Ash's Snorlax
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Ash's Snorlax (Japanese:サトシのカビゴンSatoshi's Kabigon) was the secondPokémoncaught byAsh in theOrange Islands, and his fourteenth overall.
In animation
History
Pokémon the Series: The Beginning
During his travels in the Orange Islands inSnack Attack, Ash arrived at theSeven Grapefruit Islands, where a Snorlax was eating everything in sight. Once it became apparent that it was a strong swimmer, concerns arose that it would consume the islands' vegetation within days. Ash,Misty,Tracey, and theTeam Rocket trio attempted to take it down. However, Snorlax proved to be a highly defensive and very powerful battler, taking out their Pokémon easily.Jessie andJames's attempts to put Snorlax to sleep through deceit and hypnosis, resulted in Snorlax sending them blasting off with a Mega Kick, but gave Ash and his friends the idea to lureJigglypuff out toSing Snorlax tosleep. The plan succeeded and eventually managed to stop the Snorlax. This gave Ash and Pikachu the perfect opportunity to weaken it withThunder and capture it while it was asleep.
InA Way Off Day Off, Snorlax and the rest of Ash's Pokémon were sent out for lunch, and it promptly went to sleep. Snorlax woke up in time to attempt to devour the entire harvest of fruits Ash had gathered, butTracey's Scyther warded it away. Once put to sleep by Jigglypuff, the group decided to let it sleep, and it once again awoke, devoured the entire plate of sandwiches that Tracey had prepared, and went back to sleep. Tracey noted that Snorlax was exercising far less and therefore ate far less, and Misty told Ash off for not really training it. It proved far too heavy for Team Rocket to steal, and this delayed them long enough for Ash to return and save the group.
InBound For Trouble, Snorlax made his battle debut in stopping a giantRhydon. After holding an even ground with the huge Pokémon, Snorlax used Mega Punch to send Rhydon flying.
InPokémon Food Fight!, Ash mistook his Poké Balls and sent out a sleeping Snorlax instead ofCharizard when fightingGulzar. However, Snorlax's Poké Ball smashed on a rock and broke. Snorlax woke up in response toGloom's attacks and crushed it, before trying to eat its flowers. Ash tried to recall Snorlax, but the Poké Ball was damaged and would not work. This forced Ash to drag Snorlax over a mountain to the nearest Pokémon Center, on the other side ofButwal Island, in order to get his Poké Ball fixed. After failed attempts to drag Snorlax on rollers and luring it with a real apple, Ash dressed as an apple and made Snorlax chase him all the way to the Pokémon Center. Snorlax came to the rescue when Team Rocket held the island's food supply for ransom, easily defeating a super-powered Meowth mecha and then sending Team Rocket blasting off with its newly learned Hyper Beam. It then proceeded to eat all of the food itself.
Ash kept Snorlax on his team for the remainder of his time in the Orange Islands, but could not use it in theOrange LeagueWinner's Trophy match due to the fact that it would not wake up and needed to be switched with one ofAsh's Tauros. After the tournament was won, Ash then decided to keep Snorlax atProfessor Oak's Laboratory permanently because he could no longer feed it and only called upon its power in major battles.
Pokémon the Series: Gold and Silver
InA Farfetch'd Tale, Snorlax crowded into Ash's screen withKingler,Muk, and Tauros to wish him luck for his next Gym battle withWhitney. InAir Time!, Snorlax listened toDJ Mary's talk show when she interviewed Ash about his Pokémon and aspirations.
Ash called upon Snorlax forRikishii Town'sSumo Conference inRing Masters, sending hisNoctowl back to Oak's lab to make room. Snorlax broke the weigh-in scales and promptly fell asleep during the opening ceremony. Its enthusiasm skyrocketed when it heard the prize: a year's supply ofPokémon food. In the first round, it defeated aPoliwrath with no trouble, as the Tadpole Pokémon just bounced off Snorlax's stomach and fell out of the ring. Snorlax went running for the food, but Ash managed to recall it quickly. It also defeated aMachamp with no trouble, putting it into the final round withRaiden'sFeraligatr. This time, Snorlax went on the offensive, but Feraligatr dodged and Snorlax was left teetering on the edge of the ring. It showed amazing agility and managed to repel Feraligatr's attack by exhaling and using its stomach to press it away. It was then thrown by Feraligatr, but landed in the ring with such an impact that the stadium shook and Feraligatr lost its balance. Snorlax pushed Feraligatr out of the ring and claimed the victory, devouring the entire year's worth of food in one go before falling asleep. Ash then returned Snorlax to Oak's lab.
