u/TheEpicAvengerSMM5

Enjoy!

Lillie explains to Lana that nothing she’s done for waking up Magearna has worked, and Ash instantly tells her to not give up, and that everything’s gonna be alright

It’s also worth noting that not only is the first thing we see after that is Lillie staring at her with a visible blush on her, but she continues to stare at him like that while everyone else is encouraging her too, as if she’s locked on Ash specifically

Added with the fact that this is literally the episode before she leaves (and was totally gonna confess, who are we kidding), I’d argue this is a clear sign of her liking Ash, even if she herself may not fully comprehend that yet

Tootles!

This is a comparison I see a lot, especially in defense of Penguinshipping, and I think it’s past time someone set the record straight. These two ships, although not without their similarities, are NOT the same and people need to understand that

To be charitable, I get why some people would believe that they are similar: the male rival acts somewhat antagonistic to the female companion, said antagonistic behavior being essentially to mask their true feelings for her. They share the same archetype, but there is a major difference between them that should not only make equating then next to impossible, but highlights a clear difference in why only one of them is straight up toxic

Kenny bullies his crush, Drew pushes her. There’s a difference

Both of them tease their crushes a lot, and there’s usually heat whenever they interact, but the difference is what this behavior actually does for them and what goes on underneath

When Kenny “teases” Dawn (and I’m using that term very loosely), it’s literally just a form of belittlement. He calls her “Deedee” as if it’s cute, but what it really did was contribute to her childhood trauma, which was at a point where seeing Plusle & Minun again basically gave her a panic attack, and belittle her in their interactions. It somewhat reminds me of that one scene from TAWOG when young Herald is saying mean things to young Nicole, and Nicole describes it as “that thing where guys say mean things to girls to lower their confidence so they’ll go it with them”, and while I wouldn’t necessarily take it far enough as to equate them, I do believe it is similar at the very least

Meanwhile, Drew does what he does because he sees the potential in May and wants her to get reach it. He gives her someone to strive against and pushes her in the right direction, as rivals are meant to do, and while Kenny literally does nothing for Dawn at all, Drew actually helps May on various occasions. For example: when Harley manipulates May into only relying on one move for her contest, Drew exposes him and tells May to quit relying on other people’s advice and just trust in herself and her Pokémon. Y’know, something that’s actually constructive and good for her development

The difference is that while Drew does what he does with May, it’s out of actual kindness, and I mean the real kind of kindness

He’s not always as nice to her as he should be, but he helps her progress as a coordinator and wants to see her succeed. Kenny just does and says whatever he thinks will give him “good points” with Dawn. Even when he actually is nice to Dawn, that’s all it is, niceness, it’s not out of genuine respect or care for her, because to him she’s just something he wants. It’s shallow and does nothing for her, and while I’m not saying that he shouldn’t be nice, there is a difference between that and actually going out of your way to help someone, which is what Drew consistently did for May

That’s just what I had to say though. I think equating these two ships is ridiculous, and comparing them reveals important differences between pushing someone and bullying them, and being kind vs being nice. Kenny and Drew may both tease a girl they like, but only one of them does it FOR her, and I hope I’ve made that difference clear

That’s all from me. Tootles

I watched a video recently that argues that the 3 most essential things for a good relationship are vulnerability, kindness, and understanding, and based on what was said in that video, Ash and Lillie fit that perfectly

In both scenes above, Ash and Lillie show a clear ability to be vulnerable around each other. Lillie’s talking about how she feels about not knowing her own past and not being able to touch Pokémon, Ash is talking about him being saddened by Rotom choosing to leave him for a TV show, and both are responded to with genuine kindness and understanding

Ash gets Pikachu to make funny faces to cheer Lillie up so she doesn’t feel so gloomy over her regression from being able to touch Pokémon, which cheers her up and makes her realize that she wants to remember everything, even the bad stuff. Lillie tells Ash how she felt when she had to move away from her mother and gives him meaningful advice that helped make things better between them

