Meet Ash Ketchum, a 10-year-old boy full of imagination, confidence, and dreams that are almost too big for his village of Pallet Town—plus the desire to become a Pokémon Master!

Ash rushes into Viridian City with his gravely wounded Pikachu. The city's on high alert for Pokémon thieves-thieves like Jessie, James, and Meowth of Team Rocket, a group of bad guys dedicated to stealing valuable Pokémon.

Ash discovers and catches a Caterpie—his first Pokémon capture! Though Ash is excited, Misty is grossed out by Bug-type Pokémon, so she is repulsed by its attempts to be friends with her. At night, as Ash and Misty sleep, Caterpie shares with Pikachu its dream of evolving into a Butterfree.

Misty and Ash continue to wander the Viridian Forest when they spot a Weedle. As Ash battles it, he's distracted by a boy dressed as a samurai and calling himself (naturally) Samurai. Samurai challenges Ash to a battle, and Ash gets the advantage when his Metapod defends itself against Samurai's Pinsir. Samurai sends out his own Metapod—and a standoff begins.

Jessie, James, and Meowth dig a trap for our heroes, but they end up falling into it themselves! Ash and Misty arrive at Pewter City and meet a curious fellow named Flint, who notices that Pikachu is tired and shows them the way to the Pokémon Center. At the Pokémon Center, Ash reads a poster promoting the Pokémon League Regional Championships—to compete, you have to beat gym leaders from various towns and win their badges. Ash challenges the Pewter City Gym Leader, Brock, but even a healed Pikachu has no chance against Brock's Rock-type Pokémon. Later, Flint shows Ash a surprising side of Brock—when he's not battling and raising Pokémon, he has to take care of his ten brothers and sisters. Will this news affect Ash's desire to battle Brock again for the Rock Badge? Who is this Flint guy, and why does he insist on helping Ash train Pikachu for the rematch? And will Team Rocket ever climb out of that hole?

Will Team Rocket steal the Moon Stone? Are there other Clefairy lurking about, and do they carry Moon Stones, too? And is the legend of the Moon Stone true?

In his search to collect Trainer Badges, Ash heads for Cerulean City, intending to confront the Cerulean Gym Leader. For some reason, Misty expresses a desire to avoid Cerulean City and disappears somewhere along the way. Without concern for Misty, Ash and Pikachu continue toward the Cerulean City Gym. When they arrive, the exterior of the Gym gives the strange appearance of an aquarium. Upon entering the building, Ash and Pikachu are entranced by a synchronized swimming show being performed by three beautiful sisters. Could this truly be the Cerulean Gym? And what could be the role of the three beautiful swimming sisters? More importantly, will Ash be able to defeat the strangely absent Gym Leader to earn his next badge?

On the way to Vermillion City, Ash meets AJ, a Gym Leader at an unsanctioned Gym who has 98 wins and zero losses. They battle, and Ash is surprised that AJ's Ground-type Sandshrew can easily beat his Flying-type Pokémon.

Our three heroes have lost their way in the depths of a dense wood, shrouded in thick, white mist. Momentarily giving up, they decide to break for a brief rest. As Ash wanders deeper into the wood, searching for firewood, he happens across a young boy being bullied by five classmates gathered around him. Eavesdropping on their conversation, Ash learns that the boys are attending the Pokémon Seminar (or 'Pokémon Zem' for short) - a preparatory school for Pokémon trainers. Graduates from the Pokémon Seminar are automatically qualified to participate in the Pokémon League without undergoing any actual test of skill. Although many children dream of entering the illustrious Seminar (or rather their parents dream of them entering), only the most wealthy children can enter the school. But there must be a reason for the gloom overshadowing the faces of the students of this aristocratic school.

Still lost, the party continues to wander. Falling from a rope bridge, stumbling into pitfalls, being caught in various traps, they struggle on until reaching a village, not shown on their map, inhabited by Pokemon that have been injured in battle or abandoned by their masters. In this village, a kind-hearted young woman named Melanie cares for these Pokemon. Even as our heroes, touched by Melanie’s kind example, attempt to assist her in caring for the Pokemon, Team Rocket is slowly making its way toward the village. A combined effort of Melanie and Ash’s Pokemon is needed to battle and defeat Team Rocket, and as a result, Ash’s courage earns him a battle between Pikachu and Melanie’s bravest Pokemon, Bulbasaur. Will Pikachu defeat Bulbasaur, thus increasing Ash’s collection of Pokemon?

