There have been a ton of notable characters introduced throughout the Pokemon anime series, even during its first two arcs. While some of these characters are anime counterparts of characters who first appeareꦏd in the games, many are anime-exclusive, typically not appearing in any other media.
Despite a handful of these characters seeming like they'd eventually encounter Ash Ketchum and friends again at some point in the future, other than some appearing in flashbacks during later seasons, many were never seen again after their initial debut, no matter their origins or significance to Ash's journey to become a Pokemon Master.
10 A.J.
A.J. was notable for using various physical equipment to train his Pokemon and being the leader of an unofficial gym. While A.J. wasn't trying to mistreat his Pokemon and had different training methods, to Ash, it looked like he was treating them too brutally.
As it turned out, A.J. did care for his Pokemon, going as far as making specialized food for them, but that could be hard to see for an inexperienced trainer like Ash, who just saw a lot of unnecessary training equipment. Despite leaving to defeat Gyms throughout Kanto, A.J. is never seen again after the second opening, perhaps because his face was too much like Ash's.
9 Victor
Victor was a surfer who lived in the Seafoam Islands with his unique and 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:older Pikachu Puka, seemingly one of the first nicknamed Pokemon in the entire anime series and the second Pikachu to be seen under someone's ownership. Victor's goal was to surf on Humungadunga, a giant wave that Victor's idol Jan had surfed on four decades prior, which he achieved in the episode.
Victor's Pikachu Puka could sense when waves were coming, which helped detect Humungadunga. It was said that Victor found Puka floating on a piece of driftwood, so it's surprising that these characters didn't reappear in the Alola region, with Puka evolving into Alolan Raichu due to its similarities.
8 The Eevee Brothers ♚
The four brothers, Sparky, Rainer, Pyro, and Mikey, were all Eevee trainers, with each one besides Mikey specializing in training one of 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:its evolved forms with hair to match their respective Pokemon. In their debut episode, Mikey becomes the group's Eevee trainer, deciding not to evolve his Pokemon.
They're never seen again, despite several of Ash's rivals and companions having Eevee of their own. Chloe's Eevee in Pokemon Journeys is incapable of evolution for some unknown reason, despite being tested on at the Eevee Evolution Lab, a place that would seem perfect for the Eevee Brothers to reappear as researchers.
7 Professor Ivy ও
Profe🎃ssor Ivy, a professor in the Orange Islands, never returned after the arc she debuted in despite being an acclaimed Pokemon researcher. Professor Ivy gave Ash the GS Ball, a mysterious Pokeball that could not be opened or transported directly and was planned to contain Celebi.
During Ash's adventures in the Orange Islands, Brock decided to be her assistant but was found in Pallet Town by Ash and Misty after they returned, having a negative reaction if she was mentioned. Since the GS Ball storyline was eventually dropped in favor of the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:fourth Pokemon movie starring Celebꦛi instead, it mak꧂es sense Professor Ivy never returned.
6 Damian
Damian was Charmander's original trainer, who never returned after deeming it weak and leaving it to die. After Ash, Misty, and Brock saved Charmander from certain death, it defeated Team Rocket, with Damian returning for it after hearing the news, lying that his mistreatment of Charmander was to strengthen it, but it had decided to be with Ash instead.
While Damian himself never returned after his debut episode, Ash's rival Paul had a similar expanded arc with Chimchar, with Paul acknowledging its strength and getting character development after it joined Ash and fully evolved. In the alternate universe movie 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Pokemon I Choose You, Damian is 𒆙replaced by Cross, another characte🎶r who develops over time.
5 Bruno
Unlike Lance and Agatha, who each appeared much later, Kanto and Johto 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Elite Four member Bruno only appeared once in the original series. Bruno saved Ash, Misty, and Brock from a rampaging giant Onix that ꦯhe later caught after freeing a Sandslash from between its rocks.
Bruno disguised his daily chores as "training" for Ash and Brock, but later told them the truth, having no secret techniques of his own but claiming that the secret of training Pokemon is having mutual care for꧙ each other. Despite several return trips to Kanto by Ash and his companions, Bruno was never seen again, which is unfortunate because his character deserved a little more depth.
4 L♐orelei/Prima
While in the games Lorelei is a member of Kanto's Elite Four, in the anime's English dub, she is instead a Pokemon Master named Prima.(Although later, she is mentioned as an Elite Four member by Misty.) Encountered by the group when they got to Mandarin Island South, it was revealed that she was Misty's idol and that she'd be holding a lecture and battle demonstration.
After the demonstration, she battled and defeated Ash, but said he had potential and needed to connect with his Pokemon more after seeing his disobedient Charizard. Prima never appeared after her debut episode, but it would've been interesting to see a growing student-mentor relationship between her and Misty.
3 Sabrina
Based on the Saffron City Gym Leader of the same na𒆙me, the anime version of Sabrina became so obsessed with honing her exceptional psychic abilities that she split into two personalities,♑ a younger one represented by the doll she held and her older adult self.
When🍌 the Haunter that Ash had met at the Pokemon Tower appeared during his second match against Sabrina, it started goofing off instead of battling, which caused Sabrina to laugh and caused her two personalities to merge back together. While Haunter stayed with𝔉 Sabrina, Ash eventually caught an unrelated Gengar in Pokemon Journeys, and despite returning to Saffron City several times, Sabrina never reappeared.
2 Lt. Surge
Based on the Vermillion City Gym Leader of the first generation games, the anime version of Lt. Surge provided Ash with his first proper Gym battle as well as his first Gym battle loss and served as a character that significantly affected Ash and Pikachu's growth, with their first instance of uncertainty about whether Pikachu should evolve.
Although Lt. Surge himself never appeared again, Ash returned to the Vermillion City Gym in Pokemon Journeys. It's there that replacement Gym Leader Visquez tells Ash that Lt. Surge went on a journey to improve himself as a trainer of Electric-type Pokemon, showing a redesign more similar in appearance to his video game counterpart alongside his Raichu.
1 Anthony
Anthony isn't that memorable of a character by appearance alone, but how he affects Ash's team at the time is significant. In his debut episode, Anthony had been neglecting his wife and daughter and training his Hitmonchan for the P1 Grand Prix, a tournament that pits Fighting-type Pokemon, and Brock's Geodude, against each other.
Ash's Primeape won the P1 Grand Prix after defeating Jesse's Hitmonlee, and Anthony said he could train it to become a true P1 champion, so Ash left it with him. Despite returning to Celadon City several times, Ash never returned to get Primeape, so Anthony never reappeared. At least Primeape has had a few cameos alongside Ash's other caught Pokemon.