The Evolution of Pokemon Contests in the Anime: A Retrospective of May and Dawn's Journeys

[@RazorMiddle]

Do you like Pokemon Contests in the anime? How about in the games? Let me know! Be sure to hit that like button and subscribe, I hope you all enjoyed the video!

[@linksawakening3899]

RazorMiddle Pokemon contests in the anime are far superior than the games. It's just filler content in games if we're being real

[@aprillang219]

I love them all :3

[@thevoidd]

Only one i really payed attention to was the alola league in sun and moon, but i LOVED IT!

[@mergalmamavoir8715]

I'm happy to see a people who appreciate Pokemon contests because their probably my favourite thing about the show. p.s my favorite scene is when ambipom spams swift.

[@amierebell3069]

I love Pokémon Contest they gave me a way to imagine and express my creativity

[@misspaige299]

Anime contests > game contests

[@lancecade5426]

Miss Paige game contests were boring and hard

[@angelicaph483]

true

[@silvereful]

I really wish Game Freak would try to adapt the anime contests into the game, mixing both mechanics. Do you imagine going after the league and grand festival in the same game ??? God that would be epic

[@castform7]

Ah yes the floor is made of floor.

[@davi3914]

!!!

[@Pol1A]

While hoenn contests were fun, Sinnoh had amazing ones. They had amazing visuals, they got costumes and exciting battles. Zoey and Nando’s battle is in my top 5 Pokémon battles cause of how amazing it was. When they threw away contests for those showcases, I was soooo disappointed

[@random_person_on_internet]

Showcases were just meh

[@tawnyacosta9091]

Nando vs Zoey was my absolute favorite contest battle 💖

[@christ5431]

​@@random_person_on_internetPokémon showcase proof other Pokémon utility

[@PokemonMaster-ru6ij]

Ash is an underrated coordinator. Looking at all the contests he did in Terracotta Town, Wallace Cup, and Jubilife City he always made it passed appeals. If May comes back in Pokemon Journeys I want him to pull out his half of the ribbon they won.

[@cockerspanielfan56]

Well I know he competed in the Wallace cup to improve Buizel’s battle skills and it worked. Buizel was pretty strong but in my opinion the strongest out of the water types he trained over the years is Greninja.

[@octolockg5059]

@@cockerspanielfan56 No one said Buizel was stronger than Greninja. Buizel was just surprisingly good at Contests once it found the correct Trainer.

[@lonelysatoshi2482]

@@cockerspanielfan56 I think he was talking about Buizel being a great contest battler due to his experience with Dawn before going with Ash, because I mean it's pretty obvious that Greninja is the strongest due to the Battle Bond, the training and all that stuff

[@ThanatosZero]

I would love to see May doing the gym challenge at one point, just to see for herself, if she can find joy now, when she didn't due the tentacool traumata.

[@ShadowKaiserin]

I like elements of both Hoenn and Sinnoh contests, but honestly I have to give it to Dawn's journey simply for the fact that at that point in the anime they had the premise established and knew what a coordinator arc looked like. May kind of suffered from needing to make contests look like something that could compete with gym battles in terms of excitement, and so I feel like she was granted more success than she probably should have had as someone who started her journey uninterested in Pokemon. May never lost an appeal round, she was pushed through every time, even when she scored low. Dawn, on the other hand, was allowed not to make it through a couple of times, and that led to some of the most interesting character development moments in her story. Not to mention how much further they'd come at that point with making attacks and combinations look like the impressive displays they were supposed to be and allowing the moves to stand on their own with fewer props. Contests in Sinnoh were flashier, more strategic, and the rivals were just more interesting. Nando in particular. I was so happy they finally had someone to represent us few who would never be able to choose between Battles and Contests, and his unique style of using sound and music was interesting and fun to watch. All in all I prefer the style of Sinnoh with Hoenn's rule set, I guess you could say. I like the idea of the point system, one Pokemon for both rounds, and R1 contests which to my knowledge they never brought back. The Sinnoh journey definitely wins, though.

[@conservativedestroyer4056]

I agree dawn had the better character development and character Arc. I like May but Dawn was just overall better

[@jbcatz5]

With Sinnoh as well it felt more like Ash and Dawn were building up ideas and working together to train and bounce concepts off each other. Ash figured out the Counter Shield technique from one of Dawn’s contest performances (a technique Paul would also use after seeing Ash use it), and Dawn adapted Grotle eating Energy Ball for a power up in the Palmer battle for Mamoswime and Ice Shard. In Hoenn at least Ash would step out of the contest hall during May’s performances to have a training session with one of his Pokemon, which didn’t show a lot of support for her.

[@maymaple4013]

@@conservativedestroyer4056 may is better dummy

[@maymaple4013]

It doesn’t mean that you lose every single round means you have better than May May is way better than dawn

[@icespicebaddieiktr2906]

@@maymaple4013 may lost to dawn.

