Pokemon fans call Ash’s actions in the show “morally ambiguous” upon reflection

Fans of the Pokemon anime debate which of Ash’s “morally ambiguous” actions in the show and movies could be considered the worst.

While some longtime anime viewers may have blocked it from their memory, the show contained some dark moments. For example, the scripts for two lost 12-year-old episodes emerged following their cancellation over sensitive content after the 2011 earthquake in Japan.

Some of the Pokemon anime’s controversial storylines revolve around its protagonist Ash Ketchum. The boy from Pallet Town has made several questionable decisions throughout his Pokemon journey.

Here are a few of the worst situations Ash has caused in his 25-year tenure as the face of Pokemon.

Pokemon fans remember some of Ash’s biggest mishaps

The Pokemon Company

On the Pokemon subreddit, a Reddit user posed a question about Ash’s past “morally ambiguous” actions. Before asking the crowd, the OP offered their own examples, like Ash being rude to Celadon’s people and joining Team Rocket’s side.

“Allowing Clement to continually pollute the Kalos region with machine debris and smoke,” one fan wrote.

What do you think is the most morally ambiguous thing Ash has ever done?
by u/OnAFalseErrand in pokemon

“The most morally ambiguous thing he ever did was, upon dying, and discovering his grieving friends, pranking the s**t out of them,” another viewer said. “He definitely traumatized Misty and Brock.”

“He commands his rodent to electrocute Team Rocket on the daily for trying to capture Pokemon in a series about catching Pokemon,” one user joked.

“Giving away his Primeape to that one guy, though he kinda got tricked into doing it. I think it would also be worth mentioning when he commanded Charmeleon to lose to a Paras,” another anime fan suggested.

Other examples of Ash being borderline rude were pulling Damian with his Pidgeot and dragging Pikachu with a rope in Episode 1.

Though some of Ash’s have taken on a new meaning for adults who watched the show when they were kids, it remains to be seen whether Pokemon Horizons will have its own fair share of morally questionable moments.