Pokémon Diamond and Pearl/Characters/Anime

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.


Ash's Pokémon (Diamond and Pearl Series)

All of Them (Sinnoh Region):

Starly-Staravia-Staraptor (Mukkuru-Mukubird-Mukuhawk)

Turtwig-Grotle-Torterra (Naetle-Hayashigame-Dodaitose)

Chimchar-Monferno-Infernape (Hikozaru-Moukazaru-Goukazaru)

Buizel (Buoysel)

Gligar-Gliscor (Gliger-Glion)

Gible (Fukamaru)


Dawn (Hikari)

Dawn
Hikari
Actor or Voice Actor Megumi Toyoguchi (JP)
Emily Bauer (EN)
v · d · e

May's replacement (a much less rabid changeover); yet another newbie trainer who aspires to be a Pokémon Coordinator. Seems to be an attempt by the writers to "do it right second time round".

Tropes involving her and her Pokémon include:

  • Action Girl: Out of all of Ash's traveling companions, she's the most likely to take immediate action against Team Rocket or other antagonists when they show up, frequently having Piplup dealing the finishing blow alongside Pikachu.
  • Age-Inappropriate Dress: But her mother forbade her from bringing it on her journey. Then again, her normal outfit...
  • Break the Cutie: Disturbingly often.
  • Brick Joke: The second DP episode continued the Running Gag of Pikachu frying a bike, but it took 36 episodes for Ash to know about it.
  • Butt Monkey: Out of all the (main) characters she is the most mistreated. Every character has made fun of her and dissed her. Ash and Brock laugh at her, as well as her own Piplup. People regard her as a bad coordinator.
    • Though this doesn't happen too often, and as the series goes on she gets better overall.
  • Catch Phrase: "Daijobu!", or "No need to worry!" in the dub. How ironic.
    • And like May, has a phrase to use when calling Pokémon out for a Contest -- "Charm Up!"/"Spotlight!"
  • The Chick: Of the Diamond and Pearl's Five-Man Band. She's also The Chosen One of Mesprit, the precursor of Emotion.
  • The Chosen One: Of Mesprit.
  • Curtains Match the Window
  • Dangerously-Short Skirt: Rather famous for it, but she leaves the fighting to her Pokémon.
  • Deadpan Snarker: Rarely in "Diamond and Pearl", but the tendencies strangely increased during her guest star period on "Best Wishes."
  • Deuteragonist: Of "Diamond and Pearl", to Ash's protagonist.
  • Disappeared Dad: Unlike Ash, no mention is ever made of her father.
  • Dub-Induced Plot Hole: Against all odds, averted when it came to explaining "Dee-Dee" (See Noodle Incident below)
  • Failed a Spot Check: If she would look around at the audience during contests more often, she would notice some VERY familar faces. (James, Meowth and Wobbuffet)
  • Failure Heroine: Poor girl lost two Contests in the Appeal Stage in a row!
  • Fan Girl: To Professor Oak's (and Gary's) poetry.
  • Fan Service: Similar to May but fans are now focused on what's under that hip-length skirt of hers. Remember, Dawn is also ten years old.
  • Four-Temperament Ensemble: The Sanguine.
  • French Maid Outfit: In DP062.
  • Generation Xerox: She inherited her mother's passion for Contests. And blue hair.
  • Guest Star Party Member: Has a chance of becoming this in the BW2 seasons, according to the leaks.
  • Hair Decorations: She wears three yellow barrettes (star-shaped ones in one of her Contests). When using her Buneary, she wears hair bands modeled after its fur.
  • Harmless Electrocution: A running gag by itself, Dawn needs to use Piplup's BubbleBeam to condition her hair back to normal after she gets zapped.
  • Lethal Chef: Subverted. Dawn tries making Poffins based on a recipe she got from her mother, and all her Pokémon think it's disgusting. She can't understand why they don't like it, and starts thinking that this trope applies to her. Later in the episode, Meowth eats one of Dawn's Poffins, and considers them absolutely delicious. As it turns out, Dawn followed her mom's recipe correctly...but she apparently didn't realize that the Poffins are designed for feline Pokémon like Meowth and the Glameow that her family keeps as a pet.
  • Magic Skirt: That must've been blessed by the Pokégods themselves.
  • The McCoy
  • Memento MacGuffin: A ribbon given to her by her mother, as a good luck charm. After her run in the Grand Festival, she gives it back.
  • Naive Everygirl
  • Nice Girl: Easily the most straightforwardly kind of all the leading females (to this point), and very empathetic (she never held Pikachu or Ash responsible for her bike's destruction given the circumstances, for instance). Must be the main reason Mesprit chose her.
  • Nice Hat
  • Noodle Incident: The origins of her nickname Pikari/Dee-Dee. In a subversion, it's later revealed she got shocked by a Plusle and Minun in kindergarten, making her hair all sparkly. [2] In the dub, it's short for "Diamond Dandruff", which is indeed pretty embarrassing.
  • Opera Gloves: With her Grand Festival outfit.
  • Phrase Catcher: The reply to her own Catch Phrase is usually "That's when [we] worry the most."
  • Pink Means Feminine: Her usual Contest dress, as well as the brim of her skirt, part of her hat, her boots, and her scarf.
  • Plucky Girl: When in a good mood.
  • Princess Curls: Not an Ojou, but she used this hairstyle in an couple of contests as shown here and here.
  • Scarf of Asskicking
  • Shipper on Deck: While normally embarassed about Brock's antics like everyone else, when it was suggested to him that he become a Pokémon Doctor, she gladly points out that it will help him get closer to all Nurse Joys.
  • Static Character: While she matures a good deal, the basic person she is never changes and has never even changed from childhood, right down to her Catch Phrase.
  • Stepford Smiler: Tries to put on a good face after her first losing streak. Doesn't work in the end.
  • Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Replaced May.
  • Tomboy and Girly Girl: Girly Girl to Zoey's Tomboy.
    • She also acts as the Girly Girl to her predecessor May's Tomboy.
  • Why Did it Have to be Plusle and Minun?
  • "Well Done, Daughter" Girl: Her fantasy in the Lotus Eater Machine episode shows us that she possibly wants to surpass her mother.