[@erinreid6034]

I always wished that I could’ve made contests my path in the game, not the Pokémon League. I’d love to even have a separate game-on the Switch, my phone, somewhere-where contests are the main focus, and each contest looked as cool as the Sinnoh anime had looked.

[@masonkyle6318]

If they brought contests back to the anime I would definitely start watching it again!

[@tomnorton4277]

Dawn's losing streak is what made her arc so good. May never suffered such crushing low points because she had a lot of plot armour. With Dawn, the writers took off the gloves and put her through the wringer. The scene where Dawn admits to Maylene that she wonders if she's even right for contests is such a relatable moment. I love that it's strongly implied that she's never admitted that to anybody before because it not only allowed Dawn to finally get her biggest insecurity of her chest but also helped Maylene get out of her own slump after losing to Paul. And I totally agree about the Wallace Cup. That is my favourite part of Dawn's entire journey. After all that self-doubt and a crushing losing streak, Dawn not only won a ribbon that's almost as prestigious as the Grand Festival Trophy but she did so by defeating May. Canonically, May has much more experience than her and it's also implied that she's more naturally talented considering she entered contests on a whim and picked them up without much difficulty whereas Dawn struggled despite wanting to be a coordinator all her life. However, Dawn worked so hard to reach that point and to see it pay off was so satisfying. It showed that developing a skill is just as important as having a natural affinity for it and working hard can surpass raw talent. Another great detail about the Wallace Cup is that the writers did an excellent job with power scaling. If May had used Blaziken, Venusaur or Beautifly, Dawn wouldn't have stood a chance. Those Pokemon simply had too much experience and Blaziken in particular was a power house who had been with May from the start, so it would have overwhelmed anything Dawn could throw at it. Dawn could have managed Skitty, Munchlax or Wartortle but their levels of experience would still give them the edge. So what did the writers do? They had May use Glaceon. What makes this so brilliant is that Glaceon had only recently evolved and this was its first contest since that happened. Not only does it make sense for May to want to save it for the final round, so that she can ensure Glaceon would have maximum impact on an audience who had never seen it before, but it also balanced out the power scaling. Glaceon was still relatively inexperienced, so Piplup going toe to toe with a Pokemon who was still finding its feet after evolving made Dawn's win feel realistic despite May having much more experience. The Advanced series kind of gave the impression that anybody could be a coordinator, right down to the detail of people just showing up in their normal outfits instead of dressing for the occasion. Diamond and Pearl made it very clear that it's not as easy a profession as Advanced made it out to be.

[@SoldierBoy227]

agree

[@SoldierBoy227]

by the how much this paragraphs took to get completed

[@delphoxhoopa7289]

Beautifully said! 🥰❤️

[@debasritachowdhury5297]

I agree with everything u said...but no one with a sane mind would like to use their most inexperienced pokemon for the finals( ik the writers made her do that). It's true that Dawn wouldn't have stand a chance against Blaziken(one of the strongest fire types in the franchise) and Beautifly who has been in more contest battles than any of Dawn's pokemon...so not using them is excusable for letting Dawn win....but the writers should have made May use her Skitty or Munchlax becoz they may not be powerhouses of her team but they had fair experience to battle against Dawn' Piplup(who had the same level of experience)...that would have made the more interesting and it would have been uncertain about who would win between two pokemon who had the equal level of experience. Instead they made her use Glaceon who was the newest addition to May's team and the most inexperienced member which made the battle less interesting since anyone who has watched DP from the start would easily predict Piplup's win as it is Dawn's mostly used pokemon in battles.

[@sunl6539]

Hoenn and Sinnoh was like peak anime and characters because the contest really gave the female cast a chance to be in the spotlight, like I love Misty but before she was really like shoved to the side and not given too many chances to be scene. It also really helped Ash feel so much more developed because he did something different from just the usual battles we have seen him do and I loved to see how he was able to bring contest moves into battling and vise versa. I never really did any contest stuff in the games but the Contest just really added something to the anime, hope they bring that back

[@namoma4922]

yeah i mean they were doing girl's thing but at the very least they did EXITING girl's things, so much that their episodes were as exiting as ashs

[@edgarveron8309]

Agreed! Looking back at the first season, misty and brock did not have their own story or goal, just simply following ash and being supporting characters. I'm glad the following main characters after them were give more prominent goals and storytelling! Not to mention, pokemon AG gave misty some justice!

[@natalimoina]

BW, SM and Journeys all did the same though

[@natalimoina]

@@edgarveron8309 They both did have their own story and goal and we followed their development too. Just not as pronounced as later series

[@Cosmic_Espeon]

When I watched Diamond and Pearl for the first time, I fell in love with the contests, they were such a nice upgrade from the Advanced Generation ones. I always said to myself I would be a Coordinator in the Pokemon world. Gym battles are cool and all but I love Contests way more. Really wish they made a return in the series again. The Pokemon Showcase is neat but it was just a glorified beauty pageant in the end.

