Professor Oak (anime)

Professor Samuel Oak (Japanese: オーキド・ユキナリ博士 Dr. Yukinari Okido) is a Pokémon Professor and a major supporting character of who lives and works at his research lab in Pallet Town. He appears semi-regularly to give Ash Ketchum advice to help him achieve his goal of becoming the greatest Pokémon Master.
In addition to his role in the animated series, he also appears in bonus segments exclusive to the Japanese versions, where he hosts various informative lectures: Pokémon Lecture, Big Pokémon Encyclopedia, Big Pokémon Examination, Pokémon Live Caster, and Pokémon Holo Caster.
==In animation==
===Pokémon the Series===
====History====
=====Pre-series=====
In Will the Real Oak Please Stand Up?, Professor Oak mentioned that his childhood nickname was "Flying Finger Sammy" because he was particularly good at playing video games.
At some point, Oak was a lecturer at Celadon University, where Foster was one of his top students. In Professor Elm's debut, he mentioned that he was one of Oak's top performing students at the university. In Spell of the Unown: Entei, it was revealed that Oak also taught Spencer Hale and 's mother .
In Fossil Fools, Professor Oak mentioned that he decided to become a Pokémon Professor after seeing the fossil of an shell during a museum visit.
Four years before the start of the series, Professor Oak hosted a Pokémon Summer Camp, where he lectured the many attendees including Goh and Chloe about Pokémon. After hearing about Goh and Chloe's encounter with an unknown Pokémon, Oak told them the Pokémon they saw was most likely the Mythical Pokémon , inspiring Goh to catch Mew one day. Some time later, he would host another camp, which was attended by Ash and .
==========
Professor Oak debuted in Pokémon, I Choose You!, appearing on a late night television show explaining the three first partner Pokémon that Pokémon Trainers would receive. The next day, three Trainers from Pallet Town, including his grandson, Gary Oak, came to his lab, ready to become Pokémon Trainers. Oak gave them each a first partner Pokémon, including giving Gary his , though this wasn't revealed until much later in the series. Later that same day, Ash came to him as he was also starting his Pokémon journey and needed his first Pokémon. But because he was so late, the only Pokémon that Oak had left was a rebellious .
In Pokémon Emergency, Oak called the Viridian City Pokémon Center after hearing that Ash had already made it there from his mother. He stated how he was surprised that he had made it that far, and expressed doubts he had when Ash first left. Mentioning making a bet of a million dollars with Gary that Ash hadn't captured any new Pokémon, he was disappointed to hear that this was indeed true and he had lost the bet with his grandson. When Ash told him that he had seen an , which resembled the , he waved it away as nonsense, saying that Trainers have searched their whole lives for that Pokémon, and none have succeeded.
Over the course of Ash and Gary's journeys, Professor Oak took care of the Pokémon they captured that were sent to his lab. He would often gloat about how much farther ahead his grandson was to Ash like in Mystery at the Lighthouse, which often caused Ash to be extra competitive. During the Indigo Plateau Conference, Oak became greatly disappointed when he discovered that Gary had lost in the third round, but decided to look on the bright side, telling and that it would do Gary good to see "every road has a few bumps along the way." He had arrived with Ash's mother with the goal of cheering Ash on in mind.
Following the Indigo Plateau Conference, Professor Oak asked Ash to pick up a mysterious Poké Ball from his friend, Professor Ivy, who lives on Valencia Island in the Orange Islands. He wasn't at all surprised when Ash called him asking if he could compete in the Orange League. Though he wanted to study the GS Ball, he also wanted Ash to compete in the league so that he can get more training. During Ash's adventures in the Orange Islands, he befriended a Pokémon Watcher by the name of Tracey Sketchit who was a great admirer of Professor Oak. When the group returned to Pallet Town in The Rivalry Revival, Tracey asked if he could become his assistant, which Oak graciously accepted.
==========
Not being able to discover the mystery behind the GS Ball, Professor Oak called for Ash's assistance once more and asked him to travel to the Johto region and give the Ball to his friend Kurt. He also explained that there were many new Pokémon out west which made Ash all the more eager to go and catch up with his rival, Gary. Ash completed this task in Going Apricorn!, leaving the GS Ball in Kurt's possession for further study.
In Will the Real Oak Please Stand Up?, Oak and his friend DJ Mary announced they were going to broadcast a live show in Maroon Town. got wind of this and disguised themselves as Oak and Mary. With the help of Nurse Joy, a quiz show determined who was the real Oak and Mary.
In Hatch Me If You Can, Professor Oak and Delia traveled to New Bark Town to catch up with Professor Elm, and also to see Ash before the upcoming Silver Conference. The trio's dinner plans were interrupted after a nearby Pokémon Center alerted them to an issue with Ash's newly hatched . Oak and Elm were then able to stabilize Larvitar's body temperature.
Professor Oak, along with Delia, traveled to to watch Ash and his grandson Gary compete in the Silver League Conference, from A Claim to Flame! to Johto Photo Finish.
