Sophocles (anime)
| Sophocles マーマネ Māmane | |
 Art from Sun & Moon series | |
| Gender | Male |
|---|---|
| Eye color | Brown |
| Hair color | Orange |
| Hometown | Hau'oli City |
| Region | Alola |
| Relatives | Unnamed father and mother, Molayne (cousin) |
| Trainer class | Trainer |
| Game counterpart | Sophocles |
| Specializes in | Electric types |
| Member of | Aether Foundation |
| Rank | Ultra Guardian |
| Anime debut | Alola to New Adventure! |
| English voice actor | Alyson Leigh Rosenfeld |
| Japanese voice actor | Fumiko Takekuma |
Sophocles (Japanese: マーマネ Māmane) is a student at the Pokémon School on Melemele Island and one of Ash's classmates. He debuted in Alola to New Adventure!.
History
Prior to enrolling in the Pokémon School, Sophocles and his family often took trips to Ula'ula Island in order to visit his cousin Molayne, who works at Hokulani Observatory. During one visit, he befriended a Minior that fell from space. A few days later, the Minior, without a shell to protect it, faded into dust. The experience was traumatic enough for Sophocles to block it from his memory.
Sophocles debuted in Alola to New Adventure!, where he, Mallow and Lana accidentally trampled Ash on his first visit to Samson Oak's Pokémon School. He later watched along with the rest of the class as Ash fought a group of Team Skull Grunts alongside Kiawe. Shortly after the battle, Ash claimed to see the guardian deity Tapu Koko in the sky, but neither Sophocles nor the rest of the class could see the guardian.
In The Guardian's Challenge!, Sophocles participated in Ash's surprise welcome party to the school by challenging him to a balloon-popping contest. Sophocles won the challenge with ease by bursting the balloons on Togedemaru's spikes, and then using her Lightning Rod Ability to absorb Pikachu's electricity to charge her attacks.
In A Shocking Grocery Run!, Sophocles met Ash in Hau'oli City's mall, where the two ate some ice cream. Later, the mall's fire shutters separated Sophocles and Ash from Togedemaru, Pikachu, and Rotom due to a system malfunction caused by Team Rocket. Using his knowledge of machinery, Sophocles was able to find out the solution to the problem. While on their way to the mall's power switch room, he and Ash got into an argument, but settled their dispute after Ash saved Sophocles from being locked up. Eventually the two made their way up to the mall's roof, where they encountered their Pokémon battling Team Rocket. Sophocles had his Togedemaru absorb Pikachu's Thunderbolt using her Lightning Rod Ability, allowing Togedemaru to turn the tides of the battle before the Team Rocket trio got carried away by Bewear. After solving the power problem, Sophocles went to have dinner with Ash and Professor Kukui.
In So Long, Sophocles!, his father and mother informed Sophocles that they were moving house which left him very upset. He later discovered that it was all a big misunderstanding as they were only moving a few houses away but was terrified of explaining this to his friends who were throwing a leaving party. Ash even got him a Charjabug as a going away present which he caught. After capturing Charjabug, Sophocles tearfully apologized to his friends for accidentally misleading them. Although Sophocles was reluctant on revealing the truth because he feared that everyone would be mad at him for lying, everyone was happy he wasn't actually moving away.
In Mounting an Electrifying Charge!, Sophocles, along with Ash and Kiawe, decided to enter the Charjabug race with his Charjabug. His Charjabug struggled at first, but he and the others trained with him so they could win. On the day of the race, he was confronted with Horacio, the leader of the Red Comet team, and was teased on, but he didn't back down. For the race, Sophocles took the role of the team director, with Kiawe acting as the mechanic and Ash as the support runner. When the race began, Charjabug moved slowly. On the rocky course, Ash and Charjabug became stuck, but Sophocles found a way to get around the obstacle. During the final stretch, Ash was rendered unconscious so he couldn't finish the race. Sophocles eventually found a way to use Charjabug's String Shot to go up the slippery slope and come out victorious.
