Boss Rush: Pokémon Champions
It’s one of the most unanimous gaming experiences that our audience have had, I reckon. If ever there’s a company that know how to transcend generations with their franchises, it’s Nintendo, and one of the most enduring and well-loved of those franchises is, of course, Pokémon. Since the debut of Red and Blue Version on our shores in 1999, six generations (and counting) and 721 (and counting!) of Game Freak’s wide range of pocket-portable monstrosities have captivated the gaming world to an almost-ludicrous extent, but it’s justifiably deserved. Serving as the introduction of many to the world of RPGs, this series needs no introduction, I’m sure.
This commonplace nature, therefore, makes Pokémon an excellent subject for this week’s Boss Rush! While there are countless bosses across the series, ranging from the many villainous team leaders to the (currently) 58 separate Gym Leaders to the Elite Four of each region to whatever legendary Pokémon are currently factoring into the plot, this article will focus on the “final boss” of each game, so to speak: the Champion. After the general slog through the Elite Four, your team of trusty ‘mons battered and bruised but still battling, you come face to face with…well, that depends on the game, of course. The head honcho, the big boss, the Pokémon pro to beat all Pokémon pros. The Champion. Typically someone you’ve met in the story already or had some experience with, this battle is generally seen as the ultimate culmination of your journey, the be-all end-all knock-down fight. Do they, then, all measure up to expectations? This article will rank, in my opinion, which do the best job of that lofty task. So, without further ado, let’s begin!
(Note: This article will exclude the Champion of Black/White, Alder, as he is not the final boss of the game’s storyline and is fought under different circumstances. Were he included, however… eh, he’d probably take the spot between Diantha and Iris)
7. Lance (Gold/Silver/Crystal/HeartGold/SoulSilver)
Ah, Lance. The Dragon Master, so elusive and mysterious a figure. First turning up as a regular ol’ Elite Four member in the first generation, he makes his debut as Champion in the second. Coming off of an impressive showing earlier in the game where he and his Dragonite (or one of them, anyway) assist with mowing through Team Rocket, combined with his use of the (at the time) rare and seemingly all-powerful Dragon type, the build-up to this battle is rather immense. Unfortunately, oftentimes the actuality fails to live up to the expectation, as Lance’s team doesn’t have the necessary variety to take on the typical player’s team, his case hindered all the more by all six of his ‘mons sharing the Flying type (makes his classification as a Dragon trainer somewhat amusing, eh?) and thus some common weaknesses. Admittedly, his team in the fourth generation remakes, while unchanged in line-up, have many more tools to play around with as a result of changing game mechanics, but all the same this dragon is really more of a mere lizard.
6. Wallace (Emerald)
Taking sixth in this list, Wallace shares some similarities to Lance above. He debuted in a game before his appearance as Champion, he gained something of a promotion in that capacity (in his case, from Gym Leader), and his team stick to one type, which in Wallace’s case is Water, the same as his former gym in Sootopolis City. While the Water type is considerably more varied than their draconic relatives, Wallace’s team still suffers from several common weaknesses, though the sheer power of his ‘mons can compensate in some situations, particularly his signature Milotic. Ultimately, though, he is a largely unmemorable battle, stronger than Lance but with less presence and limited to one game to boot, and that leaves this potential boss to remember simply down the drain.
5. Diantha (X/Y)
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The first Champion on the list with a varied-type team, Diantha makes several appearances over the course of the story as a benevolent ally who, nonetheless, fairly heavily indicates that she will serve as your final foe in the story. While her team are a nice mix (using many of the Kalos region’s signature ‘mons, interestingly enough) and she even has a Mega Evolution in store with her Gardevoir, unfortunately she fails to present as much of a threat as one would think. Four of her team share a weakness to the Fairy type despite their variety, and in any case, X/Y grant the player numerous opportunities to become positively overpowered by that stage of the game. Middling reviews for this movie-star.
4. Iris (Black 2/White 2)
A personal favourite, but still only coming fourth on this list, this Dragon specialist previously served as a Gym Leader in White Version exclusively before debuting as the Champion in both sequels of the fifth generation. With an extremely fun attitude, a great design and an equally-great battle theme, Iris can prove a rather difficult fight with a team of strong ‘mons, all with decent movesets to boot. Even those who come prepared for Dragons may find themselves taken aback when she unleashes her Water/Ice Lapras, or perhaps her Steel/Rock Aggron to shake things up a bit. Not top-tier, but this dragon’s got quite the roar.
3. Steven Stone (Ruby/Sapphire/OmegaRuby/AlphaSapphire)
Ostensibly a Steel type specialist but in actuality utilizing several types, this smooth and very-handsome (as frequently commented on in the story, hilariously enough) Champion is a daunting foe indeed. Already a notable presence in the story by the time you reach him (and even more so in the sixth generation versions), a player battling Steven is in for a time. His Pokémon, ranging from his pseudo-legendary signature ‘mon Metagross (and watch for its Mega Evolution in the remake) to his sturdy, hazard-setting Skarmory to his practically-immobile Cradily, will give you a rough time. He’s not number one, but he’s hard as nails anyway.
2. Blue/Whatever You Named Him (Red/Blue/Yellow)
In the top two comes the Champion that started it all. For the entirety of the game, he’d always been one step ahead of you, always beating out your accomplishments with his own. After everything is all over with, and the Elite Four have settled comfortably in the dust behind you, it suddenly turns out that there is one battle left: the Champion. And, surprise surprise…still one step ahead. While the battle with Blue (or whatever vulgarity you substituted) is only really difficult due to the constraints of the game mechanics at that time, he’s inarguably got the biggest story presence of any of the Champions, and that really makes it mean something to the player.
Close to number one, but not quite there, because this list is headed by…
1. Cynthia (Diamond/Pearl/Platinum)
My favourite Champion of them all, and likely one of my favourite characters in the franchise, Cynthia represented, at the time, a whole new level of Champion, and still does to an extent. Her presence in the story is considerable, more so in Platinum, as a potent mentor character with clearly-hidden power. Her design is perfect for her purpose, showing just how little intimidation she feels facing the player. Her battle theme is hectic, intense, and serves to enhance the bout itself. Her team…oh, her team. With significant boosts to their stats compared to the average NPC Pokémon, extremely varied types, strong movesets, and very, very powerful ‘mons including her infamous Garchomp, a Pokémon so strong it defined the metagame for an entire generation, players are in for a hell of a time with this adventurer archaeologist. She made such an impact that she would continue to turn up throughout both the fourth and fifth generation, even serving as the archetypal RPG “bonus boss” in the fifth. That impact is why she takes the number one spot on this list, the Champion of Champions.
So, there you have it, it’s interesting how the mechanics of each game among other factors can influence the impact of their boss fights in a series that is generally, at its most basic level, always very similar with each generation. Do feel free to list off your own in the comments, readers – smell ya later!