As our heroes press on toward Vermilion City, they encounter a lone, weak Charmander at a mountain pass. Standing atop a stone, it appears to be waiting for someone. Ash immediately attempts to capture it, but fails. Giving up, Ash and friends head for a nearby Pokemon Center. There they run into Damien—the very boy who had abandoned the Charmander. A storm erupts. Our heroes go out in the middle of the night to rescue the deserted Pokemon. Their timing couldn’t be better for they saved the fiery Pokemon from an attack of vicious Spearow. Upon their return to the Pokemon Center, the Charmander is taken care of immediately, but the next morning he is gone, without a trace. Ash and friends go out to find him only to be side-tracked by the devious Team Rocket. Just when they thought they had captured Pikachu and rendered our heroes temporarily helpless, Charmander comes to the rescue. Will he ultimately become the next Pokemon to join Ash?

A company of Squirtles stand in the path of our heroes' enthusiastic march. To make matters worse, joining forces with Team Rocket, the Squirtles capture Ash and friends. When the Squirtles lock Pikachu, who has been critically injured, in a cage, Ash runs to retrieve a healing Potion. Upon Ash's return, a battle ensues between Team Rocket and our heroes. When it becomes apparent that Team Rocket has deserted the Squirtles, and even endangered them, Ash and his love of Pokémon prevails, and saves a Squirtle from certain doom. Will Ash's kind and brave act go unnoticed by the Squirtle?

The party emerges from the forest onto a beach, where in the distance they see a lighthouse, shining at the tops of a cliff. The lighthouse belongs to Bill, a Pokémon researcher who is awaiting the coming of a one-of-a-kind Pokémon, never before seen by humans. Before long, a tremendously large shadow begins to take form in the sea mists, but this possible discovery could be hindered due to the infamous Team Rocket lurking in the background cooking up another one of their schemes. Could such a legendary Pokémon truly exist?

Our heroes finally reach Vermilion City. They make their way to the Pokémon Center to refill their empty stomachs, but once there, they witness dozens of injured Pokémon being treated. Pikachu and Ash are alarmed to learn that all of these Pokémon were injured in battles with the Vermilion Gym Leader, Lt. Surge. Nonetheless, eager to earn a badge, Ash challenges Lt. Surge. Pikachu reluctantly enters the battle only to discover its opponent to be a Raichu, a fierce Pokémon with tremendous electric power. In order for Pikachu to successfully compete, it must demonstrate a stronger will than ever before displayed in battle. Could Pikachu possibly have a chance against Raichu's overwhelming strength?

Ash and his party arrive at a port where the SS Anne, an international cruise liner, is docked. Receiving free tickets, from a mysterious duo, for a Pokémon Trainer party aboard the Santa Anne, they board the ship filled with anticipation of good food and lots of Pokémon excitement. Aboard the ship, bustling with Pokémon Trainers, Ash meets a distinguished gentleman who suggests they make a Pokémon trade. Ash exchanges his Butterfree for the gentleman's Raticate. Just then, the SS Anne is taken over by Team Rocket who had arranged the party as a ploy to steal Pokémon.

With the St. Anne deep underwater, the group recovers and discover their predicament. Jessie and James wake up as well. When they meet up they initially start a battle, but the weight of their Pokémon rocks the boat. They agree to work together to get out. They find their way to a weak point in the boat where Charmander welds through it. Water gushes in and the three escape on water Pokémon. Team Rocket try to escape, but their Magikarp is too weak. They eventually float to the surface and are discovered by Pidgeotto who was searching for dry land. Just when the group are about to push overboard the apparently dead Team Rocket, they wake up. After sitting around starved for days with no land in sight, they start to consider eating Magikarp. They discover that Magikarp is all scale and bones. After James kicks Magikarp overboard, it evolves into Gyarados. The angry Gyarados does a Dragon Rage attack on them and they all spin away in a tornado created by Gyarados.

As our heroes and Team Rocket beat the odds by surviving the sinking ship, they are dragged into another potentially deadly situation when they are attacked by the ferocious Pokemon, Gyarados. One Gyarados becomes many and Ash, friends and foe are swept up in a tornado landing them in various locations on an island. Ash loses Pikachu and the Poke Balls containing Charmander, Squirtle and Bulbasaur. Jessie and James from Team Rocket, who land in another remote part of the island, also lose their Pokemon. Thus both Pokemon and their masters are left searching for each other on this strange island, inhabited by gigantic Pokemon. Where could this island be?

