XY series

For other uses, see XY.



Pokémon the Series: XY (Japanese: ポケットモンスター Pocket Monsters XY), referred to by fans as the XY series, is the fifth series of the Pokémon anime and is based on the events of the Generation VI core series Pokémon games. It follows the and was succeeded by the. It ran from October 17, 2013 to October 27, 2016 in Japan and from January 18, 2014 to January 21, 2017 in, although the first two episodes aired as a sneak peek in the United States on October 19, 2013.

As with the previous three series, the XY series began with only Ash Ketchum, headed off to a new region with his while wearing a new set of clothes. Joining him this time are, a new Trainer who previously met Ash in her childhood; , an aspiring inventor and scientist who is also the Gym Leader of the Lumiose Gym; and , Clemont's younger sister. Jessie, James and continue to follow Ash and his friends through the Kalos region, and have gone back to their more traditional methods of capturing Ash's Pikachu and other Pokémon, although their appearances are less frequent, just like in the. Jessie's Wobbuffet returns to her roster. This series also features a series of side story episodes following the adventures of a Trainer named Alain, who is working to find Mega Stones and defeat all Mega-Evolved Pokémon using his Mega X. In the XY&Z season, Ash and his friends journey continues as their story merges with the plot of the Mega Evolution Specials, with the group becoming involved with the Legendary Pokémon  and the villainous organization Team Flare.

A new art style was instituted at the beginning of the series. A notable difference is that the stock 'effect' backgrounds have been almost entirely removed (only appearing when a main character catches a Pokémon, whenever Ash or Serena earn a Gym Badge or, respectively, and when Team Rocket recites their ). Also, the character models (as seen in the artworks) are slightly taller and leaner in comparison to the previous four series. In addition, much like the core series Pokémon games from Generation III onwards, a VS. player overview screen appears before starting some battles and rounds. Similarly to In The Shadow of Zekrom!, also receives a physical redesign, now having softer and slightly smaller birthmarks on his cheeks, his hair covers the top of his ears and is spikier, and he has more locks on his forehead.

Episodes in the XY series are numbered with XY on Bulbapedia. For a complete episode listing, see the list of XY series episodes.

Blurb
''It’s time for Ash and Pikachu to set off on their adventures in the Kalos region! Along the way, they’re joined by some new friends—a genius inventor named Clemont, his little sister Bonnie, and Serena, a Trainer on her first journey. Ash immediately tries to challenge the Gym in Lumiose City, but doesn’t get very far before a robot throws him out! In between Gym battles, Ash and friends will be exploring this unique region, meeting all kinds of new Pokémon, and looking into a fascinating new Pokémon mystery!''

Japanese seasons
The XY series has been divided into multiple arcs in the Japanese release, similar to the "chapters" of the and.


 * Pocket Monsters XY (ポケットモンスター) (XY001 - XY093)
 * Pocket Monsters XY&Z (ポケットモンスター) (XY094 - XY140)

Dub seasons
Unlike what was previously done, when the XY series came to be dubbed into English and other languages, it was localized as a whole. While it is still divided into three seasons, they share a common title:
 * Pokémon the Series: XY (XY001 - XY023, XY025 - XY049)
 * Pokémon the Series: XY Kalos Quest (XY050 - XY093, XY024)
 * Pokémon the Series: XYZ (XY094 - XY140, SS036)

Movies

 * Pokémon the Movie: Diancie and the Cocoon of Destruction
 * Pokémon the Movie: Hoopa and the Clash of Ages
 * Pokémon the Movie: Volcanion and the Mechanical Marvel

North American DVD releases

 * List of English language Pokémon the Series: XY home video releases (Region 1)
 * List of English language Pokémon the Series: XY Kalos Quest home video releases (Region 1)
 * List of English language Pokémon the Series: XYZ home video releases (Region 1)

Australian DVD releases

 * List of English language Pokémon the Series: XY home video releases (Region 4)
 * List of English language Pokémon the Series: XY Kalos Quest home video releases (Region 4)
 * List of English language Pokémon the Series: XYZ home video releases (Region 4)

Japanese DVD releases

 * List of Japanese language XY series home video releases

Gallery

 * For more images, please see artwork from the XY anime series on the Bulbagarden Archives.

