Although he is the first Gym Leader encountered, he refuses to battle until the player has at least four Badges. Before stating this, he first introduces the player to Wally (secondary rival) which is when the Pokémon catching tutorial happens. Once he is beaten, he gives the player the Balance Badge.
Norman and his family are originally from Johto. He, as well as the player, have just moved to Hoenn so that he could take up the position of Gym Leader. People have come to describe him as someone who "lives for Pokémon."
Norman also provides special items scanned in via e-Reader to the player.
"Hm? Well, if it isn't <player>! So you're all finished moving in? I'm surprised that you managed to get here by yourself. Oh, I see. You're with your Pokémon. Hmm… Then I guess you're going to become a Trainer like me, <player>. That's great news! I'll be looking forward to it!
"Hm. I see. <player>, you heard that, right? Go with Wally and make sure that he safely catches a Pokémon. Wally, here, I'll loan you my Pokémon. Hm. I'll give you a Poké Ball, too. Go for it!"
"So, did it work out?"
"Now… <player>, if you want to become a strong Trainer, here's my advice. Head for Rustboro City beyond this town. There, you should challenge the Gym Leader, Roxanne. After her, go on to other Pokémon Gyms and defeat their Leaders. Collect Badges from them, understood? Of course, I'm a Gym Leader, too. We'll battle one day, <player>. But that's only after you become stronger, <player>."
Player has no Badges
"Hm? Aren't you going to the Pokémon Gym in Rustboro City? There's no challenge for me to battle a greenhorn Trainer. <player>, I want you to challenge me when you become a lot stronger. I'll battle you, <player>, when you can show me four Gym Badges, okay?
Player has Badge
"I see… So, you've beaten the Gym Leader in Rustboro City. But there are many more Trainers who are stronger than you, <player>. Across the sea in Dewford Town is a Gym Leader named Brawly. You should go challenge him."
Player has 2-3 Badges
"Hm… <player>, you have gotten stronger. I can tell by the number of Badges that you've earned."
Before battle
"Hm... So, you did get four Gym Badges. Fine, as I promised, we will have a Pokémon battle. <Player>... I'm so happy that I can have a real battle with my own child. But, a battle is a battle! I will do everything in my power as a Gym Leader to win. <Player>, you'd better give it your best shot, too!"
When defeated
"... I... I can't... I can't believe it. <Player>... I lost to <player>? But rules are rules! Here, take this."
After being defeated
"With that Badge, the Defense of all your Pokémon will increase. Pokémon that know the HM move Surf will be able to travel over water. This is my gift to you. <Player>, I'm sure you can use it correctly."
"TM42 contains Facade. It doubles the power of moves if the Pokémon is poisoned, paralyzed, or burned. It might be able to turn a bad situation into an advantage."
"As the Gym Leader, I can't express how upset I am... But as a father, it makes me both happy and a little sad. It's odd..."
"<Player>, you should go visit your mother every so often. I'm going to stay here and redouble my training. It would bother me as a Trainer to not avenge my loss to you, <player>!"
"Oh, <player>? Where are you now? It sounds windy wherever you are. I just heard from Devon's Mr. Stone about your PokéNav, so I decided to give you a call. It sounds like you're doing fine, so that's fine with me. You take care now."
Rematch
Before battle
"<Player>... I had a feeling that you would come. I would never refuse to accept a challenge from you. You do understand, don't you? Inside a Gym, it doesn't matter that we are a parent and child. No, because we are parent and child, we owe it to each other to do the best we can. Isn't that right, <player>?"
When defeated
"Uh... Haha... Maybe that was going too hard..."
After being defeated
"<Player>... What is your dream? My dream... Hahaha... It has already come true, actually."
"I will do everything in my power as a Trainer to win. You'd better give it your best shot, too!"
Before battle (second round)
"I moved from Olivine City to Petalburg City and became stronger... I'll use all of that strength now! You'd better give it your best shot, too!"