InBetter Eight Than Never, Ash surprised his friends by sending out Snorlax in hisrematch withClair. It dove underwater to dodgeKingdra's Hyper Beam, and then jumped out of the water to avoidHydro Pump. It alternated between dodging and enduring attacks to tire Kingdra out. Once again diving underwater to avoid Hyper Beam, Snorlax knocked Kingdra out with its newly learned Ice Punch. However, this battle exhausted Snorlax, and aDragon Breath from Clair'sGyaradosparalyzed it, before it was knocked out by Hyper Beam.
Snorlax was called up by Ash inCan't Beat the Heat! for use in theSilver Conference. It shook off aFire Spin fromGary's Arcanine and defeated it with Hyper Beam. It then fought hisNidoqueen, which had already defeated Tauros. However, Nidoqueen proved no match for Snorlax; despite landing an airborneDouble Kick, her Hyper Beam was countered with Ice Punch and defeated. However, Snorlax could not keep up withScizor's speed and was knocked out by aMetal Claw to the face.
Snorlax then fought during Ash's following match againstHarrison inPlaying with Fire!, although it was fast asleep when sent out to fightHypno. It was awoken, obviously irritated and angry byDream Eater and proceeded to scare Hypno, then quickly put Hypno down with Hyper Beam. Unaffected bySteelix'sWrap attack, it defeated Steelix in the same way. However, it could not pull off a third Hyper Beam victory againstHoundoom, who reflected it back onto Snorlax withCounter at double strength, knocking Snorlax out in one blow.
Pokémon Chronicles
InShowdown at the Oak Corral, Snorlax was seen being woken by the herd of Ash's Tauros.
InJourney to the Starting Line!, a string of events caused byKingler causedTotodile to land near Snorlax, who in turn rolled down a hill to startleCyndaquil into awakening the Tauros. They then stampeded through Professor Oak's lab and allowed a group offirst partner Pokémon to escape.
Pokémon the Series: Ruby and Sapphire
Hoenn
InThe Garden of Eatin', Ash saw that Oak was feeding itPokéblocks, and tried to call on Snorlax to battle a wild Snorlax plaguing theBanana Slakoth Garden inHoenn. However, Oak informed him that Snorlax needed to wait between meals before battling. Oak instead suggested Ash try a Pokémon withVital Spirit as its Ability, so the group helped evolve aSlakoth into aVigoroth to combat their Snorlax problem.
Kanto Battle Frontier
When Ash returned from Hoenn inThe Right Place and the Right Mime, withMay andMax, Snorlax befriendedMay's Munchlax, and brought its power to bear againstTeam Rocket's mecha, taking it down easily.
Later, Snorlax helped Ash earn the Guts Symbol fromGreta inWheel of Frontier.Scott noted that Ash picked unusual types to battle theFighting-type specialist Greta. However, Snorlax used Protect to absorb the blows from herHariyama, and then took it down with an Ice Punch. Against herMedicham, Protect failed and it was hit hard byFocus Punch, which sent it flying into Team Rocket. Once the battle resumed, Snorlax was frozen by Ice Punch from Medicham but used Rest to recover while Medicham smashed through the ice. It was then pummelled by a series of Focus Punches, until its fully charged Hyper Beam propelled it into the ceiling and it crushed Medicham with a powerful Body Slam, giving Ash the victory.
Pokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl
InAn Old Family Blend!, Snorlax was reunited with Ash for the upcomingSinnoh LeagueLily of the Valley Conference. After a Team Rocket scheme, it was not in itsPoké Ball, like many of Ash's other Pokémon, but was instead found eating food from a kitchen in a restaurant. It was later used in the battle against the Team Rocket trio, but it was sleeping. Ash tried to wake up Snorlax, but it merely rolled over, tipping the Team Rocket mecha over in the process.
InCasting a Paul on Barry!, Snorlax defeated a female Trainer'sGrumpig with a powerful Body Slam, helping Ash progress to the third round of the Lily of the Valley Conference.
Pokémon the Series: Black & White
Snorlax was reunited with Ash, who had returned from theUnova region, inThe Dream Continues!, where it and the rest of Ash's Pokémon posed in a group photo with him.
Pokémon Journeys: The Series
InAdvice to Goh!, Snorlax reunited with Ash during his visit to Professor Oak's Laboratory withGoh.