From the episodes Family Determination! to 10,000,000 Reasons to Fight!, Sophocles was among those who helped Lillie and Gladion in their mission to rescue their mother Lusamine after Lusamine was kidnapped by the Ultra Beast Nihilego. In Ultra Deep Sea, his Charjabug and Togedemaru, along with Ash's Litten and Rowlet, and Lana and Mallow's Pokémon, fought and overcame Lusamine's Mismagius, Milotic, and Lilligant, which were under Nihilego's control. The battle ended when Ash and Pikachu performed 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt to defeat Nihilego, freeing Lusamine from its grasp.
In The Professors' New Adventure!, Sophocles attended the wedding of Professor Kukui and Professor Burnet. During the post-nuptials, Lusamine asked Sophocles and his classmates to join the Ultra Guardians, a task force dedicated to dealing with any upcoming Ultra Beast incidents, which they accepted.
In A Mission of Ultra Urgency!, Sophocles and his classmates set out on their first Ultra Guardians mission. They were tasked with capturing a Buzzwole that emerged from an Ultra Wormhole onto Melemele Island, where it began causing havoc. During the mission, Sophocles helped heal a wild Snorlax that was drained of its energy by the Ultra Beast. Eventually, Buzzwole was distracted by Kiawe's flexing long enough for Ash to capture it in a Beast Ball. Afterward, Buzzwole was released and returned to its home thanks to a wormhole opened by Lusamine's team.
In Rise and Shine, Starship!, Sophocles was out camping with his parents and Pokémon at Bamboo Hill when he came across a creature buried in the ground, which he believed to be Celestial Starship (Japanese 星舟かぐや Starship Kaguya), a character from a folktale. After telling his classmates about it, they went to the Bamboo Hill and unsuccessfully tried to dig it up. The next day, Lusamine revealed the creature was actually an Ultra Beast they named Celesteela, and set the Ultra Guardians off to return it back home. Attempts to catch Celesteela in a Beast Ball proved unsuccessful as it was firmly rooted down. Team Rocket later attempted to catch Celesteela, forcing the Ultra Guardians to protect it as Celesteela began to launch into the air. After creating an area for Celesteela to launch safely without setting the immediate area ablaze, they watched it fly home.
In Twirling with a Bang!, Sophocles and his classmates watched a fireworks show. The show was interrupted by a strange creature that used its exploding head to create a fireworks show of its own. The next day, the Ultra Guardians were called down by Lusamine, who revealed the creature from before was the Ultra Beast Blacephalon. The Ultra Guardians set off to find Blacephalon, but their efforts to track it down only led to a different Ultra Beast, later named Xurkitree by Lusamine. When Blacephalon and Xurkitree met, they began doing flashy performances in an attempt to outdo the other. Worried that serious trouble could arise if the competition kept escalating, the Ultra Guardians combined the attacks of their partner and Ride Pokémon into a giant firework that distracted the Ultra Beasts long enough for Ash to make them flinch with Lycanroc's Splintered Stormshards. After Blacephalon and Xurkitree were caught, they were released back to their respective homes.
In The Long Vault Home!, Sophocles and his classmates were sent on an Ultra Guardians mission to capture the Ultra Beast Stakataka. They found it lying motionless in the middle of a field at the Pokémon School. The Ultra Guardians' attempts to capture Stakataka all failed as it easily dodged all of their thrown Beast Balls, forcing them to give up and try again later. The next day, they found that Stakataka had left the Pokémon School and moved to the construction site of a resort Viren was building. Viren, mistaking the Rampart Pokémon for a statue stand, glued a golden statue of himself onto Stakataka, causing it to go berserk in an attempt to get the statue off. With the assistance of Kiawe's Turtonator, Ash made it on top of Stakataka and had Pikachu knock the statue off, calming it down. Afterwards, Stakataka happily agreed to be captured and was then returned to its home.