[@UrbanBeauty166]

I also think it would be neat if games gave you the option to choose whether to be a coordinator or a trainer (or both). And if choosing coordinator, instead of facing the Pokemon League at the end with 8 badges, you take on the Grand Festival with 5 ribbons.

[@imadoinwat8994]

I want more contests! It was so upsetting when they stopped. If I was in the Pokémon world, I’d want to be a coordinator super bad!

[@BeyondMagical]

hope Pokémon contest are included in the newly announced gen 4 remakes

[@MrChillaxin2010]

Small correction, but Zoey defeated Dawn in the Semi-Finals of Dawn's first contest. Overall, loved Dawn's progression throughout the series and why she's my favorite companion of Ash's.

[@yashsurana4617]

No check again It was finals Dawn did become the runner up in the grand festival

[@eliosnow7150]

It was semi finals. Zoey battle Jessie in the final round. Glameow vs. Carnivine

[@MrChillaxin2010]

@@yashsurana4617 I was talking about Jubilife, not the Grand Festival.

[@armedweiss5531]

Dawn is absolutely the best companion Ash ever had, I will not hear otherwise. XY fans hype up Serena, but to be completely honest the shipping aspect inherent to her character hard carries her popularity. She just isn't as good a character or as well developed as Dawn or even May, and her journey with showcases absolutely sucks compared to Dawn and May's with contests.

[@TheAuthenticBlueTheBudew]

I hope we get to see some pokemon contests in the next part of the anime

[@DrAnimePhD]

Let’s face it, Contests are never returning, not as long as Gamefreak is in charge of the series

[@jbcatz5]

May did owe many victories to luck, especially at points Harley manipulated her into making bad decisions like using one move in the Hoenn Grand Festival or the bad advice that nearly saw May unable to take part in her first Kanto contest. In contrast Dawn would analyse why certain strategies failed, like how the Swift storm stopped anyone from seeing Ambipom, and work on new strategies on screen yet outside of contests. There’s also that May’s luck really helped her when her fifth ribbons for Hoenn and Kanto were the last contests before the Grand Festival (she has to be reminded in the latter case that other competitors are also one ribbon short of the Grand Festival), whereas Dawn completed her set with a handful of contests to go (one of which had Princess Salvia compete as Dawn, suggesting a five ribbon total doesn’t mean disqualification from qualification contests and under some circumstance ribbons are transferable as Jessilina enters the Grand Festival under the ribbon Salvia won).

[@joanne_ying79]

Same. I was glad Sinnoh didnt do the 'last contest before Grand Festival' for Dawn and she had plenty of time in contrast to May to always happened to find out from Drew and Nurse Joy that Pacifidlog and Mulberry were the last contests. And I'm glad that Dawn was less naive than May and she of course, had her own style from the beginning which gives her the ability to teach and train with Ash some of her skills whereas May had to learn from Ash throughout (which ultimately led to her downfall as Ash’s battle style is not suited for contests as also displayed himself in Jubilife and Wallace Cup).

[@jbcatz5]

Joanne Cheah Sinnoh communicated upcoming contests better. Hoenn and Kanto were always word of mouth, whereas Sinnoh had the region wide news network.

[@maymaple4013]

@@jbcatz5 original still better than copy

[@jbcatz5]

@@maymaple4013 Dawn’s not a copy of May. Backgrounds are different, as well as motivation to do contests. May started out using her journey as an excuse to travel and didn’t like Pokemon initially. She also had Max for younger brother stuff. Dawn by contrast grew up raised by a top coordinator and contests were her ambition from the outset. As an only child and since DP went back to three main characters she’d interact a lot more with Ash or get battle exposition from Brock. What also marks Dawn out is that she actually lost in more in a way that encouraged character development. The aforementioned Ampibom and Swift incident, which made her victory at the Wallace Cup all the more triumphant. She got over her dread of the DeeDee nickname Kenny used and Ursula picked up for a psychological edge (May’s equivalent embarrassing story was only ever referenced in the one episode Harley heard and tried to weaponise it in). Beyond female companion to Ash and Brock who works to be a coordinator May and Dawn are different characters. If anyone is more similar to May it’s Serena, who similarly set out without a clear goal, only gaining an interest in visual performance based competition after being invited by someone else to see. Serena also knows about Ash before they meet, like how Max had seen him in the Silver Conference (and the little snot being a prick about Ash losing that tournament).