Ash, Misty and Brock begin their vacation in Porta Vista. Team Rocket are waiting for them trying to find ways to catch Pikachu. Ash and co. later ride a boat, and they crash into Team Rocket's submarine which then crashes into a dock owned by an old man. Ash needs to find some way to pay back the old man for his dock. Meanwhile, Team Rocket land on a beach and meet an old lady named Nastina working on her beach house. They volunteer to help her. Ash firsts tries to work at a restruant and customers flock. Team Rocket then sabotage it and the customers go away. Disappointed, Ash goes to Professor Oak and his mom. They tell him of a swimsuit competition for girls and for pokemon. Ash enters Misty who for pokemon, dresses Squirtle like an alien and Starmie as the UFO. She is greeted in the competition by Jesse and James. James pretends to be a girl with a fake inflatable body suit. They have Ekans and Koffing wrapped together as the great "Leviathan". Jesse and James are angry they lost, so they attack with their submarine and send a heat seeking missle. Ash gets Charmander to turn it around and it hits Team Rocket who blast off again. Nastina goes with them. In the end, Ash's mom wins the contest and they get enough money to pay back the old man.

Our heroes arrive at Hutber Port, where a ferryboat line runs to the mainland. There they meet a cousin of the old man’s competitor from Acapulco who, having recently acquired a great deal of money, is trying to construct a huge luxury hotel, turning a coral reef area into a tremendous resort. This section of coral reef, however, is very important to the Tentacool and Horsea that live there. When a huge school of Tentacool interferes with the construction of the hotel, the cousin and a group of young people organize a campaign to drive them away, offering a reward of $10,000 to anyone who can repel the Tentacool. Naturally this draws the attention of Team Rocket who attempt to get rid of the Tentacool by spreading a mixture of super secret stun sauce over the ocean. Their plan backfires, however, transforming the Tentacool into a gigantic Tentacruel which begins a fierce counterattack against the humans. In order to defeat this reign of terror, Ash, Misty, Brock and their Pokemon are drawn into a battle that will require more than just strong combative skill.

After leaving Acapulco in search of Saffron City, our heroes finally arrive at a small port town in the middle of celebrating a summer festival. In order to recover from their hard journey, Ash and his party decide to participate in the festival. Team Rocket’s interest in the festivities, on the other hand, is purely monetary. Brock and James are both bewitched by a picture scroll shown in a shrine open only on the day of the summer festival. The picture depicts a beautiful young maiden in a scene from the legend of Maiden Rock—a point on a cape near the town. According to the priest’s explanation, the girl in the picture lived 2,000 years ago, and awaited the return of a lover captured in battle, until she finally turned into stone. Every year at this season, the ghost of this girl steals the spirit of a young man and this year it is James’ and Brock’s turn. What could the ghost possibly be after? And what is its true identity?

As they journey toward Saffron City, our heroes come to a path that continues along the side of a sheer cliff. When the party sees a flock of Butterfree flying above the ocean, Brock, as a Pokemon breeder, explains that it is the Butterfree’s egg-laying season. In order to continue their posterity, Butterfree find mates during this season and cross the sea together. Ash releases his Butterfree, sending it off toward the flock. His Butterfree performs a dance to attract a pink Butterfree, but is brutally rejected. Ash, Misty and Brock try to encourage Butterfree, but Butterfree can’t recover from the shock of rejection. Just then Team Rocket arrives to poach the Butterfree. Ash’s Butterfree tries to prevent the capture of his fellow Pokemon with very little success. Determined to free them and win the heart of the pink Butterfree, he battles Team Rocket with the strength and courage of a Pokemon in love. Can Ash’s Butterfree rescue his fellow Butterfree Pokemon and win the heart of his pink Butterfree? If so, will he leave Ash, his beloved Pokemon trainer, to follow his love and fulfill the Butterfree destiny?

The party finally arrives in Saffron City where a young girl manages a gym of Pokemon using her psychic powers. If Ash defeats this particular Gym Leader, Ash can earn a gold badge. Gathering all their strength, Ash and Pikachu challenge her. She happily accepts, but adds the strange condition that if Ash loses, they must become her friend. The official gym battle begins, but Pikachu is helpless against the young girl’s Pokemon, Abra. To make matters worse, Abra evolves in the middle of the match, turning into the more powerful, Kadabra. Employing even stronger psychic powers against Pikachu, Saffron City’s Gym Leader defeats Ash. As this strange story unravels, Ash encounters a mysterious man who seems to be the key to solving the puzzle to this young girl’s disturbing power.

