[Spoilers Included] My opinion on why Serena and Ash will be together

[Aegiscalibur]

Serena, don't worry, Ash never leaves his friends behind.

...Right?

 

[Gillachu]

Lets Keep our fingers cross that Serena will still travel with Ash after the XY Saga is over.

Lol, no. She doesn't need to stay since she'll just keep crushing on Ash and I'm sick of it.

 

[RandomIndividual]

It makes me a little sad seeing people who are saying "she won't stay" just because that's not what they want/they don't ship AmourShipping/etc. I... don't think it works that way. The people saying that she doesn't absolutely need to stay are more accurate, but to say that she absolutely 100% will not be going with Satoshi when they haven't seen the finale for themselves because "it's Pokemon and this is just what happens" makes me legitimately curious on why people bother coming here to talk about the episodes anyway (and honestly, even if they ended up being right, I will still stand by my point that it was NEVER 100%). If they watch the show hoping for it to get "better", but never think it could actually get better and just choose to assume that it's going to be like every other season with nothing new, then what's the point? I mean, they can expect things to be same-y, but I don't think anyone should immediately assume it like it's the truth without seeing it for themselves. It just seems to be an endless string of negativity that I really do wish would stop. If they have nothing positive (and actually positive and not just "it's positively bad" when it's really all a matter of opinion) to say about the show, then I quite honestly don't understand why they watch it. I'm not going to say, "Don't Like, Don't Watch," because that's honestly a silly argument considering people have to watch something to know if they like it, but if they didn't like the first 100 or so episodes, then why continue watching when the odds of liking the rest of the season is so painfully low? To have a laugh at the price of bringing everyone else down with constant negativity? I'm not saying it applies to nearly everyone on this thread, but I've recognized a few names and seem to find them everywhere spreading just nothing truly positive about the show itself. If they came to this thread after seeing the title and knowing that literally nothing the thread would say could possibly change their mind, then I don't see the point in replying at all unless something new is actually contributed, like saying, "interesting points, but [this] and [that] isn't really valid evidence," or, "I don't buy it, but it's nice seeing how into the show people are that they make theories and stuff."

And to those saying that it's just marketing... the entire show is marketing. It's made to advertise the game, which is why DVDs for the show in Japan don't really happen, though that might change at some point because I've heard that a lot of Japanese tweets are like, "DVDS PLZ" and XY/XY&Z may very well be an attempt to please the Japanese fans. Speaking of which, and I've said this before but... the Japanese really love Serena and really enjoy AmourShipping. If anyone does not like it themself, that's fine, but the show is for a Japanese audience who is pretty much eating this stuff up. XY and XY&Z is popular, so if anyone dislikes the format of these seasons or wants this or that to change, it's very unlikely for that to happen. Either way, it's not right to never give the show credit and assume that everything is going to be the same even if it's been a pattern. As the show goes on, the writers will become more aware of what the Japanese fans like and will adjust the show according. Since it's so popular, maybe, just maybe it'll end differently this time. We don't know yet because it hasn't, y'know, come out yet. XD


...Phew. On a note relating more to the topic, I could actually see that maybe Satoshi would get less dense if he battled Serena now that they've been together for so many episodes. It's not really a thing that they do and the show does tend to have a message of, "The best way to know a person is to battle them," so I wonder if maybe they could lean on that. Hm.

 

[RedJirachi]

Exactly!He is completely oblivious to love.He has no interest in romance.Serena has the same fate like other PokeGirls.I hope she will get over it and move on ^^;

We just have to wait until he is older for any shipping to be canon. Which should be within the next 100 years

 

[AndStillISpin]

Exactly and this is why I wish the writers wouldn't have misled fans by having Serena crush on Ash since they'll never actually date.

Nobody has misled the fans, not a single time throughout this entire saga has the show suggested that Ash has anything beyond friendly feelings towards her.

