Spenser

Spenser (Japanese: ウコン Ukon) is the Frontier Brain and master of the 's Battle Palace. He is the only character in the games to have the Palace Maven (Japanese: パレスガーディアン Palace Guardian).
==In the core series games==
Spenser's physical being and heartbeat are as one with his Pokémon, his brethren. He has full trust in his Pokémon. He makes loud threats to set his opponent off guard. When defeated, he awards the Spirits Symbol.
===Pokémon===
====Silver Symbol challenge====
====Gold Symbol challenge====
====Other====
Spenser also has these Pokémon, but they don't participate in battle. They can be seen entering the battlefield along with Spenser as he gets ready for his battle with the .
	
===Quotes===
;Initial battle
*Before battle
:"My physical being is with always! My heart beats as one with always! Young one of a <sc>Trainer</sc>! Do you believe in your ? Can you believe them through and through? If your bonds of trust are frail, you will never beat my brethren! The bond you share with your ! Prove it to me here!"
*Being defeated
:"Ah... Now this is something else..."
*If the player is defeated
:"Your are wimpy because you're wimpy as a <sc>Trainer</sc>!"
*After being defeated
:"Gwahahah! Hah, you never fell for my bluster! Sorry for trying that stunt! Here! Bring me the thing!"
:His assistant: "My, my, if only you could maintain that facade of distinguished authority... Here! Let's see your <sc>Frontier Pass</sc>!"
:"Your 's eyes are truly clear and unclouded. I will eagerly await the next opportunity to see you."
;Rematch
*Before battle
:"Gwahahah! You've battled your way up again? You must have developed a truly formidable bond with your . So be it! This time, I won't bluster or hold back. This time, there's no fooling around. Ready now? Prepare to lose! ... ... ...Kaaah!"
*Being defeated
:"Gwah! Hahahaha!"
*If the player is defeated
:"Gwahahaha! My brethren, we have nothing to fear!"
*After being defeated
:"Well, that was some display! Even fully unleashed, my brethren could not overpower you. You team spirit is truly admirable! Here! Bring me that thing, will you?"
:His assistant: "My, my, if only you could maintain a certain level of decorum... Gaaah, here! Hurry with that <sc>Frontier Pass</sc>, you!"
:"Gwahahah! Come see me time and again! My brethren and I will be waiting!"
===Sprites===
 	
