N (Pokémon)

N is a Pokémon Trainer from Pokémon Black and White and Pokémon Black 2 and White 2. He's a rival to the player character in BW, which may be Hilbert or Hilda depending on gender. While he is one of three rivals, he is sometimes considered the true rival as opposed to childhood friends Cheren and Bianca.
He is something of an antagonist, but not necessarily in a cruel way. He is presented as somewhat complex and has a different end goal instead of simply wanting to make the world over in his image like previous Pokemon antagonists in the franchise; he wants Pokémon to be treated fairly. 
N is the "king" of the villainous group Team Plasma, the fifth of many evil teams in the Pokémon series who aim to generally be evil. In Team Plasma's case, it is a piracy organization under the guise of an animal rights group, with the goal of "liberating" Pokémon from their trainers. 
When it is revealed that his father, and the real leader of Team Plasma, Ghetsis, used him to carry out his own whims of taking over the world, he leaves Unova to find himself and returns with purpose and determination in the sequel games, assisting either Nate or Rosa, depending on gender, to defeat Team Plasma once more.
Since his debut in BW, he has been a popular character in fanworks. He is widely loved and almost worshipped for being not only an attractive character, but extremely complex and deep with a tragic story and a determination to accept his past while still moving forward, particularly when BW and its sequels were the latest games in the franchise during 2010 though 2012. Past this point, N is still popular, though not nearly as much as he was in his prime.
==Canon Overview ==
[characterization, story role, further important appearances]
== Relationships==
==== M/M ====
* N is most commonly paired up with Hilbert, forming IsshuShipping, which is Male/Male, aka yaoi. In Japanese, this is most often called N主♂ (N x Male Protagonist), meaning N is the seme and Hilbert is the uke in the coupling.
** The opposite is also commonly shipped and is written as 主♂N (Male Protagonist x N).
* N is also shipped with Cheren, forming AllWrongShipping, which is Male/Male, aka yaoi. In Japanese, this is most often called Nチェレ (NChere), meaning N is the seme and Cheren is the uke in the coupling.
** The opposite is also commonly shipped and is written as チェレN (ChereN).
* N is also shipped with his father Ghetsis, forming HarmoniaShipping, aka CoronationShipping, which is Male/Male, aka yaoi. In Japanese, this is most often called ゲーN (Gē N), meaning Ghetsis is the seme and N is the uke in the coupling.
** The opposite is also commonly shipped and is written as Nゲー (N gē).
==== F/M ====
*N is also shipped with Hilda, forming FerrisWheelShipping, which is Female/Male, aka NL. In Japanese, this is called N主♀ (N x Female Protagonist).
*N is also shipped with Rosa, forming VoidCubeShipping, which is Female/Male, aka NL. In Japanese, this is called Nメイ (NMei).
===Less Popular Relationships===
* CarpenterShipping - N & Timburr
* CarriageShipping - N & Gardevoir
* CastellanShipping - N, Anthea & Concordia
* CavalloShipping - Giovanni & N
* CelestialKingShipping - N, Lunatone & Solrock
* CenturionShipping - N & Domino
* ChalcedonyShipping - N & Roxanne
* ChevelusShipping - AZ (XY), N, Iris & Lenora
* ChoiceKingdomShipping - N & Piers
* ChoronekoShipping - N, Ricard Noveau, Mischa & Rug
* ChristmasColoredShipping - N & Silver
* ChristmasGroomingShipping - N & Jessica
* ChristmasHarmonyShipping - N & Santa Claus
* CircleOfFriendsShipping - N & Solana
* CogShipping - N & Klink
* CompassionateAuraShipping - N & Riley
* ConfirmedShipping - N & Celebi
* CuriosityShipping - N & Trevor
...And these are just the C's! More can be found on Neverending Romance, a community-created relationship name list.
==Popular Tropes & Fanon==
There have been a lot of theories and headcanons about the character, expanding on what's shown in the game.
=== N as Ghetsis's victim ===
Some fans believe that because Ghetsis was a horrible father, he must have beaten and/or sexually abused N on top of manipulating and lying to him. There is no evidence to support this in-game, however, so this fanon is based purely on kink.
=== N the manchild ===
N is sometimes portrayed as being a child in a teenage/young adult body due to his naivete and the glimpse of his old room, filled with toys. His theme and childlike attachment to Pokemon as his "friends" are also cited as reasons for this fanon.
=== N the vegetarian ===
Because of his attachment to Pokemon and general "hippie" nature, fans often portray him as refusing to eat meat.
=== N the test tube baby ===
Before Black 2 and White 2 revealed the truth about his connection to Ghetsis, it was theorized that N was the 14th in a series of failed test tube children made by Ghetsis in order to create the perfect "King" of Team Plasma.
== Subjects of Fannish Interest & Meta==
===IsshuShipping and FerrisWheelShipping===
N is said outside of the games to be around 18, four years older than both Hilda and Hilbert, and shipping him with them is considered a large age gap. Other rivals in the series do not have this age gap, so N is an outlier, something not ignored by shippers. Shippers of IsshuShipping and FerrisWheelShipping are ostracized by some in the fandom.
==Example/Notable Fanac==
=== Fan Communities/Fan Events ===
* , a club on DeviantArt
* , a club on DeviantArt
* , a character bashing club on DeviantArt
* , a club on DeviantArt
* , a club on Fanpop
=== Doujinshi ===
* Best Friends by Mutou (2011), gen N with NamelessShipping
* boku no ohime sama by AIMAIME (2011), with Hilda/N
=== Fan Art ===
* (2011)
=== Fan Mixes ===
* (2013)
* (2014)
* (2013)
* (2011)
=== Wikis ===
* on Bulbapedia
* on PixivEncyclopedia
* on Shipping Wiki
==References==
Category:Pokémon Characters