 

[Gillachu]

Nobody has misled the fans, not a single time throughout this entire saga has the show suggested that Ash has anything beyond friendly feelings towards her.

And yet people still ship him and Serena regardless, as seen in this thread...

 

[AndStillISpin]

And yet people still ship him and Serena regardless, as seen in this thread...

And they're free to do that, but it's ridiculous to say the writers are misleading people when they've been consistent on how they've portrayed the ship. It's not their fault some fans set themselves up for disappointment and expect something different from the show than what they're getting.

 

[Mrs. Oreo]

And thats interesting, becouse they could choose another type of marketing, even Omode was in charge of that, and they still keep pushing this Serena crush. I think they recognize that Pokémon has an older audience too, like in their games, and this marketing is working for them, becouse they could stopped on ep. 60 or at the beginning of XYZ, and this is why i expect something relatively good at the end of this season (maybe Serena not keep traveling with Ash, but something good like we got on the date episode-Serena first tripokalon)

I don't think Serena's crush was done to appease older fans cuz honestly, older fans seems like the minority any ways ha ha. I think it was partly done to make girls in general more interested in the show perhaps and the reason that it hasn't stopped is cuz it's likely worked. But even with how long Serena's crush has lasted, I haven't seen much progress with it in the anime either way. ^^;

 

[RandomIndividual]

I feel like some people kinda miss out on the whole "shipping" thing in general. Shipping is not just based on what the show says. It's based on the characters' personalities and whether people think they look good together or have the potential to be together. Even if Satoshi had absolutely never talked to her, it wouldn't make a difference; people would just not ship them as hard as this.

People ship AmourShipping not only for the constant teases, but because they think that Satoshi and Serena would legitimately make a good couple. They never fight, are constantly supportive to each other, and the ship teases make people feel like it's leading up to something. There's also the fact that Serena clearly crushes on him and people, y'know, want her to be happy (^^) and think she deserves him, plus the fact that Satoshi is oblivious to her feelings and is very dense in general, so people like to think that he's simply not aware of his feelings, which is entirely possible if you want to compare this scenario to other anime.

Not all of us are saying it will lead to a confession; some are simply saying that we should get some sort of conclusion to this whole arc, and there isn't really anything wrong with wanting that when they've teased it.

 

[Gillachu]

And they're free to do that, but it's ridiculous to say the writers are misleading people when they've been consistent on how they've portrayed the ship. It's not their fault some fans set themselves up for disappointment and expect something different from the show than what they're getting.

My point is that the shipping hints keep coming, so the writers are still feeding those shipping fans fuel regardless of how the ship ends. That's still basically misleading fans, though.

 

[Mrs. Oreo]

My point is that the shipping hints keep coming, so the writers are still feeding those shipping fans fuel regardless of how the ship ends. That's still basically misleading fans, though.

But none of the writers have come on record saying that Serena will end up with Ash or anything drastic, so no matter how Serena's crush develops, the writing staff haven't misled anyone. ^^

 

[Pokegirl Fan~]

But none of the writers have come on record saying that Serena will end up with Ash or anything drastic, so no matter how Serena's crush develops, the writing staff haven't misled anyone. ^^

Agreed its more of the fans overhyping things as usual just like how they are overhyping Ash in XY as well.

 

[Navin]

Agreed its more of the fans overhyping things as usual just like how they are overhyping Ash in XY as well.

It was the first time since well, Pokeshipping, that Ash x main girl was getting major ship tease. So you can't blame people from having gotten initially interested, especially with the way she was introduced.

Unlike what OP says though, there was nothing groundbreaking about it. And it has led to nowhere since then. As much as I would like to see it be more than an occasional gag/audience grabber, it's going to be forced if it receives a Contestshipping-like ending. The two don't banter enough.

 

[sfn27x]

And yet people still ship him and Serena regardless, as seen in this thread...

