Pokemon Journeys Destroyed One of the Best Pokemon Backstories of All Time

After Ash Ketchum became champion of the Alola Region in Pokemon Sun & Moon: The Series, many fans were curious about how the animated show would continue. Few could have predicted the debut of Pokémon Journeys. Breaking from the traditional structure cemented over decades of air time, Journeys didn’t take place in a single region. Instead, Ash became a side character in an episodic, random series of one-off adventures with a new companion, Goh.

While a change in episode structure was necessarily a bad thing, it was Goh’s debut that doomed Journeys. The character was based entirely on Pokemon Go, which at the time of the show’s launch was still enjoying positive reception from players. Goh is a whiny, frustrating character whose entire purpose is to catch one of every Pokemon he encounters. Over time, his lack of ability as a trainer, combined with his general success in catching some of the most difficult Pokémon in the world, became a meme.

The true tragedy of Journeys was what the series deprived fans of. The release of Journeys overrode what would have been the series based in Galar. In doing so, animated series fans were robbed of one of the best character stories of the franchise.

A Watered Down Version of Galar

The majority of Pokemon Journeys takes place across numerous regions that Ash has visited throughout his travels as a trainer. Galar is one of the few regions that is new to the Alolan Champion, but the area only features in a few short blips of story. The core of the story plotline is skimmed over, with Ash and Goh forcefully inserted into an abbreviated version of the Eternatus disaster of Sword & Shield, and the Galar Champion Leon becomes a milestone battle for Ash as the seasons progress.

This version of Leon lacks the depth, emotional damage, and struggle that Sword & Shield‘s Leon possessed. This leaves him as flat as Nemona from Scarlet & Violet, acting as nothing but a battle-hungry top trainer obsessed with championship matches. The crude removal of Leon’s backstory and struggles is a tragedy, as his story in the games is actually one of the most emotionally turbulent Champion narratives of any generation.

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Leon Is One Of Pokemon’s Most Complex Characters

Pokemon Sword & Shield did a particularly good job with the characters of the Galar region. This is especially true of Leon, who started training at a young age and fought his way to the top of the ranks, holding his position as the best trainer for years. Right from the start of the game, players are shown that Leon takes his job as Champion very seriously, even putting his life on the line to protect Galar from the ongoing Power Spot phenomenon.

However, there are cracks in the powerful persona. The first is Leon’s relationship with his younger brother Hop. Hop idolizes Leon, but the core of their relationship has been through a TV screen, as Leon is a good bit older and has been on his Pokemon journey for most of Hop’s memory. Leon even asks the main character to be Hop’s rival, in hopes that his younger brother might have the chance to grow and experience his own journey, instead of simply mimicking what Leon did before him.

Leon’s friendships are also turbulent, with his best friend Raihan also serving as his opponent and Rival. Because of this, Leon is constantly pushing himself to a breaking point, and this inevitably ends in his own downfall as Champion. In his original storyline, Leon works for Chairman Rose, the leader of the League in the Galar region. He has gaslit and misled Leon and many other Gym Leaders into placing their Gyms on Power Spots, which then causes the Gigantamax Phenomenon that is present throughout the game’s storyline. Leon is constantly managing the random Gigantamaxing of Pokemon for Rose, not aware that he is part of the problem.

When it is revealed that Rose is insane, Leon is left to clean up the mess, taking on Eternatus. However, at this point, he is unable to tackle the Pokemon, and is shown up by the main character. He is then beaten in the Championship battle, leaving him with absolutely nothing.

Despite all of this, he takes time to recover by battling at the Battle Tower, before eventually going on to found the Galarian Star Tournament as a way to help heal the region following Rose’s lies. Leon’s story makes him an emotionally compelling, dimensional, and interesting person. His struggles set him apart from the typical heroes of the series, and all of this is completely missed in Pokemon Journeys so that a Pokemon Go reference could dominate multiple seasons of the anime.

The loss of Leon’s story and a deeper exploration of the Galar region are among the biggest failings of the Pokemon animated series. Goh was not a good character, and to have his flimsy storyline as the focus on the last Ash arcs instead of an epic Gigantamax adventure with interesting and well-built characters will always be one of the show’s biggest letdowns.