[@maymaple4013]

@UC-Ms6RMt7FguuK7K9YKftfQ dawn is just May 2.0 Why they both want to be the best coordinator Dawn is coordinator May the one who started it In comparison of other girls dawn and serena are the one who copy May’s

[@battle_legend_ashley]

Pokemon contests are pretty awesome and special to me as well for a different reason. It's acually the only way I was able to get my sister to watch Diamond and Pearl with me, was by showing her the fact that, yes, girls acually act girls in Pokemon through contests. So many memories of watching that with her

[@RaidPirateGaming]

I personally enjoyed May's journey a little bit more because she set off just wanting adventure and travel. She had no motive for Pokemon in the beginning but after bonding with them found her dream in coordinating and became an upcoming star. I like Dawn too, but her following her mother's footsteps didn't entice me as much. My favorite May rival was Drew and my favorite Dawn rival was Kenny. I agree with you completely, the writers did a very stupid decision in bouncing Kenny out the first round of the Grand Festival. He deserved a third battle with Dawn because they were tied 1-1. They started their journey around the same time and had the same number of ribbons as each other for much throughout DP. They were perfect complimentary rivals and they just threw it away. It's one of the moments of the anime I look to in saying it's one of the worst writing decisions they ever made. I'll never watch the Sinnoh Grand Festival ever again. As for the end, I'm not sure they bring back contests or bring back May or Dawn. I don't want to be a downer, as I'd love to see them again; but, I'd be surprised because the way the plot is developing in Journeys, contests don't seem to have a need. We'll find out, but if we were going to get them, I would assume we would've seen them again by now. Nice video. Left a like.

[@RazorMiddle]

I agree, I like May more but perhaps I'm biased since I started with Hoenn. Thanks for the comment :D

[@wendywhalims1257]

To the people saying May was better, statsically yes, but let's not act like the appeal rounds May did in Kanto/Hoeen would be good enough in a sinnoh one. Some of the performances Dawn did that she lost were still better then May's.

[@cureice]

It's clear that after contests they weren't sure what to do with Serena and Chloe so I hope gen 9 just brings them back I was pretty obsessed with contests as a kid so I'm glad someone is covering them. I always went back to them in the postgame

[@kuroshadow0224]

Didnt expect u to be here

[@cureice]

@@kuroshadow0224 I made like ONE Pokémon video in 2017 ☠️ But yes. I'm a huge Pokémon fan

[@kuroshadow0224]

@@cureice ooh thats cool Didnt know u actually made a vid abt pokemon

[@natalimoina]

Wdym? Chloe had a clear narrative arc through the show, it just doesn't have to do with contests. With Serena, yeah, you're right.

[@aaravsaroliya]

I am also biased for hoenn contests😂 And also anime contests are far more better than game contests because rivals are also there and it gives same level of feeling a pokemon battle gives in my opinion

[@queensdaensa9413]

I enjoined May’s contests a little more, she became so badass, and lets not forget the badass background music when may came up with a new plan

[@phobetonkinxhayleymarshal2233]

When combusken uses sky uppercut the music is to awsome.

[@jbcatz5]

I felt Dawn earned her highs more because of how crushing her lows were. It was a big deal and a huge upset to see her lose at the appeals rounds. The fact she made the comeback she did makes these victories even better. It was likely because she was raised by a former Top Coordinator, but Dawn was far less naive than May, who fell for Harley’s bad advice long after she’d been repeatedly burned by it. The guy who used mind games on her at their first contest as rivals and advised she only use one move per Pokemon at the Grand Festival (which she was lucky to recover from when Skitty got confused, and in the RSE games repeating a move twice in a row is how to lose points in the second round), and she completely takes his word that Hoenn contest passes work for Kanto contests. I know she’s got one contest circuit under her belt, but that’s an idiot move by May.

[@tiashek1891]

Yessssss I also enjoyed May's contests little more!!!

[@whereisezraa5825]

Dawn beat her😂😂 So Dawn is better for me

[@queensdaensa9413]

@@whereisezraa5825 that was purely for Dawn’s storyline. Letting her win against May would give her a big confidence boost especially since May was called ‘the prinses of Hoenn’ it was really just because she was the Main protagonist at that time

[@Charmdaplug]

Pokémon contest made me love Pokémon if Pokémon was real contest would definitely be my thing 😂

[@mahathirnur7324]

The fact Dawn got her five sinnoh Region ribbons more earlier. Remember that, May in both kanto and hoenn May always got her last ribbon at last contest final before the final grand festival but Dawn got it pretty much earlier. But the writer's wanted to use it for 4 seasons.

[@ranjaykumarkumar1883]

Dawn is best cordinater 😇🤗😄😁😀

[@ranjaykumarkumar1883]

Not hindi

[@alexdelaloire8739]

Jessie is better!!

[@igorgiuseppe1862]

7:50 actually i really like this "trainer out of nowhere wins" system. i mean, in the real world, that is how things happen often. if you are an sport praticer trying to become the best, you probably dont know the ones who going to be your rivals in the future, the best players in the world wont be your closests friends, the ones who will defeat you going to be people who you never heard before, of course as time passes a few players will become more famous because they are always in the top teams or among the top players, but then a new generation comes. it would be boring if shuu (drew) who already meet haruka (may) many times before and even lose to her in some cases (if i remember correctly) end up wining, she can get an rematch at any time and defeating him before put her in the same level, the same goes for hikari (dawn) and her rivals. having an new character being the number one is much more realistic and interesting, it shows how big the world really is and that there is aways someone out there who might be better that you dont know yet. yet, they dont make it completely random most of the time, wich is fine as story telling goes that is how things usually are.

