Ash Ketchum is undoubtedly the most famous trainer in the Pokemon series by an incredible margin. Not only is he the first Alo﷽lan champion in the anime, but he's showed great passion and creativity in his battles throughout the entire series. He often thinks outside the box, and battles in a way totally unlike players of the Pokemon games ever could.
That said, there's a surprisingly large number of battles where these skills didn't get him so far. He's infamous among Pokemon fans for having several gym badges despite not w🌼inning against his opponent.
7 The Boulder 💧Badge (VS Brock)ꦿ
Ash actually comes 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:quite close to beating Brock despite his Pikachu having no attacks that work against Brock's Rock-types because they also have the Ground-type. This unfortunately comes at the cost of pushing his Pikachu too hard to electrocute the immune foes. However, this ends up activating the gym'⛎s sprinkler system and giving Ash an unfair advantage.
This causes Ash to forfeit, but it's clear that Brock should have been the one to forfeit, given that his own Pokemon was in pain and had visibly lost already before this had happened. Ash receives the badge out of goodwill as Brock joins his journey, seeming more like Brock finding an e✃xcuse to leave his job and let his family take over the gym.
6 The Cascade Badge (VS Lily, Daisy, & Violet) 💛
It mig💟ht seem like a common stereotype for Ash to get badges for beating Team Rocket, but Cerulean City is the only place where this really happened in proper fashion. While losing to Misty's sisters Lily, Daisy, and Violet, his win against Team Rocket and saving the gym convinced them to give him the badge anyway.
This isn't to say his badge was unearned, but it de👍finitely should have been💮 followed by a battle. Most other times where Ash saves a gym, he will still have to win a battle afterward to prove his skill in a more focused space. This just seems like a way to get him and the troubles that follow him out of Cerulean City.
5 The Rainbow Badge (VS Erika) 🌳
Not only did Ash fail to beat the Grass-type expert Erika for her badge in Kanto, he wasn't even allowed in the Gym initially. He needed Team Rocket's help to 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:dress as a girl just to enter this gym, and was qui🐻ckly disqualified when the truth came out.
That said, Erika couldn't hold a grudge after he saved her pungent Gloom from a fire started by Team Rocket, and 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:this act of heroism is hardly the worst reason to receive a badge. Nonetheless, it de♛finitely is the deed furthest from a proper battle Ash has gotten a badge for.
4 ཧ The Marsh Badge (VS🌜 Sabrina)
Not only has Ash never properly beaten Sabrina, but he didn't even really come close. Her Kadabra essentially annihilated him, and after a qu🌜est to find a Haunter with some type advantage against her team, the battle ended with a laugh rather than a fainted opponent, and a badge given o𒊎ut of kindness instead of skill.
This Haunter turned out to be one that Sabrina knew as a child, and it gave her the opportunity to laugh for the first time in ages. As appreciation for breaking her stoic and rude demeanor, Sabrina gave Ash the Marsh Badge, but it's significantly less su𓆉bstantial a reason than saving a Pokemon's life or protecting a Gym Leader's property.
3 The Glacier Badge ꧟(VS Pryce) 🥀
Ash's battle against Mahogany Town Gym Leader Pryce is definitely closer to a win than most other Gym Battles in his history. This involved an incredibly close battle where Ash had to use Cyndaquil and Pikachu very carefully, as the icy terrain made it especially hard for him to use his signature 𓆏speedy moves.
However, Pryce ended up giving him a badge by forfeiting, rather than letting Ash win more properly. Ash was set to lose and he initially rejected the badge since he didn't properly win, but Pryce seemed determined to give Ash the badge to 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:protect his Piloswine's health, making f🙈or one of the more disappointing badges of his generally impressive history.
2 The Dynamo Badge (VS Wattson) 🦄
Battling against Hoenn's Electric-type expert Wattson is the closest that Ash has ever gotten to cheating. In the episode o🃏f this battle, Ash managed to get his Pikachu supercharged by one of Wattson's gym traps, and this led to Pikachu having an absurd amount of power that let it defy type advantages and eliminate Wattson's team embarrassingly fast.
Ash does try to give the badge back, but Wattson suggests keeping it after feeling less discoura🍎ged by such a dramatic loss. There's no way that this could be described as a fair battle, though, as just like with Brock, it's clear that Ash had an unfair advantage that should not have been counted.
1 ဣ The Cobble Badge (VS Maylene) 𒐪
Ash managed to have pretty fair victories in all his Unova and Kalos Gym Battles, but there's one final mark on his record due 🌟to a battle with Sinnoh's Fighting-type Gym Leader Maylene. This optimistic fighter ended up having some confidence issues, leading her to have a battle against Dawn where Maylene came out victorious and more ambitious to continue her role as a Gym Leader.
She breaks this passion for her job quickly when 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:her battle with Ash ends in a draw, but she decides to give him the Cobble Badge anyway. This is an absolute waste as Ash is clearly enthusiastic about winning fairly and clearly, but this is hardly a definitive win and is definitely the least-earned badge he's received ov🧜er the past few regions he's competed in.