In Filling the Light with Darkness!, mysterious dark clouds appeared over the Alola region, causing all of the adults in Alola to lose their energy and motivation. The next day, Sophocles and his classmates embarked on their fifth mission to investigate the situation at the Altar of the Sunne. Shortly after arriving, Lusamine revealed that Gladion would be joining them as a new member. In order to disperse the clouds, Ash, Kiawe, Lana, and Gladion combined their Z-Power to fuel a device that successfully made the clouds disappear, but they uncovered a hidden Ultra Wormhole in the process. Afterwards, Lusamine took the Ultra Guardians into the ruins, where she showed them a mural depicting the Blinding One. Before any attempt to translate the mural could be done, the Ultra Guardians were forced to return outside, where they found the wormhole increasing in size. At that moment, a Lunala emerged from the wormhole with a Necrozma chasing after it.
In Full Moon and Many Arms!, Lusamine's group came to the conclusion that Necrozma was the cause of the Alolan adults' loss of energy. Realizing that Necrozma intended on draining Lunala's Ultra Aura in order to possess it, Lusamine sent the Ultra Guardians off to protect Lunala. The Ultra Guardians chased Necrozma to Melemele Island, where they fought alongside Lunala to drive Necrozma away. Despite their best efforts, Necrozma easily shrugged off the Ultra Guardians' attacks and eventually took over Lunala's body to become Dawn Wings Necrozma. Soon afterwards, an elite Team Rocket group known as the Matori Matrix appeared and attempted to capture Necrozma, only for it to easily break free from their electrified net.
After the Matori Matrix retreated, Nebby appeared from a wormhole and fought alongside the Ultra Guardians to free Lunala. With its Sunsteel Strike, Nebby successfully knocked Necrozma off of Lunala, causing it the former to fall into the ocean below. The Matori Matrix returned in order to capture Nebby and Lunala, though the two Legendary Pokémon were freed by Ash's Pikachu and Gladion's Silvally. The distraction allowed Necrozma to return and possess Nebby instead, causing it to become Dusk Mane Necrozma. Ash tried to free Nebby, but was unable to stop Necrozma from escaping into an Ultra Wormhole. With Necrozma gone, the adults of Alola were restored to their normal selves and the injured Lunala was taken to the Ultra Guardians base to recuperate. When the Ultra Guardians expressed their determination to rescue Nebby, their Z-Rings began shining a light that went into Lunala, healing it in the process.
In The Prism Between Light and Darkness!, the Ultra Guardians and Lunala traveled through an Ultra Wormhole and arrived at Poipole's home world. While Lunala went off ahead to face Necrozma, the others stayed behind and were introduced to Poipole's friends and the leader of its hive, Naganadel. With its telepathy, Naganadel revealed to everyone how Necrozma lost its light protecting the world from a meteor, causing everything to become barren and shrouded in darkness. Realizing that Necrozma is actually the Blinding One, the group decided to help Necrozma by giving it their Z-Power in the hopes that it would release Nebby, regain its true form, and bring light back to Poipole's world. After heading to where Lunala and Necrozma were fighting, Ash, Kiawe, Lana, and Gladion fired simultaneous Z-Moves at the Prism Pokémon.
In Securing the Future!, the combined Z-Moves were absorbed by Necrozma, but it wasn't enough to get it to release Nebby. After informing Lusamine's group of the situation, the Ultra Guardians learned that, in the tale of Alola's creation, the people and Pokémon of Alola assisted Solgaleo and Lunala in restoring Necrozma's light by sharing their Z-Power with it. Together, the Ultra Guardians, their Pokémon, Lunala, Poipole's comrades, and everyone else back in Alola shared their Z-Power with Necrozma, causing to release Nebby. Afterwards, Ash and Nebby used Searing Sunraze Smash, while Gladion and Lunala used Menacing Moonraze Maelstrom on Necrozma. The combined Z-Moves fully restored Necrozma's light, giving it the strength to become its true form, Ultra Necrozma, and restore Poipole's home world back to its original state. Afterwards, the Ultra Guardians, Nebby, and Lunala traveled back to Alola through the Ultra Wormhole.