[@RazorMiddle]

This is wonderfully written and a perspective I didn't consider!

[@armedweiss5531]

While that is realistic to real life, in the context of a show, it's just not satisfying or good writing. When a newly introduced character who only exists to stop the main characters from winning their respective tournament shows up, beats the main character, and is then never seen again it comes off as cheap. If they at least had some episodes dedicated to them the viewers can feel SOMETHING for that character. Dawn losing to Zoey is infinitely more satisfying than May losing to Solidad or Ash losing to Tournament Nobody Number 63, because Zoey is an established recurring character that the viewers have been following since episode 10 of DP

[@igorgiuseppe1862]

@@armedweiss5531 i disagree , i think the only flaw here is that this trainer battled others before in the same tournament yet no one heard of him while it was happening. sure he might be someone who dont often participate in tournaments, instead he travel a lot trying to catch rare and powerfull monsters, and only a few times enter tourmanents wich would explain why we never listen about him after... but be in the same tournam defeating others in the bracket easyly without bringing atention to himself, i have to agree that was cheap.

[@tawnyacosta9091]

Nando is my favorite character in all of Pokemon 🎶 He is so unique and an amazing person overall 😊 Nando vs Zoey is my absolute FAVORITE contest battle ever 😊💖🎶

[@ShortTempered]

Super good video my dude!

[@RazorMiddle]

Thank you Tobin! 🤩

[@koalaTtime]

I loved the Sinnoh contests so much growing up the ways that the moves were animated with so much more grace and creativity will always stick with me

[@joselinaduran3972]

I first started watching pokkemon during advanced era (i watched all the previous seasons too) so i grew up with may .....may will always have a place in my heart she strike me as the trainer who had to find herself and know what she wanted to do....she had alot of amazing contests especially with drew, Jessie became an amazing coordinator herself, she went from constantly losing to never giving up and fight for ur dreams, she gain experience and it payed off...dawn i love the most, she already had an expectation of what she was supposed to be because of her mother, her character development was the most realistic, with the losing streak she went to a dark place where she questioned if she was even meant for contests....it was incredible to see she never gave up and despite her not winning the grand festival she was content with her performance

[@jinkoken]

I kind of wish you would've gone more into Jessie's evolution with contests too. She might not be the protagonist but she's technically a main character, and she did evolve her coordinator style, specifically figuring out a way that works for her and her pokemon to get past the appeals round, which was always the hardest part for her. Particularly important as we account for a time where Dawn lost, even though it was James lol

[@TheGloryXros]

I really hope the Pokemon games can improve upon Contests & make them more like the Anime, rather than just give up on them.

[@TheDeej666]

A fellow Coordinator! I’ll be in touch pal!😄

[@UrbanBeauty166]

I really would like to see them implement the way Anime Contests work into Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl!

[@GuitarDome93]

I'm a May Guy. nothing against Dawn, but May had the bigger story in my opinnion. I also Loved the character evolotion and the story with Drew ad her rival who grew closer with every contest. It almost felt Like there Fluor He more between Thema in the end but nah. I also loved that she went from being just the gymleaders daughter to one of the biggest Contest performers

[@phobetonkinxhayleymarshal2233]

I agree. May is way better.

[@whereisezraa5825]

May lost to Dawn And she was crashed by soledad.. Nope, Dawn better

[@whereisezraa5825]

May lost to Dawn And she was crashed by soledad..

[@maymaple4013]

@@whereisezraa5825 Dawn beat May because of her plot armor plus character development But May beat zoey

[@SoldierBoy227]

@@maymaple4013 Also May beated Harley because of plot armour

[@whereisezraa5825]

Dawn's best

[@hannahbun]

Pokemon contests were my favorite part, I have more nostalgia for them than anything else in the series

[@darrelltyler9175]

From a character standpoint I like Dawn better but for character development May is better

[@whereisezraa5825]

Actually may didn't)

[@jamespeng5941]

i personally only did contests in gen 4 games, but i did watch the show and i like dawn better

[@thevoidd]

I LOVE IT OMG, THE HYPE YOU GAVE THIS VIDEO WAS WELL DESERVED

[@RazorMiddle]

Thank you Vortex! Glad you liked it :D

[@GoldenRayLight]

