Ash has met numerous members of the sexually diverse people during his ever-growing Pokemon journey to date, many of whom have been with him on his journeys for a brief period of time.
A lot of Pokemon female characters on this show’s cast have enjoyed amazing performances, while others aren’t even close to sub-par.
There have been some who have had subpar performances, yet managed to gain a huge following.
Note This article is a subjective one and represents the writer’s opinion.
Find out by listing the top girls in this Pokemon anime!
Updated in June, 2024, by Swati: There are numerous well-written women in the Pokémon series,
even beyond the female player characters; nevertheless, as the players don’t converse,
any other character is inherently better written than the players.
The gender representation in the popular Pokémon games is usually somewhat equal,
with heroes like Cynthia and villains like Lusamine.
Still, which women offer the best role models for shaping a female character?
27. Anabel
A tiny hero complex, Anabel works continuously. Her job during Sun and Moon’s postgame is to defend populated areas from the Ultra Beasts that are invading,
but her own Faller energy ends up attracting Ultra Beasts to her that she has to keep repelling.
She says no to letting Looker switch with her.
Although Anabel’s relationship to the Pokémon universe is what most interests me about her,
her current situation offers her a lot more character growth than the brief exchange she had as a Frontier Brain in Emerald.
The idea of “Fallers” and other multiverse travellers will be used in future games on occasion;
the most recent example of this narrative device is Ingo’s reappearance in Legends: Arceus.
Anabel’s repurposing of the Pokémon universe, while not the first, was one of the most fascinating tale twists Pokémon has ever taken.
26. Zinnia
In the “Delta Episode,” the additional scenario for Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, Zinnia takes front stage.
These days, she is the Draconid tribe’s lorekeeper.
Thousands of years ago, Rayquaza guarded the Draconids, an aboriginal tribe close to Hoenn’s Meteor Falls.
As lorekeeper, Zinnia has to call forth Rayquaza when a meteor threatens to destroy the planet.
As a meteor in the Delta Episode does in fact threaten to destroy the planet, Zinnia moves fast to call on Rayquaza’s help.
Unfortunately, she runs into a number of difficulties along the way.
Thank goodness for the player, more challenges translate into more fun.
Though she is so egotistical that she treats everyone else terribly,
Zinnia is passionate about fulfilling her duty and saving the world.
25. Nemona
Being the first female opponent in canon to handle the role by herself, Nemona shines.
Since she is so enthusiastic about Pokémon fights, she takes the gym challenge a second time,
even though she was the Champion Rank in Paldea’s Pokémon League at the start of the book.
The opponent in Pokémon games is a great subversion,
as Black and White had previously taken advantage of the rival’s scheme and understood that the player had outmatched them several times.
Part of the reason it works is that Nemona is a challenge seeker above all things;
thus, she purposefully holds herself back to allow the player to grow.
Once the player comes up to her level, she attacks them headlong after they beat Geeta.
Though she loses, Nemona is glad to have at least found someone who is as passionate about fighting as she is.
The player’s emotions were completely the opposite of how horrible Sword and Shield had made them feel after beating Hop over and over again.
24. Penny
Penny is perhaps the closest Pokémon character to a “audience surrogate,” apart from the player characters themselves.
Many true Pokémon enthusiasts would identify Penny as a calm yet snarky girl who enjoys video games, anime, and Eevee.
Her fights with social anxiety and her need to just hide in her room make her immensely endearing.
Some of the funniest scenes in the game are found behind her shy demeanour,
which belies a startlingly cynical young woman below.
As the unusually severe sentencing shows, she is fully aware of how ludicrous Arven and Nemona can be.
23. Lusamine
Overseeing the Aether Foundation, an Alolan organisation committed to Pokémon preservation and restoration, is President Lusamine.
She appears, on the outside, to be a good woman who genuinely loves Pokémon.
She made Lillie and Gladion go as she became fixated on Ultra Beasts after her husband disappeared.
Different degrees of fixation are included in the original Sun and Moon as well as the improved versions, Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon.
In the early games, Nihilego subjected Lusamine to neurotoxins that exacerbated her worst traits and drove her insane.
Lusamine’s goal in the Ultra games was to defeat Necrozma and preserve Alola,
even if it meant Nebby would perish. She wasn’t as obsessed with the Ultra Beasts.
22. Lillie
The Alola games are really Lillie’s narrative, even if the player is the main character in theory.
