List of Hoenn Gym Leaders

Below is a list of Gym Leaders from the Hoenn region in the Pokémon media franchise, a series of games, anime, manga, and other media created by Satoshi Tajiri. Any trainer seeking entry into the Pokémon League championship of any region must defeat the eight gym leaders of that region. [ [http://www.gamerankings.com/itemrankings/launchreview.asp?reviewid=160240 GameSpy review of "Pokémon Ruby"] "Gamespy." URL accessed July 10, 2006.]

Gym leaders are professional trainers whose expertise lies in a particular Pokémon type. Gym Leaders serve as bosses and reward skilled trainers with badges of merit, key to the advancement of the plot of the games. Each of these gym leaders is in charge of a Pokémon gym, a center that is located in a city. In "Pokémon Ruby" and "Sapphire" and "Pokémon Emerald", the Hoenn gym leaders are difficult trainers that the player must defeat in order to progress through the game and face the Elite Four. They serve much the same role in the anime, as each of them poses a challenge for Ash Ketchum, the main protagonist, to overcome before he can advance to the Hoenn League. In the "Pokémon Adventures" manga, Sapphire, the main female protagonist, must defeat all of the gym leaders in eighty days in order to prove her battling prowess to Ruby, the main male protagonist. [ [http://www.serebii.net/manga/rs/183.shtml Synopsis of Pokémon Adventures Manga: "Chapter 183: VS. Torchic!"] "Serebii.net." URL accessed July 10, 2006.]

Surprisingly all of the gym leaders of Hoenn make more than one appearance in the anime.

Roxanne

Wattson resides in Mauville City and is an expert on Electric-type Pokémon; defeating Wattson will earn the trainer the Dynamo Badge. His English name is derived from "watt", while his Japanese name is likely a reference toward Nikola Tesla. An old man, Wattson is almost always seen smiling.

When the player returns to Mauville City after defeating Norman, Wattson is standing outside. He will tell the player that there have been some problems at Mauville's electrical power station, New Mauville, and asks the player to enter the station to turn off the generator; if the player agrees, he or she receives the key to New Mauville. Completion of this subquest rewards the player with Wattson's TM24 Thunderbolt.

As shown in the Pokémon anime, Wattson always likes a good joke, as any visitors (gym challengers or not) take a roller coaster ride, ending up against a mechanical Raikou. Ash surprisingly defeats Wattson easily with just his Pikachu, which is unusual as Electric-type moves are not very effective against Electric-type Pokémon. Wattson then dejectedly plans to retire from his Gym Leader post but regains his fighting spirit after helping to defeat Team Rocket. It is revealed that Pikachu's electric attacks had been temporarily supercharged when he destroyed the mechanical Raikou, which allowed him to overwhelm Wattson's Pokémon. Ash, hoping to get a fair rematch, tries to return his Dynamo Badge and earn it back fairly, but Wattson asks him to keep it because Wattson realizes that he also needs to continue training. His training pays off, because he and Ash meet again later in the series and have a rematch, in which Wattson's Manectric defeats Ash's Torkaoal.

Flannery

Pokémon character
name= Flannery
caption= Flannery, as seen in "Pokémon Ruby" and "Sapphire"
japanname= Asuna
voiceactor= Lisa Ortiz
japanactor= Rio Natsuki
speciality= Fire-type Pokémon
occupation= Lavaridge Town Gym Leader
firstgame= "Pokémon Ruby" and "Sapphire"
firstanime= "Poetry Commotion!"
firstmanga=

Flannery is in charge of the Heat Badge and resides in Lavaridge Town. She is an expert on Fire-type Pokémon. Her name may be derived from the word "flame" or "flammable".

When the player first faces her in "Pokémon Ruby" and "Sapphire" and Pokémon Emerald, Flannery has recently inherited leadership of the gym from her grandfather (revealed to be a former Elite Four member), and she has a reputation to live up to. Flannery is a young, tall and slim girl with wild, fiery hair. At this point in her career, she seems uncertain and inexperienced. After Flannery is defeated, she comments that the player battles like Norman.