The Hoenn and Kanto contests were more exciting and competitive by far. Those seasons had better contest rivals, however the animation style and overall appearance of contest battles in Sinnoh looked better and more distinct. Just compare the grand festivals- Sinnoh clearly focussed of beauty and graceful combinations as contests battles should be. On the other hand, one could say May's style was more like a gym battle because he took after Ash's style. This point was mentioned in the Battle Frontier episode. I think because contests were the new gimmick in the Hoenn story-line, they tried to make i similar to gyms to appeal to the audience, but the line between contest and gym battles in Sinnoh was less blurry and well-thought out. The shine, sparkle, stage and glamour was well-matched to contests as oppose to contests shown in Hoenn/Kanto where contest battles were similar to normal gym battles. However, having said that, flashier displays doesn't equal great story-line. Dawn had her ups and downs, but in terms of development, she never truly beat a rival that bested her. Eg. Zoey had always beaten her and Dawn had never lost to any of her rivals except her. On the other hand, May eventually went on to defeat Drew, her primary rival. Dawn had a huge advantage story-wise, having the writers focus on he character more than they ever did to May. This is evident when Dawn had episodes dedicated purely for showing off her contest techniques and combos. In fact, May's return in DP was also exploited to show Dawn's strategy and prowess -we all know she couldn't beat May in a fair contest battle- . If she could beat an experienced coordinator like May, surely she was great

[@namoma4922]

the sinnoh rivals in general where well done In comparison ash had paul who was way more antagonistic than zoe but pushed him to be his best all the same: paul outmatched ash all throughthrough his journey and was almost gonna win even in the end.While he became somewhat of a better person he was still someone we wanted to see loose Zoe was both a friend, a rival but more importantly a mentor for her and while she came into her own zoe kept the edge.We would cheer for dawn of course but she was not someone we would be mad to see win either

[@jbcatz5]

Dawn’s rivals were better than May’s IMO. Zoe was a regular presence to challenge and mentor Dawn, and while their Grand Festival match didn’t have Dawn victorious it did show how far Dawn had come and what she needed to do to improve. In contrast Drew didn’t meet May as often, despite being depicted as May’s ultimate rival I feel she has more with Harley, who directly challenges her more. Ursula was Harley done better, she looked down on Dawn but didn’t resort to cheating and bad advice to sabotage Dawn, instead proving a challenge within the rules of the battle stage.

[@GoldenRayLight]

@@jbcatz5 The DP series was well put together, with both Ash and Dawn getting the right attention. Dawn's storytelling was something the writers did really well. It was definitely more refreshing to watch. As you mentioned, her rivals were more consistent as they met up more often. Those rivals carried the same characteristics as May's rivals, except they were written better in the story. May paved the way and set the stage (pardon the pun) which gave the writers of the show a better idea of what a coordinator's career/path should be like, including the competition. Although May and Drew didn't meet often- after all they were simply contest rivals and thus occasionally met whereas Dawn and Zoey had more of a friendly relationship- the fact he was her greatest rival was cemented in the battles they had. This is also to do wit the fact that in the Hoenn saga, Ash was still the main character so his storyline was prioritized. In DP, Ash and Dawn were more or less equal in terms of attention so the writers paid more attention to her contests plot. Harley was more of a side-rival obviously filling in as the typical jealous antagonist. Ursula was indeed "Harley done better". Of course, the two are different characters in the end, Harley being more petty than Ursula, but both still resorted to embarrassing the main character using a traumatic memory to undermine their confidence. Dawn differed to May in the sense that she had more self-belief in her abilities and took the initiative to come up with her own style, whereas May didn't have one in particular. She was more open to suggestions, and was initially more gullible than Dawn, so it listened to Harley's deceptive advice. Ursula was more focused on winning at all costs and didn't bother with a pretense as Dawn wouldn't fall for it.

[@jbcatz5]

@@GoldenRayLight What is frustrating about Harley is that he gets no comeuppance in the sense he’s reprimanded for using the speakers to play an embarrassing story for May, or crossdressing as May for his Kanto Grand Festival appeal. The embarrassing story incident should at least have earned him instant disqualification. He even got involved in sabotaging May’s final contest in Kanto.

[@hikari5810]

The only reason May beat Drew was bc this was her revenge from Hoenn Grand Festival. In order to show her growth as a character after two regions was beating her ultimate rival, unlike Dawn who has battled Zoey only one time before the Grand Festival final. Both battles were written for the sake of the story line. Just think about how Drew also beat May after the Kanto Grand Festival. Everyone is growing at their own pace and a victory doesn’t mark them as the better coordinator. Dawn’s loss doesn’t define her skills for you to state that May is better for a win when she was defeated by the same coordinator she won against a few days after 😂

[@cityrat3237]

I’ve always wished they made like a separate series with a character who instead of collecting gym badges is going for the contests. It would of been so cool is GameFreak expanded the contests too

[@paperfox19]

if anything i'd have liked to see more contests in the anime, I'd have loved to see Ash take on contests more seriously. Would have loved to see Harley or Drew enter the Wallace cup, Dawn beating Harley and Zoe beating Drew, and instead of Ash losing to some random dude have Ash and May battle where May does pull out the win against Ash, but its still a great learning experience for both of them.

[@z_tsunami]

As someone who had never seen or played a contest, this makes me wanna play watch the anime and play the games so much more!

