Bianca

Bianca as seen in the Black and White versions.
Bianca
Species	Human
Hair color	Blonde
Eye color	Green
Age	14 (B/W) 16 (B2/W2)
Base	Nuvema Town
Relatives	Parents
Voiced by	Erika Harlacher (2020)
Debut	Pokémon: Black/White Versions

Bianca was one of the two friendly rival characters who were featured in Pokémon: Black and White Versions. She was more energetic and bubbly compared to the serious Cheren. The two of them accompanied the player character for most of their Pokémon journey in Unova. She reappears in Black and White 2, set two years later, in which she acts as a mentor figure to the player character.

Background

Bianca was raised in Nuvema Town. She had a concerned mother and an overprotective father, and she also seems to have been friends with Hilbert/Hilda and Cheren since early childhood. Bianca was a very cheery and energetic girl who was known to work hard, but she also gained a reputation for being perpetually late due to her flightiness.

Black/White

The day came when their mothers of the three children made a request to Professor Juniper. They wanted her to set the children up for their first Pokémon journey so that they could get out and see the world. The three starter Pokémon were shipped to Hilbert/Hilda's house in a gift box. The three of them were each to choose their own Pokémon from it. Bianca arrived later and decided that Hilbert/Hilda should have first pick due to it being their house. She then picked her own and also picked Cheren's for him. Cheren objected, but he also agreed with her choice.

Bianca then decided to have a test battle against Hilbert/Hilda to try out their Pokémon and make them stronger, against Cheren's objections about them fighting indoors. Regardless of the winner, the trainer's room had been wrecked in the battle, as Cheren had said. She then convinced Cheren to battle Hilbert/Hilda next since he was smart enough to prevent further damage to the room. Hilbert/Hilda's mom did not have a problem and assured them that she would clean up. Bianca then stopped home before heading to Juniper's lab. Hilbert/Hilda walked in to find Bianca being yelled at by her father, who disapproved of her setting out on the journey. Bianca still went ahead t the lab and asked Hilbert/Hilda to keep that incident a secret. Professor Juniper gave them each their own Pokédex and told them the basics of the Pokémon journey. Hilbert/Hilda's mom then showed up to give them town maps. Bianca became less anxious about leaving home due to the professor's approval, and she hoped to find out what she wanted to do in her life. The three trainers went to Route 1 first for Professor Juniper's Pokémon catching lesson. Along the way, Bianca insisted that the three of them take the first step of their journey together. Professor Juniper then showed them how to catch Pokémon and gave them their first Poké Balls. They stayed at the route for a while to catch Pokémon, and Bianca convinced them to take part in a contest for who could catch the most Pokémon.

At Accumula Town, Professor Juniper showed Hilbert/Hilda around the Pokémon Center and suggested that they visit her inventor friend Fennel at Striaton City. Bianca caught up with Hilbert/Hilda at Route 2 and talked them into another battle, since she saw her Pokémon had gotten stronger. After losing, Bianca saw that Hilbert/Hilda was a tough cookie and that she would have to have to work harder in her Pokémon training. She then moved on to Striaton City and searched the Dreamyard for the mysterious Munna, as she was curious about the process of showing dreams. They witnessed a Munna being abused by Team Plasma grunts and objected to it. Hilbert/Hilda was able to defeat them in battle, at which point the grunts were driven away by what appeared to be Ghetsis. Bianca was left confused about what was real and what was a dream produced by Munna. She still decided to remain at the Dreamyard to continue looking for Munna, and it seems she eventually caught one. She also at some point beat Cilan, Chili or Cress as her first gym battle. At Route 3, she saw to a preschooler whose Pokémon had been stolen by Team Plasma grunts and alerted Hilbert/Hilda and Cheren, who proceeded to retrieve it for them. She then escorted the young girl back on her way and proceeded to Nacrene City. She arrived at Nacrene's gym just after Team Plasma had stolen the Dragon Skull. Bianca and Cheren were told to stay behind and watch the museum. Before Hilbert/Hilda set off in pursuit of Team Plasma, she gave them a Dowsing Machine that she had received from Fennel (having received one for herself and presumably another for Cheren).

After the thieves were caught and Bianca completed her gym challenge against Lenora, she traveled to Castelia City. Bianca wondered the dock alone and was mugged by a Team Plasma grunt who stole her Munna. Iris heard her scream and tried to catch the thief, but he lost her. Hilbert/Hilda and Burgh also found them, and they pursued the Team Plasma grunt when he showed his face again while Iris comforted Bianca and decided to act as her bodyguard. They followed the grunt to a building where Team Plasma ultimately returned the Munna and departed. Iris decided to continue escorting Bianca for the remainder of her stay in Castelia, and Iris also needed help adjusting to the big city. Iris trained her, and Bianca decided to display her strength by calling Hilbert/Hilda on the Xtransceiver to invite the trainer to battle after defeating Burgh in a gym battle. She arranged to fight at Castelia Gate as long as they did not damage the electric bulletin board. Bianca lost the battle, and her defeat caused her to realize that she would never be a strong trainer like the others. At the same time, her experiences taught her about the importance of being with Pokémon and helped her to figure out what she wanted to do with her life.