I you dont like it i respect you, but please dont blame the people that we like this shipping, most of us are aware that the possibilities are near zero, zero if you want, but still we find it cute, even if its one sided:

http://postimg.org/image/twwket5h3/
http://postimg.org/image/dtysmz5yv/

I don't think Serena's crush was done to appease older fans cuz honestly, older fans seems like the minority any ways ha ha. I think it was partly done to make girls in general more interested in the show perhaps and the reason that it hasn't stopped is cuz it's likely worked. But even with how long Serena's crush has lasted, I haven't seen much progress with it in the anime either way. ^^;

In the games older fans are majority (Japan, Mediacrete, i add a link to the article), in part for this reason, i think they are trying to appel this fanbase in anime too with the shipping, as you said if it hasn't stopped its becouse its working.
http://www.siliconera.com/2014/12/0...conera/MkOc+(Siliconera)&utm_content=Netvibes

And i agree to make girls interested in the show, agree your point as the main reason

It was the first time since well, Pokeshipping, that Ash x main girl was getting major ship tease. So you can't blame people from having gotten initially interested, especially with the way she was introduced.

Unlike what OP says though, there was nothing groundbreaking about it. And it has led to nowhere since then. As much as I would like to see it be more than an occasional gag/audience grabber, it's going to be forced if it receives a Contestshipping-like ending. The two don't banter enough.

Its a matter of taste, i dont think it would be forced, becouse Ash is a dense MC, and he will likely be that way until the end, therefore he cant develope a romance feelings for any pokegirl unless one brakes his dense shield, and that would be likely with a confession, so Ash can take a moment to think how he feels in this regard (maybe reject or accept). With only one true hint from him would be enough (something like Naruto?).

Nevertheless, the main problem as people here said is the age (the same problem for Ash losing every league), it would not be the first kodomo to make canon a kids shipping, but i dont see this happening on Pokémon, maybe a hint that this shipping could be canon in the future, and i choose to have some hope on this.

 

[MattySadler]

It makes me a little sad seeing people who are saying "she won't stay" just because that's not what they want/they don't ship AmourShipping/etc. I... don't think it works that way. The people saying that she doesn't absolutely need to stay are more accurate, but to say that she absolutely 100% will not be going with Satoshi when they haven't seen the finale for themselves because "it's Pokemon and this is just what happens" makes me legitimately curious on why people bother coming here to talk about the episodes anyway (and honestly, even if they ended up being right, I will still stand by my point that it was NEVER 100%).

I have some concerns about your emotional maturity. You seem to be getting very worked up and defensive about every single person not being big on "AmourShipping". It is great you're passionate about it but there is no reason it should make you sad. This is a discussion forum, people will have differing opinions. Earlier in this series, for example, many wanted Ash to get a Skiddo, myself and others didn't. People would provide "evidence" for and against, no problem. Discussion remained civilised (well, as civilised as Internet discussion can).

You like Serena, want her to stay, and want her and Ash to "relate" - fair enough, those are your feelings. Some others don't think that Serena will stay or "relate" with Ash. I notice a lot of "AmourShipping" evidence tends to be either Bulbapedia hints, which are mostly "male character and female character interact somehow", or "YOU CAN'T POSSIBLY ABSOLUTELY 100% KNOW AHHHHHHHHH". Me personally, I don't think that makes the strongest possible argument. The evidence for Serena leaving isn't "100%" either, but historically the only constants in this series are Ash, Pikachu and Team Rocket. The female characters leave and are replaced by a female character relevant to the next game. Of course, the writers could suddenly, after nearly 20 years, decide to make some changes to the series and make it an actual story, as opposed to a means of selling the games, but I feel that makes a better argument. I don't think you can, hand on heart, deny this either.

Ash is a 10 year old boy. I genuinely didn't have any interest in girls etc when I was 10 years old.

