You know, one thing I've actually really liked about how the anime has handled the character development of Ash's Lycanroc is how it almost feels informed by actual fighting game mentalities and mental hangups. No, seriously!
Consider how the fury mode was portrayed at first. It was never just your typical enraged "Hulk smash" kind of thing, it's activated just as much by stress or anxiety or pressure, and was portrayed as
purely a downside before the training session with Tapu Bulu helped Ash's Lycanroc learn to control it. And not in the typical "threat to friend and foe alike", either, it was a
competitive weakness, as that loss of control made for a fighter that was predictable and easy to defeat.
Ever had something happen mid-match that puts you on tilt? Suddenly, you can't think clearly, forget your options, and end up getting bodied because of it? That's
exactly what went on at first, and Nanu went out of his way in his preliminary battle with Ash to show how easily a smart opponent could manipulate that for an easy win.
And while it didn't take nearly as much time to overcome as it usually does in real life (hey, this
is a shonen anime), it does say something that finally gaining control of that fury involved accepting that the anger was there without being consumed by it.
Having your trainer say he accepts you despite your flaws and losses also helps!
And Ash's actual Grand Trial demonstrated what can happen when you can tap into that anger
without getting put on tilt. Lycanroc learned Counter mid-match, which, sure, is typical Pokémon fare, but think of what it meant from a competitive standpoint. Channeling that fury properly led to figuring out a completely new strategy on the fly and pulling it off successfully.
But this kind of surprisingly thoughtful writing didn't just show up for Nanu's trial! In fact, there were shades of it back when Ash's Lycanroc, then a Rockruff, first joined the team!
Remember the little fight club the local wild 'mons on Melemele Island had going on? How then-Rockruff had never won a battle against one of the local top players, a Magmar? It was Ash's advice--and a training session--that finally got him a win against his bracket demon.
And what was that advice? To stop running in blindly and wait for your opponent to do something first. In other words...he took the first big step low level players have to take in competitive play to truly improve, and stopped just pressing buttons and started playing the neutral game. And it worked!
"Wait a minute," you may be thinking, "Isn't this pushing it? What makes you so sure there
are fighting game undertones going on here?
Well, I
don't know for sure--you all have known me long enough to know I read too far into stuff. But for what it's worth, there are signs that
someone on the staff has a background in fighting games. Particularly in scenes like this:
That's a very Tekken-esque combo there, Tapu Lele.
) This is likely one of, if not Rowlet's last battle. This was supposed to be Ash's first non-gag battle in the league, and they couldn't spare one episode where Rowlet isn't goofing off and sleeping. Didn't help that the episode was padded with Rowlet dodging attacks either.