Dawn's Pokémon

Piplup (Pochama)

Piplup
Pochama
Actor or Voice Actor Etsuko Kozakura (JP)
Michele Knotz (EN)}
v · d · e

Piplup is Dawn's first Pokémon. She befriended him after saving him from an Ariados's attack, when Piplup and Chimchar had fled from Professor Rowan's lab.

Buneary (Mimirol)

  • Action Girl: Especially noteable in "Hold the Phione" - after the titular Pokémon challenges Pikachu for her, she's offended both because she's being treated like some prize and because Pikachu's in a tight spot. Then she demands Phione battle her instead, and wins.
  • An Ice Pokémon: Knows Ice Beam.
  • Establishing Character Moment: First she jumps to save Pikachu from an incoming motorcycle, then when he tries to thank her she hides her face and bounds away, crashing into a tree in the process. This sets her up as a graceful Action Girl who nonetheless crushes hard on Pikachu.
  • Everything's Better with Spinning: Part of her Grand Festival appeal and also in one of the battle rounds in the Wallace Cup.
  • The Fashionista: Not an extreme example, but she's occasionally seen sporting a vest that Dawn made for her, and the Sinnoh arc ends with her becoming a model.
  • Interspecies Romance/Unrequited Love: Has a massive crush on Ash's Pikachu.
  • Non-Elemental
  • Wind from Beneath My Wings: Knows Bounce.

Pachirisu

Buizel (Buoysel)

Traded to Ash for Aipom. For more info, see Ash's Pokemon (Diamond and Pearl Series}.

