Oh boy...These posts lol.
Like how every series devoted five or four minutes to character exposition about type matchups and move boost and explanations. Usually the only thing characters like Takeshi or Citron doing for most episodes? Did you watch the Shouta battle during the Kalos League?
Did you? As Epicocity pointed out, these moments were literally interplayed with the action and when they did fully cut back to Clemont or anyone else, it lasted maybe 10-15 seconds. Can you point to specific, official battles in XY where the camera was cut to where you felt it was long?
I remember padding pertaining to shots of Hau and Acerola (filler moments/characters) but beyond that battles throughout S&M have given consistent flow and dynamism usually breaking away to allow viewers to soak in the impact of a crazy scene. Like Kaki’s Z-Move which was intense enough to literally shake the entirety of Manalo Stadium and gave us introspective of Hoshi, Lusamine, Kukui and Lillie’s reactions to the affair. Or a worthwhile break like getting an amusing Suiren gag or the two boys giggling. Which I’ll take over a panshot of Citron/Takeshi giving up generic exposition we already know or some overplayed “cool” Satoshi frame with generic dialogue or another “~romantic~” shot of Serena muttering Satoshi’s name and looking worried or saying she’s worried which was heavily prevalent throughout the series. Especially during the gym battles most notably the final gym battle.
I see it a different way. Many of SM's battles feature exposition-dumping and unnecessary talking all throughout. Key example, Ash vs Nanu, where the battle included many, many mind-numbing stops and pauses.
Riddle me this? What was the strategy during Satoshi’s one and only full battle victory at the Kalos League? Wait. There was none. Aside from Pikachu vs. Gillgard with the wood shard there was no strategy. It was a straight up power fest through and through with little strategy. You’re confusing rapid fire nauseating animation and flash/hype for actual substance and strategy. Because there was none but it was flashy, pretty to look at and had fully evolved ‘mon and explosions so you saw it as a strategic battle of chess when it was just straight up brawling and back and forth attacking. Take off your rose-tinted glasses and nostalgia vision and look at the objective facts of what was shown in the episodes.
Nice revisionist history, Satoshi v. Kukui already succeeds by usage of Lugarugan’s Stone Edge (going back to a similar strategy Satoshi used with Waruvile at the 7th gym in BW!) and by utilizing Nyaheat’s fighting spirit/bell traits as a way to not only combat but take on the power of Blast Burn for a power-up to even the playing field. Which does harken back to DP’s usage of such a tactic with Manmoo’s Ice Shard or Hayashigame’s Energy Ball though obviously not a direct reference.
Attack chaining is
strategy. Are you kidding? Brawling back and forth without those pauses includes things like responding to attacks in a quick, timely, and effective manner. It includes things like deciding when to use specific moves to counteract other moves in the best possible fashion. It includes things like knowing when to go on the defense and knowing when to press and attack. Brawling back in forth is more than just a " power fest. "
The idea that strategy has to fit this very narrow criteria that you're sprouting is hilarious in itself. What's even worse is that you're doing the exact same thing you accused the other person of doing.
Please take of your own hate-tinted glasses and look at the objective facts here.
So basically, “attack, attack, attack.”
Well let’s run a comparison between Satoshi’s most important full battle in XY (Shouta) and compare it Kukui since these character have narratives tied to Satoshi. Where was all this amazing strategics you praise? Where was it outside of aforementioned Pikachu v. ghost sword? There wasn’t any. You’re remember things better than they were. Given how Shouta was hyped as an intelligent trainer and you sing praises of XY!Satoshi being a chess master the penultimate battle between the two came down to power and flash. The ultimate fight between Mega Jukain and Satoshi-Gekkouga amounted to nothing more than a bunch of Naruto-tier speedy punches and flashy clash exchanges. It was exciting between it was shounen, flashy and edgy and cool but you can’t really sit here and call that strategy.
Never mind in terms of relationships Kukui as Satoshi’s surrogate father who he met in his past and inspired the entire league. The one who has helped Satoshi with several of his Pokemon. Even essentially giving him one and helping him get his footing in Alola completes blows the hero worship relationship between Shouta/Satoshi out of the water. What was their relationship aside from another buttkissing dynamic which we saw a trillion times already between Satoshi and the Kalos population?
Let's see...
- Uh maybe when Sawyer used Slaking to literally use Hawlucha's battling style against him?
- Maybe when Saywer used targeted Aqua Jet to literally follow and keep with Talonflame?
- Sawyer using ice beam to slow Talonflame down just a notch to take him down?
- Ash telling Pikachu to use the forest for cover
- After Clawitzer grabbed Pikachu by the tail and used water pulse, Ash and Pikachu use electro ball to counteract that
- Sawyer with Aeigslash destroying the forest that Pikachu used as cover
- Sawyer putting Pikachu and Ash in a tough spot with King's Shield, a move that lowered Pikachu's attack
- And of course, the absolute genius log strategy, both using the logs as a means for easy movement and as a way to counter King's Shield
- Use of Noivern's sense of smell to attack through smoke
- Saywer's use of Slurpuff's sense of smell to attack through smoke
- Use of targeted Frenzy Plant against both Pikachu and AG to cut their agility and push them back
You want to know the substance that you seem hellbent on blatantly ignoring to prove your point?
Maybe the fact that Sawyer beat Ash the last time they faced off. Maybe the fact, in the narrative Ash was the teacher and Sawyer was the trainee and when Ash lost to Sawyer, that really shook him up. Maybe the fact that Ash literally went through a crushing depression arc where he had to find himself to fully emerge at the peak of his powers, deeply connected to his Pokemon and determined to beat Sawyer and win the league
Maybe the whole scene where Ash and Sawyer were on an astral plane, where Sawyer talked about how he viewed Ash as an insurmountable obstacle and how he was always running in his footsteps. And when Ash talked about how he was scared, scared of Sawyer and scared of being surpassed and how thanks to Sawyer, he was able to rediscover himself.
If you're going to chastise people for revisionist history and ignoring substance, please don't be a blatant hypocrite
XY doesn't have the best battles. It has the best battle choreography by a longshot but the scripting was often stupid. The best battle in that series, the Ash-Greninja v. Mega Sceptile finale, was well scripted and well choreographed, but the very matchup which preceded it (Slurpuff v. Goodra) was awful.
The two aerial battles in the Kalos League - Noivern v. Salamence and Talonflame v. Unfezant - exemplify the best and worst of XY. The scripting was basically:
-both Pokemon zoom around
-they spam moves
-big explosion
-double KO
But the animation, dynamic camera and visual distinction between the moves made it a spectacle to watch. You just needed to turn your brain off.
Great way to ignore absolutely all the substance in said battles. The script-writing was the best of the series
It doesn't hold up upon repeated viewings. That's why I say "turn your brain off". If you're watching the battle more than once, you start to question what you're seeing and pay more attention to the dialogue, then the crippling flaws and shallow writing become much more obvious.
Clemont's line during the Noivern/Salamence battle was akin to "Salamence lured Noivern in so he could use Dragon Tail!" is so half-arsed an attempt at giving the battle some semblance of strategy, it's cringey. It doesn't stand out unless you watch it again.
Yeah, I just watched it, and I have no idea what you're talking about. The battles are some of the best written in the anime.