The poor girl has baggage from her parents to rival N.
When her father Mohn disappeared, her mother Lusamine began to disregard both her and her brother Gladion in her hunt for him.
After Lusamine developed an increasing obsession with the Ultra Beasts—she even clothed her children like them—neglect ultimately turned into emotional abuse. Naturally, Gladion and Lillie left.
Initially showing little interest in combat, Lillie does take a Cosmog from the Aether Foundation,
her mother’s company. Given her dislike of seeing Pokémon suffer,
it is even more remarkable that she was able to escape Aether Paradise with just a Cosmog to protect herself.
One of Alola’s biggest plots is her friendship with the Cosmog, whom she refers to as “Nebby.”
She gives up a great deal to save the Nebula Pokémon, including returning to her abusive mother.
Though she feels inadequately powerful, she provides Nebby to the player instead.
In one of the biggest “protagonist power” cop-outs in the game,
her efforts are rewarded as Nebby fully matures into Lunala or Solgaleo.
At least she got a Lunala in Masters EX, even though it wasn’t Nebby.
21. Bianca
The first female competitor in canonical games is Bianca. May from Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald was the first female opponent overall,
even though Brendan would be the opponent if the player were a female.
A competitor in Pokémon Black and White, Bianca, will be any gender the player chooses.
Her lack of combat skill is genuinely used by the game to teach that everyone has varied abilities and constraints, and Bianca is just not a very good fighter.
Ultimately, she decides against going into fighting and instead studies Pokémon with Professor Juniper.
More so than physically, Bianca is stronger emotionally.
She pushed through and left, even though her father was against her going on a Pokémon journey at all.
Her experiences in Unova were important since they helped her discover who she wants to be,
something she wouldn’t have learned if she had stayed at home;
when she returns home, it’s not considered a failure on her part or as though her father was right to obstruct her.
20. Emma
The sole female Pokémon character on this list without official Sugimori artwork is Emma, the least well-known.
She only appears in the post-game narratives of X and Y, of which many players were not even aware.
When Looker hires orphan Emma to work at his detective business, Emma,
who grew up on the streets of Lumiose City, at last finds stability and confidence.
Looker treats Emma like a daughter; she even learns to read, but because of her low self-esteem,
Emma feels bad about everything the detective has done for her.
Having lived on the streets, Emma is expected to be physically powerful rather than having fought in wars.
When the Lumiose Gang says she beat them before she became a trainer,
they are implying she fought them personally.
Eventually, she works part-time with former Team Flare Scientist Xerosic, who uses the Expansion Suit,
an ability-enhancing bodysuit, to mind-control her, but her combat prowess becomes too useful.
After losing to Looker, Xerosic had a change of heart and willingly joined him, leaving Emma with his Pokémon and the Expansion Suit—now without the mind-control.
Emma becomes a trainer with a brand-new group of formidable Pokémon and defends Lumiose with her suit and team.
19. Cogita
Though she has minimal on-screen time in Arceus, Cogita makes the most of it. Declaring that she is a descendent of the Sinnoh people,
who predate even the Diamond and Pearl clans,
she is the only individual in Hisui who would accept the player after they had been wrongfully exiled.
Cogita is a unique character; whereas the other local Hisui characters in the Japanese version of the game are all named in Japanese,
Cogita is named in Latin and has very “Western” attire. She still claims to be a native, though,
because she is familiar with Hisui mythology and neither the two clans nor the local history buff Volo are.
Despite her pleasant demeanour, Cogita has a dubious history and poor morals.
She keeps the Red Chain, which could help stop the devastation of Dialga and Palkia, to herself until she meets the player.
She travels with the fabled Pokémon Enamorus,
so it’s not as if she couldn’t have jumped into the fight to help the furious gods that bend the world sooner.
Yet there’s a reliable and well-acknowledged reason why her priorities seem a little odd.
Cogita may live forever. After so many years of life, your values usually change.
18. Professor Juniper
Since she is a Pokemon female professor, the crowd will love and care about her a lot. Juniper was put here because of this.
She is one of the most important characters because she helped the main group when they were in Nuvema Town.
This is where Ash’s trip to Unova begins. Because of this, she is so important to the story and how it is told.
Even though we haven’t seen much of her, we know she is a kind, caring person who enjoys training Pokemon.
People say that she is one of the Professors with the most knowledge. She should be at the top of our list right now because of this. She knows the right way to do things.