Aipom-Ambipom (Eipam-Eteboth)

  • Action Girl: While she preferred contests, she was used several times in battle when she was under the ownership of Ash and didn't seem to mind.
    • She beat Gardenia's strongest Pokémon, Roserade, so it's safe to say that although she prefers Contests, her battling skills are something to be proud of.
  • Always Accurate Attack: Knows Swift.
  • Bare Fisted Monkey: Knows Focus Punch.
  • Characterization Marches On: After being traded over to Dawn, her crush on Ash was all but completely forgotten. The last time she even acknowledged Ash as her former trainer was when she was getting ready to be Put on a Bus, and even then it wasn't much.
  • Doppelganger Spin: Knows Double Team.
  • Eleventh-Hour Ranger: She was caught by Ash ten episodes before the end of the Advanced Generation series.
  • Everything's Better with Monkeys
  • Foreshadowing: Ever since Ash captured her at such a late time (during the Battle Frontier saga) and the fact that Aipom followed Ash and Pikachu to Sinnoh, it was rather obvious that the writers were planning to evolve her.
  • Genki Girl: Of course; most of her species tend to be this.
  • Nice Hat: Has a fondness for them, famously Ash's hat, or, in one episode, a crown.
    • Clingy MacGuffin: Said crown was too small for Aipom, thus it being stuck to her head for most of the episode.
  • Non-Elemental
  • Put on a Bus: Literally!
  • Spam Attack: Knows Fury Swipes.

Swinub-Piloswine-Mamoswine (Urimoo-Inomoo-Mammoo)

Cyndaquil-Quilava (Hinoarashi-Magmarashi)

Togekiss


Supporting Cast

Professor Rowan (Dr. Nanakamado)

Professor Rowan
Dr. Nanakamado
Actor or Voice Actor Iemasa Kayumi (JP)
Craig Blair (EN)
v · d · e

The Pokémon professor living in the Sinnoh region. After Dawn unknowingly bumped into him while trying to find his lab, he helped her start her journey as a trainer by giving her the choice of Piplup, Chimchar, or Turtwig as a starter Pokémon.

Rowan exhibits the following tropes:

Dawn (after bumping into him): I'm - I'm so sorry!
Rowan (turning to face her): Hello. You're looking lost.
Dawn: Huh? Are you talking to me, sir?
Rowan: Right. There's no one else here and you're looking very lost.

Johanna (Ayako)

Johanna
Ayako
Johanna as a Pokémon coordinator champion.
Actor or Voice Actor Makoto Tsumura (JP)
Sarah Natochenny (EN)
v · d · e

Dawn's mom. It's quickly revealed that she was a world famous Pokémon coordinator contest champion when she was a trainer. She hasn't lost any of her touch as a mother either, as Dawn is quickly proven first-hand. Her favorite Pokémon is her Glameow.

Paul (Shinji)

Paul
Shinji
Actor or Voice Actor Kiyotaka Furushima (JP)
Julian Rebolledo (EN)
v · d · e

Ash's main rival in the Sinnoh region. Paul only cares about one thing: Becoming the best best through sheer technical discipline. He only goes after Pokémon who have the best moves, and abandons those who fail him, which is how Ash acquired Chimchar. In short, he doesn't care how his Pokémon feel, but only how they perform. Ash doesn't take too nicely to this.

Original: "[Pokémon], battle standby."
Dub: "[Pokémon], stand by for battle."

Reggie (Reiji)

Reggie
Reiji
Actor or Voice Actor Tetsuya Kakihara (JP)
Tom Wayland (EN)
v · d · e

Paul's older brother and a Pokémon breeder.

Barry (Jun)

Barry
Jun
Actor or Voice Actor Tatsuhisa Suzuki (JP)
Jamie McGonnigal (EN)
Demographic Information
(as of the character's first appearance)
Hair Color Dumb Blonde
v · d · e

Another of Ash's rivals in the Sinnoh Region, though neither one really considers the other to be a rival. Barry wants to go after Paul, and oftens encounters Ash during his travels. They share a competitive friendship as trainers, and Barry isn't too bad as one himself.

