I can't see pokemon ever ending...
probably at about season.......18-20 they will dump Ash (he will become a pokemon master)
and then a new boy/girl that will probably meet Ash/Brock/Dawn/Misty/May/Max somewhere in their jorney and go on to be a pokemon master....
Let's think about this matter rationally for a second. Personally, I don't think the anime's going away anytime soon and here's some reasons why:
- Pokemon is a mass-marketed game, currently peaking at the second most sold game
- Nintendo will not make any ridiculously foolish mistakes to kill off the series simply because it is becoming increasingly unpopular, but the marketing population is still fairly large at this point. If the series is gone, the sales of the Pokemon games series will have a direct impact due to its correlation with the counterpart anime. Over time, Pokemon sales will plummet and the game series itself will slowly disappear, something Nintendo nor Game Freak wants to happen, at least for another decade or so, or before 2013 =)
Face it, if Satoshi is gone, face it, a good population of the dedicated fans won't enjoy it, whether it be Gold, Brendan, Lucas, or any of the main protagonists in the game series. The reason being so is because of Satoshi's character. It's difficult to mold and build a character out of thin air. Additionally, in doing so will result in an acceleration of the demise of the series.
I can continue arguing assuming someone has a counterargument. Anyways, getting back on OT briefly, from my interpretation...
There will be some major event, more or less, depending on one's interpretation, I honestly don't know. It wouldn't necessarily be defeating his rival as Gary has already moved on to becoming a researcher rather than a trainer. Others may believe it involves his father, which is feasible since the storyboarder said "he [Ash's father] may or may not be introduced at the series, depending on its necessity to Ash's further maturity and development as a Trainer" (Bulbapedia). This would perfectly fit the ending's theme since Ash has matured enough at that level, where he may continue pursuing his dream to becoming the world's greatest trainer, though I believe the anime's goal has slightly shifted away from this focus.
However, despite all that, from my understanding, his father has passed on through the evidence and literary devices given from the anime. The only time he has been truly mentioned is from the second episode and Hanako references him in past tense. I don't remember the exact quote, but I believe it was something similar to this: "Your father would have been proud. It took him 4 days to reach this far..." Additionally, Satoshi has never referenced his father, implying that he was not a particular influence in his life, which would be possible had he not been alive during his childhood.