They then went to Nimbasa City, where Bianca was excited by all the different attractions. After checking out the Pokémon Musical, she decided to go sightseeing, but she was then stopped by her father. He thought that Bianca had gone far enough and demanded that she return home. Elesa intervened on her behalf and convinced him to let Bianca go on her own way. He asked Hilbert/Hilda to take care of Bianca before setting off, and Bianca promised to return when she knew what she was doing with her life. She was also impressed by Elesa and hoped to be a "totally cool woman" like her. During the time period before her next appearance, Bianca defeated Elesa and received a gift from her father, HM06: Fly, suspecting that he only sent it so that she could visit home. Bianca met with Hilbert/Hilda again at Route 6 and was impressed by the badge that the trainer had earned from Driftveil's gym. After another battle, she shared her HM with the trainer and decided to do the same with Cheren. Bianca also earned Driftveil's badge for herself when she beat Clay. She soon met up with Professor Juniper and acted as her bodyguard in Chargestone Cave. Bianca eventually resumed her journey and beat Skyla at Mistralton City. Bianca was reunited with Cheren and Hilbert/Hilda at Icirrus City outside Brycen's gym.

They were interrupted by the arrival of the Shadow Triad, who brought a message from N who was awaiting at Dragonspiral Tower. Bianca was nervous and not sure if she was up to facing the challenges awaiting at Dragonspiral Tower as she believed she was not really that strong. They met with Cedric Juniper along the way, and Bianca opted to stay behind to bodyguard him while Hilbert/Hilda, Brycen and Cheren went ahead to the tower. Things became more complicated after N awakened Zekrom or Reshiram, and Bianca was confused by these developments. She did still give Hilbert/Hilda instructions to the Relic Castle, and after she defeated Brycen, she showed up again at Nacrene City when Hilbert/Hilda returned there to claim the Light or Dark Stone (depending on the version). When Hilbert/Hilda met Bianca again at Route 8, she was thinking over her choices and wondering if she should become a model like Elesa or a Pokémon researcher from Professor Juniper. She saw that she would have to know a lot about Pokémon for the latter job, so she chose to battle Hilbert/Hilda again. Bianca lost again, but she was impressed by the battle and gave them a Full Restore. She stressed the importance of stopping Team Plasma, but she then apologized for pressuring Hilbert'/Hilda and urged them to relax. Bianca and Cheren later confronted Hilbert/Hilda at Route 10 when the trainer was on their way to the Pokémon League to battle the Elite Four and N. Cheren wanted to test his strength, and Bianca offered words of support as well as some Max Revives. She thought it was funny how different they were and chastised Cheren for being serious all the time. Bianca promised to help Hilbert/Hilda in any way that she could, but she had trouble thinking of something inspirational to say and left with a halfhearted "Best foot forward!"

Once N's Castle rose, Bianca helped in her own way. She traveled to each of the gyms and got all of the gym leaders together to attack the castle. The only people she missed were the Striation gym leaders, as by the time she reached their gym, the ordeal had already ended with Hilbert/Hilda victorious. The next time they saw Hilbert/Hilda, Bianca and Cheren both apologized for their minor failures. Cheren was more concerned about Bianca's current plans, and Bianca first announced a trip to Black City (in Black) or White Forest (in White). Cedric Juniper then showed up to give them each their National Pokédex updates. Bianca was excited by this and went to show her parents. Examining her Pokédex led her to realize how much she loved researching Pokémon, so Bianca stayed at Nuvema Town and wound up helping Professor Juniper at her lab. She could be challenged to rematches on Saturdays and had developed enough control that she could safely battle someone within the laboratory.

Black 2/White 2

Over the next two years, Bianca officially became Professor Juniper's assistant. In Black 2/White 2, she was sent to give out Starter Pokémon and Pokédexes to some new trainers in Aspertia Town, Nate/Rosa and Hugh. Although she forgot some details about them, she still accomplished her task and tried teaching them the ropes of training Pokémon. She encouraged them to test out their Pokémon with a battle and then showed them some of the basics, giving them a tour of the Pokémon Center and Poké Mart followed by a tutorial on catching Pokémon. After Nate/Rosa defeated Cheren, Bianca congratulated them by giving them TM27: Return and was also reunited with Cheren afterwards. Bianca then gave more features to Nate/Rosa as they went through the first steps of their journey: the C-Gear at Route 19, the Pokédex's Habitat List at Floccesy Town, a Dowsing Machine at Castelia City and HM05: Fly at Route 5. She also taught them about Hidden Grottoes at the latter area. She was then found at the Chargestone Cave, where she was trying to research Tynamo and taught the player how to move floating stones.

