The World Coronation Series in the Pokémon Journeys anime is culminating in the Masters Eight Tournament, which has become a gathering of the most powerful trainers in Pokémon’s main series canon. Consisting of every known Regional Champion -- as well as the winner of the Lumiose Conference during Ash’s Kalos adventures -- OP (overpowered) doesn’t even begin to describe some of the trainers who’ve reached the Masters Eight. While some, like Iris, feel destined to be cannon fodder, the participation of trainers like Leon and Cynthia may leave fans scratching their heads over how Ash Ketchum could possibly win this tournament.

Leon is the Champion of the Galar Region and the reigning Monarch of the World Coronation Series. It’s said that he has never lost an official battle and his Gigantamax Charizard even defeated Lance’s Dynamax Gyarados, despite a Type disadvantage, in the previous WCS Finals. In the pre-Leon days, Cynthia was the fan-consensus strongest trainer in Pokémon. Her Garchomp has never lost an onscreen battle, and unlike almost every other member of the Masters Eight, they fight with straight hands. Cynthia has never been seen using the battle gimmicks that have become so prevalent, though some interesting shots in trailers have prompted speculation she’ll Mega Evolve her Garchomp in this Tournament – which would make her even more formidable.

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Cynthia in the Masters Eight in Pokémon Journeys

As Pokémon has evolved (no pun intended) several powerful “gimmicks,” – for lack of a better term – have been created to take battles to the next level. The Masters Eight contains four known users of Mega Evolution (Ash, Alain, Steven and Diantha), three known users of Gigantamaxing/Dynamaxing (Ash, Lance and Leon), and Ash as the sole known user of Z-Moves. However, Ash is the only trainer in the Masters Eight – or the entire anime – who is capable of wielding all three, making him the most OP trainer in this tournament. Not even trainers as powerful as Leon and Cynthia are capable of using even two of the three gimmicks.

Mega Evolution, Gigantamaxing/Dynamaxing, and Z-Moves are all permissible in World Coronation Series battles. However, thanks to Ash’s ability to use all three, it has been ruled that trainers may only use one of these gimmicks per match. While this restriction reigns in Ash’s OP-ness significantly, he’s still going to be the toughest matchup for whomever he's paired against in the Masters Eight. Ash has become famous in the WCS for his unpredictable battle style, and on top of that, his opponents must now be prepared to face any one of the three ultra-powerful battle gimmicks at any time during a battle against Ash.

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Ash Ketchum can now use Mega Evolution, Gigantamax, and Z-Moves in Pokémon Journeys

During Ash’s final Ultra Class battle against Raihan -- the Dragon Gym Leader of Galar -- he planned to Mega Evolve his Lucario, but mid-battle opted to Gigantamax his Gengar instead. This pivot confirmed that Ash doesn’t have to specify which gimmick he is going to use beforehand, making him harder to prep for and giving him more options than anyone else in the Masters Eight. Throughout the WCS, Ash has defeated multiple Mega Evolved and Gigantamaxed Pokémon without Mega Evolving or Gigantamaxing his own, and Pikachu’s Electric-Type Z-Move can even defeat other Electric-Types, creating endless possibilities for how Ash can handle this overpowered field of competitors with his own OP weaponry.

It's been known for a while that Cynthia was also taking part in the World Coronation Series alongside fellow Champions Iris, Lance and Leon. Now that Champions Steven and Diantha have joined the party, Ash has his work cut for him with six other Region Champions and his strongest rival to date, Alain, standing between him and the title of Monarch.

If ever there were a moment for Ash to genuinely be OP for the first time, it definitely needed to be the Masters Eight Tournament – and even now there’s still a high probability that Ash is not going to come out on top. It’s Pokémon, after all; this would hardly be the first time the series hyped him up just to tear him down.