Movie related: Why has Ho-Oh never been in a movie?

[Pepsi_Plunge]

Better not show up than to show up as some random pack mule like heatran.

That thing became a mainstay of competitive battling from the day it was made and the movies made it seem like some random fillermon that had no importance.

I still remember the guy at the DP leauge casually with a Heatran in the middle of all people, I kind think the anime people didn't realize its a legendary.

 

[PkmnFan4Ever]

Because they are mad at game freak bcuz they made them animate Ho Oh years before they initially had too.

 

[An00bis]

Still doesn't explain why the writers just don't include it with other legendaries, for example, in the Hoopa movie where the appearance would make sense. If they didn't care about Ho-oh they'd just throw it in there.

I haven't really been keeping tabs on the Hoopa Movie because I don't care, but I assume that not all of the Legendary Pokemon will be appearing there. I know Lugia is in, but I assumed Lugia was in because it helped Ash before in a movie. Same with the Eon twins.

Whatever the case, there is a reason Ho-oh never got a major role in the anime or movies.

So .. not really having a good enough reason to give it a feature role is not a good reason?

The Hoopa movie will mostly be about Hoopa and whichever Pokemon helps out Ash this time. Probably the Eon Twins since they have to showcase their Mega.

Even if Ho-oh appeared there it wouldn't have a significant role.

Better not show up than to show up as some random pack mule like heatran.

How I feel about it. What happened to Heatran was disgraceful.

I kind think the anime people didn't realize its a legendary.

Cresselia also got the short end of the stick; only appearing in some crappy filler and not doing much.

Regigigas didn't make out much better. It appeared in a movie, but pretty much as an accessory Pokemon.

 

[Jangobadass]

Me, I always figured it was something they were saving up for later, but never got a chance to really use.

Besides, too late now!

 

[Izanagi]

Ho-oh will probably get a movie eventually. Only time will tell. Ho-oh is special since it is the Legendary that Ash saw in the first episode. So I assume that that they will use it at some point.
It probably why it hasn't been use up til this point.

 

[Blue Saturday]

I just assumed it's always meant to be an ambiguous figure to guide Satoshi and help him continue forward and all that junk, they probably had plains for it when Pokemon was planned to end in OS with it and Mewtwo but they scrapped the idea so kept Ho-Oh up in the air. Kind of disappointed because Ho-oh has such a huge chance to be a big part of the anime and Satoshi's character in a better way, feels like such a waste they've done nothing with it. I'm just assuming it's irrelevant at this point, that or it makes no sense for Ho-oh to appear in Kalos and Isshu.

 

[RedJirachi]

Best argument: there was some sort of arc they planned, but it never went anywhere and it'd be too awkward to add at this point

 

[Creyk]

Maybe Ho-Oh is just not interesting enough to have a whole movie centered around him.
I mean, he is just a big, not too nice looking bird. Hardly as interesting as Giratina or Darkrai, or even Lugia who looks 1000 times better and has a much better story

 

[Lorde]

or even Lugia who looks 1000 times better and has a much better story

I seem to recall Ho-Oh being given an interesting lore in the anime as well though, so I'm not sure what's lacking there in terms of his story.

 

[Creyk]

I seem to recall Ho-Oh being given an interesting lore in the anime as well though, so I'm not sure what's lacking there in terms of his story.

yes, in the anime there were I think 2 episodes dedicated to him, with Morty in Ecruteak city

Morty was an amazing Gym leader <3

 

[Alexander18]

I guess the writers are saving Ho-oh for something else, that's my guess.

 

[Mega Altaria]

I think it probably has to do with it's appearance at the end of the first episode and the writers would had known that the fans know now it's Ho-Oh. Because of this, the writers wouldn't put it in future Pokémon movies.

 

[chalkus]

If I had to guess, I would say that Ho-oh went the way of the GS ball, a plot point that was never fully realized and was just forgotten over time. I suspect though that it will make an appearance in the very last episode of pokemon, when Ash finally achieves his dream.

Whenever that will take place.

 

[Captain Jigglypuff]

I can think of SEVEN Legendaries people keep forgetting were't in a movie. They are the Lake Guardians (which only had two or three episodes of their own and they weren't even the main focus point either), Tornadus, Thundrus, and Landorus and Melloetta whose arc could have been a movie on it's own and been so much better that way. The whole Melloetta temple part seemed so rushed and felt like the tension to save it wasn't as dramatic as it should have been Giovanni was literally on the verge of destroying life on Earth using Melloetta and the Pokemon was saved about twenty minutes after the ritual started. It should have been a bit longer and more intense battling the Weather Genies.

 

[Lorde]

I can think of SEVEN Legendaries people keep forgetting were't in a movie. They are the Lake Guardians (which only had two or three episodes of their own and they weren't even the main focus point either), Tornadus, Thundrus, and Landorus and Melloetta whose arc could have been a movie on it's own and been so much better that way. The whole Melloetta temple part seemed so rushed and felt like the tension to save it wasn't as dramatic as it should have been Giovanni was literally on the verge of destroying life on Earth using Melloetta and the Pokemon was saved about twenty minutes after the ritual started. It should have been a bit longer and more intense battling the Weather Genies.

They may not have been in films, but at least they had substantial in-the-flesh appearances wheres Ho-Oh's only had a few cameos at best.

 

[RedJirachi]

If I had to guess, I would say that Ho-oh went the way of the GS ball, a plot point that was never fully realized and was just forgotten over time. I suspect though that it will make an appearance in the very last episode of pokemon, when Ash finally achieves his dream.

Whenever that will take place.

In about three thousand years time