Pokémon gym

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A screenshot from Pokémon LeafGreen, showing the player in Blaine's gym on Cinnabar Island.
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A screenshot from Pokémon LeafGreen, showing the player in Blaine's gym on Cinnabar Island.

In the fictional world of Pokémon, Pokémon gyms are buildings situated throughout the Pokémon world, where Pokémon Trainers can train or compete to qualify for Pokémon League competitions. Although the internal organization of a Pokémon Gym may vary, all specialize in one certain type of Pokémon, and all are manned by a Gym Leader, a formidable Trainer in its own right.

To qualify for a regional Pokémon League competition, one must defeat at least eight of the region's Gym Leaders in League-sanctioned battles. In the video games, a region only has eight gyms, although the anime asserts the existence of others. When an official Gym Leader is defeated, the challenger wins a badge, which serves as proof of a Trainer's skill. It is said that Pokémon tend to respect trainers with more badges, and are more likely to follow the advice from their Trainers.

As the name implies, a Pokémon Gym maintains basic operations that allow Pokémon trainers to train their Pokémon. Some Gym Leaders may employ other trainers to be officials in their battles in return for food, lodgings, free use of the Gym facilities, or the promise of a future battle. In the anime, the Gym Leader and all of their employees are also responsible for the maintenance of the battlefield used in official Gym Battles. As it is conceivable that anyone can start their own Gym, the Pokémon League maintains minimum maintenance standards, and how they (among other factors) must be met to receive official League sanctioning. In Pokémon Chronicles, several Gyms lost their official sanctioning, and were said to have closed down. Some other facilities, while similar in organization to a Gym, are not sanctioned by the Pokémon League, and do not consider themselves as Gyms.

It is implied in the anime series that each city may have only one official Gym, and that when one Gym gains official status, all other Gyms are forced to close. This is also true in the games, at least in the case of Saffron City's Fighting Dojo.

Contents

[edit] Becoming a Leader

Some Gyms, such as the Cinnabar Island Gym, are sole proprietorships, while others, such as the Pewter City and Lavaridge Town Gyms are family-run businesses. Others rely on a secondary business affiliation to run - for example, the Rustboro City Gym in the anime is partnered with a Pokémon training school, while the Celadon City Gym also runs a greenhouse. Most notoriously, the Viridian City Gym was run by Team Rocket as a legitimate front to their underground operations.

It is unclear how one becomes a Gym Leader, although one must be a trainer of sufficient ability. In some regions, one must take a League-sponsored examination in order to become eligible to open an official Gym, while in others (most notoriously the family-owned Gyms) the position is passed from one generation to another. Most notably, in the manga, Norman opened his own official Hoenn Gym after failing to become an official Gym Leader in Johto, while in the anime, Forrest inherited the title of Gym Leader from older brother Brock.

Notwithstanding the type of gym and any other auxiliary partnerships, most gym leaders have a name similar to the type of Pokémon specialised in. For example, Brock's name has a similarity with rock, while Bugsy's name includes the word 'bug', obviously reflecting his own Pokémon.

[edit] Gym Battles

In order to earn a badge at a Gym, the challenger must win a Gym Battle against the Gym Leader. In the video games, the eight Gym Leaders act as minibosses, in the sense that they are one of the main impediments to the progression of the storyline. It is advisable to beat the Gym's lesser trainers before advancing to the Leader, in order to gain more experience.

In the anime, each Gym has its own rules as to its official battles, for which the challenger must accept. In many cases, they are slightly tilted in favor of the challenger, with many Gyms adopting the rule that only the challenger may switch out their Pokémon. The Battle itself may be held at any place the Gym Leader deems appropriate.

If the challenger loses in a Gym Battle, they have the right to challenge the Gym Leader again, although the Gym Leader may have certain restrictions for granting a rematch.

