Iris (anime)

Iris is a character appearing in , who was one of Ash's traveling companions in the Unova region. She takes on the role similar to Misty's. As such, a running gag consists of her calling Ash a little kid, more recently just to tease him which annoys him. In Pokémon Journeys: The Series, she is revealed to have become the Champion of Unova and becomes one of the eight best Trainers in the world within the World Coronation Series, currently being ranked 7th.
==Appearance==
===Black & White===
===Journeys===
==Personality==
Iris is seen to be a wild girl as she likes swinging on vines and eating Berries. She is shown to have pride in her role as a Pokémon Trainer, as shown when Ash fails to catch a Pokémon and she calls him a little kid. She is quite similar to Misty but seems to be more energetic. She has the dream of becoming the greatest Dragon Master and believes that dragons are good. Like dragons, Iris has been shown to be afraid of Ice-type Pokémon. This has shown in and relatively Ice types are the weakness of Dragon Types.
==Etymology==
==Skills==
Iris is an excellent vine swinger, which shows that she's very athletic. She can also fish, make medicine to help Pokémon that are sick or injured and is a great battler.
Iris has the ability to read -type Pokémon's thoughts and feelings. She can also sense where they are located as well.
==Relationships==
===Friends===
====Elder====
Iris has known the village Elder her whole life and looks up to her. Also, Iris would go to the Elder for advice and has given her a lot of wisdom to help her become a great Dragon master someday.
====Shannon====
Shannon is Iris' best friend as they known each other since they were little. Iris supports Shannon and her ambitions. Also, Iris with her friends help encourage Shannon to travel around to improve her skills and to reach her goals. Iris would do anything for Shannon and she would do the same for her.
====Drayden====
Iris first meet Drayden when she was little, after she won her hometown festival tournament, as he notices her potential in her battle skills. After hearing that he's the Gym leader of Opelucid City, Iris asked Drayden to battle her and he accepts but she lost against him. However, Iris decided enroll in Drayden's school in order to learn about -type Pokémon but had a hard time fitting in. Despite it, Iris has come to see Drayden as a helpful mentor when she was training to become a -type Pokémon master. One day, Iris got scolded by Drayden for pushing her temporary Pokémon to its limits and not noticing how tired out it was. Hearing Drayden's words and can't take her life in Opelucid City anymore, Iris left without telling him and returned home. However, Iris was unaware that Drayden not only did find out that she did return home but also realized that his school isn't helping her with her talents then talk to Elder of having go on a journey to help guide her in becoming his successor one day. 
When Iris return home for a visit, Drayden sees that she has grown from her journey then challenge her to a battle in order to test her strength, which she accepted. Iris gave everything she had against Drayden but lost once again but was impressed of the friends she made and how far she came on her journey then encourage to continue her journey. After the battle, Iris found out from an old friend that Drayden was not only the one who suggest in going on her journey but also wants her to become the Opelucid Gym Leader someday. Despite this, Iris wants to consider her options before taking on Drayden's position. After retuning to Unova, Iris uses Drayden's Gym, the Opelucid City Gym, for her World Coronation Series against Ash.
====Ash====
Despite seeing Ash as a little kid sometimes, Iris does respect his skills as a Trainer and admires how much he cares about Pokémon. Like Misty, Iris teases and occasionally argues with Ash from time to time (with one of their arguments almost costing them their friendship). However, unlike Misty, Iris usually doesn't resort to actual violence when arguing with Ash, having only gone as far as to harshly throw a bitter berry at him. But no matter their ups and downs, they remain very good friends. Iris and Ash went their separate ways when she decided to continue traveling to pursue her goal while he went back home to figure out his next move to achieved his goal. However, Iris knows she'll always be friends with Ash till the end.
After parting ways, Iris became the new champion of Unova, and was participating in the World Coronation Series. During this time, Iris sent a letter to Ash (who was also competing in the World Coronation Series) for him to accept a battle. Wanting to see her again, Ash accepted her challenge. Once he reunites with her, Ash was pleased to hear about new champion status, which shows how strong their friendship still is. Although her Haxorus lost to Ash's Dragonite, she still had fun with Ash during the battle, and they both agree to battle again one day. After reaching the Master Class in the World Coronation Series, she was happy to reunite with Ash once again during the Master Eight Tournament. Ash later came to comfort her after she lost to Cynthia. Before she left back to Unova, Iris wished Ash good luck for the remainder of the tournament.
