>>27204473Ash in AG started to get super competent. Like, being a decent trainer instead of some fucking retard.
In BF (Battle Frontier), Ash ends up improving even more and ends up winning the Battle Frontier and is offered the chance to become a Frontier Brain. He passes on this and goes to Sinnoh.
In DP, Ash is even more competent. He's creating strategies with his pokemon and their moves, he's facing off on tough trainers, his rival is basically the foil of Ash in that Ash is all about training your pokes because they're friends and the foil is about strength over everything. Culminates in arguably THE best battle of the entire series. That battle is followed up with Ash losing to a trainer who was steamrolling the entire league with a Darkrai that OHKO'd everything. Though Ash lost, he not only defeated the Darkrai, something no one came close to doing in the entire league, but he then managed to KO (albeit a tie since Pikachu got KO'd too) the dude's second pokemon, a fucking Latios.
Now enter BW. Ash is on the upswing as the most competent he's ever been. He has the skills that kill, the experience of past regions, and in his first battle with Pikachu, he fucking loses to a new trainer with a freshly obtained Snivy. Then, everywhere Ash goes he comes across as a retard, who seemingly goes out of his way to forget type disadvantages and immunities and any kind of battle strategy whatsoever. Pikachu v Excadrill happens like 4 times in the season. His companions are mixed. Iris is nails-on-a-chalkboard annoying and the whole "such a kid" meme is a slap in the face after the greatness of BF and DP. Combine this with an abandoned Team Plasma arc, TR flipflopping from serious to jokes and shitty, to having a serious arc with the Genies, the rivals being utter horseshit, Ash's pokemon receiving barebones development aside from Pignite, Shadeskrok, Oshawott when it couldn't open its eyes underwater, and Pikachu learning Electro Ball over its signature Volt Tackle.