[edit] List of Pokémon Gym Badges

Image:Pokemon Gym Badges 1.jpg
Every Badge Shown in the Anime

[edit] Kanto League Badges

In the television series:

  • Flint and Lola are Brock's parents. Flint is the original gym leader of Pewter City Gym. When Brock returned home, his mother Lola had turned the gym into a water gym.
  • Forrest is the current gym leader of Pewter City Gym.
  • Daisy, Lily and Violet were the Cerulean City Gym leaders prior to turning over control of the gym to Misty to make time for their "glamour".
  • Jessie and James fight Ash on behalf of Giovanni.
  • Later, when Ash comes back from Hoenn, he learns that Agatha now runs Viridian Gym. The reason as to why Giovanni is no longer running the gym is unknown.
  • Gary Oak is shown to have at ten badges excluding the Earth Badge, suggesting there are at least eleven gym.
  • Otoshi is a trainer shown in the episode "Bad to the Bone" who owns eight badges, but only shares 4 in common with Ash, later in the episode we see another trainer with 8 more completely different badges all together.

In Pokémon Gold/Silver/Crystal:

  • Koga is an Elite Four member, so his daughter Janine is the leader of Fuchsia City Gym.
  • Blaine's Gym is in the Seafoam Islands, as Cinnabar Volcano has exploded, leaving only the Pokémon Center.
  • Blue (equivalent of Gary in the television series) is the Viridian Gym Leader, as Giovanni retired after the player defeated him in Red/Blue/Yellow.

[edit] Orange Archeipelago League

  • Coral Eye Badge: Obtained by defeating Cissy, of Mikan Island Gym.
  • Sea Ruby Badge: Obtained by defeating Danny, of Navel Island Gym.
  • Spike Shell Badge: Obtained by defeating Rudy, of Trovita Island Gym.
  • Jade Star Badge: Obtained by defeating Luana, of Kumquat Island Gym.

In the Pokémon (manga series) (aka. The Electric Tale of Pikachu):

  • Jeremy of Citron Island Gym is the fourth gym leader.

[edit] Johto League Badges

Main article: List of Johto Gym Leaders

In the television series:

  • Ash is given (what is refered to in the show as) the "Silver Wing Badge", however this is not an official gym badge and is not recognized in the game as a badge at all, but rather an item (partnered with the "rainbow wing").

[edit] Hoenn League Badges

Main article: List of Hoenn Gym Leaders

In Pokémon Emerald and the anime:

  • Juan is the Sootopolis City Gym Leader, while Wallace is the Hoenn League Champion.

In the anime:

  • Morrison is shown to have another eighth badge different from Ash's, suggesting that there are at least 9 gyms in Hoenn.

[edit] Sinnoh League Badges

Main article: List of Sinnoh Gym Leaders
  • Coal Badge: Obtained by defeating Hyouta of Kurogane City Gym.
  • Forest Badge: Obtained by defeating Natane of Hakutai City Gym.
  • Cobal Badge: Obtained by defeating Sumomo of Tobari City Gym.
  • Fen Badge: Obtained by defeating Makishi of Nomose City Gym.
  • Relic Badge: Obtained by defeating Merissa of Yosuga City Gym.
  • Mine Badge: Obtained by defeating Tougan of Mio City Gym.
  • Glacia Badge: Obtained by defeating Suzuna of Kissaki City Gym.
  • Beacon Badge: Obtained by defeating Denji of Nagisa City Gym.
Pokémon Gym Leaders and Frontier Brains
Kanto Gym Leaders Brock | Brock's family | Misty | Daisy, Lily, and Violet | Lt. Surge | Erika | Koga | Janine | Sabrina | Blaine | Giovanni | Blue | Agatha
Orange Island Gym Leaders Cissy | Danny | Rudy | Luana | Jeremy | Drake
Johto Gym Leaders Falkner | Bugsy | Whitney | Morty | Chuck | Jasmine | Pryce | Clair
Hoenn Gym Leaders Roxanne | Brawly | Wattson | Flannery | Norman | Winona | Tate & Liza | Wallace | Juan
Sinnoh Gym Leaders Hyouta | Natane | Sumomo | Maxi | Melissa | Tougan | Suzuna | Denji
Leaders of Unofficial Gyms Kiyo | A.J. | Yas & Kas Gym | Dorian
Frontier Brains Anabel | Brandon | Spenser | Greta | Noland | Tucker | Lucy
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