In the anime, Ash arrives in Lavaridge Town to find that Flannery has been the Gym Leader for only three days. Her grandfather recently left on a journey to write better poetry, but he secretly spies on her to see how she is doing, as the older citizens of the town are not expecting him back for a long time. He comes in disguised as a Pokémon referee, helps Flannery out, and eventually drops his disguise. One of Flannery's Slugma evolves fighting off Team Rocket, who had attempted to steal Flannery's Torkoal. The battle between Flannery and Ash is intense. Eventually, a fired-up Torkoal faces Ash's sleeping Corphish. However, Corphish eventually wakes up in time to defeat Torkoal, and Ash wins his fourth badge.

In the manga, Flannery becomes friends with Sapphire after their gym battle.

Norman

Pokémon character
name=Norman
caption= Norman, as seen in the Pokémon anime
japanname= Senri
voiceactor= Dan Green
japanactor= Jūrōta Kosugi
speciality= Normal-type Pokémon
occupation= Petalburg City Gym Leader, protagonist's father
firstgame= "Pokémon Ruby" and "Sapphire"
firstanime= "There's No Place Like Hoenn"
firstmanga=

Norman resides in Petalburg City and awards the Balance Badge. He is an expert on Normal-type Pokémon, from which his name is derived.

In the "Ruby", "Sapphire", and "Emerald" games, Norman is the protagonist's father. During the game, he appears on TV at the beginning of the player's adventure, and is mentioned by his good friend Professor Birch in conversation when the player first meets Birch. It is also Norman who lends Wally the Zigzagoon he uses to catch his first Pokémon, Ralts. Norman then wishes to battle the player, only that he/she must get the first four Hoenn badges first.

His role in "Pokémon Adventures" is similar to his video game role, as he is the father of Ruby. Norman is shown to be quite calm. He was originally going to be a gym leader in Hoenn five years prior to the start of the "Ruby" and "Sapphire" story arc. He and Professor Birch brought their families along.

There a wild Salamence attacked Professor Birch's daughter Sapphire, but Norman's son Ruby saved her, resulting in him receiving a scar on the forehead. This event caused Ruby to believe he needed to be more soft and Sapphire to toughen up to protect herself. The wild Salamence then went into the nearby research building resulting in Rayquaza escaping from the building. Norman is then banned from becoming a gym leader until he tracks down where Rayquaza is.

In the anime, Norman is May's and Max's father. He is a major celebrity in the area around Petalburg, and his skill is reputed to approach the level of an Elite Four member. He uses a high-level Slaking to accompany his powerful Vigoroth. His undefeated streak ends when he battles Ash, who wins his fifth gym battle. However, Max, depressed at seeing his father lose, snatches the badge just as Norman was giving it to Ash and runs away with it. Ash, May, and Norman manage to make him see that losing is as important as winning, and Max gives back the badge.

Winona

Pokémon character
name= Winona
caption= Winona, as seen in "Pokémon Ruby" and "Sapphire"
japanname= Nagi
voiceactor= Amy Birnbaum
japanactor= Hyo-sei
speciality= Flying-type Pokémon
occupation= Fortree City Gym Leader
firstgame= "Pokémon Ruby" and "Sapphire"
firstanime= "Who's Flying Now?"
firstmanga=

Winona resides in Fortree City and awards the Feather Badge. She is an expert on Flying-type Pokémon. Winona's name is taken from the words "wing" and "".

In the games, the way to her gym is barred by an invisible Kecleon, which can only be revealed by using the "Devon Scope". She uses a Skarmory, Swellow, Pelipper and Altaria in Ruby and Sapphire.

Winona, depicted in the Pokémon anime, is a very experienced gym leader. She also owns a Shiny Swellow. She puts up a good fight against Ash, but thanks to Pikachu, Grovyle and Swellow, he manages to win his sixth badge having Grovyle beat Altaria, Pikachu tying with Pelipper and Swellow defeating Winona's Shiny Swellow. She also has a Skarmory which she didn't use against Ash.

