Well, we've got dem beautiful 3D backgrounds for battles now, so X&Y could probably top Iris's kickass outer space battleground, at least. And there's always room for gamefreak to use a champion with a novel theme for their team, especially with all the new Pokemon. As for music, we'll have to see.
And yeah, I thought it was sick that champion Iris took the old dragon master badass thing that Pokemon had going with Lance and Clair and Drake and managed to give it a girly/fantasy spin without making it lame. I mean, it's adorable when she roars at you in her little tiara and pink princess dress, but then she busts out a frigging Hydreigon. I think they did a good job with Iris's overall theme and aesthetic, even if I don't necessarily think of her as the coolest champion. I mean, Blue and Cynthia are just way too kickass.
