Ritchie
- "Hiroshi" redirects here. For the character of the day in Curbing the Crimson Tide, see Hiroshi (Kanto).
| Ritchie ヒロシ Hiroshi | |
| File:Ritchie2.png Ritchie and Sparky | |
| Gender | Male |
|---|---|
| Eye color | Blue |
| Hair color | Auburn* Blond* |
| Hometown | Frodomar City (dub only) |
| Region | Kanto |
| Trainer class | Trainer |
| Anime debut | A Friend in Deed |
| English voice actor | Tara Jayne |
| Japanese voice actor | Minami Takayama |
Ritchie (also Richie, Japanese: ヒロシ Hiroshi) is a nominally recurring Trainer in the anime.
He is named after Hiroshi Yamauchi, former President of Nintendo. His Japanese name means "far and wide" (溥), while his English name is a diminutive for Richard, which is generally agreed to mean "brave power" in Germanic (from the elements ric "power, rule, ruler" and hard "brave, hardy").
Ritchie is often seen as a clone of Ash Ketchum because all of his Pokémon relate to some of the Pokémon that Ash owns, or owned at one point (Sparky and Ash's Pikachu, Zippo and Ash's Charizard, Happy and Ash's Butterfree, Rose and Ash's Swellow, and Cruise and Ash's Larvitar).
In the anime
Ritchie first appeared in A Friend In Deed and quickly befriended his fellow Pokémon League competitor, Ash Ketchum. This led to problems in the next episode, Friend or Foe Alike, since the two were matched up to battle against each other. Ritchie won the match, since at the very end Ash's Charizard refused to fight Sparky and took a nap on the battlefield instead. Even though he lost in the next match to Assunta, he made it to the Top 8 position in the league.
Ritchie showed up again in the anime when Ash and co. visited the Whirl Islands, starting in The Mystery is History. He was searching for a mysterious Pokémon that can be found there, which turned out to be a Lugia.
He also appeared in three Pokémon Chronicles episodes; Oaknapped, Celebi and Joy and The Search for the Legend. The second of these makes him one of at least two notable characters to travel through time with the aid of Celebi, the other character being Sammy Oak. May also traveled back in time in Time Warp Heals All Wounds, but with an item other than a Celebi. Similarly; Ash, Brock, and Dawn traveled back in time in Arceus and the Jewel of Life, but they were sent by Dialga.
Pokémon
This listing is of Ritchie's known Pokémon in the anime:
| Debut | A Friend in Deed |
|---|---|
| Voice actors | |
| Japanese | Yūji Ueda |
| English | Eric Stuart |
- Main article: Zippo
Zippo is Ritchie's Charmeleon. It first appeared as a Charmander, and evolved by the next time Ash and Ritchie met, in the Whirl Islands.
| Debut | A Friend in Deed |
|---|---|
| Voice actors | |
| Japanese | Rikako Aikawa |
| English | Rikako Aikawa |
Happy (Japanese: パピー Papi) is Ritchie's Butterfree. After Ritchie and Ash had foiled Team Rocket's plan to steal the Pokémon of everyone competing in the Pokémon League, the van they were driving was about to go over a cliff. Ash and Ritchie decided to use their Pokémon to help them land safely. Ash used his Pidgeotto, while Ritchie sent out Happy. Thanks to their Pokémon, the two Trainers were able to land safely.
Happy also appeared in Friend and Foe Alike during Ash and Ritchie's battle at the Indigo Plateau. It was up against Ash's Squirtle. It easily defeated the Water-type by using Sleep Powder, which caused Squirtle to become disqualified. Happy was then defeated by Ash's Pikachu using its ThunderShock.
Happy was last seen in Friends to the End during Ritchie's battle with Assunta. It was seen battling with her Venomoth. It hasn't been seen or mentioned since that episode.
| Debut | The Mystery is History |
|---|---|
| Voice actors | |
| Japanese | |
| English | Eric Stuart |
Cruise (Japanese: クルーズ) is Ritchie's Pupitar. When it first appeared, Butch and Cassidy were attempting to steal a baby Lugia, but Ash and Ritchie refused to let that happen. To stop them, Ritchie sent out his Pupitar. It was very strong in battle, and it caused the two Team Rocket members to retreat.
Ritchie also used Cruise in A Promise is a Promise. Butch and Cassidy were once again trying to prevent the kids from rescuing Silver and its mother. Ritchie called upon Cruise to take care of them and the other Rocket Grunts in the area. After it defeated them, Cruise helped Ash and Misty free Silver from its cage by tackling the bars after Ash's Cyndaquil, Totodile and Misty's Poliwhirl had weakened them.
| Debut | Oaknapped |
|---|---|
| Voice actors | |
| Japanese | Chinami Nishimura |
| English | Kayzie Rogers |
Rose (Japanese: ローズ) is Ritchie's Taillow. When Ritchie, Tracey and Officer Jenny were looking for the missing Professor Oak, Ritchie sent out Rose for help. Tracey commented that Ash also has a Taillow, and Ritchie replied that Ash and him tend to catch a lot of the same Pokémon (referring to their Pikachu, Charmeleon and Butterfree).
Ritchie had at least 3 other Pokémon during Indigo League competition. It is uncertain which ones belonged to him. However, the beginning scene in Friends to the End narrowed the situation a bit. Pokémon that could possibly belong to Ritchie presented in this scene include Spearow and Tentacool.
Mentioned
 Eevee (dub only) |
Ritchie consults Professor Oak for advice on evolving his Eevee in the Pokémon Chronicles episode Oaknapped. This was only mentioned in the dub.
Voice actors
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In the games
The only game Ritchie appears in is Pokémon Puzzle League. However, some have speculated that, like Ash, he was based off the hero from Pokémon Red and Blue. In fact, besides differences in color, his outfit closely parallels that of Red's original design.
In the manga
Ritchie is a character in the Electric Tale of Pikachu manga. His personality is very similar to that of his anime counterpart. However, he has blond hair instead of auburn.
Pokémon
 Chuchino |
 Charley |
 Happy |
Trivia
- He marks his Poké Balls with stars on top so he can tell them apart from those of other Trainers.
- Two versions of his name can be seen in the fandom, Richie and Ritchie. However, Pokémon Puzzle League, as well as Pokémon Chronicles subtitles, spell his name with a "t". Because of this, he is more commonly identified as Ritchie.
- He shares three notable traits with Professor Oak. Both traveled through time with the aid of a Celebi, while both, as of the last known appearance of their Pokémon, have a Charmeleon, and they both share the same English voice actress (when Oak was younger).
- Despite changes in the Pokédex's design, Ritchie continues to use the oldest model as of the last episode it was seen in.
- Much like Shigeru and Satoshi are default names for the rival in Red and Green, respectively (being a default for the player in the opposite version), Hiroshi is a default name for the rival in Blue.
- He is the only rival to nickname his Pokémon.
- Ritchie's outfit features the colors green and yellow, while Ash's clothes are predominantly red and blue.
- The only known Pokémon Ritchie owns that Ash has never owned in the past is Pupitar. However, Ash has owned a Larvitar temporarily.
Names
| Language | Name | Reference to |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ヒロシ Hiroshi | |
| English | Ritchie | |
| Korean | 훈 Hun | |
| Chinese | 阿弘 Ā Hóng | From the name 弘 Hiroshi. |
External links
- Hiroshi's Profile on Pokeani (Japanese)
- Hiroshi's Pokémon on Pokeani (Japanese)
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This article is part of Project Anime, a Bulbapedia project that covers all aspects of Pokémon animation. |