Both of these actions were kind, and both of them came from a place of understanding what the other was going through. Ash has felt like a failure before (after the battle of Lake Acuity, after losing to Wulfric with Ash-Greninja…) and he’s already traveled with girls with their own phobia of Pokémon (Misty with bugs, Dawn with Plusle & Minun, Iris with Ice types…), he knows what it takes to cheer someone up in a state like this and he knows better than to ask Lillie to be someone else or to change who she is, and Lillie knew the same when talking to him on the beach. She’s not yelling at him to “bring back the Ash I know m” nor to fit an image she has of him, she’s just giving him the support and advice he needs to do something constructive about his issue and not put himself down over this, while also showing him that she can relate with his struggle

And all of this applies to their dynamic in general. Ash practically held Lillie’s hand throughout her entire journey, boosting her confidence and taking important steps with her, being the only one to cheer her on when she was about to try a Z-move for the first time (granted, everyone else was quite cause she needed focus, but still), and Lillie returns the favor by giving him necessary council and always supporting him in the things he does. They don’t wear fake smiles nor do they carry imaginary versions of each other in their heads and try to force that image into reality, they are genuinely kind to each other, they’re able to be vulnerable with one another, and they understand each other very well…

But that’s just what I had to say. Tootles

Mega evolution is such a big and popular gimmick, it was revolutionary at the time and it was one of the best parts of Gen 6, both in the games and the anime. But when the time came to represent that gimmick, literally no one in the main squad got it

Ash didn’t get it because they had to give him all Kalos mons… when literally none of the Kalos Pokémon save for a literal mythical got a mega (that’s still bs even now), Serena only had 4 Pokémon and none of them could mega evolve, and Clemont didn’t get one either even though him getting one would’ve been obvious since he’s a gym leader, which is especially egregious since his arc was all about bossing up and he even gave himself a glowup before his gym battle with Ash. Korrina could’ve been the member with the gimmick, which would’ve been awesome for a lot of reasons, but instead they made her a temporary traveling companion instead of a main one

While I love Ash-Greninja, they could’ve had Korrina give Ash a Mega Lucario like she does the player character in the games. Clemont could’ve had a Mega Manetric, just swap out Luxray and give him the same origin story. Serena could’ve easily had a Mega for her showcases, that would’ve helped her a lot. All of these were options, but for some reason they just didn’t do that

Compare that to how Z-Moves were handled in Sun and Moon. Not only does Ash get a Z-Ring in the first episode, he also has a companion who doubles as a rival that has one too, and the rest of the Alola gang gradually get one as well. On top of that, the buildups some of them had to learning to use the Z-Moves were usually really good too, and they tie into their character arcs so neatly too. Ash with becoming one with Alola, Sophocles toughening up as a battler and trying to catch up to Kiawe, Lillie growing into a stronger person and battler and furthering her courage to do what she wants to do, Mallow connecting more with Tsareena and sharing their power together. All of this was great, and the XY gang could’ve had something just like this too with mega evolution

But that’s just my opinion. Enjoy

Ash and Lillie are looking at his phone to see a message. That’s it, that’s the premise of this piece

Link: https://www.deviantart.com/supermememaker5/art/Looking-at-Ashs-Phone---Aureliashipping-1388408652

Enjoy!

Hello, me here, and today I’m going to explain why Ash ending up with Lillie would not only make sense with his relationships with the other Pokégirls, it would turn those relationships into the pieces of a romance arc that managed to span across the 25 years he’s been the protagonist, while also serving as a testament to how far he’s come from a social standpoint. Let’s get into it

Starting with Misty. In the OS, she and Ash have always had this love-hate relationship where they argued a lot and spent a lot of time roasting and belittling each other, but there was also this sense that they kinda need and still care deeply for each other, and that was mainly because of the version of Ash she was dealing with

Ash when he started was a star contrast to how he ended. He was rude, immature, and sassy as all hell, which makes sense since he was largely alone during his childhood save for his mother, not having many (if any) real friends in his life and having an absent father. Just look at his interactions with various other kids his age (like the photographer he told to “get a new life”) if you need proof. Misty was arguably his first real friend and they were both hot heads, they argued a lot but it was clear that Misty did it because she wanted him to improve, and it was because of Misty that he was able to learn and grow as much as he did, both as a trainer and generally having a better grasp on how to treat people

Fast forward to Hoenn and he and May essentially flip the dynamic, with Ash being the one getting in May over things and May being the rookie, partially because that’s what Misty did for him, but it was also because Ash had somewhat of an ego problem in Hoenn, having proven himself as a seasoned trainer and thinking that he could do anything