Before battle (final round)
"I lost to my ownchild... I rethought everything about myself, so now there is no way I can lose! I'll do everything in my power to win! You'd better give it your best shot, too!"
When defeated
"... I... I can't... I can't believe it. I lost to you?"
If the player is defeated
"We both gave everything we had. That was a wonderful match."
After being defeated
"I'm going to redouble my training by taking on this tournament! It would bother me as a Trainer to not avenge my loss to you!"
After winning
"This time, my victory was a matter of luck. I have to continue to pursue strength and be able to win anytime!"
In the lobby, after the tournament
"You went all out and earned that victory... You're a wonderful Trainer! I want my kid to learn from you."
Very early in his Hoenn journey, Ash arrived with May in Petalburg City in the hope of getting his first Gym battle. Ash found the Petalburg Gym and met Max. May stopped him and allowed Ash to meet her parents, Caroline and Norman. Norman turned out be to the real Petalburg CityGym Leader. Norman used his Pokémon, a Vigoroth, to save May's Torchic from Team Rocket.
Norman is a good friend of Professor Birch and was most likely to have been the person to send May to Littleroot Town to get her first Pokémon. As May did not initially like Pokémon, this seems to have created some distance between the two. Before Ash knew that Norman was May's father, he commented that it sounded like she knew the Petalburg Gym Leader pretty well, to which she replied, "No, I just wish I did" and becomes subdued.
The day after that, in Love, Petalburg Style!, May and Max tried to figure out why Norman and Caroline are getting all worked up as Ash tries to save Norman's three Pokémon from Team Rocket. It all turned out that Norman had Nurse Joy set up a special firework display to make fireworks in a form of a Beautifly as a wedding anniversary gift.
Ash had his Gym battle with Norman in Balance of Power. Using his Grovyle, Pikachu, and Torkoal, Ash defeated Norman's Pokémon, much to Max's dismay. Max stole the Balance Badge and locked himself up in Norman's greenhouse. Norman was able to get Max under control and Max gave Ash his Balance Badge.
Pokémon
This listing is of Norman's Pokémon in the Pokémon anime.
Vigoroth was seen again in Ash and Norman's official Gym battle, where it at first easily knocked out Torkoal. After this it had an intense battle with Ash's Pikachu, during which it got paralyzed by Pikachu's Static. In the end, both Pokémon ended up being knocked out due to the damage taken.
Norman's Slakoth first appeared in Love, Petalburg Style! during Norman's battle with Ash. The match started as Norman's Slakoth against Ash's Pikachu. Utilizing Pikachu's speed, Ash orders Pikachu to use Quick Attack, Slakoth dodges and counterattacks with Shadow Ball. Jumping out of the way, Pikachu attacks with Iron Tail but misses once again as Slakoth leans out of the way. Dazed, Pikachu is unable to dodge Slakoth's Hidden Power, and is blasted across the arena.
As Pikachu recovers from Hidden Power, Ash realizes that he needs to change his strategy. He decides to try Electric attacks and orders Pikachu to attack with Thunderbolt. However Slakoth dodges this attack as well, and responds with Blizzard. The incredible cold keeps Pikachu from attacking back, so Ash recalls it and calls out Torkoal instead. Torkoal uses Flamethrower, which easily blasts through Slakoth's Blizzard and scores a direct hit, knocking Slakoth out.
Spoiler warning: this article may contain major plot or ending details.
Norman is the father of Ruby, and his wife is nameless. He is a man who believes in power and he is very skillful in battling. Because of that, he strongly disagreed with Ruby's obsession with Contests. When Ruby reached his 11th birthday, however, he decided that Ruby is old enough to make his decision and finally let him have his own way.
Physically, he is so strong that he can squeeze a phone receiver into pieces without effort, and he won't hesitate to use this strength on his son when he deems necessary. However, he still cares for Ruby very much: He asked his wife to arrange their move to Hoenn on the date of Ruby's birthday so that he can tell him about his permission for Ruby to take part in Contests in person. He also prepared a pair of special running shoes made by the Devon Corporation for his birthday. Later, he also gave a Pokéblock Case to Ruby.
