The most difficult part of any Pokémon journey happens when the player has finished traveling the region and has acquired all of the Gym Badges. Once a trainer has all of the badges, then they have earned the right to challenge the Elite Four. These are the four most powerful trainers in the region and they will show you no mercy in battle.
The Elite Four always have the advantage over the player, as you are expected to fight them (followed by the Champion) without being able to heal your Pokémon. This means that you will need to bring a lot of restorative items with you if you are thinking of challenging the Elite Four.
So what exactly gives these people the right to lord it over the trainers in the region? Is it just a case of might makes right, or is there a higher power at work?
We are here today to look at the dirty secrets of the various members of the Elite Four who have appeared throughout the Pokémon series. From the dissent that took place among the Kanto Elite Four, to the true name of the organization that was left out of the English localization due to religious references.
Here are Twenty Dark Facts You Didn’t Know About The Elite Four!
20 Bruno's Mind Control
The version of the Kanto Elite Four that appeared in the Pokémon Adventures manga were villains, to the point where Lance massacred numerous citizens with his Dragonair when he blew up Vermillion City. The Elite Four were actually similar to N and Team Plasma, in that they wanted to destroy humanity save for those who were kind to Pokémon.
Bruno battled Red and his friends on several occasions, though it was later revealed that he was an unwilling participant in the Elite Four's plans. It turns out that Agatha was using her Ghost-type Pokémon to control Bruno's mind and forced him to go along with the Elite Four's evil schemes. He would later form a new Elite Four with Will, Koga, and Karen, as they had a shared bond of being unwilling members of evil teams.
19 The Words Wouldn't Fit In Her Mouth
The world of the Pokémon anime handles the Elite Four in a different manner. Winning the eight Gym Badges in a region puts you into a tournament with other trainers who have accomplished the same feat. The winner of that tournament is given an opportunity to fight the Elite Four and defeating them means opens the door to challenging the Champion.
Ash has yet to win a Pokémon League tournament, so he hasn't been given the chance to challenge the Elite Four. He has met many of them on his journey, including one that needed to have her name changed.
Ash met Prima during his journey across the Orange Islands. She was actually supposed to be Lorelei of the Kanto Elite Four, but the dubbers changed her name to make it better fit the mouth flaps.
Prima/Lorelei still managed to leave an impression, due to the sheer amount of fan service on offer in her episode.
18 The Bag Into The Bat
The Pokémon anime isn't the oldest adaptation of the video games. That title belongs to Pokémon Pocket Monsters, which is a long-running comedy series starring Red and his errant Clefairy.
In Pokémon Pocket Monsters, Agatha is a lot younger and far more attractive than how she appears in the video games. This version Agatha has the ability to transform into a Golbat.
Agatha tracks Red and his Clefairy & Pikachu onto a luxury cruise liner, in a chapter that features the three of them parodying Titanic on the cover. She becomes interested in Red's Clefairy as she wants to drain its health. This turns out to be a bad idea, as miniature versions of Clefairy burst out of her Golbat form.
17 The Champ Is A Cheating Scumbag
Lance is one of the most important characters across all of the Pokémon franchise. He featured prominently in several episodes of the anime while acting as one of the most vicious villains in Pokémon Adventures.
The version of Lance that appears in the Pokémon video games is also very important. He acts as the leader of the Elite Four in Pokémon Red & Blue, before becoming the Champion in Gold & Silver. It should come as no surprise that Lance is so successful because he is a cheating scumbag!
When you battle Lance in Red & Blue, his Dragonite knows Barrier, which is a move that Dragonite cannot normally learn. He is even worse in Gold & Silver, as his Aerodactyl knows Rock Slide, which they wouldn't be able to learn until Ruby & Sapphire. His three Dragonites are all under level 55, which is the level at which Dragonair evolves.
16 The Blade Balls
Koga is one of the few characters in the Pokémon world to ever receive a promotion. He went from being one of the Gym Leaders of Kanto to becoming a member of the Elite Four. Koga would leave the Fuschia Gym in the hands of his daughter, Janine.
In the Pokémon Adventures manga, Koga was actually a member of Team Rocket. His battle against Red in the Pokémon Tower in Lavender Town has become infamous, due to the fact that he created horrific Pokémon zombies that Red was forced to destroy, in order to put their souls to rest.
Koga is one of the few characters in the Pokémon franchise to use customised Pokéballs. Koga's Pokéballs resemble shurikens, which makes it easier for him to throw them.
15 The Attractive Shauntal
The Pokémon franchise has always been aimed at kids, but the series has still undergone censorship when it came to people not wearing clothes. This is due to different values between Japan and the rest of the world, which has led to Pokémon cards depicting an unclothed Misty and James of Team Rocket wearing a lady suit with a giant inflatable chest.