Tate and Liza

Pokémon character
name= Tate & Liza
caption=Tate and Liza, as seen in "Pokémon Ruby" and "Sapphire"
japanname= Fuu & Ran
voiceactor= Tate: Jason Anthony Griffith
Liza: Andi Whaley
japanactor= Tate: Takahiro Mizushima
Liza: Chisa Yokoyama
speciality= Psychic-type Pokémon
occupation= Mossdeep City Gym Leaders
firstgame= "Pokémon Ruby" and "Sapphire"
firstanime= "It's Still Rocket Roll To Me!"
firstmanga=

Tate and Liza are the twin gym leaders in the Hoenn region and reside in Mossdeep City; when defeated, they award the Mind Badge to the victor. It turns out that Tate is the slightly younger brother of Liza and slightly less experienced, ending up in constant teasing. Tate and Liza are experts on Psychic types. Their strategy is to Double Battle. In the games, Tate and Liza communicate with their Pokémon and each other telepathically in order to perfectly coordinate their attacks. This ability is not evident in the anime. When combined, their names sound like the word levitate. Their Japanese names can be interpreted as the Chinese "Feng" and "Lùan" respectively, complementing their appearances; additionally, the former translates to "wind" and is the first character in the art of feng shui, while "lùan"'s character is used in a pair of characters used to refer to confusion, a common technique of Psychic Pokémon.

Many players of the Pokémon video games initially believed that Tate and Liza were both girls; this belief stemmed from the fact that they dress in similar clothing, and Tate is not a very common boys' name. This was cleared up in the anime, however. It was probably thought because in the video games, one of the things shown on their profile was "Papa has trouble telling us apart sometimes".

In the Pokémon anime, Tate and Liza first appear at the Mossdeep Space Center, preparing to watch the shuttle launch, with the rest of their family. Their father, the astronaut, is going into space to find more space Pokémon, such as Lunatone and Solrock, Tate and Liza's Pokémon. After Max and Tate are kidnapped while fooling around on the shuttle, Team Rocket launches the shuttle, in an attempt to steal it and give it to their boss.
Ash's Corphish accidentally also boards the shuttle, and defeats Jessie, James and Meowth, allowing Max and Tate to land the shuttle safely in Mossdeep, with the help of the family's many Baltoy.

Ash finally gets to battle Tate and Liza in the following episode, using Pikachu and Swellow in a double-battle with Solrock and Lunatone. However, Ash's Pokémon can't get past Tate and Liza's defense strategies, including using Light Screen and Psychic. Then Pikachu uses Thunder, launching it to the sky. The thunder strikes back from the ionosphere's layer above the clouds, and hits both Swellow and Pikachu. Both of them absorb the electric energy from the thunder and it turned into a form of armor, as both Pokémon contained so much power that both Lunatone's Light Screen and Solrock's Solarbeam were cut through, leading Swellow and Pikachu to strike down the cosmic pairing.

Tate and Liza learn a lot from the battle, and Ash wins his seventh Hoenn badge, the Mind Badge.

Tate is younger than Liza, and she is quick to remind him of the fact.It is interesting to note that they are the first team of gym leaders instead of just one gym leader.

Juan

Pokémon character
name= Juan
caption= Juan, as seen in "Pokémon Emerald"
japanname= Adan
voiceactor= Sean Schemmel
japanactor= Shō Hayami
speciality= Water-type Pokémon
occupation= Sootopolis City Gym Leader
firstgame= "Pokémon Emerald"
firstanime= "The Great Eight Fate"
firstmanga=

Juan is in charge of the Rain Badge in "Pokémon Emerald", and resides in Sootopolis City. His name comes from a common mispronunciation of Juan as "Wuan" (water). Like his favorite student, Wallace, Juan is an expert on Water-type Pokémon. In "Pokémon Emerald", Juan has become the gym leader, as Wallace became the Pokémon League Champion.