Zoey (Nozomi)

Zoey
Nozomi
Actor or Voice Actor Risa Hayamizu (JP)
Elisabeth Morinelli (EN)
v · d · e

Dawn's main rival in the Sinnoh region as a Pokémon coordinator. Despite her tomboyish appearance, she gets along with everyone pretty well, though she does get angry at Ash when he first thought it would be a good idea to be both a Pokémon trainer and coordinator.

Kenny (Kengo)

Kenny
Kengo
Actor or Voice Actor Yuko Mita (JP)
Rhonda Krempa (EN)
v · d · e

Dawn's childhood friend and another Pokémon Coordinator. He gave her the nickname of Dee-Dee/Pikari, and never lets her forget.. not that she has a hard time forgetting it.

Ursula (Urara)

Ursula
Urara
Actor or Voice Actor Ayako Kawasumi (JP)
Melisa Schroenburg (EN)
v · d · e

A fellow Pokémon Coordinator with a rather poisonous personality who Dawn met at the Chocovine Pokémon Contest. Believing that Dawn's Wallace Cup victory was a fluke, she's determined to knock her down a peg or two.

Conway (Kōhei)

Conway
Kōhei
Actor or Voice Actor Kozo Mito (JP)
Billy Regan (EN)
v · d · e

Dawn's partner in the Hearthome Tag Battle competition, who took a liking to her. He was only intended to appear for a few episodes, but unexpected popularity among the fanbase brought him back for more.

Conway: (off screen) Well, how are you, Number 28?
Dawn: (cheerfully) I'm fine!
(the screen cuts to a close-up of Conway with Scary Shiny Glasses)
Conway: That's good. Conway is the name. A pleasure.

Nando (Naoshi)

Nando
Naoshi
Actor or Voice Actor Kazuya Nakai (JP)
Billy Regan (EN)
v · d · e

The first trainer Dawn met on her Sinnoh journey, a soft-spoken minstrel with a liking for music and Grass-type Pokémon. In his debut episode, Ash and Dawn helped him decide to participate in both Gym Battles and Contests, making him a rival for both of them.

Officer Jenny: Excuse me. I've just captured Suspect #1. (she pulls Nando into the shot) Get this. He calls himself a Pokémon troubadour, but I don't buy it at all.
Ash, Brock, Dawn: Nando?!

  • Sharp-Dressed Man
  • Ship Tease: With Gardenia in A Secret Sphere of Influence!
  • The Southpaw: Plays his harp with his left hand.
  • Spock Speak
  • Talking to Himself: Averted. He has never spoken to Conway.
  • Tall, Dark and Handsome
  • Unexplained Accent: Spanish in the English dub. Or maybe it's something else.
  • The Unfought: Dawn never faced him directly in an actual Contest battle (though they did have a practice bout in DP004, which he won).
  • Vague Age: Appears to be in his early 20s, but his outfit and old-fashioned speech patterns give the impression of someone much older.
  • Vocal Evolution: His voice sounds noticeably different in Last Call, First Round! than in Dawn's Early Night!
  • Wandering Minstrel: Textbook example.
  • What the Hell Is That Accent?
  • The Worf Effect: He makes it all the way to the top four of the Sinnoh Grand Festival, only to get thrown out of the competition by Zoey. Come the Sinnoh League, Ash wipes the floor with Nando in the very first round. In fairness, you can probably blame this on the writers for making Ash his first opponent, or perhaps Zoey was right all along that he should have just stuck with contests. But he sure didn't go out withouta fight.
  • Worthy Opponent: To Zoey and Ash.

