Pokémon: Ash reunites with Brock and Misty in final episode

In case you thought you were going to get through Ash’s final episodes in the Pokémon anime without crying, think again. It’s been confirmed that his old friends will be coming back for his sendoff, which is super bittersweet.

In case you were blissfully unaware, that’s right - Ash is officially stepping down as the protagonist of the Pokémon anime after almost 26 years. Although it’d been rumoured for some time, his big victory in the latest season (which finally made him the very best like no one ever was) seemingly sealed the deal - it’s time for the gauntlet to be passed to two newbies.

Take a look at the trailer for Ash’s final episodes below.

Before the new anime protagonists take over though, we have Ash’s “final chapter”, which consists of 11 special episodes. The first of those is set to air on 13 January in Japan, so there’s only a few more days to wait.

As you can see in the trailer above, multiple familiar faces will be appearing in the episodes - Ash’s original travelling companions Brock and Misty will be included, as well as his first rival, Gary Oak. At the time of writing, it’s not known what the plot will be for this final chapter, but as Polygon writes, hopefully we’ll get some nice closure with his old friends.

The anime series has clearly been hell-bent on making us all cry lately - we recently saw Ash reunite with his Butterfree, who he said goodbye to in the notoriously sad classic episode ‘Bye Bye Butterfree’. Who knows what stops they’re going to pull out to kick us right in the nostalgia during his actual sendoff.

It might be the end of an era for Ash, but it’s also exciting to think about what new places the anime will go after his departure. I’m personally hoping for a time skip to take place so that we can finally see him grow up, although I’m not sure if the world is ready for an Ash Ketchum who’s more than 10 years old.