No one ever forgets who Misty was in the magical show of a whole new world filled with cute creatures and challenges that teach valuable lessons! Misty was always one of the most memorable characters of the series, and even though she was taken out of the show pretty early on, she made a lasting impression. Most likely her lasting impression came from her very stand-out personality and the fact that she was a girl who knew what she wanted and stood up for what she believed in.

While she does have a very harsh personality at times and sometimes might even be annoying simply because of her quirks, she was a character we love for many different reasons. Aside from her out-there personality, she represented something so much more important to those who watched the show, even if they were just little kids. Misty taught all of those who liked the show that she was capable and she would prove people wrong constantly.

Even though we’ll be diving into her reasoning for being on the show later on in the list, at least from an outside perspective, it’s refreshing to see how she impacted the show for the rest of its airing. Misty might be a little bit misunderstood, but she continues to represent so much and influenced so many other shows with strong female leads as well, without a doubt she made a difference in the real world. We want to explore the history and fun facts of Misty with you, let’s get started!

25 She Hasn't Always Had Everything She Wants

Misty might seem like a strong girl that knows exactly what she wants in life, but the truth is, it didn't start off like that. She actually has had a very troubled past and childhood.

We all have had our pasts, but it’s nice to see Misty actually do something with her life instead of letting it affect her for the rest of her years.

When she was just a child her parents left her because they had to be in charge of their gym. It’s a harsh story that was never really explained deeper in the show.

24 She's Not As Old As She Looks

Even though she has her signs of anger issues, and even though she seems like the oldest and most mature, she’s actually only ten years old when the show starts. While it might be shocking that she’s the youngest, it should also be said that it’s very obvious that she’s quite a bit smarter than others in her group especially at her age, which is super inspiring! Even in danger she stays with her friends and fights through it! Impressive.

23 She Has A Surprising Amount Of Suitors

Just like many animated shows, there are certain episodes that are banned because of certain strange themes in them, such as guys having crushes on Misty! Talk about creepy and just plain gross. Let’s hope the show learned their lesson and keeps this out of any shows in the future, it’s never acceptable to have this kind of theme in a show of any kind! Not cool. Let’s move on now instead of spending any more time on this.

22 She Isn't Just "One Of The Boys"

Even though Misty is the only girl in the group at the start of the show, it was obvious that she was just treated like another boy and she wanted to be treated like a girl.

Misty is always striving to be the best she can but she does struggle with doubt in her abilities, but she shows us all that she is willing to push through it and really grow as a person as well. Even in the manga version she complains about this issue that really bothers her.

21 She's More Like Jessie

Her and Jessie actually have a lot in common that isn't exactly explored much in the show. They constantly share parallels between each other that we assume was written in the show on purpose. Many have said that it's just bad writing that these two characters are so alike, but it seems to run much deeper than many casual fans might think. Maybe they will touch on this theme later on in a new series, we can only hope at this point.

20 She Was Never A Leader

In the Japanese version of the show, it was never a part of the story that Misty would be a gym leader. She was never meant to be a leader of any kind in that version of the show, which makes me thankful that in the US and international versions of the show, she was made the gym leader she was meant to be even if some people don’t agree. Even though she can be full of emotion, she seemed to always have this in her destiny, if we’re being honest.

19 Her Looks Have Changed

From the trading cards to the different versions of the show, it’s always been quite noticeable when Misty has had a change in her appearance. Not only does she have many different hairstyles that are just a bit off from the one we know and love. She also dresses slightly different and even on some of the cards it shows her with nothing, even though that was banned in many countries. One thing is for sure, she always has had her orange hair that has made her iconic!

18 She’s Very Picky (About Food)

One thing about Misty that really gave her a bit of a quirk is how picky she was when it came to food. Even though the group of kids traveled everywhere, Misty still pretty much chooses to eat the same things when other characters like trying new foods any chance they get. Most of all she seriously hates, HATES, carrots and peppers; she would never be caught eating any kind of food with this kind of stuff in it, no thank you.

17 She Actually Loves Ash

While it might not have been originally that cool that Misty was pretty much put in the show to keep the attention of boys, it was also a given that she loved Ash. It was so obvious that she had a crush on Ash even if nothing really ever came of it, because of the show being for kids. We can only wonder what might have happened if things did work out between them. How cute would that be! Maybe they would even get married in the future too.