Bianca later joined the group in taking a plane to Lentimas Town, where they discussed Team Plasma's actions. Bianca then traveled to Reversal Mountain in order to investigate the possibility that Heatran was there. When Nata/Rosa explored the area, Bianca traveled with them and acted as their partner for battles. Afterwards, she showed up at Lacunosa Town and joined the others in discussing what was known about Kyurem. Later on, she congratualted Nate/Rosa on how far they had come after they had defeated Kyurem at the Giant Chasm. If the player was using the Memory Link feature, then Bianca could be battled on Route 1, after she got nostalgic remembering when she originally left on her Pokémon journey with Hilbert/Hilda and Cheren. Bianca could also appear as an opponent for the Mix Tournament division of the Pokémon World Tournament.

Pokémon Roster

Black/White

• Snivy/Servine/Serperior, Tepig/Pignite/Emboar or Oshawott/Dewott/Samurott - At the beginning of the game, Bianca will choose the starter Pokémon that has a type disadvantage against the one chosen by the player character. It undergoes its first evolution by the Route 4 battle and its final evolution by the Route 8 battle.
• Lillipup/Herdier/Stoutland - Bianca gains this Pokémon by the Route 2 battle. It evolves into Herdier by the Route 4 battle and Stoutland by the Route 8 battle.
• Pansage/Simisage, Pansear/Simisear and Panpour/Simipour - Bianca gets one of the three elemental monkeys which has a type disadvantage against her own starter as well as the monkey which the player character can receive, but it has an advantage over the player's starter Pokémon. It evolves by the Route 8 battle.
• Munna/Musharna - Bianca catches this Pokémon at the Dreamyard and it is briefly stolen by Team Galactic at Castelia City. She first uses it during the Route 4 battle and it evolves by the Driftveil City battle.
• Mienshao - Bianca only uses this Pokémon starting in the rematches at Professor Juniper's lab.
• Chandelure - Bianca only uses this Pokémon starting in the rematches at Professor Juniper's lab, rounding out a six-Pokémon roster.

Black 2/White 2

During the game's tutorial for catching Pokémon, Bianca uses a Lillipup and catches a Purrloin. She also holds the three Unovan starter Pokémon from Professor Juniper, for Nate/Rose and Hugh to choose from. When fighting alongside Bianca at Reversal Mountain, she would use Musharna, Mienfoo and Stoutland. For battles within the Mix Tournament, her roster would include Musharna, Audino, Fraxure and the middle forms of each starter Pokémon.

When fought against in a Memory Link battle, Bianca's roster would be the same as her final roster from Black/White, depending on the starter that had been chosen by the player in the original Black/White file.

In Other Pokémon Games

In Pokémon Masters EX, Bianca (as seen in the sequel games) appeared with Musharna as a playable sync pair that could be recruited at random through the game's Sync Pair Scout feature after being added to the game in November 2020. She played a role in the Story Event "The Ideal Formula", where she and Iris showed N around Pasio upon his arrival in the region. They then worked together to help Hilbert, Hilda and Cheren, who had been captured by members of Team Break. She also appeared in the Story Event "Howling Shield of Eternity", in which she helped out with an outbreak of Dynamax Pokémon. She and Cheren also gave Hugh advice about getting along with Bede in the Story Event "Revel in Rivalry".

Other Appearances

Other Media

• In the Pokémon anime, Bianca made recurring appearances during the Sinnoh-based series. It was shown that she is older than Ash, but she only recently started her Pokémon journey due to her father holding her back. She initially met with Ash when Professor Juniper sent her to deliver a badge case to Ash and was shown to have her own Xtransceiver (which Ash did not have). Bianca had a Pignite which had been her starter and ultimately evolved into Emboar. She made a cameo appearance in the Pokémon Journeys series watching Iris and Cynthia's battle in the Masters Eight Tournament.
• In the Pokémon Adventures manga, Bianca has appeared as a supporting character in the Black/White arc. She and Cheren were childhood friends of Black who were pushed into Pokémon training by Black and later had to convince Professor Juniper to let him be chosen as the third Pokédex holder in addition to them. Bianca and Cheren both received Pokédexes, but they were broken after Black accidentally dropped them in water. Bianca's starter in this version is an Oshawott, deviating from the games in that it has a type advantage over Black's Pokémon. Her development followed a similar path as the games, including her eventually becoming Juniper's assistant.

Trivia

• The name Bianca is Italian for "white". This acts as a foil for Cheren, who is named after a word for "black", so that together they reference the version colors.
• At two different points in the game, Cheren mentions having known Bianca for ten years and knowing the player character for their entire lives. This suggests Cheren and Hilbert/Hilda must have met Bianca when they were around four years ago.
• At Reversal Mountain in Black 2/White 2, Bianca expresses that she is not sure if being Professor Juniper's job is really what she wants to do, although she does also note that she has a lot of fun when researching.