All over the internet, I hear people hate on Ash and pray to their god, the ultimate Pokémon trainer Red. I get tired of it, and I started to wonder if Red is really better than Ash. It takes some explanation, but I will prove that Ash is better than Red is.



First off, I am comparing the games' Red, to the anime's Ash. No Pokémon Origins, No Manga, nothing else. Now let us begin.



The first thing people notice about Ash is that he is a kid. People automatically think of him as a bad character because of it. But, in my eyes, he is not. During the Pokémon anime, Ash strives to be a Pokémon Master, but has never won a league conference. What do people think of this? They think that Ash sucks. But look at it this way. Instead of quitting, Ash kept going through Johto, only to loose again, and then through Hoenn, and he lost again. This shows that even though he does not win, he still strives to get better. He even got to the semifinals in the Sinnoh Conference, and he has improved. His journeys have also been his greatest feats, and is where I get my support for him. While all of Ash's adventures have been clearly defined, Red's have not. Canonically, Ash has gone through 5 regions, and defeated 44 Gym Leaders. Red on the other hand, has only canonically gone through 2 regions, and beaten 16 because you need 16 badges to access Mt. Silver. Ash has caught 72 official Pokémon, but Red has only canonically caught six. Ash has also befriended many Legendary Pokémon, but Red has not canonically caught any, since catching them was not plot essential in Gens I and II. Lastly, Ash once again triumphs in terms of stopping the villainous teams. Red has canonically stopped only Team Rocket, while Ash has canonically beaten the bulk of Team Rocket (everyone besides Jessie, James, and Meowth), Team Aqua, Team Magma, Team Galactic, and Team Plasma.



I hope this enlightened people about Red and Ash, and I hope that I made a difference. Tell me what you think in the comments. Who is better, Red or Ash?

First off you cant"t compair the games Red ?to Ash. Ash was based off of the manga so there is no point to doing it. Here's the simple truth to it all

I would choose Ash....atleast he traveled everywhere...Red only traveled the kanto Region..(he is literally stuck there) and Ash has way more pokemon

xxdougiexxfreshx :
Well dougie, you just earned an achievement for not listening to what I said at all. 
1. Ash was not based on the manga. The Pokemon Anime came out in 1997, the Manga for The Electric Tale of Pikachu came out in 1999.
2. Ash travels with friends because it is more fun (presumably), and I wouldn't take a journey alone with no one to talk to and be bored to death
3. Ash's Pikachu does not want to be in a Pokeball, so Ash doesn't force him to be. In Pokemon Yellow, his Pikachu stayed outside it's Pokeball
4. Red does not win every time, this is not canonical. This depends on the player's experience.
5. Not canonical, also inapropriate.
supercool22 :
Red also has to have traversed the Johto region, since it requires 16 badges to access Mt. Silver, the location he is found in Gold and Silver.

SMBLOZ123 : You missed my point you can't compare the two. And I don't know where you got you information but the manga started in 1996 (wiki proof but I don't need it) and the show your right on. For the picture it was meant as a joke (because it is comical) with a point just don't compare them when they are in essence the same person with major difference for televison purposes.

What I mean about the manga is there was a manga centering about Ash, Brock, and Misty in a different way called The Electric Tale of Pikachu. You told me that I couldn't compare them because Ash was based on something in the manga.
Also, the picture is one of the reasons I made this thread. I made it to counter all of the biased arguments that people start to make Red seem so amazing, even when he canonically isn't.

It's all a matter of opinion. Human nature makes it so people try to get others to agree with their opinion, but still- matter of opinion.

My opinion is, well, both of them are equally great if you ask me.

Ash teaches you to prevail no matter what happens, teamwork is possibly the answer to everything, friendship matters, and that bad guys will always get their butts kicked by a Pikachu.

Red, well, he's the Original Trainer, the guy who started everything we know today. Without him, Ash wouldn't even exist. He also is a Pokémon Master, logically speaking. Plus, he has the nostalgia feel, from being the oldest trainer there is. He is also pretty damn hard to beat, when you are weak at Pokémon, like I am.

Both are unique in their own ways, which makes opinions biased. Opinions are not Facts, you know. You can argue all you want, but opinions do not change- unless people want their opinions to change.

Annnd, Rant over.

yeah, please don't compare them. Red is a freaking boss trainer who can do almost anything and Ask is just a stuck up no good trainer who can't do anything good. I am being serious here.

Barathemos :
Another person who did not listen to my argument at all. I am comparing the canon Red to the canon Ash, so this is everything we know about them:
Red has caught six Pokemon - Ash has caught 72

Red has defeated Team Rocket - Ash has defeated Team Rocket, Aqua, Magma, Galactic, and Plasma (And it does not matter that he had help)

Red has gotten 16 badges - Ash has gotten 44

Red has traveled through Kanto and Johto - Ash has traveled through Kanto, The Orange Islands, Johto, Hoenn, Kanto again (Battle Frontier), Sinnoh, Unova, and the Decolore Islands.

Lastly, I'd like to point out that Ash is a better character because he actually has character. Leaving Red up to the imagination of the players may seem cool and all, but by doing that he becomes inferior to Ash in many ways. Also, you cannot compare the leagues in the games and in the anime, since the games's league is the Elite Four and the Champion, while the league in the anime is a tournament of full battles.

I hate having to restate my entire thread because someone didn't read it, but I have proven my point. Ash is canonically better than Red.
P.S. I like your dancing Trapinch

I agree, when you compare the two of them in this sense, Ash is so much better than Red and let's face it, Ash is only going to get much better as the series continues.

A little ridiculous...but I'll bite.

This is based off of your argumentation, and I personally have no strong opinions about either one, but the fact that you are comparing Ash from the anime and Red from the game is a little far fetched, since the story for Red in the game is very limited. You might as well say that the games don't have a story, but an underlining goal to reach in the end of the game. Not to mention the fact that Red's appearance in games are only limited in Gen 1 and Gen 2, so it's not that he didn't doing anything after Gen 2 based on the games, but that we don't know what happened to him after Gen 2. It is through the manga that Red actually has a story and expands through the future Gens of Pokemon. With what you were comparing between Ash and Red (the storyline and their accomplishments, amount of pokemon caught, where Red has travelled), it would be a fairer comparison if you compare between the anime vs the manga, because they are both have equal amounts of time and adventures to compare, with all of the Generations to keep in mind.

But...if you are ONLY comparing based on gym leaders beaten, Leagues won, then sure, compare the anime and the game.

To determine the better character, I will do some analysis. First of all, they are not in the same universe, Red is in the game universe while Ash Ketchum is his anime universe counterpart. Ash Ketchum is ten years old, and Red is eleven. Proof? http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Red_(game) . There. Although, I am not going to give Red the win here, as older age does not necessarily make him 'better'. He is not eleven anymore, though. Three years have passed since generation one, making him fourteen in generation two. As it is unknown how many years later generation five (proof generation five happened after gens 2/4 is the Team Rocket grunt who returns but is now married with a child), we are going to dub him '14+'. Two years passed after generation 5, (Black and White 2), making him '16+). While Ash is still 10. Red has beaten the Champion, his rival, while Ash didn't even make it to second in any Pokemon League tournament. The farthest he's ever reached was making the semi-finals in the Sinnoh League. So, Red wins.