Media Essays: Pokémon Horizons Rewrite (Part 1)

Hey, remember that time I did a rewrite of Pokémon Horizons Season 3? Well now this time, I'm going even further by doing a full rewrite of the entire series. Why? Because the show has been such a frustrating roller-coaster of quality where it gives us one good season, then follows up with two bad ones, is choc full of asinine writing decisions and missed opportunities that I feel this thing deserves a full-blown rewrite, not just Season 3 at this point. It's such a shame because the show started off so strongly and showed so much promise, but then it just completely fell apart due to the show's confusing decision to big Roy up at Liko's expense, continuously treat Liko like crap despite her being the main character, terrible pacing issues and completely wasting its entire time skip premise. Seriously, the moment it turned out Friede was actually alive this whole time was the moment the show jumped the Sharpedo for me. Why the hell they didn't commit to this premise and completely undermined Season 4's tragic ending by having him turn out to be alive, I'll never understand. It also doesn't help that now we have a filler season to pad things out until Pokémon Winds and Waves comes out. Season 6 was such a mess (that at least somehow delivered a satisfying ending) that I've officially quit the show and have no intention of coming back unless they stop shafting Liko and get rid of Roy (which will never happen unfortunately...).

So that's why we're here today. Here's me taking Pokémon Horizons and suggesting how it could've been improved. I'll be covering all six seasons we've had thus far for this rewrite. Some changes might be minor, but a lot of them will be major. I'm only covering the first six arcs though. Wonder Voyage will not be adapted here. So let's get started. But first, before we get to the story itself, let's cover...

Changes in the Cast

Like I did for my Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc-V rewrite, I'll be making some cast changes for this rewrite.

First of all, Roy and Ult will be completely absent here. Yes, I'm actually going there. I am 100% seriously dropping Roy from this rewrite. Why? Because Roy is a huge example of Pokémon Horizons at its worst. No joke, most of the show's terrible writing issues can be traced back to him. He's a useless spare part who keeps stealing Liko's thunder and keeps being given story aspects that should belong to Liko (i.e. his goal of catching Black Rayquaza), his battles are the worst because of the fact he's incapable of winning a battle without his opponent being nerfed by the plot or the plot bending in his favour in someway, he's responsible for the Blueberry Academy arc being rushed, he's become a borderline Gary-Stu at this point and as I've routinely said with the show, it would genuinely benefit from his absence. This rewrite will prove my point how useless Roy is because with him gone, nothing will really change and the story will improve so much without him. Sorry Roy fans, but that's just how it is for me.

So what about the whole Black Rayquaza story then? With Roy gone, how will that be handled? Simple, it'll be LIKO'S goal instead! Seriously, I can't be the only person who's realized that this should've been Liko's goal instead of Roy's. Think about it: Black Rayquaza belonged to her great-great-grandfather Lucius, ergo it's part of her family lineage and therefore her Pokémon, so why the hell wasn't SHE the one trying to catch it? Why did they give this goal to some outsider who has no connection to Liko or her family lineage and basically just got dragged into this story due to circumstances beyond his control? Just so Roy could have a reason to exist? That's just sloppy writing. If you need a character to essentially steal another character's story in order for them to have a purpose, then you've created a bad character. It's mind-numbing how much damage Roy caused this series just by existing...so with Roy gone, the Black Rayquaza will be Liko's goal instead with the idea being she wants to catch it so she can find out how it's connected to her and what it means for her as a trainer.

Ult being absent here is for the same reason. He too is a useless spare part, even more so than Roy, and he clearly only existed so the writers could shill Mega Evolutions due to Pokémon: Legends Z-A coming out. Unlike Roy, I don't think anyone's going to care that he's gone here.

While Roy is being dropped, I AM going to replace him with another character so we can still have the whole dual protagonist thing. But who'll replace Roy in this rewrite, you may ask? That's easy. For this rewrite, instead of Liko and Roy, the dual protagonists of this story will be Liko...