Sprite from	Overworld sprite from
==In animation==
===History===
========
Spenser debuted in Cutting the Ties that Bind. He found Ash's Pikachu lying along the riverbank and healed it with a natural remedy. , , and Scott later met up with Spenser, had a meal with him, and stayed overnight in the jungle while Ash continued to comfort , who had been left heartbroken by an earlier rejection. The next day, Spenser and the others caught up to Ash just as arrived and stole both Pikachu and Sceptile. Ash managed to free his Pokémon, and after a from Spenser's , Sceptile sent the trio blasting off. Spenser and Ash agreed rest up and battle the following day.
In Ka Boom with a View!, Ash and Spenser's match took place on a battlefield that covered a large portion of Metallica Island's jungle. After Sceptile defeated Spenser's , took several of 's attacks before knocking its opponent out with an overwhelming .
After a small snack break, the resumed. Ash selected , and despite having the aerial advantage, the had to contend with Venusaur's and attacks. Suddenly, the clouds moved and obscured the Sun, causing Venusaur's Solar Beam to take longer than expected. Swellow took advantage of the delay to knock Venusaur out. Spenser sent out his , which quickly defeated Swellow. After another heated battle, Spenser and his Claydol eventually lost due to Sceptile learning and using .
========
Spenser reappeared in a flashback in A Pyramiding Rage, along with the other Kanto Frontier Brains.
===Character===
Spenser has a simple life on Metallica Island, which allows him to appreciate its natural beauty. He believes in a natural order as well as the balance between humans and Pokémon. He has an extensive knowledge of herbal medicines and prefers to use local ingredients to create his meals.
In , Spenser prefers to use special attacks to overwhelm his opponent. He also uses the open-air battlefield's various weather conditions and landscapes to his advantage, making battles with him difficult. For example, his 's charges quicker when it is sunny, or his 's can trigger a devastating sandstorm.
===Pokémon===
This listing is of Spenser's known in :
===Voice actors===
==In the manga==
===Pokémon Adventures===
====History====
==========
Spenser is one of the seven s hired by Scott to be a Frontier Brain at the . Spenser is first seen at the Frontier's opening ceremony, where he participates in a demonstration alongside Lucy. Though the battle ends in an easy victory, the ceremony is interrupted by , who announces that he wishes to conquer the Battle Frontier. The press mistakenly report the incident as allowing an ordinary Trainer to take part in the Battle Frontier before it officially opens a week later. The Frontier Brains decide to use this assumption as free publicity and allow Emerald to challenge the Battle Frontier under the condition that he completes it before it officially opens.
Later, while Emerald is challenging the Battle Pyramid, Noland is attacked by an unknown assailant and several rental Pokémon are stolen. After Noland is taken to a hospital, the other Frontier Brains begin to suspect Emerald as the culprit. They head to the Battle Pyramid to confront Emerald and find him after having defeated Brandon. When they ask him about what happened, Emerald reveals that he did not attack Noland and is actually after the Mythical Pokémon . The Frontier Brains find Emerald's explanation suspicious, but decide to follow him into Artisan Cave, where Jirachi is currently located at. Upon arriving, everyone is attacked by a horde of wild while Emerald continues inside to find Jirachi. After the Frontier Brains get past the Smeargle, they meet up with Emerald, who has managed to find Jirachi. Emerald attempts to capture Jirachi, but is attacked by Guile Hideout, the actual culprit who attacked Noland. When Jirachi runs off, Emerald attempts to pursue it, only to be attacked by the rental Pokémon Guile had stolen. Spenser, Brandon, Lucy, and Tucker all try to attack Guile to avenge Noland, but are easily defeated. Eventually, Jirachi escapes, forcing Guile to leave to continue his pursuit of it. Injured from the battle, everyone decides to return to the Battle Frontier. When they meet up with Scott again, he reveals that he was aware of Guile and Emerald's true mission the entire time. Scott states that he withheld the information from the Frontier Brains to help them get stronger as they still would have lost even if they had known of Guile beforehand.
The next day, Spenser encounters and near the Battle Palace while Emerald challenges the Battle Dome. Spenser confronts Sapphire and reveals that he is able to tell that she came in contact with the Blue Orb in the past. The two Pokédex holders find Spenser's actions strange and leave to try and investigate. Shortly afterward, Emerald arrives to challenge the Battle Palace after losing to Tucker. Spenser agrees and decides to battle Emerald immediately without going through the usual sets of virtual Trainers. They are interrupted by a phone call, which is the others informing Spenser that Guile managed to captured Jirachi and is heading to the to make his wish. Emerald decides to head off to the Battle Tower and leaves his Pokémon behind to win the Spirits Symbol for him.
At the Battle Tower, Emerald battles Guile, but his spare Pokémon are defeated. arrives and presents Emerald with his team and the Spirits Symbol they managed to win. Using his ability to share his sight with , Latios relays a message from Spenser, who is still at the Battle Palace. Spenser reveals that in the past, he visited his friends, the guardians of the Red and Blue Orbs on Mt. Pyre. When they were away, he briefly touched the Blue Orb, which filled his head with images of the Legendary Pokémon . Due to this moment of weakness, Spenser decided to train his spirit to prevent another incident from happening again. In addition to the visions, he gained the ability to tell when other people have touched the Blue Orb, such as Sapphire. Due to this, Spenser managed to find out that Guile not only touched the Blue Orb, but was someone who let its power seep through his entire person.
Guile is impressed by Spenser's skills, but uses Jirachi to wish for a gigantic Kyogre made of seawater to flood the entire Battle Frontier. Spenser and the other Frontier Brains work together to get the press to safety and fight off Guile's rental Pokémon while Emerald and the other Pokédex holders fight Guile. Eventually Emerald and the Pokédex holders manage to defeat Guile and destroy the gigantic Kyogre monster. The day after, an injured Spenser and the other Frontier Brains congratulate Emerald for the hard work he put into saving everyone.
==========
Spenser and the other Hoenn Frontier Brains battle and defeat the Admins of Neo Team Magma and Neo Team Aqua, who had interfered in the launch of a rocket that was made to stop the meteoroid threatening to destroy the world. Later, Spenser and the other Hoenn Frontier Brains are called to Sootopolis City to assist in stopping the meteoroid.
====Pokémon====
===Pokémon Battle Frontier===
Spenser appeared in The Predestined Battle!, where he was defeated by . Spenser got his picture taken with Enta afterwards.
====Pokémon====
==Trivia==
* Spenser is the only Generation III Frontier Brain who never uses the –Chesto Berry healing combo on any of his Pokémon.
* Spenser's staff and tattoos appear to be designed after . His relation with this Pokémon was addressed only in the Pokémon Adventures manga, where he touched the Blue Orb in the past, giving him visions of Kyogre.
* The two Pokémon that appear with Spenser before he's battled are possible references to different stages of life: , being a baby Pokémon, represents birth, while , being a Pokémon, represents death.
** Spenser, along with his Azurill and Dusclops, may also be a reference to the riddle of the Sphinx. Azurill, while not having four legs, is a baby Pokémon, while Dusclops is considered an adult, as it walks on two legs, while Spenser himself is an elderly man who walks on three legs: his own two legs and his staff.
==Names==
Language 	Name 	Origin
Japanese 	ウコン Ukon 	From 鬱金 ukon ()
English 	Spenser 	From spirit
German 	Serenus 	From Seele (soul) and serenus (Latin for serene)
Spanish 	Aniceto 	From ánimo (spirit)
French 	Esteban 	From esprit (spirit)
Italian 	Spartaco 	From spirito (spirit)
Korean 	우근 Ugeun 	From a corruption of 울금 (鬱金) ulgeum (turmeric) or 우근 Ugeun (hanja reading of the Japanese name 右近 Ukon)
Chinese ()	宇康 Yǔkāng 	Transcription of his Japanese name
Chinese ()	宇康 Yúhhōng 	Mandarin-based transcription of his Japanese name
Vietnamese	Ukon 	Transcription of his Japanese name
===Palace Maven===
==Related articles==
* Images on the Bulbagarden Archives
Category:Frontier Brains
Category:Animation characters
Category:Game characters
Category:Emerald characters
Category:Manga characters
Category:Pokémon Adventures characters
Category:Pokémon Battle Frontier characters
Category:Trainers with unique classes
Category:Trainers with Legendary Pokémon
de:Serenus
es:Aniceto
fr:Esteban
it:Spartaco
ja:ウコン
zh:鬱金