Tobias (Takuto)

Tobias
Takuto
Actor or Voice Actor Hiroki Takahashi (JP)
J Michael Tatum (EN)
v · d · e

A mysterious trainer who first appears during the Sinnoh League Tournament. Using only Darkrai, he has curb-stomped through the Sinnoh Gym Leaders and the League Tournament.

Pokémon Hunter J

Pokémon Hunter J
Actor or Voice Actor Takako Honda (JP)
Sonny Dey (EN)
v · d · e

A ruthless, cold-hearted bounty hunter who specializes in stealing Pokémon. She has an entire crew of operatives working under her, not least of which is her loyal Salamence, and travels in a flying fortress. J has no concern for human or Pokémon life, not even the lives of her own henchmen. In the end, she was hired by Team Galactic to complete their master plan, but this proved fatal, as her ship fell into Lake Valor and exploded, leaving only her sunglasses floating to the water's surface.

Sinnoh Gym Leaders

Roark (Hyouta)

Roark
Hyouta
Actor or Voice Actor Masataka Azuma (JP)
Craig Blair (EN)
v · d · e

A description of the character goes here.

Gardenia (Natane)

Gardenia
Natane
Actor or Voice Actor Chieko Honda (JP)
Lara Star Rigores (EN)
v · d · e

A description of the character goes here.

Maylene (Sumomo)

Maylene
Sumomo
Actor or Voice Actor Aya Endo (JP)
Rachael Lillis (EN)
v · d · e

A description of the character goes here.

Crasher Wake (Maximum Mask)

Crasher Wake
Maximum Mask
Actor or Voice Actor Tetsu Inada (JP)
Michael Alston Baley (EN)
v · d · e

A description of the character goes here.

Ash: For a big guy, that Wake can move!

I'M...Crasher Wake! (laughs)

Fantina (Melissa)

Fantina
Melissa
Actor or Voice Actor Kikuko Inoue (JP)
Bella Hudson (EN)
v · d · e

A description of the character goes here.

Byron (Tougan)

Byron
Tougan
Actor or Voice Actor Kazuki Yao (JP)
Dan Green (EN)
v · d · e

A description of the character goes here.

Candice (Suzuna)

Candice
Suzuna
Actor or Voice Actor Noriko Shitaya (JP)
Kether Donahue (EN)
v · d · e

A description of the character goes here.

Volkner (Denzi)

Volkner
Denzi
Actor or Voice Actor Hirofumi Nojima (JP)
Eli James (EN)
v · d · e

A description of the character goes here.

Sinnoh Elite Four & Champion

Tropes that apply to all of them:

Cynthia (Shirona)

Lucian (Goyō)

Aaron (Ryou)

Flint (Ōba)

  • Afro Asskicker
  • Badass: His Infernape. It was able to go head to head with Cynthia's Garchomp and deal some brutal blows in. It's the second-closest anyone has come to take her down (Aaron, above, got closer). Not to mention it swatted Ash's Pokémon like flies!
  • Big Brother Mentor: Has this vibe with Ash and they share a similar philosophy in the way they battle with their Pokémon and he shares some advice with the younger boy. Not to mention that he is obviously fond of Ash...
  • Big Damn Heroes: in his first appearance, using Infernape to save Ash from the Sunyshore gym's security system, and again to rescue Kenny's Floatzel from Team Rocket.
  • Everything's Better with Monkeys: Infernape
  • Fiery Redhead
  • Heterosexual Life Partners: With Volkner.
  • Leitmotif: Everytime he shows up you can hear a subtle jungle beat with drums. It's actually quite awesome.
  • One Flint Limit: Averted in the dub. The other Flint is Brock's father.
  • Playing with Fire/Bare Fisted Monkey: Infernape
  • The Rival: Volkner's old friend and adversary.

Bertha (Kikuno)


  1. Gliscor comes back in time from training to join the others, reuniting the previous Paul-battling team for the rematch
  2. "Pikapika" is the spoken sound effect for "sparkle".