Bill

:This article is about the Pokémon researcher. For the English voice actors, see Bill Rogers, Billy Regan, Billy Beach, or Billy Kametz.
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Bill (Japanese: ソネザキマサキ Masaki Sonezaki) is a researcher, widely regarded as an expert in many fields. He has made many appearances in the games. Bill is most commonly found in his Sea Cottage, which is north of Cerulean City at the end of . He is most notable for his first appearance in the Generation I games and for his Pokémon Storage System that has been pertinent in the entire .
==In the core series games==
===Character profile===
Bill is a talented and famous inventor, who invented the original Pokémon Storage System and Time Capsule. People, including himself, call him a Poké Maniac/Pokémon fanatic (Japanese: ポケモンマニア Pokémon Maniac) because of his large collection of both common and rare Pokémon. The first one he caught was an ; however, his favorite Pokémon are and its evolutions. Bill has given out Eevee to the in Generation II and its remakes, and another one to Bebe in Generation IV, which is later given to the player in the Sinnoh games.
Bill also has several friends that share his interests in computer technology. One of them is Celio, his old friend from in the Sevii Islands. He is also close with Lanette and Bebe, the storage system developers of Hoenn and Sinnoh, respectively. He is stated to have requested Cassius control the Storage System of Kalos in Generation VI.
Bill also has some fans, like Brent of Johto who calls the player with information about him. Most of his calls are trivia about Bill himself and his family, such as the fact that Bill's mother used to be a Kimono Girl and that Bill's younger sister can't wink. He also mentions that Bill might have a crush on the flower girl in Goldenrod City. Brent also revealed the fact that Bill is lactose-intolerant, which was also stated by Celio in Generation III.
Bill has been shown to have a large family. His adult sister and grandfather live in Fuchsia City. In Generation II, his grandfather watches over Bill's cottage on Route 25 while he is visiting the rest of his family in Goldenrod City.
In the Japanese versions of the games, Bill speaks in dialect, like most Goldenrod City residents.
===In the Kanto-based games===
In , Bill can be found at the Sea Cottage on the Cerulean Cape, initially performing an experiment on Pokémon teleportation. However, Bill accidentally becomes combined with the body of a and requires the player's help to fix the problem. In Pokémon Yellow, the player's Pikachu will be confused by the whole ordeal, and shocked upon seeing Bill return to his original form. After things are back in order, he speaks about his Pokémon Storage System and what was formerly on the PC menu as "Someone's PC" will change to "Bill's PC." He will also give away an S.S. Ticket so that the player can board the S.S. Anne. He gives the player the ticket as a gift for changing him back into a human, and also claims that the rich crowd of the S.S. Anne isn't his type. If the player exits Bill's house and goes back in, they can check his computer for information on and its three stone evolutions, his favorite Pokémon.
In Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen Versions, Bill is in the same area as in the original games. However, he also appears on Cinnabar Island asking for help in the Sevii Islands shortly after Blaine is defeated. While on One Island, he introduces the player to Celio.
In Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!, Bill appears in the same capacity as he does in the original games. Bill's PC is not used in this game, as the player has access to Pokémon Storage at any time from the Bag. After helping Bill, the player can check his PC again to read his reports on the locations of the legendary birds.
===In the Johto-based games===
In , Bill is visiting his family in Goldenrod City. After he gets the Time Capsule up and running in Ecruteak City, players can visit him at his parents' house in Goldenrod and receive an . His sister will give the player Bill's number so they can check the storage system. In , his father is introduced as the Move Tutor, a deadbeat former who spends his time gambling.
Bill appears in in the same capacity as he did in Generation II. He will give the player an if he is visited at his parents' house in Goldenrod.
===Other appearances===
While visiting Lanette in , , , players can check one of her computers to find an e-mail from Bill. The English translation of the e-mail in Generation III makes it seem as if Bill is crediting Lanette for upgrading his system, whereas the Japanese text and the English text in Generation VI clearly establishes that he and Lanette are co-developers of the original system.
Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald	Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire
"... ... ... ... ... ... ...
Your Storage System offers more convenience than mine. It has a lot of user-friendly features that make it fun and useful, too. It makes me proud that I played a part in its development. Here's hoping that you'll continue research in Storage Systems. From <sc>Bill</sc>
... ... ... ... ... ... ... ..."	
"...
Your Storage System is quite convenient. It has a lot of user-friendly features that make it fun and useful, too. It makes me proud that I played a part in its development. Here's hoping that you'll continue research in Storage Systems.
..."
In , Bebe mentions that Bill invented the original PC storage system, and that she tinkered with it to make it easier to use. Upon giving the player an , Bebe refers to Bill as a friend from Johto to whom the Eevee previously belonged. In , , these interactions were kept.
Although Bill has no physical appearance in , Lillie leaves Alola to see him to help treat her mother at the end of the games. Wicke explains that Lillie had read about Bill, who had once combined with a Pokémon, to see if they could remove the remaining neurotoxins from Lusamine's body after her fusion with .
===Fame Checker===
This is a list of the Fame Checker's information on Bill in .
;Cerulean City — 
* What does this person do?
:"After all, <sc>Bill</sc>'s world-famous as a <sc>Pokémaniac</sc>. He invented the Storage System on PC, too."
;Cerulean City — Little Boy
* Favorite kind of ?
:"<sc>Bill</sc> has lots of ! He collects rare ones, too!"
;Fuchsia City — Bill's Grandfather
* What is this person like?
:"He's my grandson! He always liked collecting things, even as a child!"
; — Celio
* Favorite kind of ?
:""<sc>Bill</sc> is a <sc>Pokémaniac</sc>, so he likes every kind. Apparently, the first one he caught was an <sc>Abra</sc>."
;One Island — Celio
* Family and friends?
:"<sc>Bill</sc>'s hometown is <sc>Goldenrod City</sc>, where his folks still live. I've heard it's quite the festive, bustling city."
;One Island — Celio
* There's a rumor…
:"Apparently, <sc>Bill</sc> can't stomach milk at all."
;Message from <sc>Bill</sc>
* From: <sc>Bill</sc>
* To: 
:"Hey, there! <sc>Celio</sc> had nothing but praise for you. Hearing that makes me happy. When you catch some rare , come show me, okay? Promise!"
===Pokémon===
====Gives away====
	
	
====Status unknown====
==In the spin-off games==
===Pokémon Trading Card Game series===
The card is available in both and Pokémon Trading Card Game 2: The Invasion of Team GR!. In the latter game, two new Bill-related cards are added: (a reference to the teleporter found in Bill's home, the Sea Cottage) and (a reference to the Pokémon Storage System invented by Bill).
===Pokémon Play It! series===
In Pokémon Play It! and Pokémon Play It! Version 2, mentions that Bill is her friend. She also says that Bill is a and that the card was named after him.From the lesson "What's a Trainer card?", found in Play It! and Play It! Version 2.
==Quotes==
==In animation==
===History===
Bill's only appearance in was in the episode Mystery at the Lighthouse, where , , and met him at his lighthouse on .
Bill had previously been trapped in a costume for what he claims to have been hours (in the dub only; the original didn't state how long he had been in the costume) until Ash finally comes to press the release button for him. Afterwards, Bill fulfills a request made by Professor Oak to give Ash and his friends a lesson on the basics of Pokémon, during which Bill shares the idea that there may be many more than just 150 species of Pokémon. The remainder of his appearance is spent focused on explaining to Ash and company his recent project, involving a whose cry can be heard across the sea.
In the English dub, Bill speaks with a posh English accent.
===Pokémon===
====Studied====
===Voice actors===
==In the manga==
Bill makes appearances in several manga, including How I Became a Pokémon Card, Pokémon Adventures, Pokémon Zensho, and The Electric Tale of Pikachu.
===Pokémon Adventures===
Bill appears as a supporting character in Pokémon Adventures.