17. Officer Jenny
Officer Jenny is one of the most important people in the series and Pokemon female. This goes against the idea that there are new characters in each episode.
Officer Jenny is always in the first Pokemon female show, no matter which episode you watch.
And because of that, I care more about the character and how it was raised. So many people in the community like her so much because of this.
Everyone still loves and respects this woman, even though she has been around for a long time.
And they got to this point because of how consistent they were in the first two seasons.
16. Phoebe
Phoebe is in the Hoenn region, but she used to be a member of the Elite Four. She is also an expert on Ghost-type Pokemon and a Pokemon Female.
Don’t think that her casual appearance and easygoing personality mean she’s weak. She’s not weak, because Phoebe’s Dusclops and Sableye can cut one down to nothing.
If that doesn’t work, she’ll use a bunch of powerful ghost attacks, like Shadow Punch and Shadow Ball, if that doesn’t work.
Dark-type pocket monsters or monsters that take no damage when she uses her attack with ethereal power are the only things that can stop her team.
15. Flannery
Some of the hardest trainers in the Generation 3 games are fiery female mortals from the Hoenn region.
Flannery is a fiery fighter with a fire-type Pokemon that helps her burn her opponents to ashes.
The Torkoal is a dangerous enemy that can do damage with its Overheat attack if it is not kept under control.
She also has Slugma and Magcargo, who are both dangerous opponents with strong flame plumes and a lot of ways to defend themselves.
14. Lorelei
The cool trainer lives in Kanto and is an expert with Ice-type Pokemon… and Slowbro.
Lorelei uses attacks like the bitterly cold Blizzard and the Ice Beam that Pokemon like the beautiful Lapras and the stronger Cloyster use in the winter.
Lorelei will try to keep her opponent from capturing their Pokemon, which would make them immune to more icy attacks.
13. Acerola
The little girl may look like a small problem, but she is one of the best female coaches in the Alolan region!
Acerola is a member of Generation VII’s Elite Four and a real trial captain. If you don’t have a plan, you’re in a lot of trouble with her.
If you want to fight her, make sure your health is full. Some trainers in Alola think she is one of the most dangerous Pokémon. She is a strong Pokemon of the Ghost type.
12. Karen
She is well-known for saying that the strongest trainers in the world fight with their most famous Pokemon.
Since she first showed up in Generation 2 games, Karen has become known as one of the most powerful Dark-type trainers.
Karen’s team is well-balanced and mostly made up of one type of player.
The Umbreon is a strong wall that can take and deal out a lot of damage, and the Houndoom is a cruel foe that does a lot of damage.
Also, she has a Murkrow that is known for being able to easily confuse any Pokemon in the area with its Confuse Ray before unleashing the rage of its shadowy attacks.
11. Honey
She is as strong as her husband, Mustard, who used to be the champion of the Galar region.
So it’s not surprising that they decided to start an academy to train the next generation of gymnasts!
Honey’s team is very strong and well-balanced, and they can handle almost anything.
Also, her most powerful Pokemon are a Blastoise and a Gigantamax Venusaur.
Both are hard to beat if all of your Pokemon are tired from a battle.Don’t forget how beautiful this face is!
10. Dawn
Ash’s third female friend was Dawn, who was Sinnoh’s partner. She was first seen on the Diamond and Pearl show as a character.
She’s a girly character with a strong will, which is great but not something we’ve seen in May.
Diamond and Pearl aren’t among my favorite seasons of Pokemon, which isn’t surprising.
However, I will say that this could be because I have the English dub of this season (go get it subbed if you can).
So Dawn isn’t my favorite character, but she is close to Ash, which is probably why some fans still like her.
9. Whitney
Even though she can only call forth a few Pokemon, her team is strong enough to beat any opponent,
and she is very hard to beat at this point in her Generation 2 games.
Her Milktank is especially hard to beat because it can heal half of its hit points and can do a lot of damage if it isn’t watched.
She has had to end a lot of Pokemon adventures because this normal-type gym is so hard,
and some people wonder what makes her such a hard opponent.
It’s a great way to get the Plain Badge in the end!
8. Nurse Joy
Nurse Joy is a character who always shows up in both the anime and the games.
She might not be named in the anime, but her unique look makes it easy to recognize her.
This big family of sisters, cousins, clones, or whatever they are are always there to help Ash and his friends when their Pokemon need some TLC after a fight.
