Rudy

Rudy ジギー Ziggy
[[File:File:Rudy-pose.jpg\|{{{size}}}]] Rudy
Gender	Male
Hometown	Trovita Island
Region	Orange Islands
Relatives	Mahri (sister)
Trainer class	Gym Leader
Challenge	Attack test, 3-on-3 Pokémon battle
Anime debut	Misty Meets Her Match!
English voice actor	Matthew Mitler
Japanese voice actor	Ryō Horikawa

Rudy (Japanese: ジギー Ziggy) is the Trovita Island Gym Leader. He hands out the Spike Shell Badge to Trainers who defeat him. His strategy includes teaching his Pokémon skills they would not normally learn, such as modern dance.

In the anime

Rudy's only anime appearance was in Misty Meets Her Match. His Japanese Seiyū is 堀川亮 Ryō Horikawa, and his English voice actor is Matthew Mitler.

Rudy put all his efforts into wooing Misty after she saved his younger sister, Mahri, from a whirlpool, instead of focusing on Ash's challenge. Like Mikan Island Gym Leader Cissy, Rudy requires that all Trainers who face him pass a test of skill. He had Ash's Pokémon shoot at targets while aboard a moving boat.

After Ash passed Rudy's attack test, he faced him in a three-on-three battle pitting Pokémon of the same type against each other atop one of the rock pillars that surrounds Trovita Island. Prior to the fight, Rudy asked Misty if she wanted to stay with him after the match, but permitted Misty to decide after the battle was over. Ash lost the first round of the battle — Pikachu versus Electabuzz — but Bulbasaur won the battle against an Exeggutor by using Sleep Powder on it, causing it to fall off the pillar before Bulbasaur caught it with Vine Whip.

When the final round came — Squirtle versus Starmie — Rudy dedicated the fight to the girl who "saved my sister and stole my heart", subsequently ordering Starmie — evading Squirtle's Water Gun by dancing — to spin itself into a Thunderbolt. As Ash tried to think of a strategy, Misty, finally making up her mind, yelled at Ash to keep fighting as he was the only one who could bring out Squirtle's real power. His resolve renewed, Ash had Squirtle use Water Gun to force itself out of the path of Rudy's Thunderbolt, Squirtle subsequently learning Hydro Pump just in time to stop it falling into the nearby sea, subsequently using Hydro Pump and Skull Bash to defeat Starmie. After presenting Ash with his badge and Misty with some flowers as a farewell, Rudy commented that he hoped Ash knew that he was a very lucky guy, and that Ash would find out what he meant some day.

Pokémon

Rudy battled with the following Pokémon:

Electabuzz

Exeggutor

Starmie

Rudy also handled the following Pokémon at his Gym:

Hitmonchan

Alakazam

Golem

Pidgeot	Rhydon
Venomoth	Ninetales

Trivia

Rudy is the only gym leader of the Orange Islands who never defeats Team Rocket in battle, as throughout the entire episode they keep on falling and blasting off, and never get the chance to attack Ash.

In the manga

Electric Tale of Pikachu

File:Rudy-crossdressing.jpg

Rudy as a woman

Rudy was featured in a chapter of the Electric Tale of Pikachu manga, making him the only one of the Orange League Gym Leaders to make an appearance outside of the anime. However, he was referred to as Jeremy in the English version.

Events in the manga transpired similar to the anime episode in which he was featured, although Tracey was not there. Rudy was the final Orange League Gym Leader that Ash battled, not the third. In addition, after Misty turned down Rudy's proposal, Mahri was disappointed because she wanted Misty to become her big sister. To solve this, Rudy starts to crossdress, becoming a big sister for Mahri.