Snorlax, along with the rest of Ash's Pokémon at the lab, reunited with Ash inFriends, Rivals, Lend Me Your Spirit!. During the visit, it was seen relaxing withTotodile andKrookodile and later watched the battle between Ash andPaul. Before Ash left, it posed with the rest of Ash's Pokémon in a group photo with him.
FromBattling as Hard as Stone! onwards, Snorlax watched Ash'sMasters Eight Tournament matches againstSteven,Cynthia, andLeon. InPartners in Time!, Snorlax appeared as a vision to Pikachu during his battle againstLeon's Charizard.
InHeroes Unite!, Snorlax, along with the rest of the Pokémon at the lab, welcomed Ash back to Pallet Town after his victory over Leon.
InBearing Down Easy!, Snorlax was shown to have rejoined Ash's team. During the episode, it destroyed some ice so Ash and his friends could chase after aBeartic. It was soon after recalled to avoid being frozen.
Personality and characteristics
Snorlax is very lazy, responding only to food and sometimes a battle. It is a powerhouse eater, able to consume a year's worth of food in one helping. Its hunger often overcomes common sense too, as it once tried to eat bothMisty's Goldeen andGulzar'sGloom, not recognizing them as Pokémon.
However, this appetite is mirrored by its unparalleled strength and fitness. It is a very strong swimmer and is deceptively agile, along with its hugely powerful physical moves. Snorlax's main advantage is its huge defensive capabilities, with very few attacks capable of inflicting damage as seen by its performances againstHarrison andGreta.
Despite its laziness, Snorlax is a very affectionate Pokémon, and is very loyal to Ash, when awake and focused. Its single-minded attitude towards food has subsided recently, shown inThe Right Place and the Right Mime when it woke up purely because of Ash's presence. Typically, it would take aTauros stampede to wake it up in other situations at Oak's lab.
Moves used
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| A† shows that the move was used recently, unless all moves fit this case or there are fewer than five known moves. | |||||||
Artwork
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| Poster for Pokémon: To Be a Pokémon Master |
In the manga
Ash & Pikachu
Snorlax debuted inOne Half Of A Poké Ball as a Pokémon shown on the scoreboard. It physically debuted inAn Awesome Showdown!!, where it fought and beatGreta'sMedicham.
Moves used
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The Electric Tale of Pikachu
Ash's Snorlax debuted inAttack of the Demon Stomach. Like in thePokémon the Series: The Beginning episodeSnack Attack, it was eating all the fruits from the seven Grapefruit Islands. As the workers tried to save as many fruits as possible, Ash tried to battle Snorlax withBulbasaur andPikachu, but with no results. When Ash tried to save a grapefruit from being eaten by Snorlax, he almost got eaten himself, only to be saved by Bulbasaur'sVine Whip. Once Snorlax had finished with one island, it made an enormous leap to another island. After Ash andRuby's many failed attempts to put Snorlax asleep,Jigglypuff appeared, and Ash made itsing, causing Snorlax to finally fall asleep. As Snorlax was sleeping, Ash was able to catch it with a Poké Ball.
Snorlax later made a brief appearance inYou Bet Your Wife, where Ash sent it out amongst his other Pokémon during his dance match withRudy. However, all Snorlax did was sleep. Snorlax wasn't seen in the manga after this.
Pokémon Journeys
Snorlax appeared inAdvice to Goh! atProfessor Oak's Laboratory.
Trivia
- InPokémon Food Fight!, Misty says, "That is if you can ever gethim to wake up", but only in the dub. Another instance of gender confirmation in the dub was inPlaying with Fire!, when Professor Oak says "Snorlax's Hyper Beam was sent back tohim at double the power."
- Snorlax is Ash's only Pokémon:
- To have its Poké Ball broken.
- To have been brought back fromProfessor Oak's Laboratory for aGymbattle.
- That is listed asblack in thePokédex.
- Snorlax is Ash's only Generation I Pokémon other than Pikachu that was seen being used in theLily of the Valley Conference.
- InWheel of Frontier, Snorlax used six moves (Protect, Headbutt, Hyper Beam, Ice Punch, Rest, and Body Slam), two more than the maximum allowed in the games. It is the only Pokémon that Ash has caught that has used six moves in a single battle.
Notes
- ↑Confirmed male in the English dub
Related articles
For more information on this Pokémon's species, seeSnorlax.
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 | This article is part ofProject Anime, aBulbapedia project that covers all aspects ofPokémon animation. |