After learning Ash was traveling to the Hoenn region, Professor Oak gave him an updated Pokédex and wished him the best of luck.
==========
In Gonna Rule the School, Oak was lecturing the students of 's Pokémon Trainers' School via satellite.
Oak traveled to Hoenn in A Six Pack Attack! to meet with Professor Birch for the first time and brought along the Kanto first partner Pokémon as they interacted with the Hoenn first partner Pokémon. Max was particularly excited to meet his idol in person, but the meeting was interrupted when kidnapped both the Hoenn and Kanto first partner Pokémon. Oak, , and Max followed Team Rocket to their cave headquarters and later worked together to escape the facility with the first partner Pokémon.
In The Right Place and The Right Mime, Professor Oak noticed that one of his felt most comfortable being with May, and offered it for her to raise into a strong Pokémon. He also agreed to look after her after seeing that it was interested in learning from Ash's own .
In The Unbeatable Lightness of Seeing!, when Ash was still recovering from his defeat at the Battle Pyramid, Professor Oak brought him a special package meant to cheer him up, containing a poster with the prints of , a fishing lure from , and food from . He also handed Ash a postcard from and told him that his grandson was doing research in the Sinnoh region and that many cannot be found anywhere else. Later, he was asked to judge the impromptu Contest Battle between May and Drew. Along with Scott, he judged their battle, which ended in a victory for Drew after his and knocked out May's Combusken and .
==========
Ash spoke to Professor Oak regularly over the phone while he traveled through the Sinnoh region. was able to recognize him from television, but it was because of his Pokémon poetry and not his research.
In Get Your Rotom Running!, Oak suggested that Ash and should visit the Old Chateau to sample its famous delicacy, the Old Gateau.
In Strategy Begins at Home!, Ash called Professor Oak while staying at Johanna's house and said he would be in Twinleaf Town for a while. Oak told him to use this opportunity to learn from Johanna, as her experience as a Top Coordinator could be helpful to him. Oak also announced that he would be attending the Twinleaf Festival as a special guest.
In A Faux Oak Finish!, he traveled to Sinnoh to give a lecture on "the interrelation of and Evolution stones" on the first day of the Twinleaf Festival. However, on his way to Twinleaf Town, his car got a flat tire and forced him to make a stop near a marshland. While the driver was replacing the tire, Oak decided to explore the area. He found a group of wild Pokémon who led him to a cave where a depressed was hiding. Oak found out why Lombre was so sad and gave it a Water Stone, allowing it to evolve into and immediately taking it out of its depressed state.
Meanwhile, in Twinleaf, James was in the town's auditorium disguised as Oak plotting to steal all of the attendees' Pokémon. When Oak arrived there, everyone in the auditorium looked confused as James insisted he was the real Professor Oak. Seeing this, a in the audience sent out his and asked for help, saying he was having trouble with the . James failed to figure out what was the cause of the problem and was sent blasting off by Tyranitar, but Oak was able to help the Pokémon by removing a thorn from its foot. After that, Professor Oak proceeded to give his lecture.
==========
Professor Oak was given a major redesign in Pokémon the Series: Black & White, using a different shirt collar style and wearing his lab coat above it. His hairstyle also changed, becoming more boxy. These changes make his look closely resemble his most recent game counterpart artwork.
Oak made plans to travel to the Unova region to meet with his friend, Professor Juniper, in In The Shadow of Zekrom! and invited and to go with him. He had since returned to Kanto as seen in Crisis from the Underground Up!, where Ash called his laboratory from Nimbasa City.
In New Places... Familiar Faces!, Ash called Professor Oak to inform about his loss at the Vertress Conference. In The Fires of a Red-Hot Reunion!, the Professor appeared again in a video lecture about the Kanto first partner Pokémon that was presented at the Kanto Fair, accompanied by Tracey. Later, Ash's Charizard came to his lab from the Charicific Valley so Ash would switch him for his . Oak liked the idea of Unfezant being with him, as she could make good friends with Ash's Swellow and .
In To Catch a Rotom!, he appeared in the Decolore Islands, having traveled to Torom Island. Professor Oak wished to capture a to study, and eventually succeeded after helping Ash and defeat .
As seen in Butterfree and Me!, Professor Juniper sent Ash's Pokémon caught in Unova to Oak's laboratory. Ash contacted Oak to send to him in order to help a Caterpie evolve.
In The Dream Continues! Professor Oak was interviewed by Alexa, a reporter from the Kalos region which gave him a chance to see Pokémon from there much to his delight. He was later present when Ash announced his intention to return with Alexa to Kalos to challenge its league. As usual, Professor Oak was entrusted with the care of the Pokémon Ash had caught in Unova, as well as Charizard who would be remaining at the lab permanently from then on.
==========
In A Battle of Aerial Mobility!, Professor Oak was introduced to before being shocked by Rotom.
He was later mentioned in Battling on Thin Ice!, where it was revealed that Ash and both attended his Pokémon Summer Camp during their childhood.
