But a lot of us aren’t, it’s just kind of unfair to us that aren’t to be considered a “genwunner.” I just wanted to make a point that we shouldn’t be called names but I feel like I derailed this thread lol sorry about that. I’m not even sure why Misty was brought up, I was just trying to respond to one post.
I like Misty as well.. and there is only one character I have something against... (And it isn't even directly against her.) I am going to explain that very shortly.
Because those kind of threads are more prone to be compared to other characters/Pokegirls, especially with a title thread like this. We already have some Serena threads before, and we all know how they turned out.
The instant someone speaks of Misty or Serena in a negative light, they will swarm you like wasps. I seen a delicate topic complete destroy a thread not too long ago when someone starts talking about controversial opinion. (Let's Go Pikachu and Eevee.)
And before anyone aims their guns at me, I spoke of BOTH girls in a negative way.
To me, Misty stayed way longer than she needed to in the OS and while she has a soft spot in my heart for the nostalgia, I am not denying that she didn't do a whole lot for the span of three sagas and when it was time for her to go, looking back at it, I was honestly glad she was gone. (Chronicles did her some justice/ development... but you get the idea.) That is the reason why she was low on my personal ranking, a lot of time and little development. Funny how her greatest development didn't come until AFTER her run ended.
Compare that to May and Dawn, who had a lot of character development in their run or Lillie who had her arc and developed a lot from that timid wreck in the start of the SM series (Girl was nearly abducted by an extra dimensional jellyfish as a young girl and was left traumatized. That is understandable.) and since that arc... is slow but progressing into something, Misty wasn't that great.
Then there is Serena... who while I don't hate the character, I consider her to be wasted potential who never really gotten anywhere with her goals. (In fact she QUIT her goals and to me, she and the ship involving her and Ash are overrated due to how the shipping was the only thing about Serena's character that was high lighted from beginning to end... rather than actually giving her weight on her own. Which as expected between Ash and all the other girls, he leaves behind for another saga... like Iris, Dawn, May and Misty... amounting the entire ship to pretty much nothing in the end, like the others to me.)
At least Bonnie had a more entertaining charm to her and stood out once Zygarde started to come into play. (Though she is inferior to Max.)
Now to continue with Iris since THAT is who this thread is about.
For most of the series, she was feisty and arrogant. I mentioned how her Axew didn't really develop and the girls arrogant side is shown with her Dragonite. (Think Ash's Charizard before it got its head out of the clouds, except it never really gets anywhere.) The fact the last third of Gen 5's anime was 100% filler and nothing happened besides Ash going home kind of wasted that potential. (That is a recurring feeling for some of these characters being low to me, it is either that, nothing going for them or expectations that were not there.)
In fact, she handles wild dragon types better than the pokemon she has. (Looking at the Hydreigon episode... THAT is the highest point of her character to me, when she was able to calm that pokemon down. Hydreigon... a pokemon that is infamous in lore for being incredibly destructive and in the competitive scene is a bleeping unstoppable monster before fairy types were introduced and even after fairies came along, all you have to do is weaken the fairy type before you bring Hydreigon out to use flash cannon or just get him out of there.)
The Hydreigon episode was what gave her a low medium rank on my list, higher than Misty which I already stated my problems with her and higher than Lana. (Who unlike Mallow, actually had moments I liked, rather than leaving me indifferent.)