...and Ann. Seriously, how much better would this show have been if Ann was the other main character instead of Roy? Not only does using Ann in place of Roy mean we have one less character to introduce, but it gives Ann more of a purpose to exist than just "Liko's best friend" and she has much more story potential than Roy does. Oh and before anyone asks, yes, this rewrite WILL be using the "Ann is an Explorers agent" fan theory that was quite popular in the show's early days before Season 5 killed it for good. I'll go more into this in the rewrite itself.

Is anyone else being dropped out of the cast for the rewrite? Yes. For the Rising Volt Tacklers, I'll be keeping everybody except for Ludlow. Getting rid of him once again means one less character taking up space in the story. Of the RVTs, he really was the most pointless member of the team, so nothing is lost when he's taken out of it. On the subject of the RVTs, Friede's role will be DRASTICALLY downplayed so he doesn't keep overshadowing Liko like he did in the first two seasons and unlike the show where they chickened out of the conclusion, he'll die for real in this rewrite. Might sound harsh, I know, but the show was genuinely better without him and having him turn out to be alive just felt like the writers being unwilling to commit to the new status quo they'd set up, as well as undermined all the emotional moments we had at the end of Season 4 and during Season 5. Also bringing him back borderline character assassinated him. At least in my rewrite, Friede will die with his dignity intact. So yeah, Friede will NOT be making it out alive in this version. Sorry if you hate that, but if a story genuinely benefits from a character dying than keeping them alive, then it has to happen.

The Explorers will remain unchanged. I'm not getting rid of any of them at all. But I AM going to give them more spotlight. One of my biggest criticisms regarding Horizons is the fact the show seems so uninterested in exploring (no pun intended) its villains and keeps having them show up way too sporadically. Then Season 6 gave us an Explorers focused episode and made it suck by giving them lame backstories. In this rewrite, we'll have episodes dedicated to them and they'll show up less sporadically, and also be given better backstories.

My Original Season 3 Rewrite

Some of you maybe asking "What about your original Season 3 rewrite? Will you be adapting that into this rewrite?" No, no I won't. I'll basically have to rewrite Terastal Debut again in order to better fit into this version.

So without further ado, let's dive in!

Season 1: Liko & Ann Set Off

Our story begins more or less the same as the original did with Liko attending Indigo Academy and meeting her roommate Ann. The two make friends fast and both receive their starter Pokémon, a Sprigatito for Liko and a Fuecoco for Ann. Since Ann is taking Roy's spot as main character, may as well give her Fuecoco right off the bat, am I right? It also saves us time having to introduce it later in the season. Just like before, Liko and Sprigatito have a rocky start to their relationship due to Sprigatito's finnicky nature, but over time Liko begins to understand her more and they begin to bond.

But then everything changes for our heroine when a mysterious boy named Amethio shows up with a supposed note from Liko's grandmother asking her to bring her pendant. Since in this rewrite Ann is a spy for the Explorers, she's the reason Amethio knows about it unlike in the original where that was never explained. After Liko showed Ann the pendant, Ann made a secret phone call to Amethio while Liko was sleeping, hence why he's here now. Just like before, Liko immediately gets suspicious and tries to escape with Amethio, Zir and Conia chasing her. Ann, in order to keep up the ruse, runs with Liko so she can appear as a victim as well. She also plots to snatch the pendant from Liko the moment she's distracted. Liko gets cornered with Amethio demanding she hand over the pendant...

But an unlikely saviour comes to Liko's rescue as a strange white-haired man on a Charizard flies in to battle Amethio. This leads to a scuffle between Friede's Charizard and Amethio's Ceruledge and Liko and Ann nearly get caught up in the crossfire. But just like before, Liko's pendant activates and protects the girls from Ceruledge's Psycho Cut.

