Yeah, i hated the fact that Paul didn't enter the championships because "he doesn't like festivities" , i think that was a big excuse made by the writers.
@@erosgarcia6284 I honestly would’ve loved to have seen a rematch between Paul and Cynthia in the Masters 8. Maybe if instead of Iris being in the Masters 8, she battles Cynthia in the tournament just before the Masters 8 are finalized, like Ash battling Raihan, and the battle plays out the same as it would in the show. Then Paul could’ve battled Cynthia in the Masters 8, if he entered. Only instead of a 3 on 3 battle like the normal tournament stipulation, I can imagine Paul would request a full 6vs6 battle with Cynthia for their battle, which I think Cynthia would accept, and the audience would go crazy for. At this point, I think Paul could either win against Cynthia, or at the very least, defeat most of her Pokémon. If Paul won, he could be offered the position of the Sinnoh Champion. Then in the next round, Paul could’ve battled Ash in a full 6vs6 battle, as Champion Vs Champion. I think the main reason Paul didn’t enter was because he became more interested in learning more about Pokémon, and genuinely took an interest in becoming a Gym Leader instead. I imagine Paul will be the same kind of mentor for challengers that he was to Ash during their battle in Pallet Town. I’m not sure if Paul feels he has to prove anything anymore, especially if he won against Brandon in their rematch, which I’m guessing he did. If he defeated Brandon, I don’t think Paul is obsessed with battling competitively anymore.
@@eljordinio7647 I think Paul honestly made that part up, to hide the reason why he was really in Pallet Town, to seem like the hardass he was to Ash in Sinnoh. I think the reason Paul didn’t enter was because he wanted to learn more about Pokémon, as much as possible to prepare for his Gym. He seems to be genuinely interested in that kind of role. Maybe he wants to be the same kind of Gym Leader for his challengers that he was for Ash. I kinda wish we got another episode with Paul, like in Aim to be a Master, to explain and show that.
@@jakandratchet9930 honestly think the writers didn't make him enter was because they only had room for one of ash's rivals in the master 8 and chose alain out his two strongest rivals.
Something that makes Paul stand out more, is that he battled Ash not with the purpose of winning but to train him. He used three Pokemon specifically to prepare him for the Masters 8. Imagine if he had actually prepared a team made to take him down in a serious battle.
The thing is, I think he could’ve used those three Pokémon to win against Ash if he really wanted to, especially in Metagross’ case against Gengar. Metagross took the full impact of Will-O-Wisp when it could’ve easily dodged with Agility, like it did with Shadow Ball. Metagross obviously chose not to dodge Will-O-Wisp on purpose to help Gengar prepare for an incoming Meteor Mash and help even the odds for Gengar against Metagross. It was part of Gengar’s training. If Paul wanted to win that battle, he could’ve easily dodged Will-O-Wisp, and used Psychic instead of Meteor Mash against Gengar, or if it knows Zen Headbutt, could’ve used that instead. It makes me wonder what other Pokémon Paul has, and how the ones we’ve seen him use are doing. I imagine they must be even stronger than ever, at least on par with his Masters 8 inspired team, maybe even stronger.
@@jakandratchet9930 Yeah we don't really know paul's full strength or even if those are his strongest pokemon. He didn't enter the masters eight either so who knows
@@epicfan1598 I’m astounded that Paul didn’t even enter the tournament, even though he was definitely more than capable. My only guess is that after Paul’s rematch with Brandon, especially if Paul won, that need to prove himself kinda just went away.
@@eclipse2551Base lucario nO diffed raihan's ace With ease Who already had the level for m8 and was leon's former rival In other hand he struggled against paul's newly caught gyarados despite only using resisted moves
@@northstarpokeshipper2148 legit had to think 5 seconds who the heck was Nini..now I remember I mean she had a gothita, farfetch'd and smoochum and appeared in like 3 episodes
A hot take but I feel like Paul at this point became more of an iconic rival to Ash than Gary. Mainly because Gary would constantly belittle Ash but if you remember correctly, the two of them barely battled each other. I think they only had 3 battles before Gary decided to become a Pokemon researcher instead (first was before they both went to Johto, second their iconic match at the Johto League, and third right before Ash went to Sinnoh and two of those battles were just one-on-ones). Whenever Gary appeared, he usually just taunts Ash then goes on his way. However, Paul and Ash nearly battled each other every single time with Paul often coming out on top. The two was constantly at each other's throats and always tried to one-up each other (even Paul picked up some of Ash's tactics in battle like with the Counter Shield). However, both of them improved as trainers from their constant battles and became much better people as a result. It got to the point that Paul was more than happy to help train Ash for his Master's 8 tournament and was even seen smiling that his training paid off for him. Paul may not be Ash's strongest rival, but he was arguably the most important one
Agreed, their battles were more than just battles. It was a battle of ideals and to prove to each other whos approach to pokemon training was the right one.
I love how not only Paul is able to fight on par with pre-champion Ash, but that battle was also training for Paul since he was scouted out to become a Gym Leader. Idk to where but Paul might as well be the final test to trainers to see if they themselves qualify for the Pokémon League if they have what it takes to beat him.
After what happened in journeys, Paul needs to be ranked ahead of Alain. And Alain needs to be ranked ahead of Diantha. Ash beat Leon, who smacked Alain, who didn't need 5 freaking pokemon to beat Rillaboom unlike Diantha 😂. Meanwhile, even with Ash using his championship team, it STILL took two of his pokemon learning new moves for him to defeat Paul. 1. Ash 2. Leon 3. Cynthia 4. Steven 5. Paul 6. Alain 7. Diantha 8. Iris 9. Lance 10. Raihan
Paul is easily the best Anime Rival to date. This dude pushed Ash at every turn and in the end is still a Top ranked battler. Heck in his match against ash before the masters tourney he didn’t really seem to be trying to win. It tells me Paul definitely had the strength to be in that tournament and a top 4 battler. Would’ve LOVED if Cynthia gave Paul the Champion position in Sinnoh. Would’ve made me ecstatic and feel like Paul had a full character growth. He’s a legend.
Same. I was surprised he wasn't in it either, but then in the one episode, he mentioned to Professor Oak that he wanted to be a Gym Leader. Alain is really good too. Ash never beat him . Easily could now though, but Alain was also strong. Very serious personality too which is good cause he never messed around in battle.
Pokemon Diamond and pearl has to be one of the best series. Paul vs Ash setup is way too epic and the whole finale fight of Ash Infernape vs Paul Electiviter is just top notch
Rival wise, Pokemon Diamond Pearl for sure. Series wise, Pokemon Journeys I'd say. Journeys, Diamond Pearl, and XYZ was really good. Alola was good too but wasn't really my favorite. Journeys encompassed everything into that series. Diamond Pearl felt different from the other series. It was one of the more violent ones , and had ruthless villains like Hunter J and of course Team Galactic and their goals, but the storyline was far more story driven and focused more on characters and Ash's pokemon. XYZ showed a more serious side of Ash. Kind of like team rocket was in the first half of the black and white series. His battling, character, maturity was everything. One could have even assumed he was pokemon master back then , but obviously writing purposes made him lose to Alain . But I'd say Ash was the more skilled trainer in that battle. Those three are my favorites
Nope Imaginge not hw would not he was not in the Master 8 or 9 crap He could not gice cythia a run for the hill not for the monet crap at the most. but he's not intelligent trainer he more like a dumb and flawed trainer He was not skilled, and also evil.
@@eljordinio7647 Nope Imagine how well he would not do if we was not in the master 8 or not crap he could not give Cynthia or Lean a run of the hill not for the money at the worst. Not the most.
Ash and Paul's battle in the Sinnoh League might still be the greatest battle against a rival in the franchise. Some battles surpass it in individual aspects, but as a sum of enjoyment, callbacks, storyline, stakes and the poetry with Chimchar's abandonement ending up being the reason Paul lost is just perfect.