As anyone would tell you, Ash’s arc in Hoenn was gaining a slice of humble pie and generally becoming more open to learn from others, which is reflected well with May. By the end of the series, they battled in a contest and tied with Blaziken and Sceptile, solidifying May as his equal rather than a rookie of whom must learn everything from him. May was essentially his student, and her finally becoming his equal in the end helped him realize that nobody’s ever done learning, and that he shouldn’t be trying to appeal to his own ego, but instead be more open to learning from others and keep growing into his best self

Which transitions perfectly into DP and Dawn. It’s well known that Ash and Dawn were truly equals in their series, not only because Ash was more open minded and able to learn from others, but also because his ego and hot headed temper were gone. Now he is not only ready to learn from others, but is generally a lot nicer and not a flame demon

Ash and Dawn both grew a lot from their relationship with each other. Ash taught her the basics and how to a good trainer, Dawn and her contests inspired multiple strategies he developed and even got him into contests for a short while

It’s also worth noting that Ash was there to hear about Dawn’s childhood trauma with Plusle & Minun, and he generally showed great emotional intelligence during that entire journey, especially when it came to Dawn. Keep that in mind

Cut to Unova, where he met Iris during his rusty period and they basically got a more annoying version of Ash’s dynamic with Misty. But as much as this dynamic was hated, it’s differences did prove the difference between Ash in the beginning and Ash in Unova

With Iris, who scolded and belittled him just as much as Misty did, Ash isn’t nearly as sassy nor does he clap back nearly as much, because while OS Ash thought he was tough shit and didn’t need anyone to be strong, BW Ash knows he’s not done learning and is more open to what his friends have to say, and knows that learning from them is the best way to improve as a trainer

But here’s another interesting contrast. When Ash saw Misty’s fear of bug types, he hated it and got mad at her for her distain for a certain type of Pokémon, and sometimes he’d even use that fear to tease and scare her. With Iris’s fear of ice types, he isn’t nearly as aggressive about it nor does he yell at her for it, and he doesn’t use it as a tool to scare her either. This’ll be important later

Then we get to Kalos, which was essentially the season where he farmed the most aura. Ash was locked-in and ready to win, he was coming for that W. During this, he met Serena, arguably his oldest friend of whom he met in a summer camp back when he was 7 (or 6, idk), who also idolized him and had a huge crush

For the vast majority of that series, Ash is oblivious to her feelings for him, yet there were also various moments where he was a gentleman to her. At the end of the series, Serena kisses him before heading off to Hoenn for contests, making him realize her feelings for him and possibly even breaking a crack through m his trademark density. Whether or not Ash felt the same way for her by the end is a whole other debate, but added with the various other moments they had together, it was clear that the biggest thing in the way of Ash finding love in his life was how dead set he was on achieving his goal once and for all, and that he was otherwise ready to have a girlfriend. He isn’t the same rude, unskilled kid he was when he started his journey, he had grown from his relationships with everyone else

Which leads us perfectly into Alola, where he’s taking time off and taking it easy. Of course, this is where we meet Lillie. Not only would I argue that him falling for someone in a region where he isn’t completely locked into his goal fits the best thematically, both got his overarching arc and his arc in SM itself, but in a way, you could also argue that his relationship acts like the culmination of his development from his relationships previous all of the previous girls

Just like Misty and Iris with bug and ice types, Lillie had a phobia where she couldn’t touch Pokémon and was terrified of touching them. Before, Ash would’ve hated this, but in Alola he’s understanding of her phobia and helped her through it, which makes sense since he was there to learn about Dawn’s trauma with Plusle & Minun, and now has the emotional intelligence to not only understand how she feels, but also help her throughout that entire process

Like with May, Ash taught Lillie a lot and helped her learn and grow as a person and as a trainer. Like with Dawn, who was his equal, Ash never looks down on Lillie and even calls her “better than all of us” in Journeys after hearing her letter. He wasn’t rude with her like he was with Misty and May, and just like with Serena, Lillie was someone who looked up to Ash a lot, picking up on some of his most admirable traits and gaining the courage to break out of her shell and leave the region or pursue her journey

Each girl up to that point played a role in Ash developing socially. Misty was the first friend and always pushed him to get smarter as a battler, May gave him the mentor role and helped him realize that even he wasn’t done learning, Dawn helped showcase his emotional intelligence, Iris went to show how far he’d come up to that point, and Serena was the eye-opener. This all culminates into his relationship with Lillie, someone that he treated with kindness, never looked down on, had the emotional maturity to help through her phobia, and inspired to be her best self

So that was just my take. I think Lillie being Ash’s endgame love interest makes too much sense not to be the case, as it adds a huge cherry on top for his social progression

That’s all from me, see you all next time!