In SM104, Sophocles and his classmates arrived on Poni Island for their individual research projects for school. His research project involved him evolving his Charjabug into Vikavolt at Vast Poni Canyon.
In SM106, Sophocles, Ash, Hapu, and Kiawe headed over to Vast Poni Canyon. After arriving, Sophocles challenged Horacio to a contest when the latter expressed his own plans to evolve his Charjabug with the "Bug Stone", a purported special evolutionary stone said to be located somewhere in the canyon. Sophocles, Horacio, and their Charjabug ventured to an old bridge that they had to cross. Sophocles feared that it was going to collapse, but Horacio stubbornly rebuffed his concerns and crossed. Indeed, the bridge did collapse, leaving him and his Chariabug hanging on for dear life. Sophocles's Charjabug subsequently evolved into Vikavolt, saved them, and retrieved the Bug Stone. When Horacio realized the Bug Stone didn't work, Sophocles informed him that Charjabug evolve into Vikavolt due to the canyon's special magnetic field. Meeting back up with his friends, Sophocles showed off his newly evolved Pokémon before being challenged to a Vikavolt race by Horacio, which he accepted.
In SM114, Sophocles and his classmates were sent on an Ultra Guardians mission to capture the Ultra Beast Pheromosa, which had been stealing Z-Crystals from various Trainers. Meowth, who had fallen in love with Pheromosa, lured the Ultra Guardians to it, allowing Pheromosa to take one of Ash's Z-Crystals. After consulting Lusamine's group, the Ultra Guardians tried to capture Pheromosa with a glue trap, only for Meowth to see through the plan and get caught himself. Bewear, angry that Pheromosa hurt Team Rocket during the battle, fought and easily defeated the Lissome Pokémon, allowing the Ultra Guardians to catch it. After Pheromosa was released back to its home world, the Ultra Guardians returned the stolen Z-Crystals back to their owners.
Character
Sophocles is an intelligent young boy with a knack for inventing helpful devices and machinery. He is also a skilled Trainer of Electric-type Pokémon, often using them to power his inventions. While at times rude and prone to absorbing himself in his technological activities, he is friendly and greatly cares for his Pokémon and classmates. In A Shocking Grocery Run!, it was revealed that Sophocles likes to collect information on all sort of things, such as the best ice cream in Alola. In the same episode, it is also revealed that he has a fear of dark places, but is never scared at night as long as he has his Togedemaru with him. Sophocles tends to get bashful when people complement him on his knowledge, responding with a shy "Mā, ne..." in the original Japanese version of the anime – a pun on his Japanese name, "Māmane".
Much like Clemont, Sophocles is not very athletic, and often fails to do tasks that require physical activity as shown in The Guardian's Challenge!, when he needed help to climb over a log, and in Racing to a Big Event!, during the Pokémon Pancake Race. He also shows an interest in robotics. In All They Want to Do is Dance Dance!, it is revealed he converted the car he got for Charjabug in Mounting an Electrifying Charge! into a miniature mecha that can dock with Togedemaru, named TogeCharja Perfect Form Robot Deluxe (Japanese: トゲデンヂロボットパーフェクトフォルムデラックス TogeDendi Robot Perfect Form Deluxe). The mecha was seen again in Lillier and the Staff!.
Sophocles also has a defensive side, which was seen in Mounting an Electrifying Charge!, when he stood up for himself and his Charjabug after being mocked by Horacio. Sophocles has shown to be a gracious loser, as shown in SM113, where despite being sad after losing in the preliminary round of (Japanese: アローラポケモンクイズ Alola Pokémon Quiz), he happily congratulated his former fellow contestant Kuwashi on getting yet another correct answer in the final round when he saw him next.
Sophocles is shown to be a fan of Electric-type Pokémon. In Alola, Kanto!, the Pokémon he wanted to see the most whilst in Kanto was revealed to be a local Raichu.