@@parkergreen2704that’s kinda how I view him. Basically baby Steven stone. Which is pretty nuts considering how strong his team got in such a short time. Semi-finals of the kalos league is no joke.
Indeed. But I am not sure if Rinto is a rival. He and Ash did not have any type of relationship. He is just a guy that Ash had rematch with and after that was never seen again
Like everyone, I would like to see Paul in the top of legendary tier or in champion tier with Cynthia included. He is too iconic. He could easily end up being on top 3 of the Masters 8 if he participated. In Ash vs Paul's latest battle, he didn't seem to be using his full strength. It looked like a casual battle.
Yeah that was because Paul was trying to help prepare Ash for his upcoming tournament and it worked wonderfully. He wasn't in it that time to beat Ash and it makes sense as Paul was taking things a lot more easy for now on (even allowing his Pokemon to play with Ash's earlier in that episode lol)
I would love if ash starts to make a recurring appearance around the middle of pokemon horizons as a trainer travelling paldea. It would be cool to see him make a few appearence
@soraandthegang1066 I agree, the whole point of Horizons is to serve as a new series without Ash; his time in the series is supposed to be over. People really need to give the series a chance without asking for Ash to come back, I feel like you hear more of that than anything on Horizons itself
@@matthewkuscienko4616 What i find so funny about it is that for years ive seen fans saying we should get a new protagonist and now that hes gone now I see is people wanting him to show up again. I agree Horizon should be its own thing
Honestly, Leon is just ridiculously OP. It would be pretty hard to imagine a trainer surpassing him. When it takes a trainer of Ash’s caliber to use 2 dynamax’s, a z move, and mega evolution, just to take down his normal team, with 2 dynamax’s, given charizard and cinderace, is just pure insanity. Also shows just how ridiculous pikachu is. Goes toe to to with gigantimax charizard, then takes down a full health gigantimax cinderace, and then eventually takes down charizard in his normal form.
I would love if the rival is someone who start like that but become part of the team, I'm surprise we never had an rival who join the team, that way we see just how strong they are which push Liko/Roy since they're not that good yet
Let's go, let's go, let's gooo! Super happy to see Sawyer so high. It makes me absurdly happy that an Ash fanboy like Sawyer is shown to have the potential to become that strong and not just be some cheerleader on the sidelines who only admires Ash's fighting spirit but doesn't emanate it themselves Gary vs Sawyer would be an INSANE fight; I would love to see those two tactical fighters go head to head
As much of an Alain fan I am, I have to agree. Alain always felt more like Ash's acquaintance or friend rather than a rival, just a strength goal XYZ Ash was striving for In fact, now that I think about it, I don't think Alain ever antagonized Ash, not even during the Team Flare arc Meanwhile, Paul was always, always antagonizing Ash and causing him to question his ideals and methods; Paul is definitely the best rival out of Ash's rivals
@@AryanGoswami-k5y WB se hu. Berhampore. Iss channel ko kabse follow Kar Rahe ho? Me 7-8 mahine se. Hamari jaise pokefans ke liye Zac kafi accha content banata hai.
Ash's Sinoh team was so well made and they had great connections between each other. He beat his rival fair and square for the first time. Too bad he lost to the dude with GameShark
I feel like Harrison can definitely be moved up to Elite Four Tier and Sawyer can potentially be moved up to Champion tier just because of how close the final battle between him and Ash was. I hate how Alain was treated in Journeys cause he's probably my favorite character in the series. He should've at least put Leon on his last leg.
I'm honestly not even sure if Leon technically counts as a rival as they only fought one time before the final battle. Rivalries up to now build each other up they more they battle-encounter each other to see development & growth between the two trainers, and we hardly got any of that with Leon; we got that more with Bea and heck technically at least almost Rinto than compared with Leon
Awesome list! Between the battle scenes and the Gen 3 battle music playing in the back it was truly a stroll down memory lane! I don’t think anybody can be mad at this list
0:15 and because he was essentially deleted from the Anime after the Sinnoh League concluded, and even if he wasn’t he was more than likely defeated by Cynthia since in Black and White when Caitlyn challenged Sinnoh’s champion to an exhibition match, the one to challenge her was You Guessed It, Cynthia!
Ok, we got all the tier lists as well as the team changes to ash and his companions. Now all that's left is Zac's team changes to all of the rivals in the anime (ash's, may's dawn's, etc.) MAKE IT HAPPEN, ZAC!
I hope that if when Ash does return to the anime that he battles Nemona and we get to see how strong he’s gotten and maybe it would be a good way to develop Nemona and show that she still has a long way to go. He could also battle Liko or Roy but none of them have shown to be super into battling yet so we will have to wait and see
@@eljordinio7647 But considering that Virgil and Ash both competed for Unova League and had friendship, he can be considered as rival even if two never fought
I’ll be honest, as fantastic as the Sinnoh League battle between Ash vs Paul is, and as satisfying as it was for Ash to finally win, I think Paul would’ve gotten the edge if he used this team that MysticUmbreon considers Paul best team: Torterra, Honchkrow, Drapion, Magmortar, Ursaring, and Electivire (there is the argument that Ash has learned how all of those members battled, aside from Drapion, but they never gave Ash an easy time at all)
I also think Paul was saving some of those Pokémon for Tobias. One other thing, I don’t think Paul losing to Ash amounted to Paul’s choices with which Pokémon he used, because I think if Paul didn’t let Ash defeat Aggron or Gastrodon on purpose, Paul could’ve won (not guaranteed, but more likely) that battle if he had switched Gastrodon with Drapion after Ash switched Staraptor with Buizel without Gastrodon fainting. Honestly, I wonder how Paul would’ve fared against Tobias. Tobias would’ve definitely won, but I wonder how many of Tobias’ Pokémon Paul could’ve defeated before finally losing. I wouldn’t be surprised if Paul challenged Tobias at some point after his battle with Brandon.
Great rated tier list of all Ash's rivals. I'm surprised about Trevor's rank thought you would put him in D tier but the explanation you gave putting him in the c tier reasonable. Love the ending of video priceless lol.
I’m surprised you didn’t put Iris in the tier list video because although she wasn’t Ash’s rival she’s still one of the best Legendary trainers in the world at least in my opinion.
the thing making ashs rivals overhyped is ashs strength resets pretty much every time the era changes. he was pretty powerful in the last bit of sun and moon but atr the start of journeys we dont even need to say.
@@christ5431 same with Greninja and Pikachu (mostly Greninja) in Kalos! Noivern, Talonflame, and Hawlucha were not that great. Hawlucha struggled against an Ice/Dark Type, with its only super effective move being ICE BEAM! Yeah his Kalos Team *sucks* pal!
@@aureliamastergoomba1278 Seriously hawlucha beat a mega evolution Talonflame to equalize with a legendary and he beat one of Sawyer's strongest Pokémon goodra beat the ace of Tierno and Clermont
@@aureliamastergoomba1278 Ahh you want to talk about the table of types in alola he has 4 Ground weakness in sinnoh 4 ICE weakness in kalos they have coverage to overcome their weakness like foot aerobatics flash cannon and flame charge unless you are a haster you must not be smart
I would put Sawyer higher on my list purely on his performance in the pokemon league. What he does are irl competitive pokemon battling strategies, and only Ash's plot armor was there to stop it. I believe that he would have something against Alain as well, if you discount Alain's plot armor that's crazier than Ash's.
You're not him, boy I'm not u buddy. Evil Paul has not improved his attitude a lot more than the last time you saw him, not me, you dunce. Also, you've got so many spelling mistakes, so please fix those. A good deed isn’t enough.
I liked the tier list and I do think Tobias is Ash's rival because he went against Ash with a Darkrai and a Latios and because he was one of the strongest trainers that Ash went against and he's probably is stronger than most of Ash's rivals because of his legendary team.