The various Pokémon mangas have generally featured more fan service, due to the looser restrictions on the print industry. One example of this happened to Shauntal of the Unova Elite Four. In the games, Shauntal wears an outfit that covers her body. In Pokémon Adventures, Shauntal wears a short top that prominently shows off her chest, which she shows off through posing.
14 The Vampire Master
As of Pokémon Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon, we have yet to see a Dark-type Gym in the Pokémon series. We have seen Gyms of every other type, including Fairy-types which have only existed for a few years.
We have seen several Dark-type leaders across the various Elite Fours - Karen of Johto, Sidney of Hoenn, and Grimsley of Unova.
Grimsley is the most popular member of the Unova Elite Four among the fans. This is due to his design, as he was purposely based on the classic version of Dracula from the Universal movies. His color scheme is also based on a roulette wheel, which is linked to Grimsley's gambling theme. This means that Grimsley is supposed to be a vampire card shark.
13 The Anime Crew
There is no denying that the most important Game Boy games of all time were Tetris and Pokémon Red & Blue. Tetris helped to sell the console, due to it being one of the best puzzle games of all time, while Pokémon Red & Blue helped to show off what the system could do in its later years.
It was only natural that the worlds of Tetris and Pokémon would cross over. Pokémon Puzzle League was a Pokémon-themed remake of Tetris Attack for the Nintendo 64.
The version of the Elite Four that appeared in Pokémon Puzzle League actually included prominent characters from the Pokémon anime. Gary Oak and Ritchie both served as members of the Elite Four in Pokémon Puzzle League.
12 The Shifty Shiftry
The first member of the Hoenn Elite Four is Sidney, who specializes in Dark-type Pokémon. This was likely to show off all of the new Dark-type Pokémon that were introduced in Ruby & Sapphire, such as Absol and Cacturne.
In Japan, the Dark-type is referred to as Evil-type. Sidney certainly lives up to this type, as he cheats during his battle against you.
When you battle Sidney in Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire, he will use a level 48 Shiftry against you. This Shiftry can use Extrasensory, which they normally cannot learn until level 49. Extrasensory also cannot be passed on through breeding, as Seedot cannot learn the move.
Sidney was finally made honest in Pokémon Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire, as Nuzleaf can now learn Extrasensory at level 36.
11 Glacia Needs To Be Locked Up
Romance isn't something that comes up a lot in the Pokémon franchise. The people in the Pokémon world aren't even sure how breeding works, especially when a Wailord can have babies with the likes of Dedenne and Skitty.
We rarely see any romantic action with the protagonists of the Pokémon games, which is likely because they are supposed to be eleven-year-old boys and girls.
It seems that age is just a number to Glacia of the Hoenn Elite Four, especially if her rematch defeat quotes are anything to go by. Glacia tells you that you are melting her heart and that she doesn't mind. We can only hope that there is a Chris Hansen in the Pokémon world to arrest Glacia.
10 The Pointless Mega Evolution
Drake is the Dragon-type using leader of the Hoenn Elite Four. He is one of the most powerful trainers in the third generation of games, which is partly due to his vicious Salamence. Drake's Salamence has been known to take down entire teams on its own.
If you face Drake in a rematch in Pokémon Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire, then he will Mega Evolve his Salamence. This move turns out to be mostly pointless, as Salamence's ability changes to Aerilate, which changes Normal-type moves into Flying-type moves and increases their power.
Drake's Salamence doesn't actually have any Normal-type moves to improve with Aerilate, so it loses Intimidate in exchange for an ability that has no purpose. It only knows Crunch, Dragon Rush, Thunder Fang, and Zen Headbutt.
9 The Cheating Vampire
It seems that cheating is a recurring theme among the Elite Four, as some of the most powerful trainers in the Pokémon world use deceptive tactics in order to win.
Grimsley of the Unova Elite Four joins the ranks of Lance and Sidney when it comes to using illegally under-leveled Pokémon. His signature Pokémon in Black & White is a level 50 Bisharp. This is an illegal Pokémon, as Pawniard doesn't evolve until level 52.
The Bisharp situation was resolved in Pokémon Black 2 & White 2, as all of the battles against Grimsley feature a Bisharp that is over level 54. He went back to cheating in Pokémon Sun & Moon, as Grimsley can use a level 50 Bisharp in the Battle Tree.
8 Pryce's Deception
The Pokémon Adventures manga featured a mysterious villain during the Gold & Silver story arc known as the Masked Man. This person took over Team Rocket when Giovanni tried to disband it. The Masked Man captured several children and trained them to be his personal Pokémon-using soldiers.
It was revealed that the Masked Man was actually Pryce, who was also the leader of the Mahogany Gym. He raised Karen and Will for the purpose of turning them into his servants.