In that brief moment, both Liko and Ann get a glimpse of a mysterious Pokémon. After that, events play out the same as in the show with the only change being Ann's inclusion: Friede takes Liko and Ann to the Brave Asagi, the kids are introduced to the crew of the ship, Amethio, Zir and Conia pursue, Sprigatito is kidnapped by Amethio, our heroes get Sprigatito back and Friede sets course for Paldea so the Rising Volt Tacklers and collect their pay from Liko's mother. As they do so, Ann finds somewhere private so she can make a phone call to Amethio. She apologizes for screwing up on getting the pendant, but Amethio just tells her not to worry and keep up the act. Ann promises she'll do her job and the pendant will soon be Amethio's. Amethio just smiles and says "I know you'll do me proud...little sister." Yep, I'm also adapting that fan theory into this rewrite. Back in the show's early days, it was commonly speculated that Ann was related to either Amethio or Coral, but the show jossed those theories too. Here, Ann and Amethio are siblings. I think it gives them a stronger dynamic and it also gives Ann more of a motivation to spy on Liko and get the pendant. She doesn't just want to please her big brother, but she also wants to please their grandfather Gibeon and also save him from dying.

Now we get to Episode 4 in where the big changes begin. Since Roy is absent in this version, of course this episode's plot will play out very differently. In order to force the Rising Volt Tacklers to stop so she can have another chance of stealing Liko's pendant, Ann sabotages the ship by getting her Fuecoco to damage the ship's gasbags. Fuecoco isn't happy about that as he doesn't really want to be a part of Ann's schemes, but goes through with it anyway. With the ship forced to land, Friede goes off to get help from a guy he knows and Orla gets to repairing the ship. However, Fuecoco accidentally falls off and Liko and Ann are forced to go and look for it. Ann sees this as a chance to steal the pendant since the two are away from the adults and skulking through the wilderness with no witnesses, but she worries for Fuecoco and thus abandons her mission for now to go and find him. Upon finding him, she hears Fuecoco singing to himself and is entranced with it. Meanwhile, Liko stumbles across some ruins in the middle of the woods and finds something strange. It's a Pokéball, but its design is nothing like what she's seen before. Thinking Friede will be interested, she decides to take it with her. As she does, she notices her pendant glowing again, which further strengthens her decision to take it with her since now she wants to know if there's a connection between the ball and pendant. The girls arrive back at the ship with Fuecoco safe and sound and the ancient Pokéball brought onboard. Unknown to Liko, Ann seems to recognize the ball somehow...

Next episode, we get Amethio, Zir and Conia catching up to the crew and battling them. Unlike in the original, Liko defeating Conia will NOT happen offscreen! Seriously, that was stupid and everyone knows it. What a disservice to Pokémon's first female main character by having her first every victory happen offscreen. Even in Season 1, poor Liko was being done dirty. Then we get Episode 6 which plays out more or less the same as before with Liko and Ann battling Amethio (Ann's still keeping up the act so that if this mission fails, she can keep playing double agent for the time being). Before Amethio can win, the ancient Pokéball opens up to reveal that inside...

...it contains a black Rayquaza. Upon exiting its ball, it attacks everyone, takes a particular interest in Liko and leaves. Amazed and puzzled, Liko now has an even bigger goal on her mind: to catch the black Rayquaza and find answers to the questions she has. As for Ann, she just thinks to herself "A black Rayquaza. So it's still here! It isn't some story after all...". Just like in the original, the episode sees Spinel put in charge and Amethio removed from the mission, but Amethio isn't letting that stop him by any means. He secretly calls Ann and tells her to not only keep up the act, but help Liko stop Spinel for him.

Episodes 7-18 remain unchanged aside from Roy's scenes being replaced with Ann as there's nothing that really needs changing from them and Friede's Charizard won't Terastalize into a Dark-type. It'll Terastalize into a Dragon-type instead. Aside from that, the events of those episodes play out the same as in the original with a training episode with Captain Pikachu, Liko attempting to bond with Dot, the gang meeting Nemona and Brassius, the encounter with Titan Arbolivia, Ann catching a Wattrel, Liko being brainwashed by Spinel so he can steal the pendant, Liko, Ann and Dot battling Spinel to get the pendant back, Ann training with Fuecoco and Wattrel and Friede and Cap's backstory all happening as normal. Episodes 19-23 will get some changes though.

