10 Things The Pokémon Anime Changes About Legendaries

Legendary Pokémon are not always represented in the exact same way in the anime.

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Over the years, there have been a lot of legendaries introduced to the Pokémon franchise. With the games always preceding the anime and movie counterparts, it isn’t always a guarantee that these Pokémon will be replicated exactly the same in this different format.

Some individual Legendary Pokémon may be presented in a different way or given more time to shine in its own movie, while the general definition and understanding of what makes these Pokémon legendary are also challenged and adapted.

10 Proof That Multiples Of An Individual Species Exist

In the Pokémon games, the player will only ever face off against one of each Legendary. However, it is still occasionally implied in Pokédex entries that herds of a specific species exist.

In the anime, if Ash and company see a Legendary more than once, it is not immediately assumed that it is the exact same Pokemon. Ash encounters a Suicune on multiple occasions, but it is highly unlikely that the Suicune that Goh catches in Pokémon Journeys is the same one. Furthermore, in the movie Zororark: Master of Illusions, there are shiny versions of the Legendary Beasts, which suggests variety within certain species.

9 Evidence Suggests Legendary Pokémon Can Breed

Legendaries are generally shown to be genderless in the games, although Pokémon such as Latias and Latios debunk this. This isn’t directly addressed in the anime but there are several episodes dedicated to a mother and child Lugia which raises so many questions about Legendary Pokémon and breeding.

This isn’t actively explained either, but it suggests that legendaries may act and reproduce like other Pokémon and should be considered rare species rather than unique individuals. It is an interesting notion and makes sense that Legendary Pokémon would be mysterious and have unanswered questions surrounding them.

8 Psychic Powers Allow For Pokémon Dialogue

Other than the inevitable battles themselves, interactions with Legendary Pokémon in the games rely on additional antagonists or supporting characters to reveal necessary lore or evil schemes. While the anime certainly does the same for the most part, there are exceptions where Legendary Pokémon are able to speak and act for themselves.

Mewtwo is a prime example of this and a majority of the Legendary Pokémon that have spoken in the anime have been Psychic-types, implying that their human speech is the result of telepathy.

7 Legendaries Have More Opportunities To Show Their Personalities

In the Pokemon anime, Legendary Pokémon exist beyond just being an end-goal encounter. There are multiple instances where Ash connects and bonds with these Pokémon. In Pokémon Journeys, for instance, the moment that Ash and Goh meet sees them riding Lugia and having a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Across the anime and the individual Legendary-focused movies, these Pokémon are generally given more time and the viewer is able to see more of a personality to them than just catching a strong one-of-a-kind Pokémon near the end of a game.

6 Their Purpose & Duties Are Clearer

In the anime and the movies, the featured and title Pokémon are given some sort of purpose or role. When Ash met Bulbasaur back in the Indigo League adventures, Bulbasaur was protecting the village and its Pokémon. With legendaries in general, the movies are no different. In Pokémon Heroes, Latios and Latias are the protectors of Alto Mare and that is the main focus of the movie.

In the games, unless it is a part of the main story or involving one of the title legendaries, these Pokemon are not much more than just rare encounters and Pokémon to battle with.

5 There Are Significant Consequences To Catching Legendaries Unlike In The Games

It could be the culmination of a story arc or a post-game encounter but catching Legendary Pokémon has always been a pivotal inclusion in the Pokémon series. As difficult as those battles can be, there is never really any dire consequence or negative impact from the capturing of said Pokémon.

In the anime and movies, these Legendary Pokémon are very rarely pursued with the intent to capture by Ash and other protagonists, but instead by antagonists with evil intentions. An example of this is in The Power Of One, where capturing one of the Legendary Birds appears to disrupt the balance and change the climate.

4 Ho-Oh Appears Long Before Its Region Is Introduced

Ho-Oh is the first Legendary Pokémon that Ash encounters in the anime, which is significant as it belongs to an entirely different region, Johto, that doesn’t even get introduced until the next generation.

In the games, introducing a Pokémon that is from a later generation is just unheard of. This is mainly because the games have always been released before their anime counterparts and each region has a fixed Pokédex.

3 The Definition Of What Makes A Pokémon Legendary Is Blurred Further

For years, Japanese media has attempted to keep Mythical and Legendary Pokémon as two separate distinct groups. The idea was always that Mythical Pokémon were rarer commodities than legendaries, with more intrigue and mysticism over their existence.

The games paint a pretty straightforward picture of what Pokémon are considered Legendary, even if this continues to blur the lines between Legendary and Mythical Pokémon. However in Pokémon 3: The Movie, it is explicitly implied that Unown is a Legendary Pokémon, while it arguably is not considered as such in the games. This is further proof that the anime and movies carry the terms Legendary and Mythical a bit looser compared to the games.

2 The Anime Showcases More Trainers Who Own Legendary Pokémon

While there are instances in the games of trainers owning Legendary Pokémon and battling the player, such as N with Reshiram and Zekrom in Black & White, there is only so much one can learn from the games’ battle system about Legendary Pokémon taking orders from humans.

In the Battle Frontier part of the anime, Ash’s team gets decimated by a trainer called Tobias who has not only a Mythical Pokémon in Darkrai but also a legendary Latios. Seeing Legendary Pokémon battle in this capacity is certainly different and leaves fans wanting to see it more often.

1 The Mysterious Nature Of The Regi-Puzzles Could Not Be Recreated In The Anime

In the Hoenn games, the Regis feel like the most mysterious of the Legendary Pokémon in the series so far, as the player is required to solve a different puzzle to meet each Regi.

In the anime, Regirock, Registeel, and Regice all belong to a trainer called Brandon and they are seen in a battle against Ash. This is a good showcase of their power but it could also be considered a missed opportunity to build on the mystery that these Pokémon bring with them in the games. In the movie Lucario and the Mystery of Mew, they are regarded as guardians of a tree, which again does not refer to their intriguing origins.

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