I would honestly put Paul above all in A tier. The reason is, that he didn't even used his aces: Torterra and Electivire and they're definitely stronger, than mons, that he used to prepare Ash for 8
@Zags007 nah, man, his Garchomp was stronger, than Leon's Dragapult. He would've lost to Leon, but would've took out 4 or 5 Leon's mons in a process. Plus, Alain was made to be an idiot for M8
@@Zags007 strength isn't the only thing tho. Paul is waay smarter than Alain especially with how he adapts to battles(namely Ash's unpredictability). Not to mention Alain focuses only on his Charizard unlike Paul who knows how to use all of his Pokémon. Paul would win against Alain even tho it would be close
I've watched the show and the writers have done it so dirty on Trip especially the loss against Simone's Dwebble, Biancas Emboar, and Unova Leaugue's first match against Ashes Pikachu. It's like they made him grow as a strong character just to get beat by really bad plot armor.
it makes me sad for how awful they treated these rivals in journeys. ash didn't get to battle gary not even just a friendly battle, ash and alain have literally no interactions despite having one of the best rivalries in the franchise, and paulbeing the ash's best competition is reduced to just a mere training partner. why couldn't be some if not all of the rivals be in the tourney competing with ash instead of just making in cameos smh. journeys just continues to dissapoint me as a series until now lol
I think Paul’s stronger then Alain. In Journeys he was almost just as strong as Ash. While Alain took a really big thrashing against Leon while Leon is on the same level as Ash.
Then again, Leon was way too strong where they had to let ash use 4 gimmicks to win, meanwhile alain still earn his place but sadly journey didn't care despite bringing him back for x/y fans
@@lulukomadori9651 it's like Journeys had something against XY given all the disrespect they gave it They didn't include Serena during Ash's flashbacks of his Kalos travels When Serena DID show up she didn't get much of a reunion with Ash They bring Greninja back without properly acknowledging Ash-Greninja And even though they did make two of the Masters 8 Kalos representatives, they had Leon completely disrespect and humiliate them
Paul didn't even face Ash's strongest pokemon Pikachu while base Lucario is weaker than Cynthia base Garchomp We also saw Ash's pokemons getting more powerful throughout master 8
@@eljordinio7647 That put Lucario above Raihan ace level but even Iris is stronger than Raihan. Cynthia's togekiss did more agaiant same Lucario than Paul's Gyarados.
I feel like Gladion should be higher (High B tier low A tier) considering that he decided to complete the island challenge because of Ash, plus he also had personal development compared to many other rivals through his family troubles and he was one of the better trainers in the Sun and Moon series.
I guess it might be because if compared with others to fight, I don't think Gladion wouldn't have stood any chance against any other rivals of Ash. If only they gave Gladion a full team at the time so that a full 6v6 instead of a 3v3 could help raise his scaling
@@MarcusMapuaI imagine that Gladion's only problem is the same. Since I see him as strong or maybe even more than certain B-Rank trainers, besides that we have to count the Z-move which is a huge advantage within a battle.
@@inamdaryasin Fun Fact though: with sm ash's team, all Gladion had to do to technically winning advantage over practically almost all of his alola pokemon team would be is to have Silvally turn into a Ground type Pokemon (takes out 5/6 and then we just Air Slash out rowlet)
Gladion should be higher up on the list. I feel like if he was fighting against any other trainer without plot armor in the finals, then he definitely would have won
I am kinda in a grey area with Leon I don’t really consider him a rival to ash cause he doesn’t portray the rival energy like someone like Paul and Alain does but I also do for the reason he fit the criteria to be an ash rival even though it was the bare minimum
I honestly think Paul is on ashs lvl. The Pokémon he used was training using the champions main Pokémon in which I doubt he uses all those Pokémon in his main team. And since it was training he didn't really need to make strategies and stuff to win since that wasn't his plan
No, I’m fine with Tobias not coming back! He was only really there to make Ash lose the Sinnoh League, and nothing more really 😒 However, if any other Sinnoh character deserved a return… it would be Nando 🎶 Nando was at least there for a real reason, but then the writers made him face Ash too early, then he left and never came back 🥺 They didn’t even give poor Nando a cameo watching the Masters 8 along with the others! Which, to me at least, is a bit unfair to Nando 😭
Hau is Victory Road Lvl at least and I am NOT kidding. Among the Kahunas, his grandfather is the closest to his E4 counterpart by the end of Sun&Moon, as he possesses both his in-game aces and has the most battle experience; if Hau was able to defeat him (without the Z-move, mind you), that means he's either on E4 Tier or right under, having barely started his journey. And if you need even more evidences, well, keep in mind that he almost defeated the Rowlet who (alongside Lycanroc) beated Champion Tier Kukui's 2nd strongest mon, Braviary. If that isn't strenght, I don't now what is it.
Great video!!! I would say Steven and Cynthia can also count as being ok the S tier. However, they did battle Ash just once, but others in the list also did that 🤣
They were not really rivals of Ash though. They were just trainers that Ash really respected before having official matches. It was different than Ash and Leon rivalry where they both yearned to battle each other.
What makes Paul high diff from all other rivals is that he doesn't have just the ace pokemon, but 6+ other really stong pokemon that are beasts. That is the reason I like him better than Alain who just throws mega charizard at everything
@@BikeEdward you have no opinion. All you have is just nonsense and you can't say anything original. If you have anything, it's a toxic narrow mind which is disgusting 😡🔥
Paul represents a irl competitive trainer. (He hunt for proper natures, unique moves, and proper IV'S) IN His pokemon. And picks his p9kemon specifically to cover others weaknesses. He's a beast.
I wouldn't say Kukui and Leon were rivals.... They don't fight through out the series like others do, and they feel more like (eventually) challenged mentors more than rivals to me. But setting that aside I agree with your ranking. :)
Kukui and Leon were rivals. Kukui as Masked Royal was strongest trainer in Alola and Ash battled him in Battle Royale. They had a rematch with Ash's Litten evolving but still lost. That was the moment when Ash and Torracat were rivals with Masked Royal and Incineroar. They would also team up on occasions and have another match in Alola exhibition match. Ash wanted to battle Leon while Leon was also interested in Ash's growth that he told others about him. They were both really looking forward to battle each other and even had some adventures together while also bonding.
For me Paul stood out the most he was a legendary rival because he genuinely gave all he got in every battle but after infernape won against electivire and after ash finally beat Paul to us die hard fans ash won the entire sinnoh league
It can't be coincidence that Bea was placed in the B tier xD Also love how we don't even talk about Tobias lmao. Though I guess it's because he's technically not a rival, but good to see Leon as the only S rank. Leon gets mad respect for facing Ash at his supposed peak with all his gimmicks, and STILL almost win.
Leon was also heavily interested in battling Ash that he even would tell others about him. He even personally watched some of Ash's battles before Masters 8 Touranment. They also had some adventures like Eternatus Saga, Baking, and even training. They really respected each other and Leon can tell Ash will be one of his greatest opponent that he was super excited too.
Nah Gary is arguably stronger. It would be a close fight but Gary has shown in Journeys that he still has his trainer skills on lock and that Regidrago on his team gives him a pretty big buff.
@@SonicSwift99 Legendaries vary they don’t bring you up anywhere, some legendaries are fodder some are op, unless Regidrago shows a feat that’s actually champion level he’s not there yet, and Gary max has shown elite four level feats, Gladion has champion level feats
@@SinfulPack Gary’s Blastoise was also able to fend off the same Moltres that Infernape had trouble beating. Either way I think this battle would be very close.
@@SinfulPack We can agree to disagree. I still think Gary is stronger especially with that Regidrago on his team but you’re free to disagree. And I think someone in this comment section referred to one of the writers or directors of the show stating that Gary had the power and skills of a champion which is why he would be a great mentor to Goh.
Alain losing wasn't the problem, it was the fact that Leon didn't even G-Max his Charizard to win and instead wrecked Alain's broken Charizard in base form. Bro actually got Yamcha'd.
