These are the eleven Pokemon Gym Leaders whom I hate the most. Not because they're cheap, not because I have trouble beating them, but because they disappoint me. Some have embarassing rosters, while others offer no challenge whatsoever. In Ascending order...
11- Janine. Fuschia City Gym. Poison Types.
I almost feel bad for adding her to this list, because most of the reasons I dislike her aren't her fault. She replaced Koga, one of the coolest Leaders of Gen 1, but this was justified with him being in the Elite Four now. What, you gonna close down Fuschia Gym? No chance! Buuut, being a replacement to an iconic Gym Leader...
Not to mention her roster isn't that great. Crobat, Weezing? A little on the weak side. Ariados? That's the sorta Pokemon you shelf once you get something better. Venomoth? I mean, sure, her dad has one too. But where's Muk? I don't expect the Nidos, but Muk was a must! But again, I admit my bias: I am no fan of Poison-types.
10- Erika. Celadon City Gym. Grass Types
Erika gives me the feeling she was added specifically to give players who chose Charmander a break, because now they could FINALLY unleash hell with their starter. That said, Erika is simply lacking in the challenge department; not only is her typing the WORST in the game, but it takes more effort to LOSE to her than to WIN! Your Pokemon should be in their early-mid twenties by the time you face her; she might have a slight level advantage, but she only has 3 Pokemon, and one of them sucks.
Did I mention the game gives you plenty of alternatives to beat her? Heck, just outside Celadon you can catch a Growlithe/Vulpix! Or maybe use the Pidgeotto you've had since Route 1! Or that recently evolved Fearow! Why not try Drowzee? Why not use Farfetch'd for the lulz? OR if you've broken the sequence and gotten the Sylph Scope, you could try that Ghastly/Haunter you caught in Lavender! So many choices!
But um...where's the CHALLENGE? In all my years playing Pokemon, I've NEVER lost to Erika!
9. Tate and Liza. Mossdeep City Gym. Psychic Types
(Ruby/Saphire/OmegaRuby/AlphaSaphire only)
In my opinion, the seventh Gym Leader of the game should always be one of the toughest, most memorable fights you can come up with. I've YET to be challenged properly in that regard, though. Anyway, Tate and Liza are a special disappointment to me because they only carry TWO Pokemon! TWO! And they're not even great Pokemon, either! A Solrock and a Lunatone? Seriously??? With so many Psychic types to choose from??? At least mix it up! And this was the first ever Double Gym Leader battle! You're telling me I had to fight two mediocre Pokemon? I just evolved my Carvanha; I'll make mincemeat out of these two!
Thankfully this situation was rectified in Emerald with the addition of more Pokemon.
8. Roxanne. Rustboro City. Rock Types.
Roxanne, by her own rights, is an OK Gym Leader. She's no worse than Brock; she has two Pokemon, Rock Types, and an unprepared trainer can (and will) lose to her. That said, my main reason for disliking her is that she's Brock 2.0. Her roster is 50% the same as his: a Geodude and a Nosepass, compared to his Geodude and Onyx. For newbies, Roxanne was a tough opponent, but for vets like me? She was a weaker, less impressive Brock. Lest we forget, unlike Brock, the game gave you PLENTY of resources to fight her: Shroomish, Lotad/Seedot, Wingull, even Surskit could be used against her! Granted, Surskit would likely die before doing much damage, but still!
7. Busgy. Azalea Town. Bug Types.
OK, can someone point me to the genius who decided a Gym Leader should include both a Kakuna AND a Metapod as part of their 3 Pokemon roster? Cuz that person screwed up BAD! I'm willing to grant that having Butterfree and Beedrill would have been overkill, but come ON! At least replace one with a Ledyba or a Spinarak! Maybe a Paras, a Venonat, or even a Pineco!
6. Giovanni. Viridian City. Ground Types.
For being the last Gym leader, Giovanni was a HUGE letdown. It didn't help that you'd already beaten him twice by the time you challenged him for the Earth Badge but his typing was Ground. Ground! Pack a Flying type, he can't hit you. Pack a Water type, his ass is grass. The only Pokemon on his roster who COULD give you trouble was Nidoking in Gen 1, while in Gen 3 he trades his Rhydon for a Nidoqueen. I expected something more...epic back in Gen 1.
5. Wallace. Sootopolis City. Water Types.
Yet another disappointment for a final Gym leader, Wallace had potential. The 3rd Generation of Pokemon had no shortage of awesome Water types, from the menacing Sharpedo to the awe inspiring Wailord. Further, the first two Generations were no slouches when it came to Water types: Gyarados, Quagsire, Starmie, etc. So can someone tell me just WHY a Gym Leader would include a Luvdisc on their team!? THE weakest Water Pokemon yet! Oh, and a Seaking, too! And a Sealeo that's THIS close to being a Walrein? The only saving graces for this guy are his Wiscash and Milotic!