===Pokémon Pocket Monsters===
Bill first appeared in Obtain the Moon Stone!, along with his wife. They were first seen in the form of an unknown, leopard-like Pokémon and respectively from an unsuccessful experiment. After and followed his wife to an abandoned water mill, Bill introduced himself and told them about his fusion experiments. However, he immediately clarified that the rare Pokémon Red and the others found were simply stuffed animals. Bill wanted to use for one of his experiments.
When Clefairy battled Green's Charizard, Bill went to one of his machines to shrink Charizard, but it ended up shrinking both Clefairy and Charizard since the former did not leave the machine on time. Bill and his wife changed back into humans using the Moon Stone.
In Bring Down the Strongest Pokémon!!, kidnapped Bill and his wife in order to finish creating . Giovanni blackmailed Bill into working on creating Mewtwo. With Mewtwo completed, Bill's wife was released, and she and Bill went up to Mew to see if it was okay.In Find the Legendary Pokémon!!, Clefairy stole the Time Capsule from Bill in an attempt to solve the mystery of the Brass Tower. Bill demonstrated it to Clefairy and Red before activating it so they could go back in time.
====Pokémon====
=====Temporary=====
===The Electric Tale of Pikachu===
Bill appears in Clefairy Tale. He works with Professor Oak researching a colony of at Mt. Moon. He was the one to discover the colony of Clefairy and has befriended many of them. Together with Professor Oak and , he assists the Clefairy with an evolution ceremony.
Bill also reveals parts of his past to Ash. In the beginning, Bill only became a Pokémon Trainer because he didn't like school and wanted to take a leave of absence, but as time went on, he discovered that he deeply cared for his Pokémon. He decided to become a Pokémon researcher after witnessing his evolving into .
Bill reappears with in Side Story: Ash vs. Gary at a Pokémon research center.
====Pokémon====
===Pokémon Zensho===
Bill appeared in PZ04. He had gotten fused with his by accident and was briefly by while checking his mail. However, upon finding out what had happened, Satoshi helped separate Bill from his Pokémon. As a sign of gratitude, Bill let Satoshi add the family's data from his computer to his Pokédex, as well as giving him a ticket to the S.S. Anne.
====Pokémon====
===How I Became a Pokémon Card===
In the first chapter of How I Became a Pokémon Card, a younger Bill rescues a lost from an angry crowd and it lives with him for a couple of days, until its father, an angry , begins to go on a rampage. Dratini returns home, promising to always be friends with Bill.
====Pokémon====
=====Befriended=====
===Pokémon Gold & Silver: The Golden Boys===
Bill appears in Gold and Black VS. Team Rocket, where he tells and Whitney all the folklore of Ecruteak City, including the legends of , the legendary beasts, and the story of the Bell Tower and the Brass Tower. Later, when Bill, Gold, and the Gym Leaders are held hostage by and the other Rockets, he loans his and to Gold and .
He reappears in a flashback in Farewell To Pikachu?!.
====Pokémon====
This listing is for Bill's Pokémon in the Pokémon Gold & Silver: The Golden Boys manga.
==In the TCG==
This listing is of cards mentioning or featuring Bill or his services in the Pokémon Trading Card Game.
====TCG artwork====
Artwork of Bill performing maintenance by
==Gallery==
===Core series artwork===
 	
From by	From by and
===Core series game assets===
 	 	 	 	 	 	
Overworld sprite from	Transformedsprite from	Overworld sprite from	Overworld sprite from	Transformedsprite from	Bill's sprite from	Overworld sprite from
===Other games' assets===
 	 		
()	()		
==Trivia==
* Bill being mixed with a Pokémon during a teleportation experiment may be a reference to the movie , where a scientist experimenting with teleportation pods ends up combined with a fly.
* In the guidebook published by Media Factory titled "Pokémon Card Strategies for Adults" (大人にもわかるポケモンカード戦略), the author was named Masaki Kido (Japanese: , ), sharing the same given name with Bill in Japanese and bearing a strong resemblance to each other as well. Kido's profile described himself as a computer engineer born in Masara Town on November 27, 1967 and had worked with Dr. Okido in Guren Island.