There are several hints from the series showing Norman has had unpleasant encounters with the Pokémon Association, especially when he refused to agree to support Team Magma or Team Aqua during a Gym Leaders' meeting. The beginning of it all could possibly be traced back several years (five according to Volume 21) prior to the start of the Ruby/Sapphire saga, where Norman failed his Gym Leader Test in Johto.
Norman had been banned from taking the Gym Leader Test for five years, because of Ruby, who had fended off a Salamence. At that time, the Pokémon Association had Rayquaza locked up nearby. They were experimenting with an artificially made stone called the Green Orb. The Salamence, which Ruby drove away with his three Pokémon, broke into Rayquaza's containment area and set it free. As a result, Norman took the blame for his son, and became distant from his family to hunt down Rayquaza.
During the battle between Groudon and Kyogre, Norman fought using Rayquaza and calmed the two titans (with Ruby's help). He died after Groudon and Kyogre left to their respective domains, supposedly because of the strain needed to control Rayquaza without a proper medium. However, Norman was later revived under mysterious circumstances when Ruby released his Celebi, alongside Courtney and Steven (who had also died trying to quell the titans).
Pokémon
This listing is for Norman's Pokémon in the Pokémon Adventures manga.
Norman owns two Slakoth that were only seen in a flashback of him trying to battle Rayquaza, who escaped from a nearby laboratory on the day of Norman's Gym Leader's exam. Both of them were very fast as they dodged most of Rayquaza's attacks. It is unknown whether these two Slakoth have evolved, or are still Slakoth but were not used following the incident.
Vigoroth was used to battle a wild Breloom that caught Norman's sight. At the same time, Ruby had dragged Wally into a bush nearby to hide from Norman.
Slaking was used to battle a wild Shiftry in which it was successful. Later, it was seen training with Wally at the Sky Pillar. It briefly appeared in a flashback where it picked Ruby up and distanced him away from Norman, who learned of his fate following the incident in which Rayquaza escaped. Slaking has a Sassy nature.
Kiki was given to Ruby before he became a Pokémon Trainer. She evolved into a Delcatty at the same time as Nana during his travels at Granite Cave when she touched the Moon Stone that Steven had.
Rara was given to Ruby before he became a Pokémon Trainer in Hoenn. Ruby gave her to Wally later on and she evolved into Kirlia. Wally returned her to Ruby at the end of the Ruby & Sapphire arc.
Norman gave Nana to Ruby when it was a Poochyena before Ruby became a Pokémon Trainer. She evolved into a Mightyena at the same time as Kiki while battling a bunch of Mawile.
Norman used this Flygon as a method of transportation after he was told to take the Gym Leader's exam in five years. Later after Wally mastered his training, he gave Flygon to him during his climb of the Sky Pillar.
Slakoth is Norman's Pokémon who refuses to participate in any Pokémon battles and has swallowed the Balance Badge to prove it. Clefairy tries to get the Badge out of Slakoth's stomach but the sloth Pokémon puts a stop to it by making Clefairy tired and swallowing the alarm clocks Clefairy strapped around to himself. Clefairy was able to go into Slakoth's body and get the Balance Badge out of there.
Slakoth's only known move is Yawn and its Ability is Truant.
Trivia
Senri (Norman's Japanese name) can be translated as 1000 li, which is a considerable distance, while Haruka (May's Japanese name) can be translated as far away.
He is the first and currently only father of the player that has been seen in the main series of games.
Norman is the only Gym Leader after the Generation I who shares his English name in French, German, Italian, and Spanish.
Names
Language
Name
Origin
Japanese
センリ Senri
センリゴマ Senri-Goma, Rehmannia japonica. Also from 千里 (Senri), "1000 li", roughly 2440 miles. (Note that in Pokémon Emerald, the Match Call states Norman walks the half-hour journey home every day.)