As the name suggests, Pokémon is about the huge selection of cute, fierce, and loyal pocket monsters we've come to love over the past 30+ years. There are over a thousand species and counting, and together they've driven the success of one of the biggest franchises on the planet in anime, trading cards, video games, and much more.

But what about humans? While humans aren't the series' titular character, they play a huge role. From Ash and Brock to Lillie and Lana, humans are still central characters in the world of Pokémon, so we ranked all major humans featured in the original anime series for it's entire run.

Updated on August 27, 2026, by Niall Walsh: We're revisiting this guide to double-check our rankings. As Pokémon continues to grow in popularity year-on-year, more and more people are discovering the original anime, and views on characters can change over time.

Ash's journey to Alola came packed with the largest core cast of characters in any given era of the anime. Some fans praise this generation for bringing such a diverse group together and giving them all a measure of development.

Sophocles is the gang's weak link, and ultimately the weakest link on this list. The Sun & Moon seasons were clearly pitched as an ensemble approach, but Sophocles never changes. He's tedious at best and downright frustrating otherwise. The writers may have intended to remind us, through Sophocles, that not everyone is an Ash-tier hero. Some fear the unknown. That's totally fair, but it could have been conveyed through someone far less irritating.

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