Ash realizes that he must battle and collect a ghost Pokemon in order to defeat the young girl’s psychic Pokemon. In search of a ghost Pokemon, he heads immediately for a tower in Lavender Town where they are said to live. Jessie, James and Meowth from Team Rocket are already at the tower, but as they lay in wait for our heroes, they are attacked by Gastly, Haunter and Gangar. In the process of trying to defeat the ghost Pokemon, Ash learns a lesson or two about the mystical spirit world. Can Ash capture a ghost Pokemon and if so, will it be enough to defeat the psychic Gym Leader of Saffron City?

Unbenownst to Ash, one of the ghost Pokémon decides to join Ash and friends on their journey and more importantly help Ash battle the powerful Saffron City Gym Leader.

On their way to Celadon City, our heroes encounter Mankey, a wild Pokemon that if rubbed the wrong way can go into uncontrollable fits. Not realizing its unpredictability, the party accidentally upsets Mankey. To make matters worse, Team Rocket arrives and an all out war is waged by Mankey, who evolves into a ferocious Primeape, against anyone in its path. Will Ash be able to add Mankey/Primeape to his ever growing collection of Pokemon without having to withstand Primeape’s unrelenting wrath?

The party arrives in Celadon City, a perfectly pleasant town full of large department stores, condominiums, and fancy arcades. Brock and Misty are mesmerized, listening to a pretty young girl in a miniskirt, selling perfume. Appalled by the price of the perfume, Ash is kicked out of the department store, and heads for the Pokemon gym alone, but he is denied entrance to the Celadon Gym. The perfume that Ash criticized in the department store is produced in this gym. Brock and Misty enter the gym and befriend those who inhabit it, but Ash must go to some outrageous lengths in order to even set foot in the gym let alone prove himself worthy of battle against its Master.

Our heroes come to a town in which a great deal of children have recently turned up missing. Working together with Jenny to search for these children, they begin an investigation at the Pokemon Center, inquiring into the disappearances, but Joy has other concerns. For some reason, the Pokemon in the Center aren’t getting well at all. Jenny reveals that a mysterious sleep wave has been passing in and out of the town for several days. Our heroes suspect a connection between the missing children and the Pokemon’s poor condition. Team Rocket begins a sinister search of their own for the source of these strange occurrences. What could be the cause of this sleep wave?

At Brock’s persistent request, our heroes stop by Scissor Street, a town of breeders famous for its Pokemon beauty salons. Brock makes a special request to visit a salon called Coron. The owner of the Beauty Salon, Coron, is a breeder who has received the most superior ranking in the Pokemon Breeder Contest for three years straight. Recently, a store called Salon Roquet has been introducing outrageous fashions, making wild profits and disrupting long-term shop-owners.

In the outskirts of Fuchsia City, our heroes come across Hitmonchan, a fighting Pokemon. With little thought, Ash attempts to capture it, but he and Pikachu are badly defeated. Hitmonchan’s master has abandoned his family, training day and night, aiming for victory at the P1 Grand Prix (the number one Pokemon Grand Prix). His daughter tells Ash and his friends of her desire to make her father remember his family. In the meantime, Ash’s party enters the P1 Grand Prix, but with Team Rockets unwanted, not to mention, unofficial presence at the competition, the battle goes out of control.

As our heroes make their way through the industrial town of Gringy City, Pikachu, perhaps weary from travel, is in a strange state; the electric sacks on his cheeks are continually twitching as though overcharged. At the town’s Pokemon Center, Joy diagnoses Pikachu as being in the first stages of a Pokemon cold. She begins treatment immediately, but the town suddenly goes into a blackout. Assuming the problem to be in the power-generating station near the beach, Ash and friends go to investigate. There they discover the Pokemon, Magnemite and a pack of Grimer—Pokemon created from sludge. What exactly is going on?

Ash, Brock, Misty and Pikachu are lost deep in the mountains. As they press forward on a rough road not even shown on their map, they suddenly hear a large explosion. Running toward the sound in surprise, the party emerges on a construction site where tractors are building a tremendous dam. Ash learns that the foreman is trying to recruit skilled Pokemon trainers because ground Pokemon, Diglett, are interfering with construction and delaying the completion of his work. The foreman has been recruiting Pokemon trainers to get rid of the Diglett. He will award free passes for travel to a luxurious natural hot springs to anyone who can accomplish this. As Ash scopes out the recruits, he notices a familiar enemy in the mix, Gary.

Fuchsia Gym, the authorized gym where Ash seeks his next badge, turns out to be a hidden ninja’s lair. After finally discovering and entering the gym, he is held up by a complex system of traps. At last, the gym’s eccentric trainer challenges Ash to a match. Just as he defeats the trainer, the official battle with the Master begins. The battle goes out of control as Team Rocket also enters the gym and its vast array of traps. Can Ash actually earn the gym badge?

