Shadao
Aim to be a Pokémon Master
The thing is many previous series' attempts at being serious and action packed still felt rather clumsy and pretentious, while SM at least makes fun of the fact it's not quite solid as an 'epic'. The characters are intentionally bumbling instead of just forced into plot enforced stupidity and cases like the Ultra Beast face offs are anti climatic in a way that plays into the plot rather than going against the tensity it wants to convey. Let's be fair Ash has more personality when he's deliberately written as bumbling, compared to cases where they try to write him as hyper competent but still makes stupid mistakes for the sake of the plot.
Most of the rare times SM tries to be deadly serious it just ends up suffering the same problem as the series before, as the anime as a whole just isn't tightly woven enough to be treated seriously.
It's only clumsy to those who have become cynical and tired. Comedy can only get you so far. And in the long run, it doesn't solve the underlying issues. Only cover it with a thin layer of paint that can be easily peeled.
Pokémon's best episodes are the episodes where it does takes itself seriously for the moments that matter the most.
Honestly, Satoshi is at his best when he's either a genuine inexperienced trainer (I Choose You works well because his inexperience is played for both laughs and drama) or when we see how he impacts others around him.