4. Lenora. Nacrene City. Normal Types
Whitney was a tough Gym leader whose Miltank could (and often did) destroy entire teams. Norman was a tough customer whose team of Slakings were beasts that proved hard to take down; were it not for their Truant ability, they'd be OP as hell. Until Lenora came about, Normal Type Gym leaders were two for two among the toughest of their games. Lenora, on the other hand, is some weaksauce, having only a Herdier and a Watchog on her team. Sure, they have strong attacks, but... it's a Herdier and a Watchog, come on!
3. Viola. Santalune City. Bug Types.
And the winner for easiest First Gym in the series goes to Viola! Seriously? A Surskit and a Vivillion? At least Bugsy has a Scyther! No, seriously, consider this: Brock's, Roxanne's, and Roark's Rock types would be impervious to Normal moves, which would be at least three quarters of all the moves your Pokemon would know by that point. Falkner's Pidgeotto would Mud Slap the shit out of Cyndaquil and Gust away Chikorita. In Generation 5 the first Gym would depend on which type your starter is weak to. And in Generation 6? You fight a gal with a Surskit and a Vivillion! That's a free badge, guys!
2. Blaine. Cinnabar Island. Fire Types
Pretty much the most disappointing Gym leader for me, ever. I love Fire types. I was looking forward to battling it out with a Fire type master. But by the time you get to Blaine, it's a guarantee that you'll have a roster of Water types at your disposal: Gyarados, Starmie, Cloyster, Dewgong, among others will be available to you. Or if you preferred, you could use a Rock or Ground type against Blaine. The man's simply outclassed like heck by the time you get to him. Heck, I could even say the key to not losing to Blaine is not to use Grass against him.
1. Claire. Blackthorn City. Dragon Types.
THIS CHICK! Oh boy do I have words for her. It's not enough that she's not that strong; this chick has the AUDACITY to send me on some goose hunt so I can have the Badge I earned by beating her! In the original games, she didn't have anything to write home about on her team; just three Dragonairs and a Kingdra. At least the remakes gave her a Gyarados!
For being the last Gym leader, Giovanni was a HUGE letdown. It didn't help that you'd already beaten him twice by the time you challenged him for the Earth Badge but his typing was Ground. Ground! Pack a Flying type, he can't hit you. Pack a Water type, his ass is grass. The only Pokemon on his roster who COULD give you trouble was Nidoking in Gen 1, while in Gen 3 he trades his Rhydon for a Nidoqueen. I expected something more...epic back in Gen 1.
5. Wallace. Sootopolis City. Water Types.
Yet another disappointment for a final Gym leader, Wallace had potential. The 3rd Generation of Pokemon had no shortage of awesome Water types, from the menacing Sharpedo to the awe inspiring Wailord. Further, the first two Generations were no slouches when it came to Water types: Gyarados, Quagsire, Starmie, etc. So can someone tell me just WHY a Gym Leader would include a Luvdisc on their team!? THE weakest Water Pokemon yet! Oh, and a Seaking, too! And a Sealeo that's THIS close to being a Walrein? The only saving graces for this guy are his Wiscash and Milotic!
4. Lenora. Nacrene City. Normal Types
Whitney was a tough Gym leader whose Miltank could (and often did) destroy entire teams. Norman was a tough customer whose team of Slakings were beasts that proved hard to take down; were it not for their Truant ability, they'd be OP as hell. Until Lenora came about, Normal Type Gym leaders were two for two among the toughest of their games. Lenora, on the other hand, is some weaksauce, having only a Herdier and a Watchog on her team. Sure, they have strong attacks, but... it's a Herdier and a Watchog, come on!
3. Viola. Santalune City. Bug Types.
And the winner for easiest First Gym in the series goes to Viola! Seriously? A Surskit and a Vivillion? At least Bugsy has a Scyther! No, seriously, consider this: Brock's, Roxanne's, and Roark's Rock types would be impervious to Normal moves, which would be at least three quarters of all the moves your Pokemon would know by that point. Falkner's Pidgeotto would Mud Slap the shit out of Cyndaquil and Gust away Chikorita. In Generation 5 the first Gym would depend on which type your starter is weak to. And in Generation 6? You fight a gal with a Surskit and a Vivillion! That's a free badge, guys!
2. Blaine. Cinnabar Island. Fire Types
Pretty much the most disappointing Gym leader for me, ever. I love Fire types. I was looking forward to battling it out with a Fire type master. But by the time you get to Blaine, it's a guarantee that you'll have a roster of Water types at your disposal: Gyarados, Starmie, Cloyster, Dewgong, among others will be available to you. Or if you preferred, you could use a Rock or Ground type against Blaine. The man's simply outclassed like heck by the time you get to him. Heck, I could even say the key to not losing to Blaine is not to use Grass against him.
1. Claire. Blackthorn City. Dragon Types.
THIS CHICK! Oh boy do I have words for her. It's not enough that she's not that strong; this chick has the AUDACITY to send me on some goose hunt so I can have the Badge I earned by beating her! In the original games, she didn't have anything to write home about on her team; just three Dragonairs and a Kingdra. At least the remakes gave her a Gyarados!
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