Our heroes come to a prairie where the Laramies, a family of Pokemon Ranchers live. They learn from a daughter of the Laramie family that a race is held at the ranch once a year to measure the growth of everyone’s Pokemon. Team Rocket, however, attacks her, the race's top contender. Injured, the daughter of the Laramie family decides to give up on the race, but entrusts her hopes of victory to Ash. Who will be the winner in a race between Ash, Brock, Misty, and Team Rocket?

On their way to a safari zone teeming with Pokemon, our heroes walk right into the middle of a jungle. Without knowing they are in a region in which Pokemon are protected, Ash tries to capture a Chansey and is arrested by Jenny, the safari ranger. After talking with the ranger, Ash is released, but not before he learns that there are Pokemon poachers in the area. Our heroes accompany the ranger into the forest, pursuing the poachers. Within the jungle, a young man leads a pack of Kangaskhan. His name is Tommy and no one knows the secret of his childhood.

Our heroes decide to take a trip through the Safari Zone, where they figure they'll be able to easily snag as many Pokemon as they want. What they don't count on is the heavily armed and trigger-happy game warden, who draws his six-shooters at the slightest provocation. After staring down the business end of the warden's magnum several times, Ash sets his sights on the mythical, legendary Dratini, a Pokemon that according to Professor Oak, is one of the most difficult to find creatures in existence. Team Rocket's in the Zone too, though. Just as Ash and crew leave the warden's station, Jesse challenges them to a winner-takes-all duel. Whichever side manages to grab the most booty in the Jungle Zone will get all of the loser's Pokemon and Poke Balls. The game is on, and Pikachu hangs in the balance.

Just leaving the Safari Zone, the group comes across a bridge which could be used as a shortcut to Sunny Town. They discover that the bridge is too long to walk and they would need bicycles to cross. They go to the Pokémon Center where Nurse Joy asks them to take some medicine to a sick Pokémon across the bridge. They borrow bicycles from the center and are off. Halfway, they come across a bike gang. They battle the gang and before long Jessie and James show up. They are welcomed as this is where they used to live and were well known by the gang members. They are all quickly chased off by the police and Ash and the group continue to deliver the medicine. They come to a raised part of the bridge as a boat is going by and they desperately make the jump. They use Team Rocket who on the other side were trying to show off as good riders and bounce off of them to make it across. They are blocked by the gang, but tell them they are getting medicine to a sick Pokémon. They gang helps them to the center and the Pokémon gets the medicine just in time.

The group is seeking shelter from the storm and they find it in an old theater house. They meet a girl named Duplica who has a talent for pretending to be other people. They meet her Ditto who has a problem; it cannot transform it's face. She tells them about her problems and they try to help her. Eventually, Team Rocket steals Ditto and try to make it transform into various things. They are very harsh on Ditto to make it transform perfectly, and it succeeds under the pressure they put it under. They give Meowth to Duplica pretending it is Ditto, but she is not fooled and eventually gets back the real Ditto. Now that Ditto can transform perfectly, Duplica can put on her shows.

Ash and friends find out that there is something wrong the Pokéball transmitting device at the local Pokémon Center. To find out what's wrong, everyone must go inside the machine.

The group come into a forest where it is quiet and peaceful. They notice a large group of Pikachu that Ash's Pikachu tries to make friends with. Ash scares them off, but Pikachu is later accepted when it dives to save a young Pikachu that was washing away down the waterfall. Ash starts to miss Pikachu as they hear a noise. Team Rocket successfully get all of the Pikachu in a net. Ash's Pikachu is the hero again as it chews a hole in the net and Ash and the group use the net they were caught in as something for the Pikachu to jump onto. Ash decides to leave Pikachu behind, but Pikachu doesn't want to. Ash refuses to keep Pikachu many times, but Pikachu persists until Ash realizes how much Pikachu likes him. He then let's Pikachu stay with him.

While traveling through the woods, the group encounters an Eevee that was apparently abandoned by a tree. They take it to its address in Stone Town and find it belongs to a little boy. He left it there because his older brothers wanted him to evolve it. Misty tells him to let his brothers know how he feels, but Team Rocket show up to get the food, stones, and the Pokémon. They find Team Rocket thanks to Horsea leaving a trail of ink and they recover everything. During the fight, the small boy proves his Eevee can fight well just as it is and tells his brothers he wants to keep his Eevee just how it is. They agree and let him keep his Eevee.