GOH AND CHARACTER DEVELOPMENTTT
I've actually been thinking about this a little lately so ofc I HAD to make this into a post π€ so excited to get into this one
So where it all began...
Aka this iconic scene
First can we also acknowledge how much I just love Ash. I know he does this kind of stuff all the time but that's exactly the reason I need to mention it, it's so selfless, brave and pure of him, when he gets chances like these others truly see his personality β€οΈπ
And obviously I actually don't blame goh for getting all dumbstruck and blushy on us here because he totalllyyyy underestimated that goofy walking ball of disaster π isn't it kind of interesting tho, that when he does things like this, his other companions are rightfully terrified and are trying to shout to stop him from getting hurt...
But Goh weirdly enough stays silent and just stares. He doesn't try to interrupt or stop anything, he's really taking in what he's seeing here π₯Ή and I can't help but notice him replicating this in a lot of scenarios building up to the final obvious parallel..
"Stop that!"
"It doesn't wanna go!"
"out of the way twerp!" π (sorry that line was totally uneccasary to include but Jessie is randomly funny for no reason)
Anyways this scene is definitely not as extreme as Ash was doing before (like standing infront of a hyper beam π) but it's still significant to me. This is early master journeys and even though it's only Jessie trying to get Grookey back in its pokeball, he's still standing protectively infront of it and imitating Ash's exact motion which I remember thinking about when I was watching this
"ninetales...i want to help you."
side note I love how Grookey gets the implication to move to Cinderace to get to safety π it's so cute man and also side SIDE note I'm glad goh got the Galar starters, him and them are IMMOVABLE to me okay πββοΈ Besides I think Ash not getting them this time round was more special for his last series and good thing him and goh were so close, he got his fair share of interacting with them π€
rightfully goh looks scared and hesitant here for a moment. like ninetales could literally freeze him to death to be blunt π π but so could Ash standing infront of hyperbeam. It reminds me of when Goh argued with Ash for interfering with pokemon, and now he's doing more and more of it, and becoming less and less afraid
even so he still manages to move up to it, and calm it down (and gosh he looks so pretty here π₯Ή) probably something he wouldn't have dared to try before ash
"I told you, you cantβ please larvesta stop!"
this was almost a mini hyper beam in a way don't you think? they stopped soon after realising goh wasn't a threat but I do think it was still pretty reminiscent of what Ash did
"we better run..."
I'm sort of surprised ash said this considering he is the one to do this kind of thing a lot. when Goh is about to do it he is clearly worried for him π₯Ί but Goh stays put and looks pretty determined, even kind of looking like he's protecting Ash
(and u can't convince me otherwise that during the Ash-hyperbeam scene he was protecting goh as well as the ivysaur) This was a lot more obviously dangerous than previous examples but he remains put. And all the little scenes like these, including when he's saved other people and pokemon from danger..
Just build up to the last one for me π₯Ί
Seriously even the battle-like music fades when this scene comes on and it turns to some soft like piano silence π
"Ash."
The world literally stopped at his name. like the music stopped and it was just his name being uttered π₯²
TAKE ME NOW. HOW IS THIS NOT TALKED ABOUT MORE ISNT THIS JUST THE CUTEST THING EVERRR OMDDD. the way his eyes widen as he thinks of his beloved and we see Goh's perspective of Ash bathed in sunlight βlike COME ON MAN. COME OWWWANNN
HIS FACE. HIS FACE. OH MY GOSH THIS IS THE MOST LOVELORN FACE I CANNOT π don't even talk to me right now
"you were the inspiration that sent me into this great big world....and.."
"then i met up with ash. and we became research fellows! travelled to all kinds of regions, and all kinds of pokemon. everything i know now is thanks to you mew!"
can I just say how after talking about new being his inspiration going into the big world, then his voice quietens and goes reflective as his talks of Ash π₯Ή its sounds so gentle as he recalls their time together and it melts my heart how he wants to thank mew for that and everything he's accomplished π π π I love him so so much
(okay sorry I basically went off an irrelevant satogou tangent there oops)
HYPER BEAM HYPER BEAM HYPER BEAM THE FACT IT WAS HYPERBEAM AS IF THIS PARALLEL COULDN'T BE OBVIOUS ENOUGH
But finally as this hyper beam by mew is being created into a goddamn destructive weapon then goh is actually smiling? All the other times he's stopped pokemon and protected others he's been angry, and slightly scared but here? He's just totally accepting and willing with his arms wide open because he's finally found out more about his potential and experienced so much things he's learnt from π₯Ίπ
"and thats why if i ever saw you again i wanted to tell you..."
"i wanted to thank you." π₯Ί
like holy. that seems even more terrifying up close π and how the project mew just stayed majority silent while this 10 year old almost died is beyond me but anywaysβcan we just appreciate HOW GROOKEY ACTUALLY STAYED WITH GOH? ON HIS BACK?? THEY ARE BEST FRIENDS OMGGG he could've ran away to safety but he stayed with his trainer... #trainergoals π€§
But thankfully something triggered mew in the last second (of course) so the hyperbeam just disintegrated π
He really was taking that all on with all he had though π₯Ή I can't believe how much he changed, I'm so proud of him β€οΈβ€οΈπ« as always thanks for coming to the TED talk this was a lot of fun
