Ethan (game): Difference between revisions

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Hibiki redirects here. For the character of the day in Beauty and the Breeder, see Zane.

Gold (game) redirects here. For the game titled "Pokémon Gold Version", see Pokémon Gold and Silver Versions.

This article is about the male protagonist whose default name is クリス in the Japanese version of Pokémon Crystal. For the female player character in Pokémon Crystal with the same Japanese name, see Kris (game).

Ethan ヒビキ Hibiki
Art from HeartGold and SoulSilver
Age	Unknown
Gender	Male
Height	4'11" (1.50 m) HGSS
Eye color	Gray
Hair color	Black
Hometown	New Bark Town
Region	Johto
Relatives	Mom (as player) Grandparents, unnamed father (as NPC)
Trainer class	Pokémon Trainer, player character
Generation	II, IV, VII, VIII, IX
Counterpart(s)	Ethan (Masters)
Games	Gold, Silver, Crystal, HeartGold, SoulSilver, Puzzle Challenge, Masters EX
English voice actor	Ted Sroka[1] (Masters EX)
Japanese voice actor	Daisuke Hirose[2] (Masters EX)
Anime series	Pokémon the Series Pokémon Generations Pokémon Evolutions
Debut	The Legend of Thunder! (Series; Gen II) Zoroark: Master of Illusions (Series; Gen IV) The Lake of Rage (Generations) The Show (Evolutions)
Counterpart(s)	Jimmy (Johto)
English voice actor	Sean Schemmel (Jimmy)
Japanese voice actor	Kenji Nojima (Jimmy)
Manga series	Pokémon Adventures Pokémon Pocket Monsters Pokémon Gold & Silver: The Golden Boys Pocket Monsters HGSS Jō's Big Adventure
Counterpart(s)	Gold (Adventures), Gold (Pocket Monsters), Gold (Golden Boys), Jō
Debut	Murkrow Row (Adventures) Welcome Back, Clefairy!! (Pocket Monsters) Let's Go! The Journey Towards The Championship (GB) Aim to be the Strongest! The Hot-Blooded Brotherly Combination!! (JBA)

Ethan (Japanese: ヒビキ Hibiki) is the main playable character in Pokémon Gold and Silver and is the male choice in Pokémon Crystal, Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver. In Crystal, his female counterpart is Kris, while in HeartGold and SoulSilver, his female counterpart is Lyra.

Terminology

He was first named Ethan (Japanese: ヒビキ Hibiki) when he appeared as a non-player character in Generation IV games. He is also known by the same name in Pokémon Masters EX.

In the game manuals from Generation II, his name depends on the current game: Gold^G, Silver^S, or Chris^C (Japanese: ゴールド, シルバー, or クリス).

The different names are seen in the player's story from the game manuals. For instance:

• "The Professor showed Gold three Pokémon [...]" (referring to the player in Pokémon Gold's manual)
• "The Professor showed Silver three Pokémon [...]" (referring to the player in Pokémon Silver's manual)

In the player's story from Pokémon Crystal's manual, the Japanese name クリス simultaneously refers to either player character. However, this was adapted as "you" instead in the English version. For instance:

• Japanese version of Crystal's manual:

  「クリスはパートナーとなる1匹(ぴき)のポケモンを選(えら)ぶと」 (Kris/Chris chooses 1 partner Pokémon and [...])

• English version of Crystal's manual:

  "After you choose your Pokémon [...]"

In several game screenshots from the English manual of Pokémon Crystal, the male player character is named Chris.

In the Pokémon Gold and Silver Spaceworld '97 demo, his name is サトシ^G Satoshi or シゲル^S Shigeru. These are Ash's and Gary's respective Japanese names, and correspond to the second entry in the list of optional names for Red and Blue in Pokémon Red and Green.

In Pokémon Puzzle Challenge, he appears as an unnamed player character.

Before he received an official name in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, most fans called him Gold (Japanese: ゴールド Gold).