Episode 19 won't be a Murdock focused episode that's about his strained relationship with a character we never see again. As part of my plans to give the Explorers more screentime, Episode 19 will be our first ever Explorers focused episode. It's all about Amethio training with Zir and Conia so they'll be ready to strike and seize the pendant. During said training, Conia asks Amethio if he has...doubts. Amethio asks what kind of doubts and Conia suggests that maybe Ann is proving to be unreliable since it's possible she might be playing double agent TOO well and is genuinely developing a friendship with Liko. Amethio is certain Ann will do him and Gibeon proud. The episode also has a subplot with Liko, Ann and Dot hanging out together and Ann ends up proving Conia's point since she IS genuinely developing a friendship with Liko and is feeling guilty that she's spying on her like that. At the end, Ann gives Amethio a call and voices her doubts with the mission. Amethio just coldly tells her to stick to the plan or else she'll be betraying her entire family, and she knows how Gibeon feels about betrayal. Shaken, Ann agrees to stick to the mission, but she isn't happy about it...

Episode 20's only change is that Liko won't throw the match with Wakaba since in this version, Liko is a more proactive character with a clear defined goal. The lesson instead will be that she can't rely on Sprigatito all the time and will benefit from having other Pokémon at her beck and call, which leads to her catching Hatenna in Episode 21. Episodes 22 and 23 will be VERY different. Unlike the original, they will NOT encounter Galarian Moltres. I'm saving that for Season 2. Instead, they just encounter the Explorers in the mines and Liko and Ann will get a proper fight with Zir and Conia, unlike the original where Captain Pikachu stuck his nose in and stopped the fight from happening. The fight won't just see our heroines use the Paldea starters, but they get to use Wattrel and Hatenna as well. The resulting battle causes a cave-in and Episode 23 will be about our heroes escaping the mine with Hatenna proving to be very useful with her psychic powers.

Episodes 24 and 25 more or less play out as normal with the one exception being that Terapagos hasn't awoken yet. I'm saving that for next time. So for this rewrite, it's still a pendant. After the battle, we learn of Lucius and the Six Heroes and thus the Rising Volt Tacklers know what they have to do: find the Six Heroes and find this mysterious paradise, then they might find out more about Liko's pendant and her connection to all of this.

As you can see, this already proves my point what a useless spare part Roy is in the original series. Dropping him entirely didn't change the story all that much and allowed me to prioritize the story better now we can focus better on the characters that SHOULD be focused on. Also saving certain plot points for Season 2 means we'll be able to salvage that season and fix the biggest problem it had: the fact it ran out of plot midway through the season and stumbled to the finish line. Saving Terapagos' awakening and the encounter with Galarian Moltres means we can eliminate most of the filler and give us a better paced season next time while also not rushing the Six Heroes plot so much like the original did. Now then, let's dive into...

Season 2: The Sparkling of Terapagos

Unlike in Season 2 where the first episode was about Terapagos wandering around the ship, this season opens with the RVTs still in Galar so they can search for the next of the Six Heroes: Galarian Moltres. To avoid repetition from last time, they won't find it in the mines this time around. They instead find it flying over the Isle of Armour, a reference to the Crown Tundra DLC from Sword and Shield in where you have to chase the three Legendary Birds and you chase after Galarian Moltres in the Isle of Armour. Also this two-parter will see Ann catch a Sandshrew since they can be found in the Isle of Armour. She may not have her Samurott anymore, but I still want her to have a Sandslash later on, so here we go. After they tame Moltres and get it to come with them, they get a flashback that has them learn the name "Laqua" and Terapagos also finally awakens. THEN we get the episode with Terapagos exploring the ship like in the original show. The picnic and Pokéball mechanic episodes remain intact with the only real change being that Captain Pikachu won't steal Orla's thunder and she and her Metagross will deal with the Galarian Weezing single-handedly. Instead of a filler episode with a Polteageist joining the ship, I'll make this another capture episode. As the crew depart to continue searching for the Six Heroes, the Brave Asagi has an unexpected guest onboard. Instead of a Polteageist, in this version...

