A few times over the years, the people behind Pokémon's animated television presence have taken a slight diversion from the main series anime to give fans a short series separate from Ash's story. One of the best ever is the Generations series, which follows the storyline of the main series games very closely, with each episode containing a separate, individual story.
All of the 18 episodes of Generations are well-loved by fans, but some are more well-received than others, as is the case with any show. Here are the ten best, according to IMDb ratings.
11 The Investigation (8.0)
The second-to-last episode in the series is "The Investigation." It takes place in Lumiose City of the Kalos region and follows Detective Looker and his Espurr, Mimi.
The two are investigating a case of a Pokémon thief, named Essentia, who turns out to be an orphan named Emma that Looker knows personally. It's a bit of a grittier vibe for a Pokémon episode, reminiscent of old film noir.
10 The Uprising (8.0)
This episode focuses on the story of the Generation V games. It opens with Iris and her Druddigon running toward a large castle. This building is Team Plasma's castle, with the evil organization's Seven Sages rising up to recite philosophy about their evil plans.
Iris rebukes their evil words and they begin sending waves of grunts and Pokémon toward her. Soon, the other Unova Gym Leaders show up to help her fight off the evil team. Seeing all of the Gym Leaders team up is an amazing scene that should be replicated much more often in Pokémon media.
9 The Redemption (8.2)
This episode, titled "The Redemption," is the finale of the entire series. It tells the story of AZ and his Floette, which features prominently in the story arc of the Generation VI games, X & Y.
Around 3,000 years earlier, AZ built a machine that would resurrect his Floette after it was killed in a Pokémon war. After learning that the machine sapped the life of other Pokémon to save its own, the Floette leaves AZ, feeling betrayed. Since then, AZ has lived in sorrow, missing his Floette, until it returns to him at the end of the episode.
8 The Old Chateau (8.2)
About halfway through the series is this episode, which follows the story of Cheryl, a character from Generation IV, and her Chansey. The two stumble upon an Old Chateau inside the Eterna Forest. After meeting a strange butler, a few paranormal things start to occur, giving Cheryl and Chansey the creeps.
Strange noises and phenomena occur, leading the two to try and escape. They awake the next morning to find the house is run down, not pristine like they thought the night before, and they realize it's haunted. The episode ends with a ghost girl terrifying the two.
7 The Lake of Rage (8.2)
Telling the story of a classic event that many players remember fondly, this episode features the iconic shiny Red Gyarados in the Lake of Rage. North of Mahogany Town, Team Rocket is attempting to force the Magikarp of the lake to evolve.
This sends the Gyarados into a rage. Lance, the Champion of the Indigo League, and his Dragonite investigate the situation and force Team Rocket.
6 The New World (8.3)
Returning to Generation IV is this episode, which takes place at the summit of Mt. Coronet in Sinnoh. Here, Cyrus, the leader of Team Galactic, is summoning Dialga and Palkia in order to create a new world, ending the current one.
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Cynthia, the Champion of Sinnoh, arrives to thwart Galactic's plans just in time. Giratina shows up and helps destroy the chains binding Dialga and Palkia, who then escape. This episode follows the events of Pokémon Platinum pretty closely.
5 The King Returns (8.4)
This episode, the fifteenth in the series, follows the story events of Black 2 & White 2. Ghetsis, the leader of Team Plasma, is attempting to use Kyurem's powers to freeze Unova in its entirety. N arrives with Reshiram to stop them, while Ghetsis insults him.
Ghetsis activates the DNA Splicers, which allows Kyurem to ultimately trap and consume Reshiram and turn into White Kyurem. Right as White Kyurem is about to blast N, Hilbert and Zekrom show up to save the day.
4 The Reawakening (8.4)
Pokémon Crystal serves as the basis for this episode's story, which is the sixth in the series. This entire episode is narrated by the character Eusine, who plays a pivotal role in Crystal. He tells the story of the Burned Tower, where three Pokémon perished. Ho-Oh appeared and resurrected the Pokémon, and they became Raikou, Entei, and Suicune, aka the Legendary Beasts.
Scared of the power of resurrection, the people of Ecruteak City responded with violence and hostility. The three Pokémon took off, expressing sorrow over the reaction of the people. Eusine believes they will return when they can trust humans once again, and Suicune appears before him at the end of the episode before running off.
3 The Challenger (8.7)
The third episode in the series sees a new challenger facing off against the Kanto Elite Four. Lance, Bruno, Lorelei, and Agatha emerge from their chambers in an epic scene that is incredibly memorable.
They declare their readiness to take on the new challenger, displaying their immense stature. Blue enters and takes on the Elite Four before finally becoming Champion. The episode ends with Blue, newly crowned as Champion, sitting on a throne as Red walks in, ready to challenge him.
2 The Cavern (8.8)
The second-highest-rated episode of the Generations series is the eighth one. "The Cavern" is almost like a follow-up to the episode before it, "The Vision." In that episode, Team Magma awakens Groudon.
In this one, Kyogre is awakened by Team Aqua. The two have long warred and caused havoc in the Hoenn region. Their ferocious battling is often finished by Rayquaza, but the episodes end before that occurs.
1 The Scoop (8.9)
The anime's top-rated episode focuses on the story of Mega Rayquaza and Deoxys. It closely follows the plot of the Delta Episode from Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire.
A meteor is heading toward the Hoenn region that is likely to destroy it. However, a trainer rides Mega Rayquaza into space and destroys the meteor. Deoxys appears from the ruins of the meteor and is defeated by Mega Rayquaza.