When it comes to Pokémon, Ash’s Charizard is probably one of the most iconic and recognizable Pokémon from the franchise after Pikachu. Ash and his Charizard have a long history together, and it’s one that many modern fans may not be familiar with due to the sheer length of time over which all these episodes occurred, dating back to the first season over 20 years ago. Here’s everything a fan needs to know about Ash and his Charizard.
Charizard, of course, wasn’t always a Charizard. Ash first met his Charmander back in Pokémon’s 11th episode, when he found it abandoned in a rainstorm, cowering under a small leaf in a desperate attempt to keep the flame on its tail lit. Ash and friends rushed the suffering Fire-type to the Pokémon Center, where it was able to recover. Charmander made a huge impression on fans in this episode, and to this day, the image of Charmander huddling under that leaf is known to provoke strong feelings even in those who haven’t watched the show in years.
After finding Charmander’s original trainer who abandoned it, Ash is able to take in Charmander as his own Pokémon and begins training him to be a valuable member of the team.
Ash’s Charmeleon Became Disobedient
How the anime introduced the concept of trainers needing badges to make higher-level Pokémon obey them.
Charmander evolved into Charmeleon in episode #43, where it battled against Exeggutor, who is weak to fire. As Charmeleon, it began to disobey Ash’s orders in Pokémon battles, mimicking a mechanic from the games where Pokémon of too high a level would become disobedient. Charmeleon even began to attack Ash with flames when agitated. Fortunately, it didn’t spend long in this state and soon evolved again into Charizard in episode #46, where the fresh Charizard battled it out with an Aerodactyl in an impressive aerial display.
Charizard still wouldn’t obey, however, to the point where its refusal to fight led to a loss at the Cinnabar City gym. His disobedience cost Ash a win at the Indigo Conference, too, where he lost to Ritchie when Charizard refused to battle in the top 16 round. Throughout Pokémon’s Orange Island arc, Charizard’s disobedience continued until an incident where Charizard was frozen solid during a battle with a Poliwrath. At the risk of Charizard’s tail flame going out again, Ash and co. worked hard to help Charizard pull through, finally earning Ash enough respect that Charizard would obey.
Ash’s Charizard’s Appearances Beyond Kanto
Charizard came back in Johto and Unova
Ash brought Charizard with him to Johto as well, and frequently used him in early battles, where Charizard far outstripped the level of his opponents. Misty and Brock felt that Ash was not being fair to his opponents and often chided him for this behavior. The incident would go on to prove important, as Brock and Misty’s words could explain why Ash abandons his previous Pokémon in each region. While Ash used Charizard against the first gym leader in Johto, the time had come for Charizard to move out of the limelight.
In episode #134, Ash and friends find a location known as the Charicific Valley, where many wild Charizards live. Here, it was revealed that Ash’s Charizard is considerably smaller than most, and it struggled to earn respect from its fellow Charizard. Charizard ended up protecting the valley from Team Rocket (who only attacked to help Charizard be accepted), and Ash decided to leave Charizard in the valley. Charizard stayed, alongside a female Charizard named Charla, with whom he had become enamored.
Charizard wouldn’t reappear until it was time for Ash’s final Johto badge in episode #253, where Charizard’s training brought it to Blackthorn City while Ash was there. Charizard joined Ash to fight for the final Pokémon gym badge, and stayed for the Silver Conference, where Ash would place in the top eight. Another comeback occurred when Ash came home to Kanto to challenge the Battle Frontier in episode #410, and again during the Battle Frontier arc’s final match in episodes #463 and #464. Charizard fought well but was ultimately defeated by a Dusclops, and returned to the valley afterward.
Charizard didn’t appear during the anime’s Sinnoh era, but would finally be seen again during episode #773, long after Ash arrived in Unova. Ash was reminded of his Charizard by a Charmander, and asked to have Charizard sent to him by Professor Oak. While there, Ash’s Charizard and his traveling companion Iris’s Dragonite developed a rivalry, constantly competing. Charizard stayed with Ash in Unova for the rest of the series, until finally being sent back to Professor Oak’s lab, alongside Ash’s Pokémon from Unova. Charizard lived at Professor Oak’s lab from that point onward, not returning to the Charicific Valley.
Where is Ash’s Charizard Now?
Charizard has taken on a mentor role at Professor Oak’s lab.
