Gary's Blastoise

Gary's Blastoise (Japanese: シゲルのカメックス Shigeru's Kamex) was the first Pokémon that Gary Oak obtained at the beginning of his travels in Kanto, given to him by.

Kanto
Gary received in Pokémon - I Choose You! as a starter Pokémon from. He did not tell which of the three starter Pokémon he chose, but bragged that it was the best one.

In Challenge of the Samurai, Squirtle appeared in a flashback, though the episode did not reveal which of the three Trainers who left before Ash owned it. Samurai remembered Gary and the others fondly as they had fought spectacular battles, with Gary's Squirtle defeating his.

Johto
Finally, in The Ties That Bind, the fully-evolved was revealed to Ash when Gary sent it out to battle. In Gary's Full Battle against in Can't Beat the Heat!, its  managed to blast through the rocky terrain and knock out Ash's  in a single hit. It then stalemated his, completely nullifying Muk's with its , but unable to gain much purchase with its. After Muk smothered Blastoise with its body, Blastoise used Hydro Pump to blast Muk off and injure it. Ash pulled Muk for the type-advantaged, but Blastoise overcame her as well, deflecting with Rapid Spin, then using its  attack on her leaf and knocking her out by throwing her aside. It was recalled until the final bout when it fought against, who had overcome and  just as Blastoise had defeated Heracross and Bayleef. With a type advantage and having had a break between battles, Blastoise was quickly on the front foot, deflecting with Rapid Spin and hitting with Hydro Pump and Skull Bash. It neutralized Charizard's aerial advantage by using Hydro Pump to keep it at bay, giving Charizard no opening.

Charizard and Ash thought outside the box and melted all of the rocks with powerful Flamethrowers. Immobilized, Blastoise had no choice but to cool the field down with water, but Charizard took advantage of the resulting steam to get in close to Blastoise. Even then, Blastoise proved a worthy opponent; unable to aim its water cannons it was still able to dodge a with. Charizard lifted Blastoise into the air, holding on despite Blastoise biting hard on its arm, and executed a. Both Pokémon stared each other down, but Blastoise gave out and fainted.

In Johto Photo Finish! Gary decided to become a and the only Pokémon he would take on his new  was Blastoise. After using Blastoise to free from, he departed home for Pallet and then set off for future endeavors. His choice inspired Ash to begin his journey in Hoenn with only his first Pokémon, Pikachu.

Gary and Blastoise later appeared in Ill-Will Hunting!, where they helped Ash, and  in protecting the  from J and her evil minions. It first used to stop J's henchmen's vehicle, which Pikachu disabled with  while on the soaking machine. However, it was knocked on its back by a 's, and Gary recalled it after disturbed some  that drove Golbat and the henchmen away. Gary used Blastoise again in a battle against J's Salamence and along with Ash's Pikachu. The battle ended without a result after J captured one of the Shieldon that her client had requested.

Blastoise appeared in a flashback in The Fires of a Red-Hot Reunion!.

Personality and characteristics
Not much is known about the personality of Gary's Blastoise, however it was described in The Ties that Bind! by Gary that it was his best, showing that it was one of his favourite Pokémon, if not his favourite. It was mentioned in the same episode by Professor Oak to be his most powerful. This was shown in Can't Beat the Heat!, when it defeated Heracross with one move despite Heracross using rocks as a shield as well as it easily beating Bayleef and being a good match for Charizard. Its Rapid Spin can deflect powerful attacks, even super-effective ones such as Razor Leaf.

In I Choose You!
Blastoise made a brief appearance as a in a flashback in I Choose You!, which is set in a timeline separate from the main series. Like in the main series, Squirtle was chosen by Gary to be his starter Pokémon.

In anime novelizations
About two years before Gary was revealed to own it, Talent Showdown, one of the book adaptions of the anime, had shown a Blastoise under his ownership. However, due to his starter not being confirmed at the time of the book's release, and  were under his ownership as well.

In the Ash & Pikachu manga
Blastoise was the final Pokémon Gary sent out during his match with Ash in One Half Of A Poké Ball. Unlike the anime, it fought Ash's Pikachu instead of.

Trivia

 * originally wanted as his starter Pokémon, while Gary was the one who took it.
 * Unlike in the games, instead of the rival (Gary/) having the starter Pokémon with the type advantage, Ash's Pikachu has the type advantage.
 * However, Ash uses his against Blastoise during his battle with Gary in the Silver Conference, mirroring the type advantage seen in the games.
 * In the English dub, Brock and seemed to be aware that Gary's starter Pokémon was Squirtle, as when Blastoise is shown for the first time, Misty says, "Brock, could that be...?", to which Brock replies, "The same Squirtle that Gary originally received from ? Yeah, that's the one." This exchange did not occur in the original Japanese version of the episode.

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