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Gary's Blastoise (Japanese: シゲルのカメックス Shigeru's Kamex) was the first Pokémon that Gary Oak obtained at the beginning of his travels in Kanto, given to him by Professor Oak.

In the anime

In the main series

History

* As a Squirtle , in a flashback

Kanto

Gary received Squirtle in Pokémon - I Choose You! as a starter Pokémon from Professor Oak. He did not tell Ash which of the three starter Pokémon he chose, but bragged that it was the best one.

In Challenge of the Samurai, Squirtle appeared in a flashback, though the episode did not reveal which of the three Trainers who left before Ash owned it. Samurai remembered Gary and the others fondly as they had fought spectacular battles, with Gary's Squirtle defeating his Metapod.

Johto

Finally, in The Ties That Bind, the fully-evolved Blastoise was revealed to Ash when Gary sent it out to battle Heracross. In Gary's Full Battle against Ash in Can't Beat the Heat!, its Hydro Pump managed to blast through the rocky terrain and knock out Ash's Heracross in a single hit. It then stalemated his Muk, completely nullifying Muk's Sludge Bomb with its Rapid Spin, but unable to gain much purchase with its Skull Bash. After Muk smothered Blastoise with its body, Blastoise used Hydro Pump to blast Muk off and injure it. Ash pulled Muk for the type-advantaged Bayleef, but Blastoise overcame her as well, deflecting Razor Leaf with Rapid Spin, then using its Bite attack on her leaf and knocking her out by throwing her aside.

Blastoise losing to Ash's Charizard

It was recalled until the final bout when it fought against Charizard, who had overcome Scizor and Golem just as Blastoise had defeated Heracross and Bayleef. With a type advantage and having had a break between battles, Blastoise was quickly on the front foot, deflecting Flamethrower with Rapid Spin and hitting with Hydro Pump and Skull Bash. It neutralized Charizard's aerial advantage by using Hydro Pump to keep it at bay, giving Charizard no opening.

Charizard and Ash thought outside the box and melted all of the rocks with powerful Flamethrowers. Immobilized, Blastoise had no choice but to cool the field down with water, but Charizard took advantage of the resulting steam to get in close to Blastoise. Even then, Blastoise proved a worthy opponent; unable to aim its water cannons it was still able to dodge a Dragon Rage with Withdraw. Charizard lifted Blastoise into the air, holding on despite Blastoise biting hard on its arm, and executed a Seismic Toss. Both Pokémon stared each other down, but Blastoise gave out and fainted.

In Johto Photo Finish! Gary decided to become a Pokémon Researcher and the only Pokémon he would take on his new journey was Blastoise. After using Blastoise to free Pikachu from Team Rocket, he departed home for Pallet and then set off for future endeavors. His choice inspired Ash to begin his journey in Hoenn with only his first Pokémon, Pikachu.

Gary and Blastoise later appeared in Ill-Will Hunting!, where they helped Ash, Brock and Dawn in protecting the Shieldon from J and her evil minions. It first used Water Gun to stop J's henchmen's vehicle, which Pikachu disabled with Thunderbolt while on the soaking machine. However, it was knocked on its back by a Golbat's Wing Attack, and Gary recalled it after Umbreon disturbed some Beedrill that drove Golbat and the henchmen away. Gary used Blastoise again in a battle against J's Salamence and Drapion along with Ash's Pikachu. The battle ended without a result after J captured one of the Shieldon that her client had requested.

Blastoise appeared in a flashback in The Fires of a Red-Hot Reunion!.

Personality and characteristics

Not much is known about the personality of Gary's Blastoise, however it was described in The Ties that Bind! by Gary that it was his best, showing that it was one of his favourite Pokémon, if not his favourite. It was mentioned in the same episode by Professor Oak to be his most powerful. This was shown in Can't Beat the Heat!, when it defeated Heracross with one move despite Heracross using rocks as a shield as well as it easily beating Bayleef and being a good match for Charizard. Its Rapid Spin can deflect powerful attacks, even super-effective ones such as Razor Leaf.

Moves used

In I Choose You!

I Choose You! As a Squirtle in

Blastoise made a brief appearance as a Squirtle in a flashback in I Choose You!, which is set in a timeline separate from the main series. Like in the main series, Squirtle was chosen by Gary to be his starter Pokémon.



In the manga

In the Ash & Pikachu manga

Blastoise in Ash & Pikachu

Blastoise and Gary

Blastoise was the final Pokémon Gary sent out during his match with Ash in One Half Of A Poké Ball. Unlike the anime, it fought Pikachu instead of Charizard.

Moves used

In anime novelizations

About two years before Gary was revealed to own it, Talent Showdown, one of the book adaptations of the anime, depicted a Blastoise under his ownership. However, due to his starter Pokémon not being confirmed at the time of the book's release, Charizard and Venusaur were under his ownership as well.

Trivia

Ash originally wanted Squirtle as his starter Pokémon, while Gary was the one who took it.

Unlike in the games, instead of the rival (Gary/Blue) having the starter Pokémon with the type advantage, Ash's Pikachu has the type advantage. However, Ash uses his Charizard against Blastoise during his battle with Gary in the Silver Conference, mirroring the type advantage seen in the games.

In the English dub, Brock and Misty seemed to be aware that Gary's starter Pokémon was Squirtle, as when Blastoise is shown for the first time, Misty says, "Brock, could that be...?", to which Brock replies, "The same Squirtle that Gary originally received from Professor Oak? Yeah, that's the one." This exchange did not occur in the original Japanese version of the episode.

Related articles

For more information on this Pokémon's species, see Squirtle, Wartortle, and Blastoise.