• 

  The player's story (named "Gold") in the manual of Pokémon Gold

• 

  The player's story (named "Silver") in the manual of Pokémon Silver

• 

  The player's story (known as "you" in English) in the manual of Pokémon Crystal

In the core series games

As the protagonist

Ethan's journey as a Trainer begins when Professor Elm asks him to run an errand for Mr. Pokémon, who lives north of Cherrygrove City on Route 30. Because he may encounter dangerous wild Pokémon along the way, Elm gives him a choice between three Pokémon to protect him: Cyndaquil, Totodile or Chikorita.

Ethan spots another boy his age watching Elm's Lab from outside. When Ethan tries to talk to him, the boy abruptly shoves him away. This boy, Silver, will become Ethan's rival.

Ethan continues onward and finally meets Mr. Pokémon and completes his errand. While there he meets Professor Oak who, upon realizing Ethan's bond with his new Pokémon, gives him a Pokédex. On his way back home, Ethan again meets Silver, who has stolen one of Elm's remaining Pokémon. After defeating the boy in battle, the boy tells Ethan his name^GSC/Ethan learns the boy's name from his dropped Trainer Card^HGSS, and Ethan relays it to the police in New Bark Town. Professor Elm allows Ethan to keep the Pokémon he chose earlier, and also encourages him to compete in the Johto League.

Ethan begins on a Pokémon journey in the Johto region, facing off against its eight Gym Leaders, defeating and disbanding the revived Team Rocket, and becoming Pokémon League Champion by defeating the Elite Four and its previous Champion, Lance at Indigo Plateau. Along the way he also teaches Silver to respect Pokémon as living creatures and not just as tools for battle.

After being declared the Pokémon League Champion, Ethan then journeys by ship from Olivine City to Vermilion City in Kanto. Traveling around that region, he battles against another set of eight Gym Leaders. Upon getting permission from Professor Oak in Pallet Town, Ethan heads for Mt. Silver via Route 28. His journey comes to a close when, deep in Mt. Silver's cave, he faces the Champion from Pallet Town, Pokémon Trainer Red, who had been training there since shortly after he became Pokémon League Champion three years prior.

As a non-playable character

Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal

In Pokémon Crystal, if Kris is selected, then the male player character does not appear in the game, except as opponent in the Trainer House. Even when playing as Kris, the player's sprite is changed to Ethan's during link battles and in the Trainer House.

Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver

In Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, if playing as Lyra, Ethan appears as an NPC in the game. When playing as Ethan, Lyra takes on this role instead.

Ethan meets the player in New Bark Town at the start of the game. In this particular scene, he is seen with a Marill. He teaches the player how to catch Pokémon on Route 29 (replacing the Dude from Gold, Silver, and Crystal). His grandparents run the Pokémon Day Care on Route 34. He also gives the player the Fashion Case in Goldenrod Tunnel and the Vs. Recorder on Route 31.

When called from certain locations, Ethan will mention that something will happen if the player takes a certain Pokémon there.

Pokémon

Ethan uses this party to show the player how to catch Pokémon when Lyra is selected as the player character in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver.

PKMN Trainer Ethan Route 29 HeartGold and SoulSilver
Type: Water Unknown Ability: Unknown Held item: None Marill♂/♀ Lv.5 Tackle Normal Physical   --       Defense Curl Normal Status   --       Curse Unknown Status   --       Curse Unknown Status   --

Caught in tutorial

	Type: Normal Unknown Ability: Run Away or Guts Held item: None
Rattata♂/♀ Lv.2
Tail Whip Normal Status   --       Curse Unknown Status   --       Curse Unknown Status   --       Curse Unknown Status   --

Mentioned

When called with the Pokégear at different locations, Ethan will mention he owns certain Pokémon.

Tauros♂*

Bulbasaur*

Porygon*

Tangela*

In the spin-off games

This section is incomplete. Please feel free to edit this section to add missing information and complete it. Reason: An Image from Super Smash Bros. Ultimate of Pokemon Trainer palette based on Ethan

Pokémon Puzzle Challenge

Ethan is the player character in the Challenge mode of Pokémon Puzzle Challenge. In this mode, he challenges the Gym Leaders and Elite Four of Johto in puzzle games.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

While Ethan himself does not appear directly, a palette swap color scheme based on Ethan's design appears for the male Pokémon Trainer, who is an incarnation of Red.