[@SerenitySpiderMonkey]

Loved and still do love contests in the anime. I was terrible at them in the games as a kid, though

[@marioipod]

I like contests, but I like May a lot!

[@stardust7104]

I love contests, but I could never figure out how to get them to work in the games. Also, I prefer Pokémon performances from the XY series though I am a little biased because XY is the first Pokémon series I really watched.

[@luizsergiobezerradasilva2261]

I admit, I loved contests more than some gym battles.

[@DesiMico]

I’d not mind a spin-off game focused in Pokémon contests or others title about the Legends of pokémon. Their world has a wide margin for development, without necessarily proposing a new generation.

[@tothemoonandback8466]

I kinda just find it funny that you mostly reply to ppl saying they liked May more 🤣

[@fluffylizz]

Cuz May is the best.

[@maluteas]

We all know Dawn is better

[@joclovespokemon6655]

AHEM DREW HAS A BUTTERFREE TOO

[@suecurtis8313]

love it sue!

[@cfrost5480]

You should've also delved more into Jessie's journey as a coordinator as she had just as much experience as them.

[@dimitrijensk2845]

May walked so Dawn could run

[@Hana-cl5mm]

To be honest,I prefer showcases more than contests.Don't get me wrong,I really love both but showcases are just better.Sure they removed the battles,which is a bad thing but imo,it was worth it for theme rounds.Showcases weren't just about appeals and battling but also following the the theme in the first round.I also think showcases are better cause the trainers perform along their pokemon instead of just standing around commanding their pokemon.

[@whereisezraa5825]

Showcases are really stupid

[@ZsAnimations09]

@@whereisezraa5825 yes

[@anghainguyen9951]

@@whereisezraa5825 you know dancing it harder than just stand there and comand pokemon.

[@random_person_on_internet]

@@anghainguyen9951 lol They just went lazy after sinnoh and omitted the battle round cause they didn't want to come up with new strategies and combinations every time just like what they were doing in sinnoh Showcases are lazy writting

[@christ5431]

​Any Pokémon character can battle You're always the first to say that contests bring a new version of Pokémon as they battle elegantly

[@arielmichel2099]

Sinnoh contest were better all around hands down!

[@kiranjeetkaurbedi2506]

I like Sinnoh contest places

[@blazekick3422]

My favorite pokemon is blaziken so I’m biased to say May > Dawn

[@phobetonkinxhayleymarshal2233]

I prefer may. Her beutifly is amazing. Also I love her glaceon. She was much more skilled than dawn.

[@jbcatz5]

More screen time was shown with Dawn workshopping, analysing and refining techniques outside of contests, most prominently with Ambipom being hidden by Swift in the first contest she didn’t get past the first round in. May didn’t get this kind of focus in her strategy development, and many times she seemed to pull through by luck rather than on skill alone. For example, in the Hoenn Grand Festival where Skitty gets confused by the Assist Petal Dance, and it’s entirely up to chance if it can break out of the confusion.

[@maymaple4013]

@@jbcatz5 May is better Because she knows how to battle than dawn

[@jbcatz5]

@@maymaple4013 Dawn knows how to battle too, she made it further into the Sinnoh Grand Festival than May did for the Hoenn or Kanto ones.

[@maymaple4013]

@@jbcatz5 may reach semi finals in hoenn and kanto And she beat zoey easily the girl dawn can’t beat

[@jbcatz5]

@@maymaple4013 May is the one who believed Harley, who had given her bad advice before, that a Hoenn contest pass would work in Kanto. Dawn would have seen through this immediately.

[@SilentRealm6677]

Well im actually think on where pokemon contests could be held in Johto in both cannon and anime places

[@watcherolic9930]

Misty-water type trainer, Iris-dragon type trainer. May, dawn, serena-contestors

[@random_person_on_internet]

Serena! Lol She was just a performer

[@christ5431]

​She is a top coordinator

[@maluteas]

The creator is so biased towards May lmao

[@Lovely_and_Cute_Type_Idol]

What about Serena?

[@anhn9241]

May

[@warriorwonder3254]

If you ever do another contest stream I need to be there nexttime. I play hours of sinnoh contests

[@whereisezraa5825]

Why most video is about may tho? Dawn was stronger coordinator) and Sinnoh contests rocked

[@chokemewithmydiamonds9456]

because may is better😂

[@whereisezraa5825]

@@chokemewithmydiamonds9456 I guess because Dawn actually won)

[@chokemewithmydiamonds9456]

@@whereisezraa5825 yeah for plot reasons. she also lost to zoey who lost to may so it's a paper-scissor-rock situation

[@whereisezraa5825]

@@chokemewithmydiamonds9456 rewatch Dawn v May) Glacion : 1) did not use any ice attack except ice shards) no ice beam no avalanche, nothing 2) used only shadow ball which was boring and not beautiful 3) could not freeze bubbles 4) secret power didn't work second time lol 5) coud not mirror whirpool second time lmao Piplup : 1) whirpool is iconic, many points 2) beated May's secret power 3) stadium really fancied Piplup more 4) all of Piplup attacks were elegant) 5) Piplup touched attacks and used them on his behalf Plot really showed Dawn deserved the ribbon and become Top Coordinator) all of her pokemon are beautiful May's too, but she really screwed up and underestimated Dawn in this episode

[@RazorMiddle]

I have more of a connection to May since I started with Hoenn which is why I had more to say, but Dawn is still a phenomenal character and I agree Sinnoh contets were better! :)

[@Fazanaskrzypce]

I prefer Dawn over May.