Still, in terms of feats Charizard dominates infernape. Infernape couldn't beat a legendary while Charizard did, and the one time infernape took on a champion he got wrecked hard. Same with his performance against Flint Charizard hasn't beaten a champion either but he did beat a frontier brain, all of whom r said to be stronger than the Elite 4
Horizons Review Tomorrow.
W 🎉
Don't worry, you can skip that.
Still after that, I just want to know the 6 part of Pokemon Sword and Shield
As soon as possible, I am updated by you alone🥹
i do not know where my brain was at but read sword and sheild im a dummy
Paul is so iconic. The entire story arc with him and Ash leading up to the finale of the Sinnoh League was just incredible
Yeah, i hated the fact that Paul didn't enter the championships because "he doesn't like festivities" , i think that was a big excuse made by the writers.
@@erosgarcia6284 I honestly would’ve loved to have seen a rematch between Paul and Cynthia in the Masters 8.
Maybe if instead of Iris being in the Masters 8, she battles Cynthia in the tournament just before the Masters 8 are finalized, like Ash battling Raihan, and the battle plays out the same as it would in the show.
Then Paul could’ve battled Cynthia in the Masters 8, if he entered. Only instead of a 3 on 3 battle like the normal tournament stipulation, I can imagine Paul would request a full 6vs6 battle with Cynthia for their battle, which I think Cynthia would accept, and the audience would go crazy for.
At this point, I think Paul could either win against Cynthia, or at the very least, defeat most of her Pokémon. If Paul won, he could be offered the position of the Sinnoh Champion.
Then in the next round, Paul could’ve battled Ash in a full 6vs6 battle, as Champion Vs Champion.
I think the main reason Paul didn’t enter was because he became more interested in learning more about Pokémon, and genuinely took an interest in becoming a Gym Leader instead. I imagine Paul will be the same kind of mentor for challengers that he was to Ash during their battle in Pallet Town. I’m not sure if Paul feels he has to prove anything anymore, especially if he won against Brandon in their rematch, which I’m guessing he did.
If he defeated Brandon, I don’t think Paul is obsessed with battling competitively anymore.
@@erosgarcia6284 and hypocritical considering the sinnoh league was a major festivity
@@eljordinio7647 I think Paul honestly made that part up, to hide the reason why he was really in Pallet Town, to seem like the hardass he was to Ash in Sinnoh.
I think the reason Paul didn’t enter was because he wanted to learn more about Pokémon, as much as possible to prepare for his Gym. He seems to be genuinely interested in that kind of role. Maybe he wants to be the same kind of Gym Leader for his challengers that he was for Ash.
I kinda wish we got another episode with Paul, like in Aim to be a Master, to explain and show that.
@@jakandratchet9930 honestly think the writers didn't make him enter was because they only had room for one of ash's rivals in the master 8 and chose alain out his two strongest rivals.
Something that makes Paul stand out more, is that he battled Ash not with the purpose of winning but to train him. He used three Pokemon specifically to prepare him for the Masters 8. Imagine if he had actually prepared a team made to take him down in a serious battle.
The thing is, I think he could’ve used those three Pokémon to win against Ash if he really wanted to, especially in Metagross’ case against Gengar.
Metagross took the full impact of Will-O-Wisp when it could’ve easily dodged with Agility, like it did with Shadow Ball. Metagross obviously chose not to dodge Will-O-Wisp on purpose to help Gengar prepare for an incoming Meteor Mash and help even the odds for Gengar against Metagross. It was part of Gengar’s training.
If Paul wanted to win that battle, he could’ve easily dodged Will-O-Wisp, and used Psychic instead of Meteor Mash against Gengar, or if it knows Zen Headbutt, could’ve used that instead.
It makes me wonder what other Pokémon Paul has, and how the ones we’ve seen him use are doing. I imagine they must be even stronger than ever, at least on par with his Masters 8 inspired team, maybe even stronger.
@@jakandratchet9930 Yeah we don't really know paul's full strength or even if those are his strongest pokemon. He didn't enter the masters eight either so who knows
@@epicfan1598 I’m astounded that Paul didn’t even enter the tournament, even though he was definitely more than capable.
My only guess is that after Paul’s rematch with Brandon, especially if Paul won, that need to prove himself kinda just went away.
Ash wasn't fighting at his full strength either, he didn't used his Strongest Pokemon Pikachu or any of his gimmicks.
@@eclipse2551Base lucario nO diffed raihan's ace With ease
Who already had the level for m8 and was leon's former rival
In other hand he struggled against paul's newly caught gyarados despite only using resisted moves
You ranked Ash’s friends.
You ranked Ash’s rivals.
Now rank Ash’s FRIENDS’ Rivals!
💀
This is the funniest thing I’ve seen all week
Prediction: Serena, Iris and Cilan's rivals are all bottom tier while the top tiers are taken by Gary (technically a rival to Goh) and Zoey
@@insheepsclothing5574 Yeah. And the one in dead last should be Nini.
@@northstarpokeshipper2148 legit had to think 5 seconds who the heck was Nini..now I remember
I mean she had a gothita, farfetch'd and smoochum and appeared in like 3 episodes
A hot take but I feel like Paul at this point became more of an iconic rival to Ash than Gary. Mainly because Gary would constantly belittle Ash but if you remember correctly, the two of them barely battled each other. I think they only had 3 battles before Gary decided to become a Pokemon researcher instead (first was before they both went to Johto, second their iconic match at the Johto League, and third right before Ash went to Sinnoh and two of those battles were just one-on-ones). Whenever Gary appeared, he usually just taunts Ash then goes on his way. However, Paul and Ash nearly battled each other every single time with Paul often coming out on top. The two was constantly at each other's throats and always tried to one-up each other (even Paul picked up some of Ash's tactics in battle like with the Counter Shield). However, both of them improved as trainers from their constant battles and became much better people as a result. It got to the point that Paul was more than happy to help train Ash for his Master's 8 tournament and was even seen smiling that his training paid off for him. Paul may not be Ash's strongest rival, but he was arguably the most important one
Definitely
Nah
Not really
Initially, Gary was always stronger than Ash. He had much more experience. He defeated Ash when Ash was the orange island champion .
Agreed, their battles were more than just battles. It was a battle of ideals and to prove to each other whos approach to pokemon training was the right one.
I love how not only Paul is able to fight on par with pre-champion Ash, but that battle was also training for Paul since he was scouted out to become a Gym Leader. Idk to where but Paul might as well be the final test to trainers to see if they themselves qualify for the Pokémon League if they have what it takes to beat him.
I think that’s why he became interested in being a Gym Leader too! To help train/prepare trainers for the next level.
After what happened in journeys, Paul needs to be ranked ahead of Alain. And Alain needs to be ranked ahead of Diantha. Ash beat Leon, who smacked Alain, who didn't need 5 freaking pokemon to beat Rillaboom unlike Diantha 😂. Meanwhile, even with Ash using his championship team, it STILL took two of his pokemon learning new moves for him to defeat Paul.
1. Ash
2. Leon
3. Cynthia
4. Steven
5. Paul
6. Alain
7. Diantha
8. Iris
9. Lance
10. Raihan
Do u know who I think should of came back
1 ash
2 leon
3 Cynthia
4 steven
5 Paul
6 alain
7 diantha
8 gladion
I wonder how Paul would do against Alain.
@@marqueesiohays can someone talk about how we needed ash to battle all his past rivals again maybe a pokemon sword and shield series for Zac
Paul is easily the best Anime Rival to date. This dude pushed Ash at every turn and in the end is still a Top ranked battler. Heck in his match against ash before the masters tourney he didn’t really seem to be trying to win. It tells me Paul definitely had the strength to be in that tournament and a top 4 battler. Would’ve LOVED if Cynthia gave Paul the Champion position in Sinnoh. Would’ve made me ecstatic and feel like Paul had a full character growth. He’s a legend.
Same. I was surprised he wasn't in it either, but then in the one episode, he mentioned to Professor Oak that he wanted to be a Gym Leader.