I like to think that this similarity was something that was done deliberately to draw a parallel between Ash and Lillie. Both of them having the special evolution stone that would make their starters bigger and stronger than before, but letting their partners themselves decide and ultimately deciding not to do so for the sake of their happiness and pride

That’s all for right now, tootles!

I found this template and wanted to try it for myself. Hope y’all like it

Link to original template: https://www.deviantart.com/horrorexplorer/art/My-Favorite-Pairings-Template-901916788

Enjoy!

Something about the way Lillie looks just makes Ash’s heart fuzzy

Link: https://www.deviantart.com/supermememaker5/art/Enjoying-the-View..---Aureliashipping-1334310255

Enjoy!

After seeing her arrive alongside the other girls, Kukui and Hala, “Lillie” was the first thing Ash said before then saying “everyone”, referring to the others

Maybe it’s a reach, but maybe there was a tiny bit of significance to this. Maybe Lillie is significant enough to Ash that she was the first thing that popped his head after seeing the others coming, maybe he was somewhat afraid of her battling Guzma and getting absolutely crushed(my favorite interpretation)… or maybe it was just because she spoke first and I really am just reaching😅

Make what you will of it. Tootles

[removed]

Who completes the trilogy?

The otherwise sweet cinnamon roll with a sharp glare that can make just about anyone heed their charge and conform? There’s only one place she could’ve gotten that from…😜

(Bit of a retake of a previous post I deleted, hopefully I’ll hit the bullseye this time)

Sup gang, today I’m gonna talk about Ash’s obliviousness to girls liking him and why I think it supports Aureliashipping

Everyone knows about Ash being oblivious to girls having feelings for him. Many of the signs are quite clear, but he just never seems to get them. This was especially evident in Kalos, when Serena was practically throwing herself at him at times and he still was too dense to even have a clue. To this, I have a theory

Ash is so oblivious that not only would he not be able to recognize a girl’s feelings for him, he also probably wouldn’t know if he had those feelings as well, which may partially be because of his age. He had just turned 10 when he started his journey and he probably wasn’t taught about romance as much as other kids his age may have been (which would make sense given his mother’s history, but I digress), nor was he mature enough to have come to terms with what these feelings are/mean

From this, we can gather 3 things -

1. If Ash really does have feelings for someone and cannot identify them, then the signs aren’t going to be as obvious as a typical “I love you” or blushing to a random thing they say, they’re going to be more subtle and gently shown, an extra surge of interest from him if you will

2. If Ash ever does break from this phenomenon and come to terms with him falling for someone, it’ll be a huge testament to his growth as a person and his maturity

and 3. The person who can reach Ash on such a level that he does seem somewhat close to recognize his feelings for them

But in regard to 1st one specifically, it does put into perspective how Ash is when it comes to Lillie. He was far more involved with Lillie’s struggles than those of, say, Serena or Misty. He was there for her all the way during her process of being able to touch Pokémon again, and he was the only one among their friends to get excited and cheer Lillie on during her first attempt at a Z-move (granted, everyone else was silent because they believed she needed to focus, but still). And the way he looked and talked about Lillie in episode 37 of journeys seemed particularly special, even calling her “better than all of us” and getting excited by learning she wrote them a letter, and him jumping a bit when the letter mentioned him, as though he was surprised that Lillie knew he’d be there too

So it seems to me that Lillie is somewhat special to Ash among his friends. They had a special bond in Alola and it seems like deep down, that bond is a lot more than just a friendship. Maybe one day Lillie will gain the courage to make him realize his feelings for her, like Gwen did in the end of Spectacular Spider-Man Season 1

Anyways that’s all for right now

I made a couple of these Gus x Marcy edits after being remind of how cute those Chibi things were. I hope you all enjoy