Pokémon Masters EX

Main article: Ethan (Masters)

Ethan, who is based on the player character, forms a sync pair with Cyndaquil and its evolved forms Quilava and Typhlosion, along with Lugia in Pokémon Masters EX. Ethan became a playable sync pair on January 15, 2020.

Ethan has also made notable appearances in the game's Main Stories, Legendary Adventures and the Villain Arc. Unlike in Pokémon Crystal, both Ethan and Kris coexist in the same game.

Sync Dex	Trainer		NDex	Pokémon		Type	Weakness	Role	Base Potential	Availability
#075		Ethan	#0157		Cyndaquil → Quilava → Typhlosion♂	Fire	Rock		★★★★★☆EX	Sync Pair Scout
#075		Sygna Suit Ethan	#0249		Lugia	Flying	Ghost		★★★★★☆EX	Master Fair Sync Pair Scout

Pokémon GO

Main article: Style (GO)

To commemorate the Johto Festival, Ethan's outfit from Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver were released as free style options in Pokémon GO.

Quotes

Main article: Ethan (game)/Quotes

Optional names

Counterparts

In the anime

Jimmy, Ethan's first anime counterpart

Main series

Main article: Jimmy (Johto)

Jimmy, the main protagonist of The Legend of Thunder!, is the first anime counterpart of Ethan, and seems to be based on him in the most basic sense, much more than Ash was based on his game counterpart, Red. Jimmy follows Ethan's design from Pokémon Gold and Silver. Much like Ethan, Jimmy is from New Bark Town and receives a first partner Pokémon from Professor Elm. He also encounters the counterparts of Silver and Kris on his journey.

Ethan's second counterpart has a cameo appearance at the beginning of Zoroark: Master of Illusions, where he had a battle against Ash. This counterpart follows Ethan's updated design from Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver. It has been argued that this is Jimmy in an updated look, rather than a different counterpart, but this counterpart is identified as "Hibiki" (Ethan's Japanese name) in the Japanese DVD of the movie.

Pokémon

This is a listing of Ethan's known Pokémon in the anime:

		Donphan
		Ethan used Donphan in a battle against Ash at the beginning of the thirteenth movie. During the battle, it fought Pikachu. It was not shown who won the battle. Donphan's only known move is Rollout.
Debut	Zoroark: Master of Illusions

Ethan in Pokémon Generations

Pokémon Generations

Ethan made two brief appearances in The Lake of Rage. First, he and Lance infiltrated the Team Rocket HQ separately. He then communicated with Lance through his Pokégear about updates on their mission, and acted as a decoy for Lance's attacks.

Much like the other player characters depicted in Pokémon Generations, Ethan doesn't have any lines of dialogue.

Ethan in Pokémon Evolutions

GOTCHA!

Ethan briefly appeared in GOTCHA!, using his Tyranitar and Ampharos.

Pokémon Evolutions

Ethan briefly appeared in The Show, where he was seen in Ecruteak City.

In the manga

Ethan, like most player characters, also has several counterparts in the various Pokémon manga series.

Pokémon Adventures

Ethan's Pokémon Adventures counterpart, Gold

Main article: Gold (Adventures)

Gold from Pokémon Adventures is based on Ethan. He's a stubborn boy with a tendency towards gambling and bragging about himself. Having lived with Pokémon for all his life, he has the ability to make Pokémon Eggs hatch and draw out the potential of the baby Pokémon hatched from them.

Pokémon Gold & Silver: The Golden Boys

Main article: Gold (Golden Boys)

Gold, the main character of Pokémon Gold & Silver: The Golden Boys, is based on Ethan.

Pokémon HeartGold SoulSilver: Pokédex Completion Comic

Main article: Soul (PCC)

Soul from Pokémon HeartGold SoulSilver: Pokédex Completion Comic is based on Ethan.

