>>30747990Pokemon is, at its heart, a shonen story that plays by shonen rules. Characters that do the best in a shonen story share a few things.
1) They can take beating after beating without giving up.
2) They fight to protect friends and family,
Gladion starts with all those traits that make him a good trainer, but they're slowly illuminated by the story. SIlver doesn't really hide anything and only starts with determination and grows to get the others by the end of the post game
3) They have a certain view of how the world should be fair though it can sometimes be hidden under a rough exterior.
When we meet Gladion he has all these traits fully formed but hidden from us. Slowly the layers are torn away and we see his true self (training Type:Null even though no one thinks it can be done, trying to save Lillie and Nebby, sees the truth in the Aether Foundation and doesn't just buy into the life he was raised in). This makes a good story because it happens slowly. It makes a bad story because he doesn't change.
When we meet Silver he only has one trait (determination to be a trainer). Given enough beat downs, he sees that friendship matters and changes how he trains and why he trains. Similarly, you can see the change in the sense of justice (stealing a pokemon early on to fighting team rocket later). This is good story telling because it happens slowly. It makes for a bad story because his emotions are primarily worn on his sleeve.
If narrative doesn't play at all, Gladion's final team probably wins based on Silvally, though it depends on which form and when Magneton dies.
