Gladion

Gladion
Species	Human
Affiliation	Team Skull (formerly) Aether Foundation
Hair color	Blonde
Eye color	Green
Relatives	Mohn (father) Lusamine (mother) Lillie (sister)
Voiced by	Alan Lee (2020)
Debut	Pokémon: Sun/Moon

Gladion is a Pokémon trainer who acts as a recurring opponent in the seventh generation games of the Pokémon series: Pokémon Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon. He is the son of Lusamine, the Aether Foundation president who acts as an antagonist for the generation, who ran away with the experimental Pokémon Type: Null and joined Team Skull. He acts as a rival character for the generation, along with Hau.

Background

Gladion was the son of Lusamine and Mohn, who acted as the president and a researcher for the Aether Foundation, respectively. He also had a sister named Lillie. The family got along well until an experiment with Ultra Space went wrong, resulting in Mohn being lost in an Ultra Wormhole. Lusamine's attitude changed completely afterwards, as she started acting cruel, distant and controlling to her children. She tried to make them behave and act exactly as she wanted, and he began to feel that he was nothing more than an ornament to his mother. This caused him to empathise with Type: Null, the experimental Pokémon that Aether created through unethical experiments for the purpose of battling the Ultra Beasts. Gladion eventually ran away from home with one Type: Null. His motivations were different depending on the version: in Sun/Moon, he did so in order to protect Null from his mother and Faba. In Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon, it was implied to be so that they could become strong enough to protect everyone and to go into Ultra Space if need be to save his father or anyone lost there.

Over the course of the next two years, Gladion lived in the Alola region with his Type: Null, and he was set on the two of them making it on their own. He mostly stayed at the Akala Motel at Route 8 of Akala Island. He trained a lot with his Type: Null to become as strong as possible so that they could protect themselves and others. He also ended up working for Team Skull. Guzma had taken a liking to him, but he was not considered to be an official member of the group and was instead more like hired help who did 'small jobs' for them. Gladion also had a tendency to compete in Battle Royals - as a way of burying his sorrows in Sun/Moon or trying to become stornger in Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon.

Within the seventh generation games, Gladion first appeared at Route 5 on Akala Island. He had just defeated Hau in a battle, but he was frustrated by Hau's carefree disposition, as he felt that he was not taking their battle seriously and that Pokémon battles could only be enjoyed when a trainer put everything they had into it. He then met Elio/Selene and immediately battled them. After being defeated, Gladion was frustrated that he slipped up and felt that he had to keep on fighting stronger opponents to prepare himself. He proceeded to taunt Hau about his inability to defeat his grandfather and got into an argument with some Team Skull grunts who felt that Gladion was keeping them from trying to steal a Totem Pokémon. Afterwards, he went to Royal Avenue and took part in a Battle Royal involving Elio/Selene, Hau and The Masked Royal. He could also be found in his room at the Akala Motel, where he simply commanded the trainer to get out.

His next appearance was on Ula'ula Island at Route 13. He had learned that Team Skull was seeking out Cosmog, and he passed that information along to Elio/Selene. He warned them of the dangers that could occur if Cosmog was used to summon Ultra Beasts, and so he asked them to protect Cosmog if they found it. He was unaware that Lillie had Cosmog until he found out that both of them had been captured at Team Skull. He learned this shortly after it happened at the island's Aether House. Enraged, he proceeded to battle Elio/Selene again, but after being defeated, he apologized for forcing the trainer into a 'meaningless battle'. He was still mad at them for failing to protect Lillie and Cosmog, but he proceeded to engineer a rescue plan. He asked the trainers to meet him at the island's ferry terminal at Malie City. While waiting for Hau, Gladion confided that he would not be able to take living in a kahuna's shadow and trying to stand up to him as an equal. After witnessing Elio/Selene's defeat of Nanu, the three trainers went to Aether Paradise in search of Lillie and Cosmog.

At Aether Paradise, the trainers were led down to the lower levels, where Gladion talked about his and Null's past. He also stated his appreciation to Elio/Selene and Hau, as Hau had helped him to realize that people could achieve more while working together. They soon realized that Faba was giving them the run-around and confronted him. Gladion teamed up with Elio/Selene in a Multi Battle against a pair of Aether employees, but he ultimately left Faba to Elio/Selene and Hau while he went on ahead. When the trainer caught up to Gladion, he had just been defeated by Guzma and was left wondering if all of his training was in vein. Guzma proceeded to let tthem through after being defeated by Elio/Selene, and they proceeded to confront Lusamine in her Trophy Room. There, Lusamine rejected everyone's warnings and forced the Ultra Wormhole open, at which point she and Guzma disappeared into it. In Sun/Moon, Gladion attempted to battle a Nihilego that briefly appeared from the Ultra Wormhole. In Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon, he made an attempt to implore Lusamine to let him enter the Ultra Wormhole to fight Necrozma because that was what he was training for, only for his plea to be rejected by Lusamine.