Alain is really good too. Ash never beat him . Easily could now though, but Alain was also strong. Very serious personality too which is good cause he never messed around in battle.
Pokemon Diamond and pearl has to be one of the best series. Paul vs Ash setup is way too epic and the whole finale fight of Ash Infernape vs Paul Electiviter is just top notch
Yes I have the same opinion(and this main theme song so amazing)
Infernapes blaze is broken
With blaze, Infernape is borderline unstoppable
Rival wise, Pokemon Diamond Pearl for sure. Series wise, Pokemon Journeys I'd say.
Journeys, Diamond Pearl, and XYZ was really good. Alola was good too but wasn't really my favorite.
Journeys encompassed everything into that series. Diamond Pearl felt different from the other series. It was one of the more violent ones , and had ruthless villains like Hunter J and of course Team Galactic and their goals, but the storyline was far more story driven and focused more on characters and Ash's pokemon. XYZ showed a more serious side of Ash. Kind of like team rocket was in the first half of the black and white series. His battling, character, maturity was everything. One could have even assumed he was pokemon master back then , but obviously writing purposes made him lose to Alain . But I'd say Ash was the more skilled trainer in that battle.
Those three are my favorites
Wdyn he isn’t tamed you doof.
Paul wasn't just a strong rival, he was skilled at the same time; sure he wasn't the nicest guy to meet, but he's an intelligent trainer
Imagine how well he would do if he was in the Masters 8. He could give Cynthia a run for her money at the most
Nope Imaginge not hw would not he was not in the Master 8 or 9 crap He could not gice cythia a run for the hill not for the monet crap at the most. but he's not intelligent trainer he more like a dumb and flawed trainer He was not skilled, and also evil.
@@eljordinio7647 Nope Imagine how well he would not do if we was not in the master 8 or not crap he could not give Cynthia or Lean a run of the hill not for the money at the worst. Not the most.
@@ElJordinio-fd1jr you worthless swine don't know when to quit. Get lost or you'll be sorry 🔥🔥🔥
@@ElJordinio-fd1jrwhat are u on about he wasn’t in the master 8 because he never participated in it lmao
Ash and Paul's battle in the Sinnoh League might still be the greatest battle against a rival in the franchise. Some battles surpass it in individual aspects, but as a sum of enjoyment, callbacks, storyline, stakes and the poetry with Chimchar's abandonement ending up being the reason Paul lost is just perfect.
Sawyer has the best potential ..change my mind. He improved a lot in a short period of time!!!
And since he's basically Steven Stone's protege, he could be the next champion!
@@parkergreen2704that’s kinda how I view him. Basically baby Steven stone. Which is pretty nuts considering how strong his team got in such a short time. Semi-finals of the kalos league is no joke.
@@Shadow-jw1kt I wonder what else he would have in his roster.
this was a really good tier list, also pretty nostalgic to see all of Ash's old rivals again
Well, not all of Ash’s old rivals. He didn’t even include Brock and Misty.
Indeed. But I am not sure if Rinto is a rival. He and Ash did not have any type of relationship. He is just a guy that Ash had rematch with and after that was never seen again
Like everyone, I would like to see Paul in the top of legendary tier or in champion tier with Cynthia included. He is too iconic. He could easily end up being on top 3 of the Masters 8 if he participated. In Ash vs Paul's latest battle, he didn't seem to be using his full strength. It looked like a casual battle.
Yeah that was because Paul was trying to help prepare Ash for his upcoming tournament and it worked wonderfully. He wasn't in it that time to beat Ash and it makes sense as Paul was taking things a lot more easy for now on (even allowing his Pokemon to play with Ash's earlier in that episode lol)
Nope,. he is still not that reformed.
Paul is not very so different then Ash , if Ash can do it then Paul would easily match with him .
Paul is not different then poor sweet Ash
If he was in the Masters 8, he’d probably also job to Leon
2 characters kind of need to to keep the stakes high
I would love if ash starts to make a recurring appearance around the middle of pokemon horizons as a trainer travelling paldea. It would be cool to see him make a few appearence
even an namedrop would be amazing to let us know where/when this takes place
You people should really let go and let horizon be there own thing instead of just asking for ash
@soraandthegang1066 I agree, the whole point of Horizons is to serve as a new series without Ash; his time in the series is supposed to be over. People really need to give the series a chance without asking for Ash to come back, I feel like you hear more of that than anything on Horizons itself
@@matthewkuscienko4616 What i find so funny about it is that for years ive seen fans saying we should get a new protagonist and now that hes gone now I see is people wanting him to show up again. I agree Horizon should be its own thing
@@soraandthegang1066 it’s not easy something you’ve loved for years
Honestly, Leon is just ridiculously OP. It would be pretty hard to imagine a trainer surpassing him. When it takes a trainer of Ash’s caliber to use 2 dynamax’s, a z move, and mega evolution, just to take down his normal team, with 2 dynamax’s, given charizard and cinderace, is just pure insanity. Also shows just how ridiculous pikachu is. Goes toe to to with gigantimax charizard, then takes down a full health gigantimax cinderace, and then eventually takes down charizard in his normal form.
I hope they give Liko/Roy a rival that uses a competitive team.
I would love if the rival is someone who start like that but become part of the team, I'm surprise we never had an rival who join the team, that way we see just how strong they are which push Liko/Roy since they're not that good yet
I think the ceruledge trainer is their rival
@@patrickkh1245 He's more of a rival for The Rising Volt Tacklers, even if he wants Liko's pendant.
@@lulukomadori9651 clemont was a rival to Ash
Wonder what kind of strats they would use if they were a competitive battler
Let's go, let's go, let's gooo!
Super happy to see Sawyer so high. It makes me absurdly happy that an Ash fanboy like Sawyer is shown to have the potential to become that strong and not just be some cheerleader on the sidelines who only admires Ash's fighting spirit but doesn't emanate it themselves
Gary vs Sawyer would be an INSANE fight; I would love to see those two tactical fighters go head to head
Especially if Gary gets a Mega Blastoise.
The fact that we will never see Ash vs Nemona is the biggest crime the anime writers have ever done.
Paul was the best balanced rival Ash ever got,He was the hardest to crack Love You From India 🇮🇳
As much of an Alain fan I am, I have to agree. Alain always felt more like Ash's acquaintance or friend rather than a rival, just a strength goal XYZ Ash was striving for
In fact, now that I think about it, I don't think Alain ever antagonized Ash, not even during the Team Flare arc
Meanwhile, Paul was always, always antagonizing Ash and causing him to question his ideals and methods; Paul is definitely the best rival out of Ash's rivals
Bhai kidhar se ho?
@@jayd.doubledubs Agreed 🤝
@@avijeet424 Bhai Mein Ahmedabad Se Hu Tum?
@@AryanGoswami-k5y WB se hu. Berhampore. Iss channel ko kabse follow Kar Rahe ho? Me 7-8 mahine se. Hamari jaise pokefans ke liye Zac kafi accha content banata hai.
The sequel to ranking his companions is HERE!!!
Leon once Said “THERES Way more trailers that There are better than me”
-wise words
What does that mean?
Ash's Sinoh team was so well made and they had great connections between each other. He beat his rival fair and square for the first time. Too bad he lost to the dude with GameShark
After Latios he might have Deoxys and Latias but no way he has mew,mewtwo,and Arceus
Tobias Crying in the corner 😂
Bro i was looking for this😂
Yeah because Cynthia kicked his ass
Okay actually he was not a rival. He just defeated ash that's it... He had nothing to do with ash..
He's nothing but cheating filth
@@SeivilonShe didn’t, Tobias just gone for milk
The writers should of have Brendan replace Morrison as Ash's main rival in the Advanced Series. He did briefly appear in the Destiny Deoxys movie.
For those who don't know, Brendan's the male counterpart of May in Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald and the remakes.