====Cilan====
Iris treats Cilan with a lot of respect and sees him as a great friend to have around. Iris can sometimes get annoyed when Cilan does some of his other hobbies saying he's a connoisseur for it but she does like how he evaluates the relationship between a Trainer and their Pokémon. Like Misty's relationship with Brock, Iris would get helpful advice from Cilan. Iris and Cilan left Kanto together before they went their separate ways in Johto but know they'll always remain friends no matter what.
==== Dawn====
Iris and Dawn are very good friends as their impress with each other's skills and abilities. Also, Iris would help Dawn just like she would help her. After the tournament they entered concluded, Iris and Dawn part ways, although they knew they'll see each other again.
===Rival===
====Georgia====
Iris and Georgia are fierce rivals as they get on each other's nerves. However, Iris does have some respect for Georgia and she has some for her as well.
===Pokémon===
====Excadrill====
Iris and Excadrill.png|Iris and Excadrill.
Young Iris and Drilbur.png|Iris and Drilbur.
Excadrill was the first Pokémon Iris ever caught and raised as they've known each other since she was little and during his time as a Drilbur. However, Iris and Excadrill didn't hit off their relationship with each other when they first meet as he was bullying the wild Pokémon and she was beaten by him. Iris kept trying to defeat Excadrill until she finally succeed but ended up saving him when he fell over. After that, Iris and Excadrill became partners and best friends. When he evolved into Excadrill, Iris ended up pushing her partner into winning a battle against Drayden but lost. After he distance himself from her as he believed that his Trainer never cared about him and felt that winning was more important then him, Iris tried to win back Excadrill's trusts back but to no avail. With Cilan's help, Iris realized why Excadrill had shunned her and tearfully apologized for her selfish actions, which made him realize that she truly did care about him. With their relationship for each other restored, Iris and Excadrill bond for each other remained unbroken.
====Haxorus====
While it was an Axew, it was Iris' Pokémon partner and was often seen riding in her long hair or shoulder. Iris deeply cares for Axew and will do anything to protect him as he would do the same for her. Also, Iris would drop everything to look for Axew and fears losing him as she doesn't want anything to happen to him.
She is shown to have trained Axew greatly until it evolved twice from Fraxure then into a Haxorus. It became one of her strongest Pokémon and was shown to easily take out Pokémon such as Ash's Dracovish during her battle against Ash for the World Coronation Series. Despite being strong, it still lost to Ash's Dragonite and she is shown comforting Haxorus after the battle.
====Emolga====
Iris first meet Emolga when she helped stop Axew's apple from rolling away. After she ran away due to her friend Bianca's attempts to capture her, Iris went after Emolga as she wanted to repay her for helping Axew. However, Iris and Emolga formed a bond with each other during their time together. Although she ran away after shocking everyone, Iris became surprised when Emolga came back but realized that she wanted to go with her then their partnership and friendship became official. Like she would for Axew, Iris would let Emolga sit on shoulder or be inside her hair but she does let her sit on her head sometimes. However, Iris does get annoyed with Emolga sometimes but still cares very much about her.
==== Dragonite====
Although they didn't get off to a great start when they first meet, Iris and Dragonite have shown to have a good relationship with each other. Dragonite has helped Iris out in many battles as it is her ace battler. It is shown to have been trained well by Iris during her World Coronation Series battle against Ash.
====Gible====
When Gible was causing trouble in Blackthorn City, Iris instantly went to figure out why. After reading his thoughts, Iris realize that Gible missed his home then brought him back there. However, Iris was secretly followed by Gible as he decided that he wanted to go with her. After finding out, Iris decided to let Gible join her and their friendship became official.
==Biography==
When she was little, Iris spent most of her time playing with wild Pokémon. One day, a Drilbur took Iris' friend Patrat's home. For ten days, Iris kept challenging the Drilbur, but Iris continued losing to it. On the tenth try, she was able to fight, but Drilbur almost fell from the top of a cliff. Iris saved him, and he became her Pokémon.
They entered the tournament of the Dragon Village and won. During the final battle, Drilbur evolved into Excadrill. However, Iris and Excadrill lost their 100th battle against Drayden, who secretly nodded to the Elder.
===Pokémon the Series: Black & White===
Iris is a wild girl that Ash met while traveling in the Unova region. Ash first encountered Iris when he mistook her hair for a Pokémon (since he saw her in a bush picking berries and used his Pokédex, which told him that the Pokémon was in her hair.) He then threw a Poké Ball at her head, and she yelled at Ash but soon became quick friends with his Pikachu, by hugging him and poking his cheeks which caused him to zap her, for Pikachu gets mad when he gets annoyed by another Trainer. Her goal used to be a secret to Ash and Cilan, though it is revealed in , that her goal was to become a dragon master. She also wishes to see the legendary Pokémon Zekrom.
