I think handling the co-stars to Ash himself is what also will make or break this saga.May probably had the best growth in terms of her goal and her character because we got to see her defeat her main rival, yet still have lots of growing to do and ultimately she went from a girl who couldn't stand Pokemon to actually befriending two she didn't even capture herself.
Ultimately, it'd be ideal for the co-stars or at least one to have a rival who they struggle against and eventually end up beating. I know that wasn't Zoey's purpose and damn sure wasn't Georgia's apparently(although I wish it was), but at the end of the day you really feel for the character if they make that triumphant victory over the person they've tried so long to.
Dawn beat Ursua three times which got repetitive and she never beat Zoey and we all know how Iris and Georgia ended things.
What I'm saying is this: AG Ash didn't have any recurring rivals, which was fine, so if Ash having no rivals means he'll get some sense back, that's fine. However, that doesn't mean his co-stars shouldn't have rivals, because May still did.
Oh, and in terms of a female co-star, the next one doesn't have to be girly to be good. The writers tried with Kasumi but she ended up doing too little, while Iris ended up doing too much. If they want to make an epic tomboyish female on the main cast, they really need to find a medium.
The show should never lose sight that Ash is the star, but should also never ignore his friends.
ncG1vNJzZmiapaGvorPAq5uepl6jsrV706GpnpmUqHypu9ZmrqKknGK9sLfEpqanZahixm61zKmYnKxdqbWmecCnoKadXaq9pa3TnmSbnZeeu7R5zpyrqJqVp3tygJNxaGpnoJa0pnmQag%3D%3D