Sadly it the rule of the pokemon anime where we don't have the male protagonist meet up with ash, we didn't see gold from the chronicles special
I think we can all agree all the rivals are unique and strong in there own way except Cameron
why cameron?
Yeah... No
Virgil hardly counts for anything since he and ash never even fought or interacted
Trevor is weak
And yeah Cameron is an idiot
Cameron would be an absolute threat if he organized himself more
YEAH Cameron SUCKED ASS!!!
@@migspogi2097Fax. The man has a decent team, he just needs to pull himself together.
I feel like Harrison can definitely be moved up to Elite Four Tier and Sawyer can potentially be moved up to Champion tier just because of how close the final battle between him and Ash was. I hate how Alain was treated in Journeys cause he's probably my favorite character in the series. He should've at least put Leon on his last leg.
I'm honestly not even sure if Leon technically counts as a rival as they only fought one time before the final battle. Rivalries up to now build each other up they more they battle-encounter each other to see development & growth between the two trainers, and we hardly got any of that with Leon; we got that more with Bea and heck technically at least almost Rinto than compared with Leon
@@MarcusMapua Leon and Ash still interacted a lot before their final battle so that definitely helps his case
Yeah Leon definitely needed to be challenged by Alain given his skill despite not being a champion
Awesome list! Between the battle scenes and the Gen 3 battle music playing in the back it was truly a stroll down memory lane! I don’t think anybody can be mad at this list
Imagine if Ash was in the Horizons animé. Though even if not a cameo, a reference yould be neat.
0:15 and because he was essentially deleted from the Anime after the Sinnoh League concluded, and even if he wasn’t he was more than likely defeated by Cynthia since in Black and White when Caitlyn challenged Sinnoh’s champion to an exhibition match, the one to challenge her was You Guessed It, Cynthia!
I always wanted to see a battle between Paul and Gary Oak, shame it will most likely never happen...
Ok, we got all the tier lists as well as the team changes to ash and his companions.
Now all that's left is Zac's team changes to all of the rivals in the anime (ash's, may's dawn's, etc.)
MAKE IT HAPPEN, ZAC!
I hope that if when Ash does return to the anime that he battles Nemona and we get to see how strong he’s gotten and maybe it would be a good way to develop Nemona and show that she still has a long way to go. He could also battle Liko or Roy but none of them have shown to be super into battling yet so we will have to wait and see
Roy IS into battling. His goal is to find Rayquaza AND to make Fuecoco as cool and strong as Charizard.
@@tyson543 let's hope that means he will fully evolve into Skeledirge
Zac: Ash's rivals strengh tier list
Also Zac: (ads Virgil)
Oh yeah, lol, why was he on there, he could of just added Cross from the I choose you movie
@@lulukomadori9651 He atleast had 2 battles with Ash
@@knucklestheceoofmemes7755 Oh well, just blame Cameron, Lol
@@knucklestheceoofmemes7755 Virgil and ash never even fought
@@eljordinio7647 But considering that Virgil and Ash both competed for Unova League and had friendship, he can be considered as rival even if two never fought
Ur actually absolutely right I agree with this I thaught Alain was falling under the S tier but it all made sense now seeing that he lost to Leon.
Ash losing to Cameron when he only had 5 Pokémon is the biggest plot armour in the whole anime, on par with Tobias
Absolutely
Not absolutely. U bullying
@@Destroyerofworldandalsom-hg9ir first change your profile
@@SoldierBoy227 NOPE I will not. u spammer. stop calling me that.
first change your profile evil Paul is the worst.@@SoldierBoy227
My tier list would be the same but I'd move Gladion to the B tier in front of Bea and I would have Kukui, and Paul in front of Alain in the A tier
Paul is untouched he was a phenomenal rival. I loved everything about him.
I’ll be honest, as fantastic as the Sinnoh League battle between Ash vs Paul is, and as satisfying as it was for Ash to finally win, I think Paul would’ve gotten the edge if he used this team that MysticUmbreon considers Paul best team: Torterra, Honchkrow, Drapion, Magmortar, Ursaring, and Electivire (there is the argument that Ash has learned how all of those members battled, aside from Drapion, but they never gave Ash an easy time at all)
I also think Paul was saving some of those Pokémon for Tobias.
One other thing, I don’t think Paul losing to Ash amounted to Paul’s choices with which Pokémon he used, because I think if Paul didn’t let Ash defeat Aggron or Gastrodon on purpose, Paul could’ve won (not guaranteed, but more likely) that battle if he had switched Gastrodon with Drapion after Ash switched Staraptor with Buizel without Gastrodon fainting.
Honestly, I wonder how Paul would’ve fared against Tobias. Tobias would’ve definitely won, but I wonder how many of Tobias’ Pokémon Paul could’ve defeated before finally losing. I wouldn’t be surprised if Paul challenged Tobias at some point after his battle with Brandon.
thats his best team for sure but
infernape would have won anyway
Eh. Ash would have still won but it wouldn't be that easy
Great list, although I would imagine that Cynthia would also be here but there was only 1 battle between Cynthia and Ash.
Ash never really saw Cynthia as a rival compared to an ally
she is not ally.
@@BikeEdward will you just SHUT UP?!!!
She is not really an ally.
@@Eljordino4345-ud6kj WHAT PART OF SHUT UP IS BEYOND YOUR FEEBLE PATHETIC COMPREHENSION?!
Now you need to rank all of the rival’s Pokémon
Great rated tier list of all Ash's rivals. I'm surprised about Trevor's rank thought you would put him in D tier but the explanation you gave putting him in the c tier reasonable. Love the ending of video priceless lol.
I’m surprised you didn’t put Iris in the tier list video because although she wasn’t Ash’s rival she’s still one of the best Legendary trainers in the world at least in my opinion.
She would have a better rival in Black and White.
the thing making ashs rivals overhyped is ashs strength resets pretty much every time the era changes. he was pretty powerful in the last bit of sun and moon but atr the start of journeys we dont even need to say.
Paul is the goat in DP series.
He single handedly made the season more interesting🤌
He isn't a goat fool. Cope.
8:47
Like the attitude the XY fans gave after that didn’t justify this.
Also, Pikachu and Greninja kind of carried
No all the Pokémon from Ash to kalos are you force with this XY argument to an excellent victory rate I can say that infernape carried the sinnoh team
@@christ5431 same with Greninja and Pikachu (mostly Greninja) in Kalos!
Noivern, Talonflame, and Hawlucha were not that great.
Hawlucha struggled against an Ice/Dark Type, with its only super effective move being ICE BEAM!
Yeah his Kalos Team *sucks* pal!
@@aureliamastergoomba1278 Seriously hawlucha beat a mega evolution Talonflame to equalize with a legendary and he beat one of Sawyer's strongest Pokémon goodra beat the ace of Tierno and Clermont
@@aureliamastergoomba1278 Ahh you want to talk about the table of types in alola he has 4 Ground weakness in sinnoh 4 ICE weakness in kalos they have coverage to overcome their weakness like foot aerobatics flash cannon and flame charge unless you are a haster you must not be smart
@@aureliamastergoomba1278 Noivern was the only pathetic one. Hawlucha and Talonflame were decent
A true list of rivals!!!
I would put Sawyer higher on my list purely on his performance in the pokemon league. What he does are irl competitive pokemon battling strategies, and only Ash's plot armor was there to stop it. I believe that he would have something against Alain as well, if you discount Alain's plot armor that's crazier than Ash's.
Not really plot armor, Ash did stuff you can't do in the games due to the games being limited, but it was all legit
@@TechnoArpan thank you someone with common sense
@@eljordinio7647 well the battle ignored type advantages completely water against grass should go to grass
Why Tobias and Cynthia are excluded ??
0:13 and Cynthia isn't a rival she only battled him in masters Eight tournament
Because they are way too strong to be on the list
@@oof9008you do realize leon is on the list and he was stated to not have a single lost until ash beat him he even was ranked NUMBER ONE
You're not him, boy I'm not u buddy. Evil Paul has not improved his attitude a lot more than the last time you saw him, not me, you dunce. Also, you've got so many spelling mistakes, so please fix those. A good deed isn’t enough.