Iris, like Ash, Dawn, and Misty, seemed to have her partner Pokémon stay out of its Poké Ball on most occasions. Her partner Pokémon is Axew, the Tusk Pokémon. However, despite the fact, it doesn't go into its Poké Ball and Axew just jumped into Iris' hair whenever she decided to actively go somewhere.
She is bold and adventurous. She appeared to be a wild child and had been seen swinging from vines in the forests to get from place to place. She also seemed to have very good reflexes in avoiding attacks. Like Misty at the start of their journey, Ash is in the dark that Iris may or may not be a Gym Leader. Also, like Misty, Iris thought Ash was a little kid but helped him out since he doesn't know a lot about the Unova region.
She met Georgia, her rival, who defeated her when they first battled. She also told Ash and Cilan of how she obtained her Excadrill: When she was younger she played with all the Pokémon in the forest and learned that a bully Drilbur stole a Patrat's food.
Iris entered the Don Battle Tournament and won the Wing Set. Iris cheered on for Ash in his Gym Battle with Elesa. Then she and Ash had some fun in Nimbasa City visiting all the attractions. Iris also met Champion Alder, had the opportunity to befriend some Deino that belonged to other Trainers, and she also dressed as a shrine maiden to summon Landorus.
Iris appeared to be glad that the Opelucid City Gym was temporarily closed, meaning that she may be the Gym Leader there. She visited her hometown and helped her friend tame her Hydreigon, after which she was challenged by Drayden, but was defeated.
Iris entered the Junior Cup. Her first round was against her rival, Georgia. Iris used Dragonite and Georgia used Beartic. Despite Dragonite not listening to her, Iris defeats Georgia and advances to the quarter-finals. In the 2nd round, she battled Dawn. Dawn used her Mamoswine and Iris used her Dragonite again. Dragonite listened to her at first, but he disobeyed her again. Despite that, Iris defeats Dawn and advances to the semi-finals. In the semi-finals, Iris battled Ash. Ash used his Krokorok and Iris used her Dragonite. During the battle, Dragonite started to listen to Iris which was why she was winning. The battle took a turn when Ash's Krokorok evolved into Krookodile. Ash's Krookodile learned Dragon Claw and he used it on Dragonite, which was super-effective. After he had been hit by that attack, Dragonite started to lose control. Ash's Krookodile then used Crunch on Dragonite. Still not listening to Iris, Dragonite used Dragon Rush, which Ash's Krookodile dodged by using Dig. Then he jumped out and used Stone Edge, which was also super-effective. That attack knocked out Dragonite, giving Ash the win, and Iris was eliminated from the Junior Cup.
Jervis suggested going through Opelucid City to get to the Unova League in Vertress City. Iris quickly said she would rather pass through the Village of Dragons, supporting the fact that she had been trying to avoid Opelucid City. Ash and Cilan agreed, to Iris' relief. Later in the episode, she made them dress as women to get revenge on three women who had called her Pokémon "unattractive." After arriving at the village, she had her Axew examined by the elder, and she gave it her seal of approval. After dealing with a Hydreigon that belonged to her friend, Drayden challenged her to a battle, which she accepted. At Opelucid City, she explained that she didn't fit in with the other kids. After the battle, it is revealed that Iris was to eventually succeed Drayden as the new Opelucid City Gym Leader.
After the events with N, she joined Ash and Cilan on their journey to the Decolore Islands. Along the way, she got into a fight with Ash but they made up, after realizing they overreacted and how much of a good friend they are to each other.
Following their adventures in the Decolore Islands, Iris decided to travel to Vermilion City, where she hoped to meet and train all Dragon-type Pokémon and became the next Dragon Master. She is last seen boarding a train that goes to Vermilion City with Cilan, bidding Ash and Alexa farewell.
Iris eventually traveled to Johto's Blackthorn City to battle Clair, where she encountered a wild Gible causing trouble. After saving him, she sensed how he ended up in town and was told by Clair that he might have come from the Dragons' Holy Land. After bringing him back, they returned to the gym; Iris was surprised to find Gible came to cheer her on. Using Dragonite against Clair's Druddigon, Iris sensed his thoughts but still lost. Outside, she managed to catch Gible and left Blackthorn City before following a wild Rayquaza to find out where it's going.
