Ash's Kingler

Ash's Kingler (Japanese: サトシのキングラー Satoshi's Kingler) was the sixth that   in the Kanto region, and his seventh overall. It was also the first of Ash's Pokémon to primarily reside at 's Laboratory in Pallet Town.

Kanto
Ash originally obtained Kingler as a in Mystery at the Lighthouse, when he became angry at  for saying that it was a fluke that he caught all his other Pokémon. Storming down to the beach, he discovered a minuscule Krabby and made fun of it. Krabby challenged Ash, who fought it with a nearby stick and then captured it in a Poké Ball. Having six Pokémon already in his party at the time, the newly caught Krabby's Poké Ball was teleported away, much to Ash's surprise and concern. He soon learned that Krabby was sent to. Ash quickly rang Oak and became horrified as he thought Oak was eating his new Krabby. However, he became relieved to know that Oak was actually eating tofu and that Krabby was quite happy at Oak's lab. However, the happiness he felt at catching his seventh Pokémon wore off as soon as Oak revealed that had also caught a Krabby, although his was far larger in size. Gary later mocked Krabby himself in Showdown at the Po-ké Corral, degrading Krabby in comparison to his own.

Krabby's battling debut came in Round One - Begin!, when Ash used it during the first round of the Pokémon League against Mandi. He reasoned that Krabby would be perfect for a battle on the Water field despite Misty's protests that Ash should borrow one of her Pokémon as Krabby had never battled before. Ash retorted that he still had and  as backups should Krabby fail.

It seemed at first that Misty's forebodings would prove true; Mandi's used  to trap Krabby in a whirlpool. However, Krabby managed to escape and took control of the battle with Vice Grip. It avoided Exeggutor's and took victory with Leer and Stomp. The intensity of the battle caused it to evolve into a. It was able to finish the rest of the match single-handedly, defeating Mandi's by slowing it down with Bubble and then knocking it out with Crabhammer, and then taking out his  with a Hyper Beam. This was despite Misty and 's real concerns about Kingler's ability to prevail against Seadra's speed and Golbat's air attacks. Ash also used Kingler in his battle on the Ice field in Fire and Ice, where Kingler defeated Pete Pebbleman's by hammering repeatedly on its shell with Crabhammer until it fainted. It then fought his, but its Bubble was dodged by the Pokémon, and then it was knocked out by.

Orange Islands
Kingler spent most of the time at Oak's lab as Ash and his traveled the Orange Islands. Kingler and offered to fight for Ash in the Orange Island Championship battle against  in Hello, Pummelo!, but Ash chose  instead.

Johto
Kingler appeared in A Farfetch'd Tale, where it crowded into Ash's screen with Muk, Tauros, and to wish him luck for his next Gym battle with Whitney.

Ash used Kingler in Johto during the Whirl Cup tournament in The Perfect Match!, when Ash realized that he only had a single Pokémon,. He sent to Oak's lab and Kingler joined his team. In the second round, after Totodile's loss to, Kingler knocked out Poliwhirl with a powerful one-two punch Crabhammer. However, when Ash ordered it to use Vice Grip on, the pain gave Psyduck the ability to tap into its Psychic powers and defeat Kingler with a attack. Kingler was sent back to Oak's lab afterward.

In Love, Pokémon Style, Ash planned to use Kingler in the Johto League Silver Conference against Macy's array of Fire Pokémon, but it was injured while rescuing a trio of runaway, who shocked Kingler when it caught them. Ash was later informed that Kingler would not be able to compete in the battle, but arrived in time to fill Kingler's spot.

In Showdown at the Oak Corral, Kingler made a cameo appearance telling the other Pokémon about Cassidy and Butch.

During The Right Place and the Right Mime, Kingler quickly made friends with Ash's Corphish.

Kingler was reunited with Ash in The Dream Continues!, where it and the rest of Ash's Pokémon posed in a group photo with him.

Personality and characteristics
In its debut, Krabby appeared to be fiery and brash, challenging Ash to a fight despite him not even being a Pokémon. However, upon capture Krabby mellowed significantly and became a very modest and quiet Pokémon. This is most likely due to its residence with Professor Oak, who said in Showdown at the Po-ké Corral that Pokémon take on the personality of the person who spends the most time with it. In battle, Kingler was quietly determined, not giving up against Mandi despite on face value being the underdog against all three of his Pokémon. Kingler was a very modest victor, happily hugging his Trainer, but not waving to the crowd or gloating at Mandi. These are more of Oak's traits coming through, as opposed to the rest of Ash's team.

This is most likely the reason Kingler never secured a permanent position on Ash's team. It has proven strong in battle, loyal, and caring, but the very little time spent together has likely led Ash to feel more secure using his other Pokémon. Kingler, like Muk and Tauros, remains a trump card in Ash's arsenal.

In The Electric Tale of Pikachu manga
Ash's Kingler appears in The Electric Tale of Pikachu manga. He caught it off-screen as a Krabby. He used it in Welcome to the Big Leagues, where it defeated a, allowing Ash to move on in the Indigo League tournament.

Trivia

 * Kingler was the first Pokémon caught by Ash when he already had a full party of six Pokémon on hand. The same didn't happen again until Ash caught in Sewaddle and Burgh in Pinwheel Forest!, 662 episodes later.
 * Kingler is the first Pokémon that Ash has owned that evolved under his ownership, and his only one until A Stealthy Challenge!, 776 episodes later.
 * It also was his only evolved Water type up until the capture of in Facing Fear with Eyes Wide Open!.
 * It is also his only fully evolved Water type that is currently under his ownership.
 * Kingler is Ash's only Pokémon to win in a Pokémon League match single handedly, excluding one-on-one matches.
 * Kingler is Ash's first and so far only Pokémon to evolve during a Pokémon League match.
 * Since Kingler was injured by multiple, it is the only one of Ash's Pokémon at the time not to participate in the Silver Conference.
 * Kingler has learned every move it knows in a single episode.
 * In, a game highly based on the anime, Krabby's encounter rate is 70%, as opposed 's encounter rate of 33%. In addition, in Yellow only, it is possible to catch Kingler by fishing on Route 25. These additions of commonness are likely made as a reference to Ash's Kingler.
 * Kingler is the only Pokémon Ash caught in Kanto that did not appear in the flesh or in a flashback during the, only appearing in the picture at the end of The Dream Continues!.

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