I think Gladion deserved at least B
Trevor being in the c tier with the other rivals makes me think of that clown soldier meme lmao
I'm so glad that my boy paul got top 4 in the list. He will always be the best rival in the pokémon anime
Can't agree more
I disagree more. He will always be the worst rival in the pokemon anime. HE still unforgivbale.
@@BikeEdwardMan shut up crybaby.
I liked the tier list and I do think Tobias is Ash's rival because he went against Ash with a Darkrai and a Latios and because he was one of the strongest trainers that Ash went against and he's probably is stronger than most of Ash's rivals because of his legendary team.
He doesn't count for anything. He only showed up for the league, didn't interact with ash outside of battle once, and humiliated the heck out of him
@@eljordinio7647 you do have a point.
Cynthia swipe the floor with him so he is still behind leon
I would honestly put Paul above all in A tier. The reason is, that he didn't even used his aces: Torterra and Electivire and they're definitely stronger, than mons, that he used to prepare Ash for 8
If Paul could give ash a hard time, imagine what he could do to the rest of the masters eight barring Leon
Paul would still probably get crushed by Leon. Alain, with mega evolution, is stronger than Paul. and well, we all know how that went
@Zags007 nah, man, his Garchomp was stronger, than Leon's Dragapult. He would've lost to Leon, but would've took out 4 or 5 Leon's mons in a process. Plus, Alain was made to be an idiot for M8
@@Zags007 strength isn't the only thing tho. Paul is waay smarter than Alain especially with how he adapts to battles(namely Ash's unpredictability). Not to mention Alain focuses only on his Charizard unlike Paul who knows how to use all of his Pokémon. Paul would win against Alain even tho it would be close
Absolutely agree. Also remember Paul was always a powerhouse without any gimmicks.
I've watched the show and the writers have done it so dirty on Trip especially the loss against Simone's Dwebble, Biancas Emboar, and Unova Leaugue's first match against Ashes Pikachu. It's like they made him grow as a strong character just to get beat by really bad plot armor.
it makes me sad for how awful they treated these rivals in journeys. ash didn't get to battle gary not even just a friendly battle, ash and alain have literally no interactions despite having one of the best rivalries in the franchise, and paulbeing the ash's best competition is reduced to just a mere training partner.
why couldn't be some if not all of the rivals be in the tourney competing with ash instead of just making in cameos smh. journeys just continues to dissapoint me as a series until now lol
Next you have to ranks Ash’s companions’ Pokémon by strength
Oof that'd be insane, maybe separate so it like female companions and male companions for 2 parts
@@lulukomadori9651 How about 3: One for the girls, one for the boys, and one for Goh
@@northstarpokeshipper2148 Oh god Goh mons, right. I think ONLY the ones that battle should be just for goh
With how many Pokemon goh has, that would take eons
I think Paul’s stronger then Alain. In Journeys he was almost just as strong as Ash.
While Alain took a really big thrashing against Leon while Leon is on the same level as Ash.
Then again, Leon was way too strong where they had to let ash use 4 gimmicks to win, meanwhile alain still earn his place but sadly journey didn't care despite bringing him back for x/y fans
@@lulukomadori9651 it's like Journeys had something against XY given all the disrespect they gave it
They didn't include Serena during Ash's flashbacks of his Kalos travels
When Serena DID show up she didn't get much of a reunion with Ash
They bring Greninja back without properly acknowledging Ash-Greninja
And even though they did make two of the Masters 8 Kalos representatives, they had Leon completely disrespect and humiliate them
Paul didn't even face Ash's strongest pokemon Pikachu while base Lucario is weaker than Cynthia base Garchomp
We also saw Ash's pokemons getting more powerful throughout master 8
@@pokemonchampion4826 the same base Lucario who cleaned house with Volkner, Bea's Grapploct and even took down Raihan's Duraludon while it was Gmaxed
@@eljordinio7647 That put Lucario above Raihan ace level but even Iris is stronger than Raihan. Cynthia's togekiss did more agaiant same Lucario than Paul's Gyarados.
I feel like Gladion should be higher (High B tier low A tier) considering that he decided to complete the island challenge because of Ash, plus he also had personal development compared to many other rivals through his family troubles and he was one of the better trainers in the Sun and Moon series.
I guess it might be because if compared with others to fight, I don't think Gladion wouldn't have stood any chance against any other rivals of Ash. If only they gave Gladion a full team at the time so that a full 6v6 instead of a 3v3 could help raise his scaling
@@MarcusMapuaI imagine that Gladion's only problem is the same. Since I see him as strong or maybe even more than certain B-Rank trainers, besides that we have to count the Z-move which is a huge advantage within a battle.
@@MarcusMapuaGladion was able to put very close fight against Ash who has more powerful team than all those rivals except Leon, Alan and JN Paul.
@@inamdaryasin Fun Fact though: with sm ash's team, all Gladion had to do to technically winning advantage over practically almost all of his alola pokemon team would be is to have Silvally turn into a Ground type Pokemon (takes out 5/6 and then we just Air Slash out rowlet)
@@MarcusMapua One ground Pokemon isn't enough unless it's champion ace.
Think a Tier list of all the anime’s Gym Leaders, Elite Four members and Champions would be possible?
The fact that Ash needed three different gimmicks to fight Leon never hit so hard
Awesome video
Should do one thay includes the other League competitors like Vincent, Katie, etc. to see how they compare to the official rivals
Now this is what we needed!
My guess for top 3,
1)Leon
2)Alain
3)Paul (he did get asked to become a gym leader so he should be very strong)
Edit: I was so damn close
Actually u were pretty much accurate
Trip’s bond he had with Snivy, Servine and Serperior was really special
Gladion should be higher up on the list. I feel like if he was fighting against any other trainer without plot armor in the finals, then he definitely would have won
I am kinda in a grey area with Leon I don’t really consider him a rival to ash cause he doesn’t portray the rival energy like someone like Paul and Alain does but I also do for the reason he fit the criteria to be an ash rival even though it was the bare minimum
what about Gladion? if you ask me it was more Like a sibling rivalry between their Lycanrocs and Ash and Gladion were friends
I honestly think Paul is on ashs lvl. The Pokémon he used was training using the champions main Pokémon in which I doubt he uses all those Pokémon in his main team. And since it was training he didn't really need to make strategies and stuff to win since that wasn't his plan
I wish we saw a ash vs Tobias rematch. anyone else wish we got this rematch
It such an shame that they never brought him back again, literally meaning the writer made him just so ash didn't win the league in gen 4
No way. He was a freak of a hacker and a mistake
Glad the anime got rid of him
Tobias was too broken for the Pokemon anime to handle so the Pokemon anime writers had to soft retcon him out of existance.
No, I’m fine with Tobias not coming back! He was only really there to make Ash lose the Sinnoh League, and nothing more really 😒
However, if any other Sinnoh character deserved a return… it would be Nando 🎶 Nando was at least there for a real reason, but then the writers made him face Ash too early, then he left and never came back 🥺 They didn’t even give poor Nando a cameo watching the Masters 8 along with the others! Which, to me at least, is a bit unfair to Nando 😭
@@eljordinio7647 Also you are in denial of all of this too LAMO!
Hau is Victory Road Lvl at least and I am NOT kidding.
Among the Kahunas, his grandfather is the closest to his E4 counterpart by the end of Sun&Moon, as he possesses both his in-game aces and has the most battle experience; if Hau was able to defeat him (without the Z-move, mind you), that means he's either on E4 Tier or right under, having barely started his journey.
And if you need even more evidences, well, keep in mind that he almost defeated the Rowlet who (alongside Lycanroc) beated Champion Tier Kukui's 2nd strongest mon, Braviary. If that isn't strenght, I don't now what is it.
