Information about the newest incarnation of thePokemonanime,Pokemon Horizons: The Series, has revealed that Ash Ketchum is not, in fact, the father of the series' new protagonist, Liko, disproving the common fan theory that this was the case. Almost since the announcement of her role in the newPokemonanime, fans have been speculating about who Liko’s parents were.Ash Ketchum was the main protagonist of thePokemonanime series for over 25 years, with his story ending in March 2023 with the seasonPokemon Ultimate Journeys: The Series. In December 2022, the Pokemon Company revealed both the then-upcomingPokemon Horizonsseries, based on thePokemon Scarlet and Violetgames, and that the new charactersLiko and Roy would become the series' new protagonists. After these reveals, many fans began to theorize about the identities of the new main characters' parents, with the possibility that Ash was Liko’s father being a particularly popular theory.RELATED:Pokemon Anime Leak Reveals When Nemona Appears in the SeriesOn Twitter, Anipoke Fandom posted a set of images from the anime showing Liko’s house and father. The latter is revealed to look nothing like Ash, instead being a new character like his daughter. This coincides with leaked descriptions of episodes for the series, one of which revealed that Liko’s father is named Alex.
Thetheory that Ash was Liko’s fatherdrew largely on aspects of Liko’s character design, particularly her hair and hairpin, which were believed to connect her to Ash. Specifically, her hairpin matches the symbol on Ash’s hat in the firstPokemonanime, while her hair is a somewhat similar color to Ash’s own.
While the reveal that Ash is not Liko’s father may be disappointing to those who believed in the theory or wanted to see him return in this way, it is not necessarily an entirely negative development. The lack of such ties to pre-existing characters from the anime could give Liko and Roy the opportunity to establish themselves as independent characters, separate from Ash’s legacy. In addition, it is still possible thatAsh may appear in some other capacityover the course of the series.
At the same time, Ash’s absence and evident lack of any relation to the new main characters may present new challenges to thePokemonseries. Many viewers of thePokemonanime have watched Ash’s adventures for years, and are likely reluctant to see him go. Furthermore,Ash as a character has significantly impacted thePokemonanime. It remains to be seen what the new anime will do to replace Ash’s interactions with other characters and the world ofPokemon, and how well it will work.
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