When Karen and Will broke free from Pryce's control, they ended up forming a new Elite Four with Bruno and Koga from Kanto, which was sanctioned by the Pokémon organization. They had a shared relationship, due to their past connections to evil teams.
7 The Vicious Sisters
It is implied that Agatha had an interesting life before she joined the Elite Four. She has a prior connection to Professor Oak, whom she claimed was once a handsome trainer who gave it all up to pursue his scientific career. We can only hope that the Pokémon series covers this period of time in a future game.
The fans have speculated that there is a connection between Agatha and Bertha from the Hoenn Elite Four. This was originally because of their similar ages and names.
Shauntal of the Unova Elite Four added fuel to these rumors, as she points out the physical similarities between Agatha and Bertha. Is this something that will be mentioned in future games or is just another piece of fan service that Game Freak will never follow up on?
6 The Student & Master
Brawly is one of the most difficult Gym Leaders to battle in Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire. This is due to the fact that all of his Pokémon know Bulk Up, which increases the Attack and Defense stats of its user. The Brawly fight is the only the second Gym battle of the game, which means that you likely won't have anything that can counter his stat-boosting tactics.
It makes sense that Brawly is better than your average Gym Leader, as you can find out that he trained alongside Bruno of the Kanto Elite Four. Brawly was once Bruno's student, which explains their similar preferences when it comes to Pokémon.
Marshal of the Unova Elite Four also has a similar student/master relationship with Alder.
5 The Missing Masters
Like the Gym Leaders who operate in each region, the members of the Elite Four tend to focus on a single type in battle. There are a few who use two types, like how Bruno specializes in both Rock-types and Fighting-types, but they tend to stick to a theme regardless.
In the main Pokémon games, we have seen twenty-seven different members of the Elite Four. Among those members, we have yet to see someone who specializes in Grass-type, Fairy-type, or Normal-type Pokémon. This is most surprising with Normal-type Pokémon, as they have made for some of the most powerful Pokémon in the series. An Elite Four member who used Chansey, Kangaskhan, Linoone, Miltank, and Snorlax would be someone to fear.
4 Ash Has Never Come Close...
Ash Ketchum still hasn't won a Pokémon League tournament. As such, he has yet to earn the right to challenge any of the Elite Fours. He has encountered many of their individual members throughout his journey and has even aided them with their problems.
There have been a few times when Ash challenged a member of an Elite Four. He got squashed each time by the likes of Agatha and Drake. We should probably be happy that Ash hasn't won a Pokémon League tournament yet, as he has been spared the embarrassment of being flattened again.
Ash did defeat Koga in a Gym battle, but this was before Koga had joined the Elite Four, so it doesn't count as beating one of their members.
3 Flint's Fire Starter, Twisted Fire Starter
One of the recurring elements in the Pokémon video games is that the Starter Pokémon cannot be found in the wild and usually only reside in the hands of the player and their rivals. This might be an effort to make the Starters seem more special and powerful than they actually are.
Of all of the Elite Four members that you see throughout the series, only one of them actually uses the evolved form of a Starter Pokémon. Flint of the Sinnoh Elite Four uses an Infernape on his team, which is the final form of Chimchar. The Fire-type Starter of Pokémon Diamond & Pearl is Chimchar, which means that there might be a scenario where two powerful Infernapes clash during the final battle of your match against Flint.
2 The Lunar Knights Reference
The Pokémon series has always been filled with references to movies, TV shows, and other video games. The main character's house in Pokémon Red & Blue has a reference to the movie Stand By Me on the TV, which shows that Game Freak was open to giving shout-outs from the start.
One of the most unusual references happened in the English version of Pokémon Diamond & Pearl. Two members of the Sinnoh Elite Four were named after the protagonists of another Nintendo DS game.
Aaron and Lucian were named after the main characters of Lunar Knights. This was an action game produced by Hideo Kojima. This reference to Lunar Knights was exclusive to the English version of the game, as Diamond & Pearl was released before Lunar Knights in Japan.
1 The True Name Of The Elite Four
A lot of names and terms were changed in the English localization of the Pokémon franchise. One of the biggest was changing the Doctors into Professors. That's right: Professor Oak has a doctorate, though it isn't clear if he is a doctor in humans or Pokémon.
One name change that turned out for the worse was the Elite Four. In Japan, they have the much more awesome name of The Four Heavenly Kings. This is a name used in a lot of Japanese media, as it relates to four Buddhist gods. The Four Heavenly Kings was also the title used by Balrog, M. Bison, Sagat, and Vega in Street Fighter II.
The most likely reason for the name being changed was due to removing overt religious references, which Nintendo tends to do a lot. The name also doesn't make any sense, as every version of the Elite Four has included a mixture of men and women.