In Till We Compete Again!, he joined in on a video call with Delia to Ash and his friends, where he learned Ash was going to return to Pallet Town later that day.
==========
After winning a trip to the Alola region, Delia and Ash headed to Professor Oak's lab, where he received Ash's on-hand Pokémon and took the opportunity to entrust Delia with a Pokémon Egg. He asked her to deliver the Egg to his cousin Samson Oak, at the Pokémon School on Melemele Island.
After meeting up with Delia in Alola to New Adventure!, Samson made a video call to Professor Oak and notified him the Egg arrived safely. Professor Oak did not tell Ash what Pokémon it was, so only after hatching in Getting to Know You! was it revealed to be a , which Samson kept.
In Alola, Kanto!, Ash, , Samson, and , who were all visiting Kanto, arrived at his lab to examine the differences between Kantonian and Alolan Pokémon. He appeared briefly in When Regions Collide! to see Kukui and his students fly back to the Alola region.
Professor Oak appeared on television in Night of a Thousand Poses!.
In Show Me the Metal!, Ash made contact with him after discovering a group of . sent through its gathered data for Oak to examine. In the following episode, Professor Oak informed Ash that he had identified the mysterious Pokémon as an entirely new species, and he settled on the name "", the Hex Nut Pokémon and gave it a classification.
In Final Rivals!, Oak and Delia arrived at Manalo Stadium to watch Ash's during the Manalo Conference finals. Upon arriving, he met Ash's for the first time, then watched as it combined with the other Meltan to evolve into . He was happy to witness Ash win the Malano Conference in the next episode. During the attack by the in Z-Move Showdown!, Oak was among the people that were being evacuated until another appeared, blocking the ships.
After the crisis had been resolved, Oak remained at Manalo Stadium to watch Ash and Professor Kukui's . Following Ash's win, he and Delia returned to Pallet Town.
==========
In Legend? Go! Friends? Go!, Professor Oak traveled to Vermilion City to assist in the opening of Cerise Laboratory and invited Ash to join him and attend the ceremony. He was later present when Ash and Goh recounted their encounter with . After Ash was appointed as one of Professor Cerise's research fellows, he and Delia returned to Pallet Town.
In Advice to Goh!, Professor Oak met Ash and Goh as they visited his laboratory. He was impressed by the number of Pokémon Goh had caught, especially his , and told him about Project Mew, recommending that he should join it. Goh was reluctant at first, but after meeting Gary and seeing how experienced he was, he changed his mind and decided to follow Professor Oak's recommendation.
He reappeared in Friends, Rivals, Lend Me Your Spirit! as Ash and Goh visited his laboratory again. During the visit, he watched the battle between Ash and Paul, as well as telling Ash and Goh that Paul had come to visit his laboratory due to Paul having been asked to become a Gym Leader and wanting to learn more about Pokémon.
In Battling as Hard as Stone!, Professor Oak was seen watching Ash's Masters Eight Tournament match against alongside Delia, Tracey, and Ash's Pokémon. From Bewitch, Battle, and Bewilder! to Whittle While You Work!, they watched Ash's match against . 
In A Flood of Torrential Gains!, they watched Ash's match against . Before the battle began, Professor Oak delivered a monologue about how proud he was of Ash. In Partners in Time!, they watched the awards ceremony taking place after Ash’s victory.
In Heroes Unite!, Professor Oak greets Ash as he returns to Pallet Town to congratulate him on his victory against Leon. In the following episode, Professor Oak attends a party taking place at Cerise Laboratory. Sometime later, he is seen being introduced to Horace by Gary. 
In The Rainbow and the Pokémon Master!, Ash visits Professor Oak to see the first partner Pokémon that he’s giving away, only to learn that there was a missing. When Ash and Gary find Charmander, Professor Oak resumes his check-up on the first partner Pokémon.
====Character====
Professor Oak lives up the road from Delia Ketchum and , and he and Delia often appear together as good friends. His known relatives are his grandson and his cousin Samson. He is also good friends with Professors Birch and Juniper.
His often-forgetful attitude and other antics are notorious. He also has a hobby of composing senryū, haiku-like poems about Pokémon or Pokémon-related themes.
In the novelizations written by Takeshi Shudō, Professor Oak comes from a prestigious family. He has two brothers, one of whom is the mayor of Pallet Town while the other is its postmaster, and his grandfather was the first Trainer from Pallet Town to receive widespread recognition, while Samuel himself gained prominence after he published a research paper on Pokémon at the age of 20. It is also stated that he became a professor at Celadon University at the age of 25. According to Professor Elm, Professor Oak's studies and research mostly focus on how humans and Pokémon interact with each other.
====Pokémon====
This listing is of Professor Oak's known in :
=====On hand=====
=====Status unknown=====
=====Temporary=====
=====Dub only=====
* Various Pokémon are used in his lectures, which may belong to him or to Trainers whose Pokémon he cares for.
=====Gives to new Trainers=====
=====Gave away to Trainers=====
	♂		♀
=====Given away=====
	