Afterwards, the trainers regrouped and considered how to face the new challenges. On the next day, Gladion found a flute (the Sun Flute in Sun/Ultra Sun or the Moon Flute in Moon/Ultra Moon) and passed it on to Elio/Selene. He also related what he knew about the legends relating to the flutes' ability to summon the Legendary Pokémon of Alola. He also gave the trainer a Master Ball. Gladion decided to stay behind and help to clean up the Aether Paradise, and he apologized for dragging the trainer into their 'family drama'. He still gave Elio/Selene and Lillie a ride to Poni Island. There, he advised them to seek out the kahuna and also apologized to Lillie for leaving her behind after she expressed her sadness at him leaving two years ago. After the Ultra Space debacle was settled, Gladion appeared to Elio/Selene at the base of Mount Lanakila. He thanked the trainer for helping his family and decided to express that thanks in the form of a Pokémon battle, now with a Z-Power Ring that he received from an old man. After being defeated, Gladion talked about Lillie and passed along items that she wanted them to have. He also remarked that Hau had changed and become stronger, even having attempted to battle him in Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon. He ultimately concluded that they were not friends, but they also were not enemies anymore, and he hinted that he would see the trainer again if they kept winning.

Once Elio/Selene became the champion, a celebration was held at Iki Town on Melemele Island. Gladion was seen briefly watching the festivities while hiding behind a tree. He smiled while seeing Lillie and others enjoying themselves, before turning and departing.

Afterwards, the specifics of his story differed depending on the versions in question. The main constant was that Gladion had a role in giving the player a Type: Null of their own, and he could appear as a Title Defense opponent.

Sun/Moon

In these versions, Lusamine was left in an unstable condition as a result of her fusion with Nihilego. Gladion became the acting president of Aether Corporation in her absence, while Lillie departed for Kanto to find a way to cure their mother. At his old motel room, the player could find a letter from Gladion to his mother in which he apologized for taking Null and running away, but it also stated that he did not regret his actions as they were for the greater good. When met with at Aether Paradise, Gladion reminisced about his mother's motivations and his belief that it was all rooted in a desire to reach Mohn again. He then gave Elio/Selene another Type: Null, one whose existence was kept a secret, as well as all the memory drives that could be used on Silvally. He felt that he trusted Elio/Selene to show it the world and decided that he would see more of the world for himself. He would start with Alola's Pokémon League, as he heard that Alola now had a strong champion.

Afterwards, Gladion had a chance of appearing as a Title Defense opponent whenever Elio/Selene defeated the Elite Four. He came to see the value of having the strongest rival for himself and accepted his defeats gracefully, as he came to understand everything he could learn through losing.

Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon

On the morning after Elio/Selene's championship celebration, Gladion departed on a boat to Kanto. Wicke and various Aether employees saw him off. He was then surprised when Lusamine joined them and waved farewell to him. He proceeded to smile and waved back. Gladion spent some time training in Kanto to become stronger. He also left the extra Type: Null and memory drives with Wicke, to give to Elio/Selene.

Gladion would return to Alola one month after the player's competion of Episode RR. At that point, he would start appearing as a Title Defense opponent at the end of some Elite Four challenges. He also appeared in a special scene at the Aether Foundation in which an amnesica Mohn showed up and talked to Lusamine without remembering anything about her or their past. After he left, Gladion asked Lusamine if she was sure about leaving things like that, and she said that she was content with the way he smiled.

Pokémon Roster

Gladion uses the following Pokémon in battle:

• Type: Null/Silvally: Type: Null is Gladion's main Pokémon, and it evolves into Silvally by the Mount Lanakila battle. As Silvally, it is equipped with a memory drive giving it a type that has a type advantage over whichever starter Pokémon the player had chosen (Fire-type if Rowlet, Water-type if Litten and Grass-type if Popplio).
• Zubat/Golbat/Crobat: Gladion uses Zubat starting from the first battle in Route 5. It evolves into Golbat by the Aether House battle and Crobat by the Mount Lanakila battle.
• Zorua/Zoroark: Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon only. He uses Zorua starting in the Route 5 battle, and it evolves into Zoroark by the Aether House battle. It has Darkinium Z starting in the Mount Lanakila battle.
• Sneasel/Weavile: Sun/Moon only. He uses Sneasel starting in the Aether House battle, and it evolves into Weavile by the Mount Lanakila battle. He did not use this Pokémon during the Multi Battle at Multi Paradise, in which he used only Golbat and Type: Null.
• Lucario: He starts using Lucario in the Mount Lanakila battle. It is equipped with Steelium Z, in Sun/Moon only.
• Porygon-Z: This Pokémon is added to Gladion's team for Title Defense battles.
• Venusaur, Charizard or Blastoise: He uses this Pokémon during Title Defense battles in Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon only. He will use the Pokémon as the same type as the starter Pokémon that the player had chosen (Venusaur if Rowlet, Charizard if Litten or Blastoise if Popplio). He most likely obtained them during his training in the Kanto region.

When taking part in the Battle Royal, Gladion only used Type: Null.

In Other Pokémon Games

In Pokémon Masters EX, Gladion and Silvally appeared together 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 September 2020. Silvally has a special move that allows it to change its type (as well as the type of one attack and its sync move) to match the type that its target is weak against. Gladion has also been shown to use his Crobat when battled as an opponent in some events. The characters in this game follow the Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon version of events.

Gladion was featured in the Story Event "Family Ties", in which Lillie entered Gladion, Lusamine and herself in a family battle competition. They struggled to work together as a team, to the point where Gladion suggested that they switch strategies to fight individually. Lillie refused, because she did this so that they could learn to work together. Ultimately, they did well enough to defeat the team of Norman, Brendan and Wally. In the "Hearts United" Story Event, he was impressed by Lillie's battling and felt that he could now see her as a rival. Gladion also appeared in the Story Event "The Light Devourer", in which he warned Lusamine to approach Necrozma's presence in Pasio differently than she did in Alