are attracted to fallers in a violent fashion. Put simply, the incident that caused her to fear pokemon was either going to ultra space or, on or after the return trip, meeting an Ultra Beast that attacked her.

• Semi-confirmed. It is revealed by Gladion in a flashback in SM047 that Lillie developed her fear of Pokemon after a Nihilego attacked her when she was younger.

Lillie's fear isn't of touching Pokemon...

But rather a fear of being touched by Pokemon. Given how she freezes up whenever a Pokemon that isn't hers jumps into her lap, nuzzles up against her, or even so much as moves in her direction or looks at her, it could be that she thinks that the Pokemon will attack her, even if the Pokemon in question is gentle and has no intention of harming her. It could also go with the above guess of her being a Faller.

• Confirmed. In SM048, Lillie recovers a repressed memory of Gladion's Silvally seemingly lunging to attack her, which caused her to develop her fear of all Pokemon. It also caused her to relapse from her contemporary work in conquering said fear. In the next episode, she remembers the whole truth; Silvally was actually trying to save her from Nihilego, and this is the key to her fully conquering her fear.

Ash and Lillie will have Ultra Beasts in their teams.

Let's face it, Ash has had some pretty badass Pokemon for a kid like him, although that could be because he Took a Level in Badass throughout future arcs like the XY one. He's come a long way from keeping Bulbasaur and Squirtle as is to rocking two Dragon types come XYZ's finale. Imagine this; there's an entire Ultra Space/Aether arc in which with Wicke's assistance, Ash and Lillie receive Beast Balls and manage to snag two UBs during an onslaught. The two beasts in question? Buzzwole for Ash and Pheromosa for Lillie. The two UB-02s as a Foil to one another and could very much mirror their potential trainers in some way. If these two Pokemon don't end up in their teams, then maybe they will end up in a movie or special to help them out, only for Ash and Lillie to return them to Ultra Space instead of keeping them.

• Well, Ash did catch a Buzzwole, but only long enough to release it back into Ultra Space. He later caught Poipole, but released it back into Ultra Space.
  • Zig-zagged for Ash, since he catches an Ultra Beast and releases it, but Jossed for Lillie.

Lillie will be Ship Teased with Ash.

Pretty much an inevitability considering her interactions with the game protagonist.

• Roughly 75% of the way through Season 1, this is looking unlikely. All of the Ship Tease moments with Ash have been split between Mallow and Lana.
• I don't know, I've seen some with Lillie. Also it is worth noting pages exist on Bulbapedia for Aurelia Shipping (Ash x Lillie and Blue Angel Shipping (Ash x Lana but not Mallow.
• Any shiptease should not be read into. For all we know, Ash is finally not Oblivious to Love, and acting chaste with Lillie, Lana, and Mallow because he is waiting to reunite with Serena, whenever that may be.

Brock and Misty will make a return some time during the season.

It's the 20th anniversary of Pokémon, and what better than some of Ash's first companions to make a reappearance?

• Confirmed, at least for Pokemon SM Episodes 42 and 43.
  • And another poster seems to confirm they'll be coming back again soon.
    • Confirmed for certain.

Nebby is capable of reading minds.

With Nebby introduced in SM044, it has been entrusted to Ash for the time being, but not yet caught. In SM045, it grabbed onto each of the classmates, and used Teleport to send them each somewhere briefly. All the ones before Ash were teleported to places they had been. Ash was sent just about everywhere. At the end, Nebby teleported Team Rocket back to their den, then teleported back to Ash.

Given how young Nebby is, it probably wouldn't know most of those places on its own. And for it to happen that often precludes the idea of it being purely circumstantial. It is possible that Nebby was able to pick up locations to take its travelers by telepathic link when it latched onto somebody. That's why Ash went everywhere else Nebby had taken his other classmates, as well as back to Professor Kukui's house.

The Ultra Guardians as a Five-Man Band

• Ash: The Leader (of course)
• Lillie: The Lancer
• Kiawe: The Big Guy
• Sophocles: The Smart Guy
• Mallow and Lana: The Heart
• Gladion: The Sixth Ranger

Mallow will befriend an Ultra Beast

Her dishes, while bizarre for all her friends, will be exactly the kind of thing that one of the Ultra Beasts crave, and it will end up tagging along with the group. Most likely it would be Kartana due to the type-association and the size making it easy to be near.

Lillie will get the singing Jigglypuff

To counter her mother's Celfable, which she wanted to be a Clefairy, and in the games, she's shown to be a Fairy expert. Plus, the writers have to have some plan for Jigglypuff, because they brought her back after over ten years of absence, and nor just for a couple episodes like Brock and Misty, it's in Alola.

• I'd like to see this happen, but Jigglypuff is a classic character from the original series, and giving it to Lillie would likely mean permanently writing it out after Sun/Moon unless they plan to keep Lillie (which is unlikely).
  • True, but they already have written Jigglypuff out before, in the Hoenn arc. This way, at least Jigglypuff would find a permanent home, not just stating in the wild.

Mimi-tan died from a Totem Mimikyu

Mimi-tan originally "bled" to death

A tear on its cloth caused its body to seep out of it. It came back to life when Acerola patched its disguise.

Gary appears!

Since Blue appears in the games and it's been waaay too long since Palletshipping. Also misty and brock appeared.

Villains

James will take a level in badass.

It's said that the payment for Hyper Training is bottle caps, and James has been shown to have a large bottle cap collection. He'll use them to pay for Hyper Training, and get his Pokemon to their full potential. Maybe he'll even pay for Jessie's Pokemon as well. Possibly even get Meowth some Hyper Training.

• Meowth might even grow strong enough to evolve into Persian if he chooses to.
  • Alternatively, he could learn Pay Day finally, but not wanting to lose his ability to talk like a human, he forgets Fury Swipes, and becomes even more pathetic in battle.
• If this happens, they might help Ash to take a level in badass too by posing a real threat in battle. In turn, they will probably still lose battles to him.

The Team Rocket trio will try to catch some of the Alolan Pokemon.

When they see the new Alolan counterparts of the Gen 1 Pokemon, Jessie, James, and Meowth will try to catch them to bring to their boss because of how unique they are as compared to their original forms in Kanto.

Team Rocket will catch a Mimikyu and think they got Pikachu.

Mimikyu is a revealed Ghost/Fairy Pokémon that wears a Bedsheet Ghost veil to make it look like a Pikachu. They could use Mimikyu for themselves once they realize it's not really Pikachu.

• Multiple trailers show Team Rocket encountering Mimikyu.
• I kind of picture Team Rocket catching a Mimikyu and plotting to send it to Giovanni...and then realizing that they can't bring themselves to do it because the Mimikyu loves them for capturing it (naively assuming that they want to be its friends) and instead keeping it for themselves.
  • CONFIRMED! The catching part, at least. They quickly determine it is not Pikachu, but Jessie catches it using a Luxury Ball James had.

Team Rocket will find jobs at Ash's school

They will most likely get jobs as a custodian or chef, acting as a comic relief and trying to steal Pikachu from behind the scenes. Ash and co. will act very friendly to them, oblivious that they're Team Rocket in disguise.

• Thus far jossed as of SM076, but they do take legitimate (and occasionally illegitimate) jobs around Hau'oli City, including operating a food truck. They briefly had work at the Aether Foundation as well.

A major arc, or season (or even era) finale, will involve Mimikyu getting too evil for Team Rocket.

Let's face it: Mimikyu is giving off some serious psychotic vibes regarding Ash's Pikachu. I suspect that, at some point, it's actually going to try to kill Pikachu. This will result in an Even Evil Has Standards moment for Team Rocket, and Mimikyu will rise to the level of an Arc Villain, either for a season, or for the Alola era in general.

Mimikyu will Kick the Dog

What if it had a Moment Of Awesome through attacking the evil Lusamine?!

• Well, Lusamine was never evil to begin with here, and the Nihilego plot was resolved pretty quickly. Does that count as jossed?

Meowth will have an Alolan relative who can also talk

He's also a complete snob whom Meowth can't stand. Hilarity Ensues.

• Jossed. An Alolan Meowth messes with Team Rocket in SM062, and ends up stealing Meowth's money and flying to Kanto to take a job at Team Rocket HQ.

Lusamine

will somehow be drastically changed in the animeGhetsis was just N's adoptive father in the games, so the anime danced around the entire father-son dynamic they had in the Unova episodes. Lusamine, on the other hand, is Lillie's biological mother, so there's no way they can just downplay that. Lusamine is also a very major character in the games, so they cannot just adapt her out, since all other villainous team leaders have appeared in the anime. Likely, in the anime, she will either get Adaptational Heroism, will not be Lillie's mother at all (and will be a movie antagonist), or will just receive a brief cameo with subtle hints at her true intentions

• She is still Lillie's mother in the anime, and is somewhat implied to be antagonistic, though her true intentions remain unknown.

Team Rocket will encounter their Alola forms.

They will meet two members of Team Skull that look just like them with an Alola-form Meowth, as well as Shiny forms of Team Rocket's Pokemon either Ekans and Koffing, or Wobbuffet and Mimikyu.

• Ehh, not really. Tupp does kinda resemble James, and Rapp kinda resembles Jessie (both at least in terms of hair), but personalities are completely different, and they do not have Pokémon that really compare to anything Jessie and James have had, past or present. Nor is there a counterpart to Meowth (using Zipp for that would be stretching it). Jossed.

James will capture the Bewear that keeps coming after them.

As of Episode 12, when they gave in and decided to make Bewear's den their official Alola hideout, they have determined to try to capture Bewear down the line. We'll see how successful they are.

• Well, the series is almost over and they haven't managed to, so...
  • Jossed. Bewear stays behind in Alola.

Jessie and James could use a Z Move with Meowth.

While their bond is not the one between Trainer and Pokémon, the friendship between either one would still work for a Z-Move...if they ever get their hands on a Z-Ring and learn the right poses.

• Certainly not for a lack of trying. They get a Darkium Z, which Meowth could use, knowing Bite. But they don't have a functioning Z-Ring. And on top of that, there's the whole fact that Meowth is technically a wild Pokémon still.

Team Rocket will steal Ash's Z-Ring.

Ash will obtain the Z-Power Ring. Either Team Rocket will steal the replaced one afterwards, or Ash will use it to replace the stolen one.

• Likely jossed, since Ash's Z-Ring was physically upgraded into a Z-Power Ring in SM052.
• Furthermore, in SM073 they received a Z-Ring from Nanu and were allowed to keep it, so it's less likely they'd try to steal Ash's now.

Lusamine's English voice will be provided by Laura Post.

AKA English Dub Ragyo Kiryuin! Because why not? There's still one more chance since Sayaka Kinoshita was chosen over Romi Park.

• Jossed. Her English voice is Bobbi Hartley.

Necrozma in the anime will be created through experimentation from Faba in a similar vein to Mewtwo

Faba is the owner of Psychic type Pokemon. Therefore he may try to create the ultimate Psychic type Necrozma to attempt to destroy Ash because Ash and the gang defeated him earlier, which will result in Necrozma merging with Solgaleo.

• Jossed. Turns out Necrozma has existed for quite a while and is revered as a legend by Alolans.

Anime!Mimikyu's True Identity is Anime!Porygon.

OK, I can't entirely take credit for this theory this was what inspired me. So Mimikyu's porygon. So what? You ask. Of course "anime Mimikyu" will be "anime porygon". But this is what happened: 20 years ago there was an episode with porygon, that had flasing lights, caused hundreds of seizures, porygon got blamed and has never appeared in the anime since. And that's why porygon hates Pikachu. Because Porygon wasn't the one who caused the seizures. Porygon wasn't even in the scene that caused the seizures. Pikachu was, and pikachu did it. So Porygon hates pikachu because he was screwed over for something he didn't even do. He knows that if he shows his true form, then the Moral Guardians will banish him again.

Ula'ula Island will be Team Skull's last chance to be relevant

• In the games, it was on Ula'ula Island that Guzma first appeared, so unless he appears here, this will be the definitive proof that he's been Adapted Out.
• It's also on Ula'ula Island that Po Town was located. The presence and status of Po Town will determine whenever or not Team Skull as a whole is suffering of Adaptational Wimp (by not taking Po Town over) or not.
  • Not quite. Guzma took part in the Alola Pokémon League and the rest of Team Skill went over to root for him. That counts somewhat as relevant.

Team Rocket will eventually receive a second Z-Power Ring.

This way, they'll have one for each human member.

• Jossed.

Oranguru is the father of Bewear's child.

Both Bewear and Oranguru are in the Field egg group, and Bewear clearly has dealings with Oranguru. With Bewear now established as female, perhaps Oranguru is the father of the Stufful from SM096?

Stufful will leave Alola with Team Rocket.

Once the season is over, perhaps instead of catching Bewear, Team Rocket will take—or even be given—Bewear's child to go with them to wherever they wind up in the next region.

• Jossed. Stufful stays in Alola with Bewear.

Viren (Bourgain) is Guzma's father.

With his attempt to muscle Kiawe's family off their land, he's the kind of bad guy whose acts are all too real. So why not up the ante and make him an Abusive Parent too. This wiki already has him listed as Guzma's Expy, so maybe the Leppa Berry doesn't fall far from the bush. On top of all this, Viren has no in-game counterpart otherwise.

Plot & Setting

Ash will be on vacation in Alola

Because Alola has no gyms, it would be likely that Ash won't see any reason he should go there except to relax and take a break from running around and taking part in gym battles. But when trouble rears its head in the form of Team Skull (and Team Rocket), Ash will be called to action once again alongside any companions that he meets when he gets there. Ash will then have to take the Rite of Passage to prove himself worthy of the task of taking down Team Skull and thwarting their plans.

• Confirmed: Delia won a trip to Alola, which is why Ash was initially there. He decides to stay and go to the Pokémon School there after a run-in with Guardian Deity Tapu Koko.

Pikachu will have another evolution dilemma after being defeated badly by an Alolan Raichu

Pikachu had evolution dilemmas following defeats from Raichu in Kanto (Gen 1) and Sinnoh (Gen 4). Here we are, another three generations later, and we're due for another one. But this time, it'll be because of an Alolan Raichu, which is confirmed to have a secondary type of Psychic.Will Pikachu be able to resist evolution again? It has not yet been confirmed if anything special is even required to evolve to an Alolan Raichu. Could Pikachu even have a choice this time around?

• Pikachu does have a battle with an Alolan Raichu, but not in the way you'd think.

Ash will return to Pallet Town, and learn about the Alola region from Oak.

Professor Samuel Oak has a cousin in Alola in the games called Samson Oak, so he probably has a cousin in the anime and either Samuel Oak will tell Ash about the Alola region or his cousin Samson Oak will be visiting and he will tell Ash about the Alola region.

• Partially jossed. His learning about Alola is not why he went, though Professor Oak does give him a Pokémon Egg to deliver to Samson.
• Also partially confirmed, as Ash does in fact return to Pallet Town for a couple of episodes with the rest of the class in tow on a field trip.

Episodes involving the Battle Tree will see the return of some of Ash's past companions.

If the Battle Tree is to have a role in the anime, then it's likely that they'll have some of Ash's traveling companions from his past adventures make a comeback. It would not only double as a tribute to the 20 year history of the series, but also as a means of displaying Ash's growth since he began his journey. Potential returning companions may include:

• Misty
• Brock
• May
• Max
• Dawn
• Cilan
• Iris
• Serena

Furthermore, the Battle Tree episode(s) could also involve the return of old rivals, including Gary Oak. It would be interesting to see what each of these characters have been up to since they were last seen.

• Misty and Brock return in episodes 42-43 and it has nothing to do with the Battle Tree. Doesn't mean the others are jossed though.
  • 100% Jossed. The Battle Tree doesn't even appear in the anime.

Red and Blue/Green will appear...

...and turn out to be Ash and Gary's respective fathers. I imagine it going like this: Ash will meet Red outside the Battle Tree, and the two will talk about Pokemon and stuff (or Ash will talk and Red will listen) and hit it off. Then Delia will show up, ask Ash what's going on...then recognize Red as her ex-boyfriend/husband, with Red recognizing her in kind.

And then Blue/Green will show up, recognize Ash and cheerfully ask him how Gary's doing.

• Alternative. As a means of not necessarily showing Red as Ash's dad, either for the mystery or because writing him as silent as everyone would expect would be hard, Ash and co. only encounter Blue at the Battle Tree, as he's the one solely responsible for setting it up in this. Gary is also with the group at this time, perhaps having turned up a few episodes prior so he's here for this arc, and he and his dad, Blue, have some interaction (for better or worse, depending on how their relationship is played). When it's implied that Blue knows Ash's father, Red, the reason Ash and Gary have known each other since they were little, Blue becomes evasive on the topic, something someone in the know (possibly Ash himself) later explains is because Ash's dad's been missing for a long time, and no-one knows if something happened to him or he just ran away (likely the former, given it's a kid's show). The mystery is kept intact despite it being obvious who Ash's dad is now.

There will be "special" episodes much like Mega Evolution specials from XYZ

The episodes will follow Gladion as a Team Skull member and his quest to become stronger. As the specials go on, he will uncover Team Skull's secret alliance with the Aether Foundation. Gladion himself will be an Audience Surrogate for older fans, much like Alan for XYZ. Also like the ME specials, the two series will culminate during the finale for the Alola anime, where all the main characters in the series will combat Lusamine. Considering how well-received the Mega Evolution specials were, the anime should definitely jump upon the opportunity given a chance.

Type: Null/Silvally will talk.

It just kind of seems like one of those Pokemon who would.

• Jossed. Still Pokémon Speak.

Pokémon Breeding will finally be delved into in Sun and Moon, with Pikachu being paired with Togedemaru

At the end of SM006, Sophocles makes a point of telling Ash that his Togedemaru is a girl. This explains why Togedemaru was so affectionate with Ash's Pikachu. (Of course, Ash doesn't see any difference to them making a good pair in battle.)

But there is an interesting difference this time.

The only other recurring Pokémon that had such an intense crush on Pikachu was Dawn's Buneary. And as far as he was concerned, he was never too enamored by her attention. This time, however, Togedemaru's feelings appear to be mutual with Pikachu.

Could it be that, finally, they will actually go into detail about Pokémon Breeding, and Pikachu and Togedemaru could end up together at the Pokémon Nursery?

An episode will revolve around a Snorlax Festival.

Ash will ask his Snorlax to be sent over for the event, and during it, he'll obtain a Snorlium Z. If Snorlax hasn't already learned Giga Impact, he'll learn it during the festival, letting him use the move "Pulverizing Pancake" once he and Ash gain the Snorlium Z.

• Confirmed on the Snorlax Festival; jossed on the rest.

Ash's Z-Crystals

Ash already has three, and a fourth is essentially guaranteed to come soon (addendum: as of SM036, it has). Ash will get two more for each island at minimum, including:

• Akala Island Grand Trial - Rockium-Z. (Confirmed.)
• Ula'ula Island - Steelium-Z, ? (Bug, Ghost, Ice or Psychic). (Jossed; he got Lycanium-Z, and Lillie got Icium-Z in an unrelated incident.)
• Poni Island - Groundium-Z, Dragonium-Z.

A Pikashunium Z is also likely to be acquired, going by the 20th movie.

Ash's Z-Crystals - update

As of SM036, Ash has four of the type-exclusive Z-Crystals. Certain merchandise is indicating that Ash will also acquire a Firium Z, a Pikanium Z and a Pikashunium Z. But what, outside of those spoilered ones, could he get?

• Ula'ula Island - Steelium-Z (for use with Pikachu's Iron Tail, at minimum), ? (Bug, Ghost, Ice or Psychic).
• Poni Island - Groundium-Z, Dragonium-Z.
  • Steelium Z confirmed, but on Poni Island.

• A Snorlium Z and the species crystals for his two Alolan starters would also be good.
  • He did get a Pikashunium Z in SM054, but it reverted to its Electrium Z form after he used it to defeat Lusamine. He also got Solganium Z, though it's unknown if he still has it after Solgaleo returned to the wild.

Some or all of Ash's previous friends will appear in the 61st episode.

Because it will be the 1000th episode of the series overall.

• Jossed. The milestone was celebrated in a more ceremonial 1000th episode that takes anime specials into account in that number. The actual 1000th episode is the Japanese beginning of Season 21 (while Season 21 begins at SM044 in the TPCi English dub).

The Kanto double bill predictions..

James will be asleep on the plane, whilst some slightly hillarious situations occur, such as Meowth getting bored of trying to catch Pikachu and attempts to relax on the flight, only to look towards James' window to see Mimikyu out on the wing, freaking out in a similar scene to The Twilight Zone, only to be distracted by Jessie, turning back only to think he's only sleep dephrived. does a spit take, seeing Beware doing something silly (maybe running around the wing, vertically. or doing pushups?) before getting sucked into the engine, being ok, or maybe the opposite should occur, mainly to have Meowth stuck in a deep sleep?

Mid-point of the episode, Misty and Brock has their fights. Ash's Lycanroc was unconsciously absorbing Mega Energy into its being due to being charged with Astral energy from both Lycanroc (and Ash's vitality) from Tapu-Lele's Draining Kiss. suddenly Ash and the others will use their Pokemon, Team Rocket probably tries to steal the Alola Pokemon as well as Ash's stored on the ranch. Blablabla, Team Rocket's mech explodes and suddenly Beware winds up catching them. only to be revealed that to perform such a feat, Beware wound back a lot of distance, running, jumping and catching them, Superman-style. Lycanroc howls and some Pokemon evolve, mainly to promote the generation 2 VC games.

Candidates being Ash's Quilava or Scraggy, Misty's Azurill, Horsea or her Staryu, and either Brock's Croagunk or if they're avoiding spoilers....maybe he caught a Rhydon in Johto after that Cilan meetup episode? in the inital Ultra Sun and Moon trailer, you heard a Mega Evolution noise when you saw the player's Z-Ring, it could be possible that they may be adding Alolan-Mega Evolutions to further diversify the usage of Pokemon in competitive teams.

All of said pokemon would adopt Alolan forms. pokemon like Azurill are unobtainable within the region outside of transferring from a older game or using Island Scan which sould technically be non-canon.

Somehow Bewear will follow Team Rocket to Kanto

Because she's Bewear! May appear in both episodes or just the last.

• Confirmed.

The Kanto episodes will be the first in a series.

Every few episodes, Ash and his friends will visit other regions and meet previous travelling companions.

• Nice, I love it. Here's what I believe will happen:
  • In Johto, Ash will meet up with May and Dawn, who are travelling together.
  • In Hoenn, he'll meet up with Max and Serena, and in the end, Serena will choose to go to Alola with Ash after learning that Pokemon Contests are very, very different from Pokemon Showcases (and also, you know...AmourShipping business that finally shakes Ash from his Oblivious to Love running gag). Also, Ash will actually have a battle with Max, the latter of whom is borrowing Pokemon from Norman.
  • In Sinnoh, he meets Lucas, who turns out to be a childhood friend of Dawn's. At the end of the arc, Lucas travels to Johto to compete in the Johto League and meet up with Dawn, leading to a spin-off series in which Lucas and Dawn travel the world in a romantic-comedy that's about as grounded in reality as Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo.
  • In Unova, he meets up with Cilan and Iris, and also learns that Bianca is now Professor Juniper's assistant.
  • And finally, in Kalos, he meets up with Clemont and Bonnie, and the arc involves Clembot being reprogrammed by Team Flare holdouts.
  • Jossed for Alola, but a possibility for the Galar anime.

Nebby (as Solgaleo) will pull a Heroic Sacrifice.

And while he does save all his friends (and maybe even the world), he will unfortunately be Killed Off for Real in the process à la The Iron Giant.

• Jossed.

Ash will attempt to release Nebby towards the end of the season, but Nebby will decide to stay instead of returning to his home in the Ultra Space.

Ash will do so in order to protect the Alola region, fearing that Nebby is far too powerful to be kept on any team, but upon doing so, Nebby decides he wants to stay with Ash instead, feeling that he doesn't want to leave behind the one who raised him since he was merely a Cosmog and will start following Ash around. He might even start following Ash on later adventures and get involved in Pokemon battles.

• Jossed.

Ilima will be Ash's final League opponent.

Likely as an Author's Saving Throw after all of those living Diabolus ex Machina Canon Foreigner Trainers who came out of nowhere just to beat Ash in the League, this series will instead have a character who was pre-established long before the League AND is a character from the games. It helps that he's shown to be The Ace and is very much made up as a more competent trainer than Ash.

• I'm going to lean a bit more on him being a league opponent, but he will be battled at some point, as will Gladion.
  • Jossed. Ilima lost to Guzma in the Top 16, without even battling Ash.

Something about the Alola League will make 'fans' discount it like the Battle Frontier and Orange League

Because fandumb.

• Well, it is happening in some sectors of the fandom. And the biggest irony, is the fact that Ash won the league. So, confirmed?

Nebby will return to fight Necrozma.

Given that Necrozma's been confirmed for the show, it's more than likely that Nebby will return to do battle with it, as he does in Ultra Sun. Unfortunately, he will lose, and this will end up merging with Necrozma when it achieves the Dawn Wings form, becoming more powerful.

• Jossed.

Lunala's formal debut will be as a Poké Ride.

Lunala will be first hyped up as a powerful legendary Pokémon. And then an Ultra Recon Squad member appears, casually riding on top of it.

• Jossed, believe it or not.

When Team Rocket gets their Z-Ring

They'll find out that their Bewear friend knows the Dark-type move Brutal Swing and is thus compatible with their Darkinium Z. Then they'll go into battle with it and successfully perform Black Hole Eclipse.

• And, jossed for now - it's Mareanie who gets to use Black Hole Eclipse in its debut. Bewear could still use it in the future though.

Ash's Electrium Z was modified by Tapu Koko

Many people have stayed that Ash's Z-Crystal powering up felt like an Ass Pull. But who gave him that Z-Crystal? Tapu Koko! My theory is that it modified Ash's Electrium Z (it is an Electric type after all) to respond to certain situations for a stronger Z-Move.

In regards to the Let's Go! games...

If there's any major locations or features from the Let's Go! games that the writers/studio decide they really want to show off in the anime, rather than having Ash and co. go back to Kanto again for it at the end of the SM series in the way of the Battle Frontier arc (which could work too, mind you), all of the locations relevant to it (e.g. the GO Park if they decide to use that) will be in Alola instead in the anime universe, and any characters will be there instead too (or will travel from elsewhere for it if they already exist in the anime world).

The Alola League will be only one episode long.

To be more exact, this will be in the second episode of the second two-part involving Ilima. In total contrast to the other regions, the League is not a primary goal and the series is not too combat-focused.

• Jossed.

Ash will win the Alola League. I'm not joking.

Ash is meant to be the player character surrogate, and the player character is the first champion of Alola in Sun and Moon. Not to mention that with the exception of the Unova league, Ash either matches his rank in the previous league or does better. After getting second place and the moral victory in Kalos, there's nowhere left to go but the top. But does that mean Ash's journey is over? It doesn't have to be. Ash isn't the kind of guy to stop after winning once. And what do you do when your dreams come true? You dream a new dream.

• There's actually plausible hints that this could happen. A battle between Ash and the Masked Royal at the league has been hinted, but the episode before the league begins reveals that the Masked Royal isn't participating, and instead will battle the winner in an exhibition match. Ash could win the league, but lose to Kukui and decide that he still has more to learn. As the league episodes have yet to air, nothing's definite, but it does seem possible.
• Confirmed!

If Ash doesn't win (again), Hau will, and Ash will be in the Top 4 at worst.

Hau is the first champion of Alola in Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon after all.

• Jossed. Hau lost to Ash in the quarterfinals.

Top 16 predictions

• Sophocles vs Mina: Mina wins.
  • Jossed
• Kiawe vs Acerola: Kiawe wins.
  • Confirmed
• Jessie vs James: James wins.
  • Confirmed
• Lillie vs Gladion: Gladion wins.
  • Confirmed

The top 4 of the Alola League will be

• Ash. Confirmed.
• Guzma. Confirmed
• Kiawe. Confirmed by leaked episode title.
• Gladion. Confirmed by leaked episode title.

All the battles will be 1 v 1 at the league

With there seemingly being only one on one fights in round 2, this seems sadly likely. On top of that if we assume that Ash fights Gladion, Guzma, and Kukui Royal the mons he hasn't used in the tournament rounds (not the battle royal round) line up fairly well: Lycanroc has fought Gladion's mons every time, Pikachu had unfinished business with Golisopod, and Torracat battling Incineroar is a thing.

• Jossed. The semifinals were 2 v 2, while the final was a 3 v 3.

The battle against the Masked Royal

The exhibition battle will be a 3 v 3. It's known that he has a Braviary, his Incineroar and the preview for the upcoming episode reveals he's got a Lucario as well.

• Jossed. It's a full battle according to the Japanese titles. It is also 4 parts long.

This will be the final anime series starring Ash

The recent teaser for the new anime series reveals the next season will only be titled Pocket Monsters as the original series was titled in Japan. It says it will feature Pokémon from all regions, and it all points it could be a reboot of the anime as a whole. Furthermore now that Ash has won a Pokémon League, his adventures might be coming at an end.

• Jossed. The latest trailer confirms that Ash still continues as the main protagonist.

Others

The wild Stoutland is Litten's father.

• Both are in the Field egg group, Stoutland can get Fire Fang upon evolving, and it normally takes Litten to level 15 to get Fire Fang. If Litten's mother knew the move, Litten would be born with the ability, but because of anime rules, has to practice to get it right. Stoutland knew his time was short, so he was insistent on Litten's being ready to face the world without him. That's also why he supported the idea of Litten's joining Ash; he could sense Ash would care well for Litten.

The series's Trial Captains will all be original characters. Alternatively, there will be no Trial Captains.

The Trial Captains from the games are schoolmates of Ash's and not T Cs. Also, Totem Gumshoos challenged Ash directly in a different way from the games. Perhaps all the challenges will involve fixing a problem like this. Alternatively, Ash will aid his classmates in becoming T Cs.

• So far, the trials are being conducted by the Kahunas, so that part is Confirmed. As for Gumshoos, that did occur in a Trial, so that's Jossed.

The regular anime Pokemon world will make a crossover with the Pokemon world depicted in the "I Choose You" movie in the Sun And Moon series

The "I Choose You" movie replaced Brock and Misty, the two human companions, with two other characters the same age and gender. In the Sun and Moon series, Hau and the Trial captains that are not classmates are nowhere to be seen (including the one that is actually associated to the Pokemon School in the games!).

There will be a special episode commemorating the anniversary of the day when Ash began his Pokemon journey.

Come on, it's been 20 years since the day when we saw Ash get Pikachu. It would be rather fitting if the show were to pay tribute to the anniversary of the video games. It could feature flashbacks to the episodes of the other series, including the original. Furthermore, it could feature all of Ash's companions coming to the Kanto region to visit Ash and celebrate with him. And Team Rocket will decide to crash the party and take Pikachu, but will fail when Ash makes use of his reserve Pokemon to blast them off yet again. There are also a lot of things that could happen in an episode like this. For example:

• Misty gets jealous when she finds out that Ash has met so many other girls during his journey, and the others try to explain that they were just friends. It'll be even harder with Serena present, as she's the one who has a genuine crush on Ash.
• All if Ash's pokemon come back into the fold and battle each other to see who among them is the better.
  • Possibly confirmed with Movie 20? It's based on the start of Ash's journey.

There will be episodes focusing on the new Alola forms of the Gen 1 Pokemon.

As he travels through the region, Ash will meet each one of the new Alola form Pokemon. On occasion, he'll catch one of them to train. Furthermore, Pikachu will have a rivalry with the new Raichu, and will try to prove to his counterpart that he can be equally strong. Also, for laughs, Team Rocket's Meowth will meet his Dark-type counterpart in at least one episode and have a fight with it.

• Alternatively, Pikachu will become friends with the Alola Raichu and learn to surf just like them.
  • As far as Raichu is concerned, Jossed. The rivalry is far more friendly than the previous encounters between Pikachu and Kanto Raichu in the past. As for Alolan Meowth, we'll see with SM062, though previews suggest more drama in that rivalry.

There will be Call Backs to the Orange Islands arc throughout the series.

There are many similarities between the Alola region and Orange Islands, so it's not unlikely that it will be referenced on several occasions. Ash could even say that it reminds him of his time in the Orange Islands.

• Jossed?

Stoutland disappeared because it didn't want Litten to wake up to find it dead.

In SM007, Litten had a nightmare that was apparently about Stoutland dying. Stoutland knew about this, and with its health failing in SM021, it used the last of its strength to leave their underpass home so it could die alone.

Nurse Joy conjectured at the Pokémon Center that Litten was aware that Stoutland was dying. Hence why Litten ultimately treated its disappearance with such sorrow.

Gladion beats Ash in the Alola league

He does exist in the anime canon, will likely reappear as the show's plot thickens, has a Silvally that can change into any type, will function as a good Foil to Ash with his brooding and serious nature, and is a fan-favorite character. Much like the games, the Alola league will likely be set up as Ash in on his journey, and both will challenge it. And much like Alain before him, when Gladion does beat Ash, his popularity in the fanbase will plummet down.

• That's assuming the Alola League would work like a regular Pokemon League, where it certainly doesn't in the games. If anything, I'd say the Battle Royal would be a more likely fighting tournament for Ash and Gladion to face off in.
  • Jossed. Ash finally won a regional conference.

Nebby will be given the Zygarde treatment

As the show becomes more serious, Lillie will likely find Nebby, like in the games. However, seeing as how it was a major part of her character in the games, it would be rather unsatisfactory if Nebby was like Meloetta from BW: joining the gang as a temporary member throughout several episodes, then leaving at the finale to its arc. Rather, it will function as an Expy of Squishy from XYZ: it will actually join as an extra member of the gang throughout the rest of the series, developing alongside Lillie with some hints being given to its true nature, until the climax of the Alola episodes, when it fully evolves and eventually leaves Lillie.

As it is, the S/M anime is a prequel to the events of the games.

The kids are still studying (presumably to becoming captains), Ilima is nowhere to be found (presumably studying abroad like he was said to be in the game), and Lillie refuses to touch Pokemon. As the series goes by, things will begin to move into game canon (eg. Lillie goes home, steals Nebby, etc.)

• Hopefully with some modifications, or Snowy is Doomed by Canon.
  • I think it's safe to say this is Jossed, or at the very least Zig-Zagged. The climactic battle against Nihilego!Lusamine takes place, though there are some prequel-like elements, such as Kukui and Burnet starting out merely as acquaintances, with their relationship developing until they get married in SM055.

Lusamine will take a liking to Ash.

Assuming Hau doesn't appear in the anime. Ash and Hau have very similar personalities, so Lusamine could take a similar liking to Ash instead.

• Jossed.

This series will have a Dancing Theme.

It may be made out of some of the Z-move poses the trainers do.

• Confirmed with the Sun and Moon ending, Pose.

Each of the Tapu's will find a rival in one of Ash's Pokémon

Tapu Koko already has an interest in Pikachu and Tapu Lele wants a piece of Rockruff according to the previews. And the other two Tapu's will also show interest in one of Ash's Pokémon. Tapu Bulu will fight an evolved Litten and Tapu Fini will fight a ground type caught by Ash.

• You may be on to something. Tapu Koko refused to fight Rockruff, insisting on battling Pikachu a second time. And Tapu Lele had a battle with Rockruff.
• The first two are confirmed, and the latter two are Jossed.

Ash will catch Nebby

The anime seems to be following the games more closely than normal this time around, so it might actually not be out of the question for Ash to catch Nebby once it fully evolves. Of course, this being Ash, that's no guarantee that he would end up keeping it.

• If anything, Zig-Zagged. He possessed Nebby, and Nebby always was closest to him. But ultimately, as a Solgaleo, it returned to the wild after they saved Lusamine from the Ultra Beasts.

The series will introduce good Mimikyus.

To show that not all Mimikyus are like Team Rocket's Mimikyu.

• Acerola's Mimi-tan might count for a confirmed example.

Nebby will evolve in Episode 50 after being kidnapped by Faba.

• Confirmed!

There will be an Ultra Recon Squad counterpart to the Ultra Guardians.

It just seems like it would be a possible thing.

• Jossed. The sole Ultra Recon Squad counterpart appears in a flashback.

There will be a Knight of Cerebus.

Maybe a clone of Ash who thinks he's the real Ash or maybe Guzma. Also clone Ash has a Ditto.

Rowlet will actually get his heart broken by Steenee at some point.

As of writing this, Rowlet kinda has a Stalker with a Crush thing going on with Mallow's Steenee. It was pretty clear as soon as SM018 that Rowlet was no longer interested in eating Bounsweet, and his reactions to her Sweet Scent were more a romantic crush than a literal hunger pang.

My thought is that Rowlet will evolve into Dartrix, and end up in a brief Rescue Romance with Steenee. Strictly Played for Laughs, of course, especially since they do not share an egg group. Soon after, Steenee will learn Stomp and evolve into Tsareena. As a result, it will undergo a personality change, and break Dartrix's heart. Again, entirely Played for Laughs.

• Jossed with the simple fact that Rowlet won't evolve.

Ash will bring his past Pokémon to Alola for the Alola League Conference.

It's been two regions since he last did so; it's about time he did it again.

• Jossed. He wins using natively caught Pokemon.

There will be a dream episode this season

And it'll basically be a canon Human AU.

Sophocles' Vikavolt is the wild Grubbin Ash tried to catch in the first few episodes.

The Grubbin Ash repeatedly failed to catch as a {Fauxshadowing were all one and the same, venting a similar personality to Charjabug initially, being reserved and hostile towards being captured at first, as well as being unusually energetic for the species line (even relatively as a Charjabug, who was always crawling around as a Funny Background Event). However after cocooning itself into a Charjabug, it sacrificed its agility that allowed it to evade in favour of Electric attacks, making it easier to capture. After Sophocles trained it to hone its Electric power for the Charjabug race and later evolved it into Vikavolt, it was left with the strengths of both Pokemon, allowing it to adapt to battling rather quickly, best exemplified with its Wild Charge which is strong enough in both fields that it could resist Kiawe's Supersonic Skystrike Z-Move for a while.

Ash's going to angst over what to after winning the League.

Now that he's finally achieve his series long goal of winning the League, he'll have So What Do We Do Now? angst for the rest of the season until he decides on whatever will kick off the new series.

• Confirmed, but it barely lasts five minutes in the episode.

Kukui's sixth Pokemon is a Generation VIII mon.

• As Tapu Koko prevented Kukui from calling his sixth out, and the new games out a month later, it's likely Kukui's sixth mon debut is being delayed to increase the surprise.
• Jossed, Tapu Koko just did that so it could fight Pikachu.

Nanu is ex-Team Rocket.

He met Giovanni sometime in the past and knows of his criminal enterprise. Giovanni himself is a bit surprised that he's become a cop. Maybe he used to work alongside Giovanni in their early years, back when Madame Boss was in charge, but left. Alola has a number of Kanto immigrants like the player character and a former Team Rocket member in the games, and racially he's closer to being from Kanto. Despite their different career paths the two are still on good terms.

Rowlet's origins

Female Pokémon only lay eggs that hatch into more of their own species. Ergo, Rowlet's birth mother was either another Rowlet, a Dartrix or a Decidueye, or its father was one of the above who mated with a Ditto. Then one of them dropped the egg off in Trumbeak and Toucannon's next, cuckoo style (or brood parasitism, to use the formal name), leaving them to raise the infant.

Jossed

Ash's first Mega Evolution will be a new Pokémon.

Adding it to previous Pokemon would limit it to the finals, which would rush [the X-Y] arc.

• Jossed, not possible. None of the new Alolan Pokémon have Mega Evolutions. Everything with the new Pokémon is about Z-moves.

Ash will obtain a Popplio in the anime series associated with Pokémon Sun and Moon.

• Jossed. Popplio is one of Lana's Pokemon. Ash has Rowlet.

Greninja will stay with Ash, even if he Oaks the rest of the Kalos Team

Ash parting from Serena would be bad but recoverable, if handled well.

Ash parting from Greninja, on the other hand, would be the Sharpedo Bounce. "It's been awesome Greninja, but I've gotta go to Hawai'i to get more Pokemon. Ktanksbai." Seriously, with such a Dangerous Forbidden Synchronization, unless Greninja is kept under lock and key,^note and in that case, how useful would he be down the line? leaving Greninja at Oak's to train would be more dangerous for Ash than keeping him around...

• Jossed, Greninja was released in order to keep Kalos safe.
  • However, Ash gave Oak 5 Pokè Balls. Including Greninja. Maybe once we get to the UB Incident Zygarde(s) and Greninja will fight off Guzzlord?
    • No, not including Greninja. Greninja and Goodra were both released. Ash giving Professor Oak five Poké Balls is likely a production oversight, unless he caught more Pokémon unseen.
    • Or maybe it isn't. The fact he showed the ability to easily recall Goodra suggests he can recall the dragon, and Chekvoks Gun is a trope. Bulbapedia and other sites readily argue over the exact status of Goodra.

Ash will get a Litten as his first starter in Alola

If they are going to have changes to how they do the anime, they should consider that Ash has never gotten the Fire starter first.

• He caught Bulbasaur first in Kanto.
• He caught Chikorita first in Johto.
• He caught Treecko (and none of the others) in Hoenn.
• He caught Turtwig first in Sinnoh.
• He was given Oshawott first in Unova.
• He was given Greninja (and got none of the others) in Kalos.

Starting with the Fire starter would be a refreshing change in the anime.

• Jossed. He got Rowlet first.

Ash's Rockruff won't evolve

Rockruff is far too marketable too evolve.

• Jossed. It evolved into a third version of Lycanroc known as Dusk Form in SM037.

Serena will become a long-term companion

Like Brock, she will seemingly leave at the end of Kalos, but then appear early on into the next region and re-join Ash.

• Please let this be true. Ash wouldn't just cast off his childhood friend like the others. She can even wear the same outfit as the as-of-yet unnamed Sun and Moon female protagonist.
• Serena has left for Hoenn to becoming a Pokémon Coordinator, and is not present in any of the trailers or leaks.

Ash will be accompanied by Prof. Oak's Rotom in the anime series associated with Pokémon Sun and Moon.

With the whole Rotom Dex being a thing now, it's a possibility. It could become the Max/Bonnie of the new gen anime being Ash's 4th companion.

• Jossed. Professor Kukui supplied the Rotom that occupies Ash's RotomDex.

The RotomDex will serve as the party's 3rd member for about a quarter of the series...

...until the party needs to Get on the Boat: The 3rd human party member will be either the boat pilot or a crewmember.

• Jossed. Sophocles, Mallow, Lana, Kiawe and Lillie are serving as his companions in most episodes so far.

If Lillie is the female companion, she'll have Rowlet

Owls, of course, are the traditional companion of a seeker of wisdom, and would be good for a person who'd want someone to keep watch during the night.

• Jossed. She has Alolan Vulpix instead and Ash has Rowlet.

The egg Lillie looks after is Nebby.

Nebby is major part of Lillie's character development.

• It is likely an Alolan Vulpix, due to its pattern, coloration, location found, and the fact that Alolan Vulpix is next to Lillie on the poster.
  • Yup, it really is an Alolan Vulpix. Jossed.

Mimikyu is The Team Wannabe for Team Rocket.

Due to Team Rocket's obsession with Ash's Pikachu, the Mimikyu shown in the previews will want to join Team Rocket. However, as seen in one of the previews, Team Rocket seems to be quite scared of it (at least initially). It won't officially join the Team, at least for a while; instead, it'll follow Team Rocket around for most of the season(s).

• Jossed. Jessie catches Mimikyu in SM004.

To justify Ash going to Alola, the regional professor is researching the phenomenon that happened to Greninja.

The professor is researching the synchronization, but everyone he talked to believes it's just a legend, but then, right there on TV, he sees proof in the form of Ash-Greninja. He immediately makes phone calls, resulting in Ash going to Alola.

• Jossed, Ash released Greninja back into the wild.

The Alola anime will follow a Time Skip

There is growing evidence that a Time Skip is coming. Movie 18's companion manga stated that Ash was 14, even though in canon he is still 10. The storyline with Serena in XY, as well as the slightly older demographic the anime has adopted in recent years, may be prompting the producers to make a move to finally allow Ash to add a few years.

• Jossed. Nope, Ash is still 10 years old.

As part of a Time Skip, the Alola anime will begin with the promised battle between Ash and Max

Remember The Promise Ash and Max made at the end of Hoenn? If there's a Time Skip, Max will also age to the point he can become a trainer as well. So finally, Ash and Max will be able to battle.

This anime region will have two stories.

One in the present and one in the past. The trailer shows the Trial Captains going to school with Ash, as well as Team Skull being devious. I'm thinking the bits with Ash in School are in the past, and the Team Skull bits are current day, after a time skip. Team Skull is lead by someone who was not able to be a Trial Captain. The game's Trial Captains are going to this school because they aren't Trial Captains yet. This could be how they age Ash. I'm thinking the anime will show the backstory of Guzma, in a kind of "Oliver on the Island" style from Arrow, with Guzma being a classmate of Ash. Why they let Ash in, I don't know.

It isn't Ash.

The plot twist : It is actually Ash's son with the exact same name as him. Sun and moon arc takes place in the future. He had a pikachu to follow the footstep of his father. This also worked to confirm 'who ended up with Ash'.

• I had a hard time believing it was actually Ash since the character's face looked so off in the trailer. It wasn't hard to imagine it could be his cousin from Alola or something.
• To separated him from Ash, his Pikachu will evolve to an Alola form Raichu so the main character still has a cute pokemon while being different from Ash's Pikachu. His Pikachu will start as a Pichu evolving early on to Pikachu.
• Jossed, as Delia, Mr. Mime, and Professor Oak making appearances means that this is indeed the same Ash from previous seasons.

Gladion will have Yuri Plisetsky's seiyuu

Look at all the similarities between the two; so, why not?

• Jossed; it's Nobuhiko Okamoto.

The circle of a Pokémon master.

Since the Alolan league is now a thing. This is a spot to more or less wonder and predict how will Ash lose at the Alola league. My bets are on Taichi Yagami and Agumon. As the two come from an Ultra wormhole and digivolve into WarGreymon to wipe out Ash's team.

...Goddammit Kukui...

Kukui will be the one who wins the league and defeats Ash along the way.

• This is Jossed, as Kukui isn't actually participating at all - instead, the Masked Royal will fight Alola's new Champion in an exhibition match after the tournament concludes. What this means for Ash's league placement since another battle between him and the Masked Royal has long been hinted at is yet to be seen.