Ethan (game)
- Hibiki redirects here. For the character of the day in Beauty and the Breeder, see Zane.
| Ethan ヒビキ Hibiki | |
 Art from HeartGold and SoulSilver | |
| Gender | Male |
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| Hometown | New Bark Town |
| Region | Johto |
| Relatives | Mom (as player) Grandparents, unnamed father (as NPC) |
| Trainer class | Pokémon Trainer, Player character |
| Generation | II, IV |
| Games | Gold, Silver, Crystal, HeartGold, SoulSilver |
| Anime counterpart | Jimmy, Ethan (M13) |
| Counterpart debut | The Legend of Thunder! |
| Manga counterpart(s) | Gold |
Ethan (Japanese: ヒビキ Hibiki) is the main playable character in Pokémon Gold and Silver and is the male choice in Pokémon Crystal, Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver. In Crystal, his female counterpart is Kris, while in HeartGold and SoulSilver his female counterpart is Lyra.
He is a caring young boy who lives with his mother in New Bark Town. He had no official name in Generation II, but was unofficially known by fans as Gold (Japanese: ゴールド Gold).
Storyline in the games
When selected as the player character
Ethan's journey as a Trainer begins when Professor Elm asks him to run an errand for Mr. Pokémon, who lives north of Cherrygrove City on Route 30. Because he may encounter dangerous wild Pokémon along the way, Elm gives him a choice between three Pokémon to protect him: Cyndaquil, Totodile or Chikorita.
Ethan spots another boy his age watching Elm's Lab from outside. When Ethan tries to talk to him, the boy abruptly shoves him away. This boy, Silver, will become Ethan's rival, analogous to Blue in Generation I.
Ethan continues onward and finally meets Mr. Pokémon and completes his errand. While there he meets Professor Oak who, upon realizing Ethan's bond with his new Pokémon, gives him a Pokédex. On his way back home, Ethan again meets Silver, who has stolen one of Elm's remaining Pokémon. After defeating the boy in battle, Ethan learns his name from his dropped Trainer card, and relays it to the police in New Bark Town. Professor Elm allows Ethan to keep the Pokémon he chose earlier, and also encourages him to compete in the Johto League.
Ethan begins on a Pokémon journey in the Johto region, facing off against its eight Gym Leaders, defeating and disbanding the revived Team Rocket, and becoming Pokémon League Champion by defeating the Elite Four and its previous Champion, Lance at the Indigo Plateau. Along the way he also teaches Silver to respect Pokémon as living creatures and not just as tools for battle.
After being declared the Pokémon League Champion, Ethan then journeys by ship from Olivine City to Vermilion City in Kanto. Traveling around that region, he battles against another set of eight Gym Leaders. Upon getting permission from Professor Oak in Pallet Town, Ethan heads for Mt. Silver via Route 28. His journey comes to a close when, deep in Mt. Silver's cave, he faces the Champion from Pallet Town, Pokémon Trainer Red, who had been training there since shortly after he became Pokémon League Champion three years prior.
When not selected as the player character
In Pokémon Crystal, if Kris is selected, then the male player character will not appear in the game at all (although his sprite will be used in a link battle with another game from Generation II).
In Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, if Lyra is selected to be the player character, Ethan meets her in New Bark Town at the start of the game. In this particular scene, he is seen with a Marill. He will always have Marill even if another starter Pokémon is selected. In addition, he doesn't appear to take the remaining starter Pokémon. His role in the storyline of HeartGold and SoulSilver is similar to that of Lucas/Dawn in Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum if they are not chosen as the player character, while Lyra takes this place if he is selected as the player. He teaches the player how to catch Pokémon on Route 29 (replacing the Dude from Gold, Silver, and Crystal).
While playing as Lyra, his grandparents run the Pokémon Day Care on Route 34. He also gives the player the Fashion Case in Goldenrod Tunnel and the Vs. Recorder on Route 31. Naturally, this role is given to Lyra if he is the player character.
