There’s a large contingent ofPokémonfans who have some strong feelings about Ash’s romantic life. Unfortunately for them, though, many members of the show’s production staff and cast feel very differently about the issue.
While there are many “ships” that fans like to see Ash as a part of, such as Ash x Serena, one of the most popular is, perhaps unsurprisingly, Ash paired with his first companion, Misty. The show definitely teased the idea of the two being interested in each other at various points, withthe second movie,Pokémon the Movie 2000, as a stand-out example. However, when the two parted ways, there was no grand romantic gesture, nor was there any kind of emotional resolution for the crush that, at least, existed on Misty’s side.
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Pokémon’s Japanese Voice of Ash Doesn’t Think He’s a Romantic Sort
When asked about Ash’s romantic ability byX (formerly Twitter) user @Akilvers at the Japan Expo 2017in Paris, Rica Matsumoto provided an interesting answer. “Satoshi (Ash) loves Pokémon and people. Therefore, he is never alone. And loves not just one, but many, many people. He loves everyone. For him, everyone is a friend. He loves all living things with all his heart, and it’s impossible to single out one person (laughs).And also, he is still a child.So of course, he loves girls and boys and all.”
The most clear reading of this would be that Ash is actually played as aromantic.
This wasn’t a new sentiment from Matsumoto, either; @Akilvers also pointed to a prior radio interview, where she said, “This [romantic love] can’t happen with Satoshi (Ash), at all. To love, well, I mean, to have a crush on other people like the others, no. There is no such thing as ‘romantic love’ for him. Well, he knows what dating is. Knows and understands.But to have a crush on someone? Nah.”
Both answers emphasize that Ash is not the kind of person to get into a romantic relationship with other characters. The clearest reading of this would be that Ash is actually played as aromantic.
That is pretty consistent with Ash’s characterization across the series; he’s often oblivious to any interest his female companions show in him, and pays even major hints, like the kiss Serena gives him upon their parting, little attention. It’s just more evidence that indicates that shippers are never going to see Ash in a canonical relationship, even if he is aged up in his next appearance–whenever that might be. Things could always change in the future, of course, but it seems the people closest to the character find the idea of an Ash romance to be unrealistic.
Ash and Misty’s Relationship has Always Been In Doubt
These Opinions on Ash Have Stood For Quite Some Time
In other related media, Ash and Misty have been portrayed in various different ways. In the novelization of the series by head writer Takeshi Shudo, there are extra scenes that include Misty’s point of view and explain her perspective on Ash. Misty compares Ash to her ideal man and finds him lacking. Other characters, from Team Rocket to an old man in Pewter City, often tease them about being a couple, but Misty vehemently denies any interest in Ash, whereas Ash mostly just seems confused by the entire situation.
On the other hand, theElectric Tale of Pikachumanga, which loosely adapts the first season of the anime,makes Ash and Misty’s relationship quite a bit more romantic, even implying a romantic encounter between the two. However, it’s worth noting that this version of Ash Ketchum is quite different from the one seen in the anime, and the artist is known to have dabbled in mature content before, so perhaps it was deemed more permissible for this iteration of Ash to feel more romantic feelings than the anime’s original version.
Notably, the English dub ofPokémonadded more hints towards an Ash/Misty romance than were present in the Japanese version, up to writing an original song for Misty, where she declares her love for Ash, which was released on the2.B.AMasterCD back in 1999. While the Japanese version does still have many hints of Misty’s interest in Ash, it was never quite as obvious as it was in the English dub.
Is There Any Chance of An Ash Romance in the Future?
Ash’s Return Could Always Change Things
Of course, Ash has been written out of thePokémonanime for a few years now, and there’s no reason to think he’ll be back anytime soon. However, it does seem almost inevitable that he’ll be back someday, and given thatPokémon Horizonshas undergone a time-skip, Ash should be older than he was when we last saw him as well. Perhaps an older Ash might be more interested in romance than 10-year-old Ash is, but it seems unlikely to change a major part of his characterization.
Notably,Pokémon’s new protagonists, Liko and Roy, haven’t been showing any interest in romance, either.It seems like that’s an element the series would like to avoid entirely, possibly because of the young age of its heroes. The fact that romance hasn’t even really been brought up inHorizons, even for its adult characters, would seem to support that position as well. On the other hand, the series did feature a bit ofromance between Professor Kukui and Burnett, which eventually led to their marriage in the series, so perhaps romance isn’t totally banned.
With someone as influential as Rica Matsumoto weighing in on the idea of an Ash romance, it does seem unlikely to ever happen canonically. Fortunately for fans, a big part of the fun of shipping is deciding pairings on one’s own, and canonizing a ship often means upsetting a lot of other fans of other ships for the involved characters. That means Ash’s avoidance of romance keeps the door open for whatever pairings fans like for him, andPokémonfans won’t ever get their ship dismissed as going against canon.
