[Poll] Poll #1 Gary vs Paul

[Kostas]

First weekly poll

Gary VS Paul

Gary is a quite well-known person. He started his journey in the Kanto Region, choosing Squirlte as his starter. By the time he got his starter he was arrogant and sometimes rude as a Pokémon trainer, maybe it's because he had a group of cheerleaders. However, after some time, Gary was nicer and more polite to many people, including Ash. Also, Gary has captured many Pokémon that are pretty strong!

Similiarly to Gary, Paul was arrogant as a Pokémon trainer too. He only cared about having strong Pokémon, as a result, he released many Pokémon even if he didn't try to battle with them. He also was rude to Gym Leaders. Another common thing with Gary, is that Paul has very strong Pokémon too. Including Electivire. (Gary has Electivire too!)

Also, you can answer the questions below if you want to!

• Who do you think had better development?

• Whose team is better?

• Both trainers battled with Ash. Which battle did you enjoy more? Ash vs Gary or Ash vs Paul?

Thanks Achromatic for the CSS.

 

[Absolitetion]

Gary, hands down.

I mean, Paul was the literal definition of a ****.

 

[EC]

Who do you think had better development? Gary. Gary is an ass who becomes nicer over time. That's a good arc. Paul is an ass who only stops being an ass because he loses in the Sinnoh League. And then we never see him again. Good riddance.

Whose team is better? I will give this to Paul. Balanced team, ready for anything. Sinnoh was so good.

Both trainers battled with Ash. Which battle did you enjoy more? Ash vs Gary or Ash vs Paul? This is very tough, but I will give it to Gary. That battle in the Johto League was incredible. You could really feel emotions of Ash when he finally won.

In conclusion, Gary wins.

I mean, jeez, Paul was an ass to Cynthia. Get outta here.

 

[jjc927]

Gary is my choice easily. He was pretty much nothing more than an a-hole in the first season except for the episode where he and Ash battle for the Earth badge but after that he got a lot better. I wish he appeared more in Johto because the episodes with him were great and they should've had him and Ash travel together at some point. The moments between him and Ash during the Johto league were possibly the best moments in the show and their battle was epic.

I thought they slowly gave Paul character development, but I felt there was some missed opportunities with him. They never had him really acknowledge Ash's skills as a trainer and it wasn't quite shown enough why he was the way he was with his training and his attitude towards others.

To answer the questions: Better development- Gary easily for the reasons above.
Better team- It's a little tough to answer because they didn't show Gary battling a lot, but Paul did have the stronger team. Strength of Pokémon was his real focus after all.
Better battle with Ash- As stated, Gary and Ash's battle was epic. Lifelong rivals, Ash never defeating him before. Charizard vs Blastoise is the best battle in the show's history other than perhaps Charizard vs Blaziken when Ash battled Harrison. Ash did better than the results showed in his first 6 vs 6 battle against Paul, but it was still pretty one-sided. Their league battle was very good, but it didn't have the same feel as Ash vs Gary. It was also dumb that Paul kept calling him pathetic even though he was still losing.

 

[Pokelitfam]

I liked Paul better as a rival. Gary always seemed more like a friend, especially after the first season.
Gary had better development, that's undeniable.
Paul had the better team though.
And Ash's battle with Paul I thought was more fun to watch, probably one of the best battles in the anime.
I just kinda liked Paul better though. Everyone else in the show is either super nice and friendly, or just plain evil. I didn't think Paul was that much of an jerk, he just didn't want to talk to Ash, and he was a bit cruel to chimchar. He was fine by himself and I don't know why Ash kept trying to befriend Paul to be honest. Like Paul makes it clear that he doesn't really want to talk to Ash, yet Ash persists and continues to try and talk to him. I also liked him because he seemed like a very realistic character, he was smart, but also impatient and bitter. But the 'pathetic' comments just got cringey towards the end, like you're losing and you're calling the other guy pathetic? C'mon Paul.

 

[jjc927]

I agree it was dumb for Ash to keep trying to befriend him, but it did make sense for him and the other characters to keep wondering what his deal was. He's the kind of character that just rubs you the wrong way. Gary had the right to be a jerk to Ash in season 1 because he was superior, Paul didn't.

 

[Radiating]

I choose Paul, Paul was a tougher rival and most likely could have defeated Gary.

 

[Mewtwolover]

Gary wins. He is a pure and iconic CLASSIC.

This, Gary is a legend.

 

[Iceshadow3317]

Going with Gary here. Through out the series, you can tell that Gary is slowly changing. And by the end of Johto, he had completely changed from what he was in episode 1. Gary was superior by far and continued to be superior until he was beat before Ash in the Indigo League. Which knocked him down a few notches. He had far more dev than Gary. And he still became stronger than Ash every time they fought, even though Ash beat him in the Silver Conference.

Battle wise, Gary and Ash's battle were just so Iconic. Paul and Ash's battle just didn't have the same magic and it didn't help that they battled everytime they turned around. When Ash finally beat Paul, it was like, thank god... But when Gary and Ash battled it was just the OH MY GOD! FINALLY! THEY ARE GOING TO BATTLE!

Team wise, I liked both teams. They had a lot of the same pokemon or similar. But I think I liked Paul's the most.

I never liked Paul. I really didn't. I always hated him. It annoyed me that they tried to make him a bigger deal than Gary. And in the end, Paul didn't really change at all. It is true, he talked a little more, but there was never really any real development with his character, which I hate. Main reason I hated Sasuke in Naruto so much until recently. But why I loved Vegeta.

 

[Artemis Falko]

Paul.

He was easily my favorite character of the entire series and brought a breath of fresh air to the series in terms of his training and treatment of his Pokemon that, while I may not agree with, added a much needed tension to the Diamond and Pearl storyline.

Who do you think had better development? Does this question refer to which character developed more by the end of their story? I'd say Gary had as he's a completely different character than he was by the time we see him in Sinnoh. Paul's development was much less noticeable but he did change somewhat, even thanking his Electivre for a hard fought battle (something he had never done before). It's just a shame that we never saw Paul after the D/P series since I would have liked to see how he changed like how Gary had changed.

Whose team is better? Competitively speaking, I don't see how anyone can not go with Paul. His team was not only terrifyingly strong, they were also extremely efficient and had specific roles to fulfill. Paul's method of choosing his team is unlike Ash's and Gary's, he chooses his team based on their potential strength and move set, something that gave him an advantage against Ash for most of the series. Gary's team wasn't bad but it wasn't as dynamic or as effective as Paul's, considering he was defeated surprisingly early in the Kanto Tournament.


Both trainers battled with Ash. Which battle did you enjoy more? Ash vs Gary or Ash vs Paul? I've watched them both and I enjoyed Paul's battle with Ash much more than his battle with Gary for one simple reason; the build up. Ash vs Gary was a rivalry but it didn't have the same amount of build up as Ash vs Paul who had battled each other numerous times before their final clash in the Sinnoh League. Also, their battle was more than just a battle of Pokemon, it was a battle between philosphies. They each had their own style of training and how they went about treating their Pokemon which in the end, made them both recognize the other's faults and strengths of their respective styles.

Ash was forced to become more direct and daring with his training and had to learn how to respect Paul's way of doing things even if he didn't like it. Paul was forced to accept that bonding with your Pokemon and showing them compassion can make them grow even stronger and that seeking only power will never make you as strong as you wish to be.

 

[Kostas]

It was pretty close but Gary is the winner. Thanks everyone who posted and voted. I'm going to post the second poll tomorrow!