Pokémon: Why Brock Left The Anime

Brock was one of the core protagonists in the Pokémon anime, and an extremely popular character, which left many viewers wondering why he eventually left the show. Pokémon is one of the longest-running animated television programs, running consistently for over 1,100 episodes, 23 feature films, and multiple spin-off series. Over the course of the series, main character Ash Ketchum and his partner Pikachu have traveled with a multitude of companions. Brock was the first and longest-running companion of the show, only being outdone by Team Rocket, and Ash and Pikachu themselves for the largest number of episode appearances in the series.

Before permanently exiting his role as a main companion at the end of the Diamond & Pearl series arc, Brock had previously left for short periods of time. The first instance of this occurring was with the Adventures in the Orange Islands arc, after the original Indigo League season. At this point in time, Brock chose to stay behind to work with one Professor Ivy on Valencia Island to further his goal to become a Pokémon breeder. In the wake of Brock’s disappearance, writers created a replacement companion for Ash in the form of an artist named Tracey Sketchit. This change was made, as Pokémon director and storyboard artist Masamitsu Hidaka explains in an interview, due to fears by the show’s creators that Brock’s thin eyes would be seen as a racist stereotype. Sketchit’s replacement of Brock was not positively received by viewers, however, and so at the end of the Orange Islands arc, Sketchit remained behind as Professor Oak’s new assistant, while Brock returned from Valencia Island to travel to the Johto region with Ash and Misty for reasons that were never explained in detail.

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As Brock traveled the world with Ash and Pikachu, his passion for Pokémon breeding evolved into a desire to become a Pokémon doctor, which ultimately became the main in-universe reason the character left the show. Brock was Ash’s most consistent companion, not leaving for a period of more than a few episodes from TheJohto Journeys season up and through the end of the Diamond & Pearl: Sinnoh League Victors season, after which Brock decided to leave the group to attend Pokémon medical school.

Despite the character’s decision to leave, he remained one of the series’ most popular characters. He made short appearances in both the Black & White, and Sun & Moon series alongside other previous companions such as Misty. Up to the present day, Pokémon: XY remained the only series in the program’s history to not show or mention Brock in at least one episode.

Brock’s decision to leave Ash’s team in order to become a Pokémon doctor may have, understandably, created disappointment in the hearts of viewers. However, Pokémon, from its very first episode, was a series that focused heavily on the themes of determination, friendship, and achieving one’s dreams. Most of Ash’s companions over the course of the series’ history had left to further their own life aspirations. Brock was shown to be a happy, successful healer in his one-shot appearances after his departure as a series regular.  Watching a beloved character develop in such a positive way was a beautiful thing indeed.

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