16 What Almost Ends You Makes You Stronger

To think that if Misty got captured, you would probably assume it would be by bug Pokémon, but that's not the case. It was actually by a water Pokémon known as Squirtle, and water Pokémon happen to be her favorite Pokémon. They stole her during one of the episodes and the team had to save her. We don't want to spoil the whole story because there's much more to it, but it sure is an iconic episode everyone knows if they've seen the series.

15 Why She Was Used On The Show

People who created the show referred to Misty as being simply eye candy for the young boys who watched the show. The director of the show said that! While that’s not appropriate by any means, we are glad that it somewhat backfired and she turned out to inspire and bring so much more to the show than just the two boy characters in the first few seasons. Hopefully this taught them a lesson that girls are more than just something for attention.

14 A Change Overseas

There is another big difference between the US version of the show and also the Japanese version of the show. Misty is constantly shown slapping people when she gets angry in the Japanese version, while it was changed in the US version to her just getting angry without slapping anyone.

Even though it’s not shown in the American version of the show, she does actually slap quite a few people in the original Japanese version.

We’re glad they decided to change it for the better, kids don’t need to see that!

13 Covering It Up

In Japan, the manga based story and the Japanese version of the show always featured Misty wearing pretty revealing clothes. It was always super cropped shirts and also very short shorts that didn’t even look like shorts. There were also many cards that featured her being unclothed while holding her Pokémon, it was completely uncalled for and we’re glad that it was changed later on. Not cool for a character like her.

12 She’s Better Than Ash

Misty is a ton of different things, but one thing many people have agreed on is that she is a deeper character than Ash who sometimes comes off as too plain and bland.

If we’re being completely honest with ourselves, of course Misty is more interesting and more capable than Ash! Right? Joking! They’re both amazing characters that deserve the spotlight. Not to mention she won more competitions during the duration of the show compared to Ash as well.

11 Showing Her Green Side

Of course we know that Misty has some anger issues, but because she loves Ash so much one of her regular personality traits would have to be being constantly jealous.

She is always very full of emotion which can be a good thing, but it is interesting to see how it evolves over time during the process of the series.

Misty constantly feels like she never gets attention from Ash and it's honestly true; he always crushes on other girls.

10 Bringing The Water Team

Ash and Misty both have the exact same number of water Pokémon with them. Misty wants to be a Pokémon master specifically focusing on water Pokémon, she loves them so much, so it might be a conspiracy theory to think that this little easter egg was put into the show to prove that they’re meant to be together.

Maybe it means that they really are meant to be together!

Maybe it means something and maybe it doesn’t; it could just be a coincidence.

9 Spooked By Gyarados

There are some seriously large Pokémon out there, it’s only natural that some might be a bit scary when you’re caught off guard. But did you know that Gyarados, the huge water Pokémon that looks like a dragon actually scared Misty. Even though she loves all water Pokémon, this one really scared her because she had almost been eaten by one when she was a kid. But she did end up catching one and warming up to it over time.

8 More Than Friends

While it never came up in a very obvious way, it was quite clear that there was a bit of a crush going on between Ash and Misty. It was never straight out said, but people sure enough shipped them so hard together. It’s been rumored that because of a leaked trailer for a movie that was never made, it seemed like Ash gave his Pokémon to his daughter which looked like Misty, so maybe they ended up having a child together, how crazy would that have been!?

7 Her Main Purpose In The Show

It’s been known for quite some time now that Misty was introduced to the show because she was meant to attract more boys to watch the show. Her main reason for being on the show might not be the coolest, it might even make people mad, but at least she meant so much more to those who looked up to her. But even though her character was one of the best on the show, it still wasn’t cool that that was her purpose.

6 She Has Siblings

Because her parents left her when she was a kid, she was left with her three sisters. She never really fit in with her sisters because they were always very girly and Misty always came off as a tomboy. While she wanted to fit in, she never did, she always seemed like a stranger compared to the relationship her three sisters had together. She must have hated it a lot because she never went to visit home when she left with Ash and Brock.