Paul isn't just a rival, he's everything Ash isn't and everything he could become if he stops listening to his Pokémon. The show spends 191 episodes letting you watch two trainers get sharper, meaner, smarter at each other's expense. By the time they face off, you're not rooting for Ash to win, you're rooting for him to finally understand what Paul already knows, and watching that gap close is the entire point.

Having conquered the Battle Frontier and turned down the chance to become a Frontier Brain, Ash sets out for the distant Sinnoh region, still aiming to become a Pokémon Master and to compete in the Sinnoh League. Soon after he arrives, Team Rocket makes another grab for Pikachu. The attempt fails, but Pikachu ends up lost deep in a forest. While searching for his partner, Ash reunites with his old travel companion Takeshi, a Pokémon breeder, and meets Shinji, a trainer hungry for power who shows little regard for how his Pokémon feel and who is set to become Ash's rival. Ash also meets Hikari, a local ten-year-old girl who hopes to become a top coordinator like her mother. After they foil Team Rocket, Hikari joins the group, and the three travel across Sinnoh, encountering many new Pokémon along the way in this action-packed, comedic fantasy adventure.