When Pokémon started back in 1996, it was an instant hit.
People had their favorite characters, and when Pokémon Go surfaced in 2016, it brought all the memories back and made people remember some of the most popular Pokémon characters.
Here we’re going to look at 30 amazing facts about the owner of everybody’s favorite Pikachu, Ash Ketchum.
Ash Ketchum, one of the most popular and recognizable Pokémon characters, is known as Satoshi in Japan, sharing his name with the creator of Pokémon.
Satoshi Tajiri, the creator, based Ash loosely on himself, it would appear. As well as giving him the same name, he also loved the outdoors and getting involved in adventure.
The name Satoshi means ‘wisdom’ or ‘reason’ in Japanese.
He was originally going to be called Kasey, but this was changed early on, therefore he has always been known as Satoshi.
He was the main protagonist for the Pokémon comics.
His birthday is May 22, 1986, and avid Pokémon fans around the world love to remember this date. This date is taken from the fact he was 10 years, 10 months, and 10 days old when he met Pikachu.
His surname ‘Ketchum’ comes from the popular phrase ‘gotta catch ’em all!‘
All over Europe, he is known as Ash Ketchum, but in France, they call him Sacha Ketchum, and in Lithuania, he is referred to as Esas Keciumas.
In the comics, both his father and grandfather have histories of being Pokémon trainers, just like Ash.
It was thought that Ash Ketchum would catch all the Pokémon, but across 60 episodes, he only managed to get 40 of them.
From 1998 to 2006, he was voiced by Veronica Taylor and then Sarah Natochenny from 2006 onwards.
He has not aged throughout the Pokémon series. When it began, Ash was 10 years old and the latest Pokémon comics reveal that he is still 10 years old.
Apart from apparently never ageing, Ash has died a total of three times throughout the series, but also returned full of life and energy.
Throughout the years, he has teamed up with many other characters, including Brock and Misty.
Ash traveled to a total of seven different Pokémon regions, and gained an impressive 52 badges during his travels.
Although he has many adoring fans, lots of Pokémon lovers dislike Ash Ketchum as they believe he is a bad Pokémon trainer.
However, the fact he has defeated four of the legendary Pokémon means that he has, in fact, had several impressive achievements.
It’s difficult to say who the favorite Pokémon of Ash Ketchum would be, since this is never clearly stated in the comics. Most fans believe it is either the famous Pikachu or the loyal Goodra.
When Pokémon Go took the world by storm in 2016, Hollywood wanted to produce a live-action movie which would not include Ash Ketchum.
The only video game Ash has appeared in is the Pokémon Puzzle League, way back in 2000 when the Nintendo 64 was on the top of everyone’s Christmas list.
Although Ash has been compared to the character Red many times, he isn’t strongly based on him. Red was one of the greatest trainers ever, while Ash is a mere mortal!
His mother is called Delia Ketchum, but we are never told the name of his father. His mother once wanted to be a Pokémon trainer too, but when she fell pregnant with Ash, started running the family restaurant instead.
Veronica Taylor, as well as voicing Ash himself, also voiced his mother Delia for the duration of her time on the show.
Clefairy almost became the character that Pokémon fans grew to know and love, but during the development stages, producers thought Pikachu would be a better choice for Ash’s iconic Pokémon.
The reason Pikachu became Ash’s main character was because yellow is brighter and more noticeable, particularly since the comic was aimed at children.
He was the pitcher on his baseball team, which probably explains his great technique at throwing Pokéballs.
Gary Oak wasn’t always the enemy of Ash Ketchum. They used to be very good friends until they had a fight over who would keep a Pokéball.
Ash never received a Squirtle since he overslept, and he ended up with Pikachu since this was the only Pokémon left.
After winning at the Battle Pyramid, Ash could have become a Frontier Brain, but declined the offer.
Ash’s favorite color is dark green.
So now you know the most fun facts about Pokémon’s Ash Ketchum – you’ll be amazed at what else you recognize when you go back and watch the series again!
