The Pokémon anime has been ongoing for more than 20 years, with a whopping total of 24 seasons under its belt as of mid-2022. No matter how many years pass, or how many new locations, characters, and Pokémon are introduced to the series, many fans hold a special place in their heart for Kanto and Pokémon's first few seasons. After all, many young viewers were around Ash's age when Pokémon debuted.
The fact that viewers could experience their very own Pokémon journeys for the first time via the Pokémon video games, traveling across the same region and meeting many of the same characters, only furthered this connection. One of the things that set the anime apart that the games didn't offer, however, was the traveling companions of Misty and Brock who tag along throughout Ash's early adventures. Misty was one of the most popular characters in Pokémon, and she has many admirable qualities.
10 Misty Has A Musical Side As A Child
Aside from the fact that Misty is technically considered one of the Cerulean City Gym Leaders alongside her sisters, not much at all is known about Misty's childhood. One of the few facts that is known about Misty's younger years, though, reveals that she has a surprising musical side.
As a toddler, it's revealed that Misty used to play the tambourine, and took a lot of enjoyment from it. She's shown doing this in the present day as well, using her skill with the tambourine to cause a group of Wooper to dance.
9 Misty Has An Intense Desire To Prove Herself
Despite being the same age as Ash, Misty already shows herself to be an incredibly self-assured individual who believes in herself and her innate capabilities. This stems from her childhood, as she would typically receive hand-me-downs from her sisters, and wasn't treated well by them.
Misty's sisters would often bully and exclude her, and instead of allowing this treatment to affect her negatively, it only solidifies her resolve. It's the reason why she ends up temporarily leaving the Gym — to set out and prove herself as a true Water-type Pokémon Master. The way Misty's sisters treated her might not be something to look up to, but the way she handled it certainly is. Misty showed sheer willpower and determination despite their bullying.
8 Misty Gains Irreplaceable Friends In Ash & Brock
The reason why Misty initially begins following Ash around is that he accidentally destroys her bike, and all she wants is for him to replace it. By the time Ash's journey with her and Brock comes to a close, though, she admits the true reason why she sticks around.
In actuality, Misty ends up forgetting all about her bike, and instead simply wants to keep traveling with Ash and Brock because they're dear friends. Even after the trio go their separate ways, their bond remains incredibly strong.
7 Misty's Relationship With Togepi Is Incredibly Wholesome
Ash's Pikachu isn't the only Pokémon out of the main group that travels outside its Pokéball. In the episode "Who Gets To Keep Togepi?" Ash and Misty battle over who gets to keep the egg he found, with the former being the one to actually win the battle.
Despite this, Togepi imprints on Misty almost immediately, viewing the trainer as its mother. She carries it around outside of a Pokéball for the remainder of her time with Ash, showing just how close of a bond she and Togepi have.
6 Misty's An Incredibly Talented Fisher
Due to being a self-proclaimed Water-type Pokémon master, Misty is incredibly talented when it comes to fishing. She's likely spent a long time practicing, as the majority of Water-types are found within water, and she'd have to be skilled with a rod if she hopes to catch them.
Misty's confident in her abilities and is shown to win an annual Seaking Catching Competition. She and another trainer both catch an impressively-sized Seaking and battle to decide the winner, with Misty ultimately coming out on top.
5 Misty's Able To Take Over As Cerulean Gym's Sole Leader
In the beginning of Pokémon, Misty kills for any chance she can possibly take in order to prove that she's just as capable as her sisters — if not more. This is evident whenever Ash makes his way to the Cerulean Gym, as her sisters are willing to give him a badge without a fight, but she insists on stepping up to prove herself to both her sisters and to Ash.
By the time Ash is close to wrapping up his journey in Kanto, Misty gets a call from her sisters asking her to temporarily act as the Gym's leader while they're away. After their return, however, she's able to remain the sole leader of Cerulean's Gym — a sign of just how much she's improved since the start of Pokémon.
4 Misty's Able To Handle Farewells With Maturity
Having to permanently say goodbye to someone who's incredibly close is difficult, no matter how old someone is or how many times they've experienced the feeling before. When Misty appears in Ruby & Sapphire, her Togepi evolves into Togetic while protecting Togepi Paradise, an anime-only location where all Togepi are born.
This sparks a strong desire within Togetic to remain on Togepi Paradise in order to protect the others should anything bad happen again. Misty and her Togetic share a teary goodbye, but she's able to handle it incredibly maturely considering how inseparable the two were for so long.
3 Misty Manages To Get Over Her Childhood Fear Of Gyarados
It's shown that Misty has a fear of Gyarados that stems from climbing into the mouth of one as a small child. Childhood fears are often some of the deepest-rooted and hardest to conquer, and Misty's forced to confront her fear head-on when she returns to watch the Cerulean Gym alone, only to be greeted by a rampaging Gyarados.
A group known as the Invincible Pokémon Brothers, who harbored a grudge against Misty, attempt to attack Gyarados with a Poison Sting attack. Misty jumps in front of the attack and intercepts it, which not only earns her Gyarados' trust and calms it down, but helps her to get over her fear for good.
2 Misty Gets To Enjoy Leisure Time With Ash In Alola
Misty's time with Ash and Brock in Pokémon is cut somewhat short since she's called on to return to the Cerulean Gym before the actual end of Ash's journey. Thankfully for Misty, she gets the opportunity to reunite with Ash once more in Alola.
Misty tells him that the Cerulean City gym has had an influx of challengers as of late, and her sisters are covering the gym for a while so she can take a break of her own. She and Ash get to enjoy some leisure time together, and they even go Mantine Surfing.
1 Traveling With Ash Helps Misty To Diversify Her Own Battle Style
It's not as if Misty isn't a talented Trainer, even early on, but most of her examples come from her elder sisters who are shown to be much more interested in fashion than in Pokémon battling. This is part of what makes Misty's journey with Ash so important.
Misty watches countless battles during their travels, and Ash endures a ton of hardship throughout — but he always manages to devise a winning strategy in the end. This attitude carries over to Misty, and she becomes a much more well-rounded battler by the time she has sole leadership of the Cerulean Gym.