Pocket Monsters HeartGold & SoulSilver Go! Go! Pokéathlon

Main article: Takashi

Takashi from Pocket Monsters HeartGold & SoulSilver Go! Go! Pokéathlon is based on Ethan.

Pocket Monsters HGSS Jō's Big Adventure

Main article: Jō

Jō from Pocket Monsters HGSS Jō's Big Adventure is based on Ethan.

Pokémon Pocket Monsters

Main article: Gold (Pocket Monsters)

Gold from Pokémon Pocket Monsters is based on Ethan.

Gallery

Artwork

From Gold and Silver	From Crystal	From Crystal	Checking his Pokégear
Approaching a Time Capsule	Artwork from the Game Freak website	In front of the Ruins of Alph	Encountering a Shiny Pokémon
In the Sinjoh Ruins	Walking with Pokémon	Ethan and Cyndaquil concept artwork for Kotobukiya ArtFx J figurines	Artwork of Ethan fighting the Red Gyarados at the Lake of Rage for Pokémon Day by Megumi Mizutani

Sprites and models

This section is incomplete. Please feel free to edit this section to add missing information and complete it. Reason: Missing Pokégear icon from HGSS and SW97 sprites

Trainer sprite from Gold and Silver	Trainer sprite from Crystal	Trainer sprite from HeartGold and SoulSilver	Pokéathlon sprite from HeartGold and SoulSilver	Back sprite from Generation II	Prototype back sprite from HeartGold and SoulSilver	Back sprite from HeartGold and SoulSilver	VS sprite from HeartGold and SoulSilver
Overworld sprite from Generation II	Overworld sprite from HeartGold and SoulSilver	Overworld Pokéathlon sprite from HeartGold and SoulSilver	Overworld sprite, disguised as a Team Rocket Grunt, from HeartGold and SoulSilver	Intro sprite from HeartGold and SoulSilver	Sprite from the opening of HeartGold and SoulSilver	VS sprite from the opening of HeartGold and SoulSilver	Sprite from Puzzle Challenge

Trivia

Ken Sugimori's settei for the anime.

• The Gold and Silver artwork was originally presented in the Official Guidebook of Nintendo Space World '97 (Japanese: NINTENDOスペースワールド'97オフィシャルガイドブック), along with Silver, Oak, Schoolboy, Lass, Firebreather, Kimono Girl, Fisher, Ho-Oh, Slowking, Ampharos, Donphan, and the new Pokédex.
• Ethan is 4'11" (1.50 m) tall and weighs 88.2 lbs (40 kg) in HeartGold and SoulSilver. This was confirmed by checking the heights and weights of certain Pokémon in the Pokédex. As such, Clefable and Latias are both the same weight as Ethan.
• Ethan is the only male player character to have two female counterparts; Kris and Lyra.
• The majority of his Japanese default names from HeartGold and SoulSilver are shared with Red and Lucas. The same holds true for their respective female counterparts.
• A 1997 pamphlet describing Gold and Silver mentions that the protagonist has a brother three years his senior. However, this aspect of his character was discarded by the time of the final release.
• On the "Area" map on the Pokédex in HeartGold and SoulSilver, Ethan's headshot sprite shows his hat from Gold and Silver. An earlier, unused version of this sprite is also found within other scrapped Pokégear graphics data, in which Kris appears instead of Lyra.
• One of Pokémon Trainer's palette swaps in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate has a color scheme based on Ethan's appearance in Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal.
• The Japanese optional name カケル Kakeru, along with the English optional name Chase, were eventually given to the male protagonist of Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!.
• Ethan's first anime counterpart having a different name, Jimmy, likely stems from the fact that Ethan did not become his canon name until HeartGold and SoulSilver.
• Ethan is the only game protagonist to have two anime counterparts.

Names

References

Capture tutors Old man • Primo • Professor Oak • Dude • Ethan/Lyra • Wally • Lucas/Dawn • Professor Juniper Bianca • Calem/Serena • Professor Kukui • Leon • Professor Laventon • Nemona

This game character article is part of Project CharacterDex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each character found in the Pokémon games.