Summary
Ash and Pikachu’s journey came to an end after 25 seasons and 1,232 episodes ofPokemon. The anime, which aired for the first time in 1997, became a very significant part of a franchise that boasts many video games, manga, merchandise, and so forth.Pokemonhas today become a major part of Japanese and American popular culture.
Throughout the many seasons ofPokemon,Ash Ketchum goes on adventures with various companions, and he meets many rivals on his journey to becoming a Pokemon Master and catching them all. Some seasons are exceptional, both asPokemonanime and anime series in general.
Updated Jun 06, 2025, by Ben Painter:Ash Ketchum has moved on from the anime (for now at least). He may return in the future, but there are some new faces for fans of Pokemon on the silver screen. Roy & Liko are the latest main stars of the series, in their debut adventure, Pokemon Horizons: The Series. Since 1997, there have been 25 seasons of the Pokemon anime, with a few spin-offs along the way, too. This update completes the list to include every season of the Pokemon anime series, including the latest entry, Pokemon Horizons: Season 2—The Search for Laqua.
30Pokemon Origins
Air Date: July 02, 2025
Aside from the adventures of Ash and Pikachu, there are a few different anime series. Most of them are short and available online for free, such asPokemon: Generations,Pokemon: Twilight Wings, andPokemon Evolutions.
29Pokemon Horizons: The Series
Air Date: July 30, 2025
In a massive shakeup by the Pokemon Company, Ash Ketchum was not the main character of the anime after 25 years. Roy and Liko took over the mantle, but fan-favorite Pokemon such as Pikachu and Charizard are still prominent (although they do not belong to the trainer from Pallet Town).
Many fans have received the new series very well, but there are still a few who miss Ash and his friends.Pokemon Horizons: The Seriesintroduced a brand-new generation of fans to Pokemon animation, so it deserves some credit for that. But ultimately, it doesn’t live up to the hype which Ash left behind.
28Pokemon Horizons: Season 2—The Search For Laqua
Air Date: July 10, 2025
Although this series is not yet out in the United States, it has been airing in Japan for some time, and countries like the United Kingdom can stream the series online.Roy & Liko are well-established as charactersnow, and fans can move on from older characters and embrace the new direction for the franchise.
This new season also ties in better withPokemon Scarlet & Violet,as the main plot for those games is that the player enrolls into school and masters the Terastal Phenomenon, which is exactly what the main characters do here. Spoilers will be reserved as this series is not live everywhere in the world, but considering this series is still ongoing, it can’t receive a high ranking.
27Pokemon XY: Kalos Quest
Air Date: May 29, 2025
The second series of the Pokemon XY adventures in Kalos, the middle chapter of a series, is usually quite bland in comparison. The wonder of exploring a new region and Pokemon has vanished, and the large Conference battles and defeating of the evil team or legendary Pokemon are yet to come. So, it is in an awkward middle stage.
However, there are still some important moments in this series. Ash’s Goodra says its goodbyes to the gang as it stays to protect its homeland. He hatches a Noibat as its replacement. Ash battles some Gym Leaders in this series, including his friend Clemont, in the Luminose City Gym.
26Pokemon: Advanced Challenge
Air Date: June 04, 2025
EachPokemonseries is usually split up into three different seasons, and the middle of these seasons are usually the weakest.Pokemon: Advanced Challengeis no exception, as not much happens to forward the plot of the overarching story of the Hoenn region.
Some highlights of this one include the return of Misty for two episodes,Ash adding Torkoal to his party, and he also battles and defeats Flannery, Norman, and Winona to earn the Heat, Balance, and Feather badges. Although these middle seasons are important to progress the story along, it ultimately falls flat in comparison to the start and end of the journey.
25Pokemon: BW Rival Destinies
Air Date: June 03, 2025
Suffering from the same fate asPokemon XY: Kalos Quest,Pokemon: BW Rival Destiniesis in an awkward middle stage. However, this gets the edge due to some more important events happening along witha lot of Gym battles.
Ash, Cilian, and Iris encounter the forces of nature: Landorus, Thundurus, and Tornadus, a rare encounter for Legendary Pokemon in the anime series, as this is usually reserved for the movies. Ash takes part in a couple of tournaments but doesn’t win either. The finale culminates in an encounter with Giovanni, who the Pallet Town trainer doesn’t actually meet that often despite him being pretty much the main villain.
24Pokemon: DP Battle Dimension
Air Date: July 30, 2025
TheDiamond & Pearlanime series as a whole is regarded as one of the best, butPokemon: DP Battle Dimensionis another middle series that leaves less to be desired. Other than Gym Battles, not a lot happens. Ash gains two Pokemon for his team, Buizel and Gligar.
An awesome episode in this series isFighting Fear with Fear!where Ash meets up with his former rival, Gary, and they battle, but it is called off. He does, however, give Ash a Razor Fang, which he uses to evolve Gligar into Gliscor, which helps them to best Team Rocket’s capture attempts once again.
23Pokemon: Advanced
Air Date: Jun 02, 2025
Pokemon: Advancedwas significant, as it christened the first major change to the anime formula, with new main characters, May & Max, being introduced to replace Misty. This was reflected in the games too, withPokemon Ruby & Sapphire, which this series was based on, taking a new direction as well.
Fans were introduced to the Hoenn regionand a completely new roster of Pokemon. Old ones rarely appeared, including Ash’s team, who had a completely new roster — apart from Pikachu, of course.Pokemon: Advancedcertainly felt like a new beginning at the time, and one that worked out well.
22Pokemon BW Adventures In Unova And Beyond
Air Date: June 03, 2025
In the final series for Ash Ketchum in Unova, it was time for him to compete in the Unova league. However, Ash’s team in the Black & White season was not the strongest. There is a long recurring theme in the anime that Ash does not evolve his Pokemon but in this season there are several ‘mons that did not maximize their potential.
This culminated in another disappointing league finish for Ash, finishing in the Top 8, a large bump in the road on his journey to becoming a Pokemon Master. A highlight in this series was the return of fan-favorite Charizard, which Ash re-added back to his team. This was after the Unova League. The Fire Dragon could havehelped him out a lot in the finals!
21Pokemon Chronicles
Air Date: July 09, 2025
The only spin-off series in thePokemonfranchise, instead of following Ash Ketchum on his journeys, focuses on side characters that he meets along the way, and it gives fans an update on how they are doing following their last appearance in the mainPokemonanime.
The series kicked off with a three-part special titled “Legend of Thunder!” which was set in the Johto region and included Jimmy, Marina, and Vincent. The following episodes caught up with Brock, Misty, Professor Oak, and Ritchie, giving fans an interesting glimpse into what they were doing while not traveling or encountering Ash. Since it does not follow the main anime, it cannot be given a much higher ranking, however.
