>>53514050>Barry>Even friendlierDude is an impatient sperg who while being your childhood friend, constantly threatens to sue you for being slow. He tries to be ahead of you constantly and complains how you're slow, yet he always loses to you. When he gets annoyed that you and Rowan's assistant have Pokédexes but he doesn't, Rowan calls him out for being an impatient sperg who rushed off before he could even give him one. Then when he tries to protect Uxie at Lake Acuity from Jupiter, he gets crushed and mocked when it really matters, and he realizes he's the one that has to change. He shows up at the climax of the Spear Pillar, apologizing for being the one who's late this time, except now he has a Heracross and Munchlax, the Pokémon that take the most patience in the game to get. That is his "Silver has a Crobat now" moment. I wish they gave him a Feebas/Milotic too for a Water-type, but his Water/Fire starter substitutes are Floatzel and Rapidash which are obtained earlier in the game and better represent his hasty personality. But having Torterra is love it or hate it because it's a turtle and doesn't represent him well in the beginning of the game when he chooses Turtwig, but does at the end when he learns patience. The Chimchar line seems to fit him better early on. Either way though, he becomes the strongest rival.
A rival is meant to be an equal who starts and progresses with you, a mirror image that you need to overcome. There needs to be a desire to overcome them, a competitive edge between the two of you. Gen III generally lacks that. But later games really try and nail in the friendship aspect and lack most of the competitive element.