=====Residing at his Lab=====
 	 	 	♂
 	 	♂	
♀	 	 	♂
 	♂	♀	
 	 	 	
 	 	 	
 	 	 	
♂	 	♂	♂
♂	♂	 	♀
♂	♂	 	♂
♂	♂	♂	♀
♂	 	♂	♂
 	 	 	
 	 	 	
=====Other=====
There are various Pokémon that live on the Oak Corral. Only a handful have been seen but there are various kinds of different Pokémon. People like Professor Oak and care for them. Other Trainers' Pokémon reside here such as 's.
					
					
					
					
					
					
					
					
					
					
					
					
					
=====Previously resided at his Lab=====
		♀	♀
====Past self====
Oak appeared as a young boy, Sam (Japanese: ユキナリ Yukinari) in Celebi: The Voice of the Forest. Ash befriended the young Oak, who, because he time-traveled from 40 years in the past, was around the same age as Ash. The revelation that Sam is Oak, while inferred thanks to disclosure of Oak's first name in The Power of One, comes only at the end of the movie when Oak implicitly confirmed the connection through his knowledge of Sam's name despite Ash having never told him of it. Additionally, Tracey discovered the sketchbook in which young Sam drew Pikachu sleeping with Celebi in Oak's closet.
In the animated series, Oak never revealed or discussed , though his past as a Trainer was vaguely mentioned by Agatha in The Scheme Team.
Despite the fact that Sam saw many throughout the movie (notably the and the ), the Pokédex he gifts Ash in the Kanto arc only catalogs , claiming that they were all the Pokémon that the world knows. This discrepancy is likely no longer canon, instead representing a silent that occurred due to the ever-increasing number of Pokémon; indeed, Pokémon from Generation II, Generation III, and Generation IV are able to be trained in Kanto during the Generation I remakes FireRed and LeafGreen, as well as during the Generation II remakes HeartGold and SoulSilver. Perhaps to avoid a similar plothole, the number of Pokémon as of the current generation is no longer explicitly mentioned in animated series-related media.
=====Pokémon=====
======On hand======
======Befriended======
====Voice actors====
===I Choose You!===
Professor Oak appeared in I Choose You!, which is set in a timeline separate from the animated series. He welcomed when he showed up late at his laboratory and informed him that , , and had already been chosen by other Trainers. Nonetheless, he had a fourth Pokémon to give to Ash, a stubborn . Ash chose Pikachu, and as such, Professor Oak gave him its . Pikachu immediately proved to be quite the problem for Ash, as he shocked him and Professor Oak.
====Pokémon====
=====Gives to new Trainers=====
=====Residing at his lab=====
			