* In FireRed and LeafGreen, if a player declines to go to the Sevii Islands after defeating Blaine, Bill will wait in Cinnabar Island's Pokémon Center. During this period, he can be found both at his home on and on Cinnabar Island at the same time.
* In Generation II and , a fan of Bill's named Brent will reveal trivia about Bill via the Pokégear. The information shared include the fact that Bill's younger sister can't wink, Bill's first Pokémon caught was , his mother used to be a Kimono Girl, Bill is lactose intolerant (also claimed by Celio in ), he isn't very good at Pokémon battles, and that Bill is attracted to the Goldenrod Flower Shop owner's daughter.
* In the English dub of the , his is portrayed as a , while in the Pokémon Adventures manga, this becomes a southern American dialect.
* Bill's animated series design was later recycled for an unnamed lookalike from Hoenn Alone! and a character of the day named Dominick from the Hoenn region.
* The Pokémon Bill is mixed with is different in each canon: in Generation I he is mixed with an unknown Pokémon, in Generation III he is mixed with a , in Generation VII he is mixed with a , in the Pokémon Adventures manga he is mixed with a , in the Pokémon Zensho manga he is mixed with a , and in the animated series he is trapped in a costume.
* According to a Pokémon Daisuki Club site describing the Pokémon world, Bill studied at Celadon University.
* Bill is one of only two Storage System developers to have appeared in the animated series, the other being Molayne.
* In the iTunes description for Mystery at the Lighthouse Bill is referred to as McKenzie, which is similar to his Japanese name.
==Names==
Bill's surname in the Japanese version was first mentioned in "Pocket Monsters Zukan", a guidebook published by Aspect. His surname has not been revealed in the games or in animation, but it has appeared in other media such as Pocket Monsters: The Animation and Pokémon Adventures.
Language 	Name 	Origin
Japanese 	ソネザキマサキMasaki Sonezaki 	From 柾 masaki () and possibly みさき misaki (cape)His surname Sonezaki may refer to the area of Sonezaki (曾根崎) in Osaka, the city that his hometown Goldenrod City is modeled after.
English 	Bill 	Possibly from , former head of and developer of the operating system for PCs
English 	Masaki 	From his Japanese name
German, Spanish, Italian, Indonesian	Bill 	Same as his English name
French 	Léo 	
Korean 	이수재 Lee Sujae 	From 수재 (秀才) sujae (brilliant mind)
Chinese () 	曾根崎正輝 / 曾根崎正辉Cénggēnqí Zhènghuī 	From the Japanese name 曾根崎 Sonezaki and 正輝 Masaki
Chinese () 	正輝 Jingfāi 	From the Japanese name 曾根崎 Sonezaki and 正輝 Masaki
Brazilian Portuguese 	Bill Sonezaki 	From his English name and Japanese surname
Thai 	มาซากิ Masaki 	Transcription of his Japanese name
Vietnamese 	Sonezaki Masaki 	Transcription of his Japanese name
====Poké Maniac/Pokémon fanatic====
Although Bill's title as Poké Maniac (formatted as Pokémaniac prior to Generation IV) is the same as that of a , the two terms are differentiated in Japanese, with the class being named かいじゅうマニア Maniac, while Bill's title is ポケモンマニア Pokémon Maniac, which does not carry the implication of preferring Kaiju-like Pokémon that the class does.
The title has since been changed to Pokémon fanatic in the English version of Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!. However, the Japanese original, as well as most translated versions, continue to use the previous term.
==Notes==
==References==
==Related articles==
* Pokémon fusion
Category:Animation characters
Category:Manga characters
Category:Electric Tale of Pikachu characters
Category:Pokémon Pocket Monsters characters
Category:Pokémon Zensho characters
Category:Red, Blue and Yellow characters
Category:Gold, Silver and Crystal characters
Category:FireRed and LeafGreen characters
Category:HeartGold and SoulSilver characters
Category:Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee! characters
Category:Characters named after real people
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