Nurse Joy has more than earned her spot at the top of this list.
It seems strange that there is always a Nurse Joy in every town,
but they all love Pokemon very much, and Brock’s heart is easily won over by pretty things, so he is always rooting for her.
7. Iris
In the Black and White series, Iris is the main girl character.
She is a friend of Ash. Her plan is a little bit different from the plans of the other girls.
She is not friends with Ash like the other girls are.
It’s more like a well-known relationship between brothers and sisters.
There doesn’t seem to be much going on between them.
The most time is spent with them, so things do get interesting between them.
But by the end of her story, Iris is the only one of Ash’s female friends who turned out to be a very good trainer.
Because of that, she deserves to be at the top of our list.
6. Cynthia
The Sinnoh champion is the only female champion on the team. She is a very good trainer and the only champion from that area.
Even though she seems friendly, Cynthia has such a strong presence that Brock’s Lady-saving Croagunk can be calmed by her.
Cynthia doesn’t show up as often as other female characters, but her charismatic personality and amazing skills have won her a place in the hearts of the show’s viewers.
5. May
May The second girl who goes on the trip with Ash wants to be the best Pokemon Coordinator in the world.
She is a new trainer who works with Ash in the Advanced Generations series. He helps her learn how to take care of Pokemon.
I think you should watch the English dub of Advanced Generations, like most of the other series.
In the dub, you can hear the voice actress Veronica Taylor, who plays both Ash and May, talking to herself.
We loved seeing how May slowly got used to the animals and how cute she was. Also,
her relationship with Norman, the Gym leader and her dad,
led to an interesting problem where Ash had to fight him.
4. Jessie
The person who always steals Pokemon and her two coworkers have been following Ash and Pikachu for a few episodes less than Ash’s whole time as a Pokemon trainer.
Jessie is the most-watched female character, but that isn’t enough for her to be at the top of the list.
Jessie isn’t the best trainer, but she still loves and respects her Pokemon and loves Pokemon contests a lot, even though she isn’t the best.
After all these years of playing Ash, Jessie is still a strong and well-known female character, thanks to her natural ability to win contests and her loud personality.
3. Bea
Bea is also called the “Galar Karate Prodigy” by a lot of people.
Bea can be seen training with them in a short from the new Pokemon miniseries Twilight Wings.
Machop, Machoke, and Machamp are all very fit Pokemon that can move boulders and pound through mountains.
Still, Bea can be seen beating them and even taking a hit from Machamp like it’s nothing.
Training the body and mind at this level takes a lot of dedication.
2. Misty
Misty was Ash’s first love in the first season. Misty has always been one of the show’s most popular characters.
She’s a nerdy girl who won’t let Ash get away with what his main character did wrong.
Misty even takes part in an exciting event where she hatches her Togepi from Generation II,
which happened more than two years before Pokemon Gold and Silver came out.
Misty is a little sad when she gets Togepi, though, because she has to carry it around for most of the rest of the series.
Sad, because she was known for how hard she worked and how independent she was.
In the next few seasons, she will be back in full force, but she will bring back the Misty Spink that fans have come to know and love.
1. Serena
Serena is about as happy as she can be. She is one of, if not the best girl in the Franchise.
Serena was different from most of the other girls on the show because she was dating Ash.
It wasn’t great, but some parts of it were good.
She stood out more than any other character in the series because of this.
There are a lot of other characters you can look for.
Serena is the only other character in the series who is like her.
Because of this, she is the second most important character on our list. People who like Pokemon really liked her because she was so humble.
FAQs
Who are some of the most famous female characters in the Pokemon franchise?
Some of the most famous female characters in the Pokemon franchise include Misty, May, Dawn, Iris, Serena, Lillie, Marnie, and Gloria.
Are there any female characters in the Pokemon franchise who have become particularly popular among fans?
Yes, there are several female characters in the Pokemon franchise who have become fan favorites, including Misty, who appeared in the early seasons of the Pokemon anime, and Serena, who appeared in the XY series of the anime.
How have female characters in the Pokemon anime been represented in terms of diversity?
In recent years, female characters in the Pokemon anime have become more diverse in terms of their appearance, ethnicity, and personalities. For example, Lillie from the Pokemon Sun and Moon anime is a shy and reserved character who struggles with anxiety, while Marnie from the Pokemon Journeys anime is a confident and determined trainer who comes from a family of professional Pokemon battlers.