====Voice actors====
===Artwork===
 	 	 	 	
Official artwork from the 	Official artwork from the	Official artwork from the	Official artwork from	Official artwork from
 	 	 	 	
Artwork from "After the story"https://twitter.com/anipoke_PR/status/1398881863066820612	Poster for 	 	 	
==In the manga==
===Ash & Pikachu===
Professor Oak first appeared in Do Your Best Bulbasaur!!.
====Pokémon====
=====Seen in his lab=====
			
			
			
===The Electric Tale of Pikachu===
Professor Oak made a few appearances in The Electric Tale of Pikachu as a role model to and as Bill's mentor. Unlike in the animated series, he did not give Ash his ; in fact, he did not meet Ash until after he has already begun his Pokémon journey.
Ash met Professor Oak for the first time in Clefairy Tale at Mt. Moon after Ash had been wandering lost in the mountains for weeks, searching for a rare . Oak, who had been living among the Clefairy, rescued Ash and introduced him to Bill and a tribe of wild Clefairy. The three attended the tribe's evolution ceremony, after which Oak gave Ash the latest upgrade to the Pokédex for free, months before it would be available to the public.
Ash later encountered Oak again in Clefairy in Space, where he was investigating strange activity, which turned out to be caused by another group of Clefairy.
Professor Oak acted as one of the announcers of the Indigo Plateau Conference in Welcome to the Big Leagues and The Indigo Finals.
Ash encountered Oak one last time at the Pokémon Research Center in Ash vs. Gary, shortly before he traveled to the Orange Islands. Here, the Professor and Bill were researching a that was found in the Pokémon Storage System.
In this canon, Oak first began his Pokémon journey when he was six years old, traveling with his father (who was also a Professor) on research expeditions. During his first journey, he caught a , which eventually evolved into a and then a .
====Pokémon====
This listing is for Professor Oak's known Pokémon in The Electric Tale of Pikachu manga.
=====On hand=====
=====Mentioned=====
===Movie adaptations===
====Mirage Pokémon Lugia's Explosive Birth====
Professor Oak appeared in , fulfilling the same role as he does in the movie.
====Emperor of the Crystal Tower: Entei====
Professor Oak reappeared in , fulfilling the same role as he does in the movie.
====Celebi: a Timeless Encounter====
Professor Oak, in his childhood days as Sam, reappeared in , fulfilling the same role as he does in the movie.
====I Choose You!====
Professor Oak appeared in the . Similar to the movie, he welcomed Ash to his lab when Ash came in late. When Ash offered to have a , , or , Professor Oak informed him that those Pokémon were already given to other Trainers. Ash saw that a Charmander was there but Cross came by and took the Charmander as he was the Trainer who picked Charmander. With no other choice, Ash was given a Pikachu from Professor Oak. Pikachu did not become fond of Ash at first as he shocked him and Professor Oak.
=====Pokémon=====
======Gives to new Trainers======
		
======Gave away to new Trainers======
	♂
====Pocket Monsters the Movie: I Choose You! Remix====
Professor Oak appeared in ICYR1. When Ash arrived late to his lab, Professor Oak welcomed him. He then informed Ash that the three Pokémon that he wanted were not available. As such, Ash had to choose Pikachu. Professor Oak then explained to Ash about Pikachu. However, both Ash and Pikachu got off on a rocky start since Pikachu used an move on Ash.
=====Pokémon=====
======Gives to new Trainers======
		
======Gave away to new Trainers======
♂
===Pokémon Journeys===
Professor Oak appears in Legend? Check! Friends? Check!.
==References==
==Related articles==
* 
* Professor Oak
* Professor Oak's Pokémon Lecture
* Professor Oak's Big Pokémon Encyclopedia
* Professor Oak's Big Pokémon Examination
* Professor Oak's Pokémon Live Caster
* Professor Oak's Pokémon Holo Caster
Category:Animation characters
Category:Professors
Category:Ash & Pikachu characters
Category:Electric Tale of Pikachu characters
Category:Pokémon Live!
Category:Fathers
es:Profesor Oak (anime)
fr:Professeur Chen/Pokémon, la série
it:Professor Oak (serie animata)
zh:大木博士（動畫）