===Pokémon Journeys: The Series===
Ash and Goh travelled to Opelucid City in the Unova region, as Iris sent a letter to Ash to challenge him to a World Coronation Series battle. She revealed that she became the Pokémon Champion of the Unova region, taking the place of Alder. She had also trained her Axew well, as it evolved into Haxorus while Ash was traveling elsewhere. She used her Haxorus and Dragonite to battle Ash's Dracovish and Dragonite, to which Ash was victorious. During the battle, she sensed the feelings of Ash's Dragonite when it was calm before the battle and enraged during the battle. During this time, she also wished to continue battling to become stronger, even stronger than her position as Unova Champion.
In , Iris was revealed to have advanced to the Master Class, being ranked as the seventh.
In , Iris went up against Cynthia using a team of Excadrill, Dragonite and Haxorus. Unlike the other competitors, Iris did not have Z-Moves, Mega Evolution, or Dynamax/Gigantamax and lost to Cynthia, but despite this, her Pokémon were able to knock out two of Cynthia's Pokémon.
==Pokémon==
===On hand===
===Traveling with===
=== Temporary===
===Befriended===
==Voice actors== 
*Dutch: Sophie Hoeberechts
*Spanish: Belen Rodriguez
*Mandarin Chinese: Lin Meixiu
*Finnish: Saara Aalto
*Brazilian Portuguese: Agatha Paulita
* Latin American Spanish: Susana Moreno
* Polish: Justyna Bojczuk
==Achievements==
*Don George Battle Tournament: Winner
*Clubsplosion: Top 8 (Loses to Montgomery)
*Pokémon World Tournament Junior Cup: Top 4 (Loses to Ash)
*Wishing Bell Festival: 4th place
*Marine Cup Tournament: Top 16
*Grand Harvest Festival Pokémon Sumo Tournament: Top 16
=== World Coronation Series===
*Rank: Unknown (Great Class; )
*Rank: 7 (Master Class; )
*Masters Tournament: Top 8 ()
==Trivia==
* Iris is named after the Iris Flower which is a native flower to Africa and North America. Also in Greek mythology, Iris is the goddess of the rainbow.
*Iris is Ash's first Traveling companion to become a regional Pokémon Champion.
**Iris also the second main character in the anime series to become a regional Pokémon Champion, the first being Ash Ketchum.
**Iris is also the first regional Pokémon Champion that Ash have defeated in battle, followed by Steven Stone, Cynthia and Leon.
*Iris is the first main character in the anime series to: keep her Japanese name.
*Iris is the first major female character to:
**Be from Unova.
**Have caught or received a and -type Pokémon.
**Have caught or received a pure -type Pokémon.
**Have caught a member or more from the Generation V group.
**Have battled a regional Champion.
**Have a Pseudo and Semi-Pseudo Legendary Pokémon.
**Have a fully evolved and -type.
**Have more than one and -type.
**Have become a regional Champion.
*Iris and Axew are similar to Zoroark and Zorua in . Axew loves to hide in Iris' hair, same as Zorua. Iris leaps around the way Zoroark did. Iris' hair is the same style as Zoroark.
*Iris is Ash's first female companion that didn't have a bike. Because of this, Iris stopped the running gag of getting the female companion's bike electrocuted by Pikachu.
* Excadrill is Iris' only Pokémon that isn't weak to the -type.
*Iris is the only human character to keep a Pokémon in her hair. 
**Coincidentally, Iris' non--type Pokémon (Excadrill and Emolga) were both seen stealing food from Patrat.
*Iris is the first female character not to appear in the next anime series after her departure.
*Iris is very similar to the character Misty. Both are female characters that travel alongside Ash and another male character. Both have a fear of a certain type of Pokémon (Iris has a fear of -types while Misty has a fear of -types). They both own Pokémon on hand still capable of evolving (Iris owns Gible while Misty owns Staryu & Psyduck) and both also own a -type Pokémon introduced in Generation I (Iris owns Dragonite while Misty owns Gyarados).
*Iris is the second female main character to travel to Johto at the end of the series after travelling alongside Ash, the first one being May.
*Much like May, Dawn and Goh, Iris also owns a Pokémon that Ash has captured.
==Gallery==
==See also==
*Iris (Generations)
*Iris (Masters trailer)
==References==
pl:Iris (anime)
Category:Ash's companions
Category:Main characters
Category:Pokémon movie characters
Category:Junior Cup Competitors
Category:Masters Eight