If Ash returns in "Pokemon Horizons", then I really want to see him battle Nemona.
This tier list is FACTS ❤
id LOVE to see Ash vs Nemona or Geeta
Geeta better be at least Cynthia's level of strength
Cynthia's is suck.
Gladion is my favourite😁 i just love him so much. He is my favourite pokemon character ever. I dont know Why but he is just amazing.
9:17 literally i just remove video ftom landscape mode n almost closed it except i hear
I am kidding😂☠️
It’s so out of character for Zac to not refer to Ash’s Greninja as, “Satoshi-Gekkoga,” and I found that so weird.
Great video!!! I would say Steven and Cynthia can also count as being ok the S tier. However, they did battle Ash just once, but others in the list also did that 🤣
Iris could also be in the A tier hahaha
@@nightshockplayz5894 if she could hold her own against the second strongest in the world, I can see that happening
Meh and nope!
They were not really rivals of Ash though. They were just trainers that Ash really respected before having official matches. It was different than Ash and Leon rivalry where they both yearned to battle each other.
Not sure if the community consider Cynthia and iris ask rivals but I do for me iris right behind Alan and Cynthia would be right behind Leon
What makes Paul high diff from all other rivals is that he doesn't have just the ace pokemon, but 6+ other really stong pokemon that are beasts. That is the reason I like him better than Alain who just throws mega charizard at everything
Exactly and he combine different strategies ,not just power
Paul's strongest Pokemon are Electivire and Torterra.
As a character I like Alain more, but I can agree with that
@@tomnorton4277 and ursaring. That bear has brute to burn
Nope he is just an evil brute
I would love it If the world championship returned and We got to see some of these trainers return.
This was an awesome video keep up the good work and have a wonderful day
So many rivals. So many great battles.
The writers just stopped giving a damn about Casey and Ritchie which is pretty sad, especially for Casey since she was still a beginner
She was great 🥲
Johto was so bizzare in the anime, full of filler and rival who promise to be at the league but never did
@@Zactoshi i thought you hated Casey since you gave her a 4/10 in the rivals reviewed video
She and Ritchie deserved way better
Paul did not dersved better at all.
Paul is my favorite rival. He's an asshole but he was as accurate of a in game trainer. He was so powerful he made Ash question his own philosophy.
His philosophy is suck and hypocrite.
Which made it more satisfying when ash finally beat him in the league
@@eljordinio7647 Nope it doesn't satsifrling ash beat him or her in the league. He still a jerk and not that refomed in my opnion.
@@BikeEdward you have no opinion. All you have is just nonsense and you can't say anything original. If you have anything, it's a toxic narrow mind which is disgusting 😡🔥
HE's a evil a***
Paul represents a irl competitive trainer. (He hunt for proper natures, unique moves, and proper IV'S) IN His pokemon. And picks his p9kemon specifically to cover others weaknesses. He's a beast.
I'ma admit gladion for some reason is one of my many fav Pokemon characters
I wouldn't say Kukui and Leon were rivals.... They don't fight through out the series like others do, and they feel more like (eventually) challenged mentors more than rivals to me. But setting that aside I agree with your ranking. :)
Kukui and Leon were rivals. Kukui as Masked Royal was strongest trainer in Alola and Ash battled him in Battle Royale. They had a rematch with Ash's Litten evolving but still lost. That was the moment when Ash and Torracat were rivals with Masked Royal and Incineroar. They would also team up on occasions and have another match in Alola exhibition match. Ash wanted to battle Leon while Leon was also interested in Ash's growth that he told others about him. They were both really looking forward to battle each other and even had some adventures together while also bonding.
My favorite rival would have to be Gladion.
G.L.A.D.I.O.N
Glaring-Rivalry Looks At Dares Is Officially New-Rival
For me Paul stood out the most he was a legendary rival because he genuinely gave all he got in every battle but after infernape won against electivire and after ash finally beat Paul to us die hard fans ash won the entire sinnoh league
I love How Gladion looks in the thumbnail😁 my favourote pokemon character
It can't be coincidence that Bea was placed in the B tier xD
Also love how we don't even talk about Tobias lmao. Though I guess it's because he's technically not a rival, but good to see Leon as the only S rank. Leon gets mad respect for facing Ash at his supposed peak with all his gimmicks, and STILL almost win.
Love that. Bea in B 😅😅😅
@@eljordinio7647 once a hopeless case forever a hopeless case
Grow up or else keep suffering. It's that simple. stop telling me to grow upo loser.
@@eljordinio7647 Monkey.
I did not think Leon was a rival. Paul was the best rival, Alain was the strongest, Gary the OG, Sawyer the studious, and Gladion the edge-lord.
Leon became a rival the moment Ash decided to partake in the World Coronation Series. More or less an end goal when competing in the rankings.
He was a goal and a rival
They're literally rivals making their way to the finals to battle and decide who is the strongest
Leon was also heavily interested in battling Ash that he even would tell others about him. He even personally watched some of Ash's battles before Masters 8 Touranment. They also had some adventures like Eternatus Saga, Baking, and even training. They really respected each other and Leon can tell Ash will be one of his greatest opponent that he was super excited too.
Gladion is easily elite four - champion level imo, a fully healed Silvally was on par with Pikachu and he’s definitely stronger than Gary 💀
Nah Gary is arguably stronger. It would be a close fight but Gary has shown in Journeys that he still has his trainer skills on lock and that Regidrago on his team gives him a pretty big buff.
@@SonicSwift99 Legendaries vary they don’t bring you up anywhere, some legendaries are fodder some are op, unless Regidrago shows a feat that’s actually champion level he’s not there yet, and Gary max has shown elite four level feats, Gladion has champion level feats
@@SinfulPack Gary’s Blastoise was also able to fend off the same Moltres that Infernape had trouble beating. Either way I think this battle would be very close.
@@SonicSwift99 Infernape is still elite four level and it wasn’t even in blaze, the battle would be mid diff at most
@@SinfulPack We can agree to disagree. I still think Gary is stronger especially with that Regidrago on his team but you’re free to disagree. And I think someone in this comment section referred to one of the writers or directors of the show stating that Gary had the power and skills of a champion which is why he would be a great mentor to Goh.
Paul not in legendary tier is crazy
paul in legendary? your fanatism makes you bias, even alain deserves that more than paul since he literally has fought legendarys before.
I knew saw Casey as a rival at all. She was just mostly a friendly rival to ash. More for comical relief.
Alan losing is still BS, at the very least make it a close fight 😅
Truly an Journeys Moment
Alain losing wasn't the problem, it was the fact that Leon didn't even G-Max his Charizard to win and instead wrecked Alain's broken Charizard in base form. Bro actually got Yamcha'd.
Leon got carried by plot in the m8 because he was the main goal for the main character
So it was obvious they would show him broken
Agreed. For a master's eight trainer, they had zero respect for Alain
And to think some people like to justify this treatment
@@SonicSwift99 that, and the fact that they made Alain look so weak in comparison despite getting one KO
I didn't expect gladion to be as low as he was, but u made it make sense
Paul is so iconic he is single-handedly the reason fans will throw a hissy fit if people don’t include Infernape in all the “Ash’s Best Team” videos
Still, in terms of feats Charizard dominates infernape. Infernape couldn't beat a legendary while Charizard did, and the one time infernape took on a champion he got wrecked hard. Same with his performance against Flint
Charizard hasn't beaten a champion either but he did beat a frontier brain, all of whom r said to be stronger than the Elite 4
Nope.
@@BikeEdward stay out of this
@@eljordinio7647 Nope U stay out of this jerk.
@@eljordinio7647 nope.
No joke, my friend thinks Shanks from One Piece was an Ash Ketchum rival
Ngl that would be hype asf
3:15
That was dumb, but they did tire Pikachu to where his healthy Lucario finished it
Healthy? It fought 3 of ash mom and pikachu easily dispatch the water types
I hated Cameron irrationally every time he showed up.
Who didn't