...it's a Pichu. But it's not just any Pichu, it's a shiny Pichu. Liko is fascinated as she's never seen a Pichu coloured like this before. In case you're wondering, the Pichu will be female. She takes an instant shine to Captain Pikachu and challenges him to a battle. She gets curb-stomped (big shock). Seeing how dismayed she was, Liko kindly offers to take her in and train her up to be as strong as Cap some day. Delighted, the Pichu allows Liko to capture her, making this Liko's third Pokémon overall and her second capture. Now you might be curious, why am I making Liko catch a shiny Pichu? Simple: because I'm shameless and want my favourite character to have my favourite Pokémon, Raichu. Also, there IS a deeper reason for that, but I'll explain when we get to the time-skip era...

Next up is the two-part episode where we meet Lucius' Lapras. The events of this episode and the next two play out as normal with Lapras joining the group, Rayquaza showing up again and battling Amethio, Amethio getting defeated, Rayquaza leaving, Liko and Ann getting a training match with Diana, Diana departing for the time being and Amethio getting training from Hamber all being kept in. Episodes 35, 36 and 38 will be dropped entirely as they're filler episodes that have no reason to exist. The Galarian Moltres two-parter more or less fills in two of those spots and the third can be filled in by another Explorers focused episode that's of two halves. One half shows Spinel and the others planning to catch the Black Rayquaza while the other has Amethio testing the power of Terastal on some wild Pokémon. For episodes that remain intact, we'll be keeping Episode 37 as that's the episode when Fuecoco learns Disarming Voice, Episode 39 as that's when Dot catches Tinkatink and Episode 40 as that's when Sprigatito learns Magical Leaf. Also since we're skipping the episode that features Tepen, that leaves another empty spot to fill in, so I'll make that a training episode with Liko and Ann and both Hatenna and Pichu get to learn new moves (Heal Pulse and Discharge respectively). During the training, Ann finds herself further feeling disillusioned with her mission and she considers abandoning it so she and Liko can be friends for real.

The Palafin episode and the last three episodes of the original Season 2 remain intact and largely unchanged as well. So as a recap, these three episodes saw Liko and Roy face Coral and Sidian (in this version, it's Liko and Ann), the other Explorers execute their plan to capture Black Rayquaza, Coral makes Glalie go boom in its face, Rayquaza accidentally damages the Brave Asagi, Friede and Amethio battle Rayquaza, they get their asses kicked, Liko's Sprigatito evolves into Floragato and Ann's Fuecoco gets the last shot with Flame Charge. Rayquaza then flies away and Friede suggests Liko, Ann and Dot take up Terastal Training. Of course, Ann sees this as another chance to complete her mission, but she still finds herself unsure if she actually wants to go through with it...

And thus that concludes Part 1 of this rewrite. Already we've fixed so many problems from the original series by trimming the fat, rearranging the events of some episodes, doing Liko more justice now Roy isn't here to make her look useless and Friede isn't constantly showing her up either. I also imagine some of the naysayers will appreciate how this rewrite makes Liko far more proactive than before and gives her a much more clear and defined goal than "I want to understand the feelings of Pokémon" since Liko was often criticized for being too much of a Pinball Protagonist who lacked a clear goal. That and Ann's increased presence will no doubt put a smile on people's faces since everyone who's watched Horizons loves Ann. Sorry if you're not keen on her being one of the bad guys this time around, but rest assured, she WILL become good by the end.

Join me next week for Part 2 in where we get some REALLY big changes...

Continued in Part 2...