Pokémon
Ethan uses this party to show the player how to catch Pokémon when Lyra is selected as the player character in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver.
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Caught in tutorial
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Artwork
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| Artwork from Gold and Silver |
Artwork from Crystal |
Running | Checking his Pokégear |
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| Approaching a Time Capsule | Artwork from the Game Freak website. | In front of the Ruins of Alph. | Encounter with a Shining Pokémon |
Sprites
| File:GS Ethan.png | File:C Ethan.png | 
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File:HGSS Ethan.png | 
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| Ethan's sprite from Gold and Silver |
Ethan's sprite from Crystal |
Ethan's backsprite from Gold, Silver, and Crystal |
Ethan's overworld sprite from Gold, Silver, and Crystal |
Ethan's sprite from HeartGold and SoulSilver |
Ethan's backsprite from HeartGold and SoulSilver |
Ethan's VS sprite from HeartGold and SoulSilver |
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File:HGSS Ethan Pokéathlon Jersey.png | 
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| Ethan's overworld sprite from HeartGold and SoulSilver |
Ethan's overworld sprite, when disguised as a Team Rocket Grunt from HeartGold and SoulSilver |
Ethan's Pokéathlon sprite from HeartGold and SoulSilver |
Ethan's unused overworld Pokéathlon sprite from HeartGold and SoulSilver |
Ethan's sprite from the opening of HeartGold and SoulSilver |
Ethan's VS sprite from the opening of HeartGold and SoulSilver |
Ethan's starting sprite from HeartGold and SoulSilver |
Optional names for Ethan
| Language | Gold | Silver | Crystal | HeartGold/SoulSilver |
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Counterparts
Jimmy from the special episode The Legend of Thunder seems to be based on Ethan in the most basic sense, much more than Ash was based off of his counterpart, Red. However, as with the other game player characters, Ethan and Jimmy are not interchangeable.
Other counterparts of Ethan include Gold from the Pokémon Adventures manga, Gold from the Golden Boys manga and Kinnosuke from the Pokémon Pocket Monsters manga.
Ethan has a cameo appearance at the beginning of Zoroark: Master of Illusions, in a battle against Ash. This counterpart follows Ethan's design from Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, and is actually identified as "Hibiki" (Ethan's Japanese name) in the Japanese DVD of the movie.
Pokémon
This is a listing of Ethan's known Pokémon in the anime:
Names
| Language | Name | Origin |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ヒビキ Hibiki | From 響き hibiki, "sound" or "echo". |
| English | Ethan | Biblically, Ethan/Eitan is believed to be the author of Psalm 89 and/or a harp or cymbal player in King David’s court. |
| French | Luth | From luth, lute. |
| German | Klarin | From Klarinette, clarinet. |
| Italian | Armonio | From armonia, harmony, or armonio, harmonium. |
| Spanish | Eco | From eco, echo. |
| Korean | 심향 Simhyang | From 심 (心) sim, heart, and 響 (향) hyang, echo. |
Trivia
- Ethan is the only male player character who does not wear long pants, instead opting for shorts in Gold and Silver and knickerbockers in HeartGold and SoulSilver.
- Ethan is the only male player character to have two different female counterparts.
- The majority of his Japanese default names from HeartGold and SoulSilver are shared with Red and Lucas. The same holds true for their respective female counterparts.
- A 1997 pamphlet describing Gold and Silver mentions that the protagonist has a brother three years his senior, and seems to imply the possibility of that brother being the first-generation protagonist. However, this aspect of his character was discarded by the time of the final release, as Red's mother still lives in Pallet Town.
- This information has sparked multiple fan theories centered on the idea that Ethan, Red, and/or Silver are all related through their fathers. This, however, is only speculation, and no evidence exists to support it.
- Ethan is 4'11" (1.50 m) tall and weighs 88.2 lbs (40 kg).
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This game character article is part of Project CharacterDex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each character found in the Pokémon games. |