[@maymaple4013]

I prefer May than annoying copy cat dawn

[@Fazanaskrzypce]

@@maymaple4013 Dawn is not May' s copu

[@maymaple4013]

@@Fazanaskrzypce its so hard for children to accept Naybe you should watch May before you judge. Dawn is copy of May by goals and dream compare to other pokegirl

[@Fazanaskrzypce]

@@maymaple4013 I am adult. Second Dawn IS NOT May' s copy. Despite being coordinator she is different than May

[@maymaple4013]

@@Fazanaskrzypce she’s basically May many people say that not only me Maybe they have different personalities but the way they created dawn is just base on May That’s why they said dawn is May 2.0 Serena as well

[@ly0k0zeph95]

To be honest Contests are more interesting than gym battles let’s be real they show off Pokémon’s in a light that gyms don’t if you ask me and plus am I the only one who gets tired of gym battles‼️‼️‼️

[@ladyarcanine1432]

#BringBackMay

[@anhn9241]

Cool and fun

[@alexdelaloire8739]

Jessie is better than May and Dawn imo!! XD

[@lancecade5426]

finally caught a new video

[@whyidkwhy]

Tbh May should've won Kanto Grand Festival

[@ivanzoneBR24]

Who is Solidad anyway?

[@debasritachowdhury5297]

​@@ivanzoneBR24 Winner of the Kanto Grand Festival....she had defeated May in the semi-finals

[@anhn9241]

Max is better off staying home with his parents.

[@zhengyuettan1503]

Does pokemon showcase count as contest

[@anhn9241]

Interesting

[@AnimeMemesDaily]

video!!

[@anhn9241]

Neat

[@thebread5658]

Yo he a little bean

[@morgankundrick8289]

I kinda want to see goh do a pokemon contest in journeys so then we can see how his pokemon can do and so we see a companion that isn't a girl, cause it made it feel like it was a "girly" thing to do with both female roles doing it

[@namoma4922]

yeah though galar doesn't have contest ingame but hey if they had may do so in kanto there s no reason goh couldn't if they really wanted it

[@PunsnGnoses]

I mean Nando, Drew, Kenny and Harley were coordinators too (though for Nando he was both competing for badges and ribbons)

[@michaelkinsley2567]

More anime videos please!

[@mryeet9294]

You forgot Drew’s butterfree smh 🙄

[@anhn9241]

Lillie

[@anhn9241]

Max is should've go to school.

[@bitwawesome1]

Wow,

[@rabbittyranitar4492]

Weren't there contests in the Gen 6 anime too or were those something different?

[@RazorMiddle]

I haven't seen much of XYZ but I think those were called "Pokemon Showcases" and had different elements to them than contests

[@PokemonMaster-ru6ij]

Rabbit Tyranitar No those were Pokemon Showcases only girls were allowed to enter them which is why Ash never participated like he did in contests with May and Dawn

[@masonkyle6318]

pokemon showcases were just a sillier and girlier version of pokemon contests; and while there's nothing wrong with girliness per se it unfortunately made the creators think they couldn't possibly show a guy participating in them which honestly? super sexist/homophobic i hate that gamefreak always tries to fix things that aren't broken. contests were cool, they didn't have to try and replace them

[@christ5431]

​Bro it's inspired by miss France " MISS"

[@natalimoina]

@@masonkyle6318 facts

[@WiccanGarden]

Dawn is lightyears better than May

[@maymaple4013]

Original is better than copy

[@hikari5810]

@@maymaple4013 just because they had the same goal that doesn’t mean they are a copy

[@maymaple4013]

@@hikari5810 she’s a copy of May and she aint better my gad From her pokemon to her goals

[@j.mphukan2271]

@may maple Dawn have more combination and strategy than may . MeanwhileMay only show her skill at last 30 sec 🤣🤣 not only that may also won some contest by dumb luck.

[@anhn9241]

Serena

[@dodgersfan1111]

Anime Serena should have go into May’s and Dawn’s direction when ORAS came out rather than becoming a too sexist self centered no Pokémon involved performer and an attractive woman to Ash

[@pedrojesusfigueroacovagome6968]

Didnt Serena also participate in some kind of contest back in pokemon xyz?

[@Hana-cl5mm]

Yes, they're called showcases.

[@bitwawesome1]

Romance girl.