 

[RandomIndividual]

(not gonna quote the whole thing)

I'm not flat-out defensive (or at least overly so) about it; it just upsets me when people have literally no other argument besides, "it's not going to work." I don't care how people feel about it; heck, I even fully support discussions on it (there are some people here with disagreements that are actually very nice reads), because I think things on the anime deserve to be discussed on a deeper level and I enjoy batting back some of the more popular negative opinions. Just... so long as no one is saying flat-out that x is absolutely not going to happen without giving any logical reason besides, "I don't want it to," which I've seen a lot of. It's boring and so frustratingly difficult to argue against because it's usually a one-sentence response that leaves no room for any sort of discussion, thus offering nothing of value (like, even I, as an AmourShipper, could make a better more-thorough argument against the ship that would be fully open for discussion than some of these people). And yes, the better argument is that the show could just change somehow, BUT, saying that AmourShipping could happen because people don't know it's 100% is just as annoying to me as people saying that it couldn't because AmourShippers don't know 100% (the only difference is that one is slightly more negative). I never even use that argument in that specific way; the only reason I ever bring it up is because of close-mindedness or just a lack of people stating, "I think" instead of, "I know," that makes me respond the way I do. I would never say, "you don't know 100%" to someone who has the clearly-stated-to-be-opinion that they won't get together.

I definitely agree with you though that Bulbapedia isn't nearly picky enough when it comes to this stuff; only about 10-20% of it is valid (though I might be a little too mean with that percentage).

And, I mean, I do have a type of autism, so I guess it's typical of me to seem more blunt than intended and maybe that's where you're getting this idea, but I'm not sure if that makes me immature exactly.

This is a discussion, not a chat room, meaning that your posts should be thorough and thoughtful. It’s not difficult, as at least two sentences per post will suffice. Avoid merely posting material like a simple “I (dis)agree”, “Thanks”, “Sorry”, etc. that adds nothing to the discussion; if you agree with something, then explain why.

(straying away from all that because I did have things to say before I read the above reply) Adding onto some of my previous comments, I question if the debate on whether the series could potentially end with AmourShipping from the shippers' point of view might be because of Greninja; it doesn't make a whole lot of sense for Satoshi to leave behind a Pokemon that he has this epic connection to, so I think that's why there's speculation that this will either be Satoshi's final journey or Satoshi might take Greninja with him to Gen 7, though I doubt the latter. I still go by the idea that Satoshi is indeed ageless and not so much 10 (I kind of imagine it like how there are no levels in the anime or how you control the same general character in the games no matter what your age is), and I honestly think that they could pull something off if they wanted to. Some are making the argument that it isn't a romance anime, and I agree with them. However, I also don't think that Satoshi absolutely cannot be in some sort of relationship, like something very platonic or a romantic friendship. Satoshi and Serena don't necessarily have to kiss to be in a relationship; in fact, them straight-kissing would probably be where I put my foot down (they gave him a cheek kiss in the 2000 movie (though that wasn't really shippy) and the Heroes movie so that'd probably be the most they'd do). I think it's the unspoken stuff that rings best to me, even if I look like a crazy person analyzing it to the last detail.

 

[RedJirachi]

My point is that the shipping hints keep coming, so the writers are still feeding those shipping fans fuel regardless of how the ship ends. That's still basically misleading fans, though.

So they're the reason for the Pokemon ship wars? Why are they doing this?! Do you know how many lives have been lost in the Great Shippers War of 07?

 

[tommytoe]

^Probably because it brings in easy ratings. Drop a few hints of romance here and there and the fans will be all over it, either in support or opposition of it, even if the writers don't do anything concrete with it.

 

[Gillachu]

^Probably because it brings in easy ratings. Drop a few hints of romance here and there and the fans will be all over it, either in support or opposition of it, even if the writers don't do anything concrete with it.

But is there any concrete proof that the ratings increase when shippy stuff happens?

 

[RandomIndividual]

But is there any concrete proof that the ratings increase when shippy stuff happens?

Best evidence I have right now since I just woke up is that SatoSere trends like anipoke (the hashtag for the show itself) does. Will check ratings later when I can.