Pokémon
On hand
 Togedemaru ♀ |
 Charjabug → Vikavolt |
Ride Pokémon
| Debut | Yo, Ho, Ho! Go, Popplio! |
|---|
Sophocles, along with Kiawe, was first seen riding a Poké Ride Wailmer around Melemele Island.
None of Wailmer's moves are known.
| Debut | Treasure Hunt, Akala Style! |
|---|---|
| Voice actors | |
| Japanese | |
| English | Marc Thompson |
Sophocles used a Poké Ride Stoutland to hunt for treasure around Akala Island.
None of Stoutland's moves are known.
Metang is Sophocles's personal Ultra Guardian Ride Pokémon.
Metang's only known move is Flash Cannon.
| Debut | Alola, Alola! |
|---|
Sophocles used a Mantine to get from Melemele Island to Treasure Island.
None of Mantine's moves are known.
Temporary
| Debut | Alola to New Adventure! |
|---|---|
| Voice actors | |
| Japanese | Chika Fujimura |
| English | Alyson Leigh Rosenfeld |
- Main article: Mallow's Steenee
In The Ol' Raise and Switch!, Professor Kukui tasked everyone with switching their partner Pokémon with somebody else and Sophocles was given Steenee. Sophocles had trouble sleeping without Togedemaru's light but Steenee helped Sophocles with its scent.
Befriended
When Sophocles was younger, during one of his visits to Hokulani Observatory, he befriended a Red Core Minior that fell from space. A few nights later, the Minior faded into dust. The experience left Sophocles traumatized enough to block it from his memory.
None of Minior's moves are known.
Pokémon competitions
Sophocles has competed in the following Pokémon competitions:
- Pokémon Pancake Race - Disqualified (Racing to a Big Event!)
- Charjabug race Koko Cup - Winner (with Ash and Kiawe; Mounting an Electrifying Charge!)
- Alola Pokémon Quiz - Preliminary round (SM113)
Voice actors
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Trivia
- Sophocles is the first of Ash's classmates to obtain a second Pokémon, not counting Ride Pokémon.
Names
| Language | Name | Origin |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | マーマネ Māmane | From māmane (Hawaiian for Sophora chrysophylla) and possibly 麻痺 mahi (paralysis) |
| English | Sophocles | From Sophora chrysophylla |
| French, German, Italian | Chrys | From Sophora chrysophylla |
| Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese | Chris | From Sophora chrysophylla |
| Korean | 마마네 Mamane | Transliteration of Japanese name |
| Chinese (Mandarin) | 馬瑪內 / 马玛内 Mǎmǎnèi | Transliteration of Japanese name |
| Chinese (Cantonese) | 馬瑪內 Máhmáhnoih | Mandarin-based transliteration of Japanese name |
| European Portuguese | Sófocles | Similar to his English name |
| Russian | Софоклис Sofoklis | Transcription of English name |
| Thai | มามาเนะ Māmane | Same as Japanese name |
| Turkish | Sophocles | Same as English name |
Related articles
| Sophocles's Pokémon | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| On hand: | |||||||
| Ride Pokémon: | |||||||
| Temporary: | |||||||
 Aether Foundation
| |||||
| Aether Bases (Heahea City • Route 8 • Route 16) • Aether Paradise • Aether House | |||||
| President | Branch Chiefs | ||||
| Lusamine (Masters • anime) |
Wicke | Faba (anime) | |||
| Other members | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aether Foundation Employees | |||||
| Related | |||||
| Mohn • Lillie (Masters • anime) • Gladion (Masters • anime) | |||||
| In Pokémon the Series | |||||
| Former members: Jessie • James • Meowth Ultra Guardians: Ash • Lana • Kiawe • Lillie • Sophocles • Mallow • Gladion | |||||
See also: Team Skull • Ultra Recon Squad
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This article is part of Project Anime, a Bulbapedia project that covers all aspects of Pokémon animation. |