Trivia

 * Aito Ohashi, one of the animators for XY, drew art for the conclusion of the series.
 * This is the only series in which:
 * has two female long-term traveling companions at once.
 * Ash does not.
 * Ash does not use any Pokémon.
 * The characters are consistently drawn with fingernails.
 * The starter Pokémon that Ash and his friends obtain all come directly from the region's major Pokémon Professor.
 * Ash travels to the new region with a character he met in the previous series: he traveled to Kalos with Alexa.
 * Ash keeps three Pokémon of the same type in his party at one time, with three Pokémon.
 * One of Ash's released Pokémon returns in the same region it got released, and actually rejoins his party.
 * Ash reaches the finals of the Pokémon League Conference.
 * Ash releases a starter Pokémon.
 * None of Ash's Pokémon at Professor Oak's Laboratory appear, nor have been mentioned.
 * Ash's Bulbasaur and do not appear, nor have been mentioned.
 * None of Ash's former traveling companions appear in person.
 * and do not appear in any form, including flashbacks or cameos, nor have they ever been mentioned.
 * The final episode did not end with the message "Next Time... A New Beginning!"
 * does not meet Ash's in person.
 * Professor Oak does not meet the region's Pokémon Professor.
 * There are no flashbacks to the original series.
 * All of Ash's traveling companions appear in all of the episodes in person.
 * There are neither unaired nor undubbed episodes.
 * This is the only completed series in which:
 * James does not use any Pokémon.
 * Ash fully evolves all of the Pokémon he caught in the series.
 * Ash does not leave any of the Pokemon in his party at Professor Oak's Laboratory at any point, even temporarily.
 * and do not appear in any form, including flashbacks or cameos.
 * Ash's from the previous series does not appear (among series that have a previous one).
 * The Magikarp salesman does not appear.
 * This is the first series since the original series in which:
 * Ash has lost against two different Gym battles in the same region.
 * Ash has released Pokémon.
 * The XY series shares a number of similarities with the :
 * Ash does not own the region's starter Pokémon.
 * Ash is traveling with three companions instead of two.
 * Two of the traveling companions are siblings, with one of them being too young to have Pokémon of their own.
 * Both sets of siblings are related to the fifth Gym Leader of their respective region, and both older siblings tried to hide this fact at first.
 * This Gym is also the first one that Ash attempts to challenge in the region.
 * Ash receives only one starter Pokémon in the region and fully evolves it.
 * Ash's female companion does not have a specific goal in mind in the beginning of their, but later becomes inspired to pursue a career that focuses more on displaying a Pokemon's style rather than its power: May aims to become a Top Coordinator, and Serena aims to become.
 * Both were expected to pursue the same career as one of their parents: May was expected to become a Gym Leader like her father, and Serena was expected to become a Rhyhorn racer like.
 * Both begin their journeys for unorthodox reasons: May to travel, and Serena to reunite with Ash.
 * Both start with the region's starter Pokémon: May starts with  and Serena starts with . Both of their starter Pokémon evolved during the series.
 * Both obtain an, which later evolves into an Eeveelution native to the region they are currently in at the time of the Evolution.
 * Both had one last battle against Ash before departing.
 * Neither had any disobedient Pokémon, unlike, , and.
 * Among the female main characters who can own Pokémon, both are the only ones not to own any walking Pokémon.
 * The three older main characters have one starter Pokémon each.
 * At least one Gym features Double Battles.
 * Both these Gyms specialized in Pokémon, as well as being the seventh Gym Ash challenged in the respective regions.
 * Both League Conferences started on the 125th episode and ended on the 131st episode of their respective series.
 * Ash uses only his current party Pokémon in the tournament instead of using any of his Pokémon from Professor Oak's Laboratory.
 * Jessie's Pokémon evolves but James's Pokémon, which is also capable of evolution, does not.
 * This is the shortest completed series of the anime, with 140 episodes.
 * The English dub of episodes from A PokéVision of Things to Come! to Heroes - Friends and Faux Alike! were first aired in before  (except the postponed episode An Undersea Place to Call Home!).
 * The English dub of episodes from A Relay in the Sky! to All Eyes on the Future! were first aired in before the United States.
 * The English dub of the episodes Bonnie for the Defense! and Facing the Needs of the Many! were first aired in before the United States.
 * In the Japanese version, the focus character in the title card segment changes depending on the episode, and usually that character also reads the title card. In the English dub, all episodes feature Ash as the focus character, except Mega-Mega Meowth Madness! and One for the Goomy (both US airing only), which instead feature Bonnie as the focus character.
 * In the Japanese version, starting from An Oasis of Hope!, the title card was updated to use Serena's new design. In the dub, the title card continued to use Serena's old design.
 * Ash took longer to catch a full team of six Pokémon (including ) in this series than any other series. He caught his sixth Pokémon when his previously released Goodra returned for the Lumiose Conference in the 126th episode of this series.
 * This is the series in which Ash has caught the fewest Pokémon, with only five, and the series in which he leaves the fewest Pokémon at Professor Oak's Laboratory, with only three.