N (anime)

N (Japanese: Ｎ （エヌ） N) is a recurring character who appeared in the Pokémon anime. He is a mysterious young man with the ability to understand what Pokémon are saying.

History
N first appeared briefly in the end of New Places... Familiar Faces!. He was formally introduced in The Name's N!, where he investigated the ruins of the P2 Laboratory and discovered data related to. Later, he met with and  when they were leaving their ship. While the group was, and  were attacked by Jessie's Frillish's , but N saved them. He immediately befriended Pikachu, showing his special ability with the Pokémon. He claimed not to have met, although he was shown meeting it as a child in a flashback. He was surprised when he heard that Ash had seen, but was visibly disturbed when Ash said that his goal is to become a Pokémon Master. After that, N helped save Ash's Pikachu and Iris's Axew when tried to steal them. When they parted ways, N told Ash that although the worlds they seek are different, he hopes they can still get along.

N appeared again in Saving Braviary!, where he was rescuing a from two s, Schwarz and Weiss. This act attracted the duo's attention and chased him down, but were unsuccessful as N managed to get away. With the help of Ash and his friends, he takes the Braviary to the Pokémon Center. When Schwarz and Weiss found him, he fought off the and  owned by the duo and with the help of Ash and his friends, N managed to free Braviary safely. Afterwards, he joined Ash and his friends on their journey to the.

In The Pokémon Harbor Patrol!, he, along with Ash and the others, met up with Halsey and his team. He helped Halsey's to master its moves and rescue abilities.

In The Fires of a Red-Hot Reunion!, N, Ash, and the others attended the Kanto Fair. Upon Ash's Charizard return, he watched the battle between Charizard and Dragonite, which he later called off.

In Team Plasma's Pokémon Manipulation!, he, along with Ash and the others, fought against Colress and Aldith. He was trying to rescue a from their control, but ended up injuring himself. Then he was taken to a spring by Anthea and Concordia, where the psychic power of their Pokémon was able to heal him.

Later on, in Secrets From Out of the Fog!, he again met with some Team Plasma grunts. After arriving at his and his sisters' secret refuge, he told Ash and his friends that he used to be a Team Plasma member. He talked about the Seven Sages, Ghetsis and his special relation with some wild Pokémon when he was a child. He also spoke about meeting Reshiram. At the end of the episode, he departed from the group with Anthea and Concordia.

In Meowth, Colress and Team Rivalry!, N examined another of Team Plasma's laboratories and realized that it had been destroyed by the Genesect Army.

N encountered the group again at the White Ruins in Ash and N: A Clash of Ideals!. He stole the Light Stone from Cedric Juniper in order to prevent Reshiram from being awakened. While being pursued by Ash, they both fell into a lower chamber within the ruins, where they conversed at length about their differing views on the world. However, up above, Team Plasma arrived and began creating chaos at the ruins by attacking Iris, Cilan, Cedric and the archeologists present. In Team Plasma and the Awakening Ceremony!, N realized that he could no longer hear the voices of the Pokémon up above (due to Colress's machine) and with the help of Ash's Charizard, he and Ash escaped. They fell right into Team Plasma's trap, however, and N was forced to surrender the Light Stone to them in exchange for Colress freeing Pikachu from his control. N was imprisoned along with the others and forced to watch as Ghetsis arrived and initiated the Ceremony of Awakening to summon Reshiram. The conflict climaxed in What Lies Beyond Truth and Ideals!, where Ghetsis took control of Reshiram and set it upon all present. With Pikachu again under Colress's control as well as Anthea and Concordia's and, all seemed lost, but Pikachu was able to fight against the machine's influence and destroy it, freeing Reshiram. N successfully appealed to Reshiram's heart, convincing it that not all humans were evil, and it departed peacefully instead of going on a rampage as he had earlier feared. Later, with Ghetsis, Colress and the members of Team Plasma placed under arrest, he thanked Ash for his help and happily departed with Anthea and Concordia.

N made further cameo appearances in the ending Let's Join Hands, the ending credits of Genesect and the Legend Awakened, and a flashback in SS037.

Character
First shown in The Name's N!, he has the ability to hear the inner voices and feelings of Pokémon, and he regards their language as superior to human language; this led him to become confused when he first met, wondering why Meowth would have even wanted to learn how to speak like a human. Using this power, he has the ability to summon Pokémon from the local area to his aid. Unlike his N|video game counterpart, he dislikes the use of Pokémon in standard battles, although he joins Cilan in watching as Ash's Charizard fights with Iris's Dragonite upon its return in The Fires of a Red-Hot Reunion! until he calls it off. Where his game counterpart was comparatively naïve and accepted the world that had been presented to him by Ghetsis, once N has a chance to explore the world he begins to understand the true nature of human civilization and humans' ties to their Pokémon.

Although he is initially at odds with Ash's philosophy, he recognises that contrary to his past beliefs, trainers such as Ash, Iris and Cilan genuinely care for their Pokémon as friends rather than partners. When he meets Halsey, although he initially disapproved of the Pokémon Harbor Patrol, he soon recognized that all members were there because they wanted to be part of the team rather than being forced into it. By Ash and N: A Clash of Ideals!, N notes that he has come to recognise that, while some people treat Pokémon harshly, there are also those who treat Pokémon as family, people who work alongside Pokémon, and people like Ash whom Pokémon love being around. When Ash's team faces Team Plasma in Team Plasma and the Awakening Ceremony!, N notes that Ash's Pokémon have a strong bond with each other as well as with him, as seen when Pignite acts to protect Charizard despite their brief time as teammates. By What Lies Beyond Truth and Ideals!, N has come to truly believe that Pokémon and people can be partners rather than master and servant, complimenting the powerful bond between Ash and Pikachu.

Trivia

 * N's ability to hear the voices of Pokémon and converse with them is similar to the powers shown by, Sheena, Damos, Simon, and.

Related articles

 * N
 * N (Adventures)

N (anime) N (dessin animé) N (anime) Ｎ（动画）