Charizard was last seen during Pokémon Journeys at Professor Oak’s lab, where it would work with some of Ash’s other Pokémon, like Gengar, to help them train and learn new moves. Charizard was shown watching Ash’s battles in the World Coronation Series tournament as well, and memories of Charizard (and other Pokémon) were seen by Pikachu during the climactic bout to cheer him on to victory. Despite much speculation, Ash’s Charizard never mega evolved in Pokémon XY, nor did it Gigantamax during Pokémon Journeys, so it has never used any of the newer forms Charizard has acquired over the years.
While Ash doesn’t appear in the successor series
Pokémon Horizons
, another Charizard, owned by Professor Friede, plays a major role, carrying the torch from Ash’s Charizard.
As one of Ash’s oldest and now most loyal Pokémon, Charizard appeared in the final episodes of Ash’s run, where it reunited with Bulbasaur and Squirtle, giving the original trio a final farewell. While Charizard in general has always been a popular Pokémon, Ash’s Charizard certainly increased its appeal with its many cool performances in battle, and its reappearances have helped introduce Charizard to new generations of Pokémon fans. With a role in some of Pokémon‘s most memorable moments, Ash’s Charizard undoubtedly made its mark in the memory of fans.
How Does Ash’s Charizard Stack Up Against Other Charizard?
As noted above, Ash’s Charizard is quite a bit smaller than the average Charizard, which generally puts it at a disadvantage in terms of physical strength compared to other Charizard. However, what Ash’s Charizard lacks in size, it makes up for with experience. As one of Ash’s most-used Pokémon over the whole series, Charizard knows how to handle itself in battle.
While Ash’s Charizard is quite strong, it has some rivals for the title of strongest Charizard in the anime. Alain’s Charizard, seen in Pokémon XY, is capable of Mega Evolution, and once won 10 back-to-back battles in a row, an impressive feat for any trainer. Leon’s Charizard in Pokémon Journeys was known for being undefeated, and had access to the powerful Gigantamax transformation, even defeating a Water-type Gyarados to win the previous World Coronation Series. Leon’s Charizard’s undefeated streak was, of course, brought to an end by Pikachu.
Is Charizard Ash’s Strongest Pokémon?
Though He Once Reigned Supreme, There Are Contenders
For much of Ash’s career as a Pokémon trainer, Charizard was his ace in the hole. Though the fire/flying type might have initially had trouble listening to its trainer, Ash’s loyalty and dedication eventually earned Charizard’s respect, turning it into an absolute monster on the battlefield. Despite the rich history though, Ash’s other strongest Pokémon give Charizard a run for its money.
Though Pokémon like Melmetal, Lucario, and Sceptile have all put in impressive performances for Ash and have even helped him become world champion, none of them are quite on Charizard’s level in terms of raw strength. There are two Pokémon, however, who absolutely surpass Charizard both in their bond with Ash and in their unreasonable power. Ash’s Greninja and Pikachu are the only two Pokemon to really beat out Charizard in terms of combat utility, and even then, their strength is more tied into special abilities rather than the innate power of the Pokémon itself.
Greninja took to Ash from the start, and their bond eventually gave it the now iconic Ash-Greninja form. This form dramatically boosts Greninja’s power. Even in the Pokémon games, Ash-Greninja is so strong that it’s outright banned in many competitive formats. On the other side, there’s Pikachu, whose small size hides the fact that the electric rodent is both literally and figuratively a powerhouse. Ash has somehow turned Pikachu into a one Pokemon army with special moves like Volt Tackle and the Z move 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt, which is probably the strongest attack in Ash’s arsenal.
Ash’s Charizard is certainly a powerful and experienced Pokémon, as proven time and time again in its battles. It’s one of Ash’s greatest success stories, and proof that he really is a world-class Pokémon trainer.
Pokemon
- Created by
- Satoshi Taijiri , Ken Sugimori , Junichi Masuda
- First Film
- Pokemon: The First Movie
- Latest Film
- Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle
- First Episode Air Date
- April 1, 1997
Summary
Spanning over twenty-five years, Pokemon, known as Pocket Monsters in Japan, is the multimedia franchise created jointly by Nintendo, Game Freak, and Creatures. Conceptualized by Satoshi Tajiri in association with Ken Sugimori and Junichi Masuda, Pokemon is set in fictional worlds where people live together with tamable creatures known as Pokemon. Humans who catch, raise, and battle the creatures are known as Pokemon Trainers. They head out on extensive journeys across their continents to raise their Pokemon with the ultimate goal of competing in tournaments to become the champion. Pokemon spans several massive properties, from a long-running animated series to a successful trading card game, to the medium that started it all, video games. In addition, Pokemon began the “two-game” trend where two versions of a game would release and include different Pokemon/features between the versions, encouraging players to meet up with others and trade so they could “catch ’em all.”