In the anime, Juan is the Sootopolis gym leader (and the last gym leader that Ash faces), but Wallace is not mentioned. Juan is also a former Pokémon Contest Champion. As a result, his gym is very stylish, especially compared to the swimming pool of the Cerulean City Gym. He uses five Pokémon in his gym battle with Ash, which lasts two episodes. In the first episode, the battle begins with a double battle. Juan chooses Sealeo and Seaking, and while they defeat Ash's Snorunt, they are beaten by Pikachu and Corphish. In the second episode, the field and positions are switched, and Ash starts with Grovyle, while Juan uses Luvdisc to defeat it. Ash sends out Corphish once more, who defeats Luvdisc, but the crab Pokémon is quickly defeated by Whiscash. Ash defeats Whiscash with his Swellow, and then continues against Juan's best Pokémon: Milotic. Milotic defeats Swellow, but is ultimately defeated by Pikachu, using a full power Thunder attack beneath the water. Juan awards Ash with the Rain Badge and directs the group to the next Pokémon Contest, in Pacifidlog Town.

Wallace

Pokémon character
name= Wallace
caption=Wallace, as seen in "Pokémon Ruby" and "Sapphire"
japanname= Mikuri
voiceactor=
japanvoiceactor= Toshiyuki Morikawa
speciality= Water-type Pokémon
occupation= Sootopolis City Gym Leader; later Hoenn Pokémon League Champion
firstgame= "Pokémon Ruby" and "Sapphire"
firstanime= "Our Cup Runneth Over"
firstmanga=

Wallace is a character in the Pokémon video game series. He was once the Gym Leader of Sootopolis City, in control of the Rain Badge, but was replaced by his mentor, Juan, when he became champion of Hoenn's Elite Four. He is an expert of Water types. In all games, Wallace is the guardian of the Cave of Origin, where deceased Pokémon are resurrected and where the player may catch Groudon and Kyogre in "Pokémon Ruby" and "Sapphire", respectively. His demeanor is similar to that of his mentor's, possessing an affection for lavish beauty and extravagance. Both his names contain the first syllable of their language's words for water ("Wallace" and "water", and "Mikuri" and "mizu").

In "Pokémon Emerald", Wallace plays a far more significant role in the plot line of the game. Wallace is first introduced after the release of Kyogre and Groudon by Team Aqua and Team Magma, respectively. Upon arriving at Sootopolis City, the player speaks with Steven who tells him that someone knows the secret to stopping the natural disasters wrought by the legendary Pokémon. This turns out to be Wallace, who tells him that there is a third legendary pokémon, Rayquaza, that can be found at the Pacifidlog Town. The player then meets Wallace at the Sky Pillar and sends him up to the top of the tower to wake Rayquaza. Rayquaza then comes to Sootopolis City and calms Groudon and Kyogre, and all three legendary Pokémon leave the city. Wallace is then beside the Sootopolis City gym and, unlike in "Ruby" and "Sapphire", Wallace is no longer the gym leader and has turned his position over to his former mentor. His mentor, Juan, uses Water-type Pokémon, much like Wallace did.

Shockingly, Wallace is later found as the Champion of the Elite Four and is a very formidable opponent. He retains his usage of Water-type Pokémon and uses powerful Pokémon in battle: most notably his Milotic, which has astonishing Special Defense; his Tentacruel, which has learned powerful moves like Ice Beam and Hydro Pump; and his Gyarados.

In "Pokémon Adventures", he likes Winona, the Fortree City Gym Leader.

Wallace has never appeared in the anime during the episodes that take place in Hoenn, but it seems that he was planned to judging by some early promo artwork for the anime until the changes in "Pokémon Emerald". Instead, he made his debut in the anime as a Contest Master hosting his own Pokémon Contest in Sinnoh, The Wallace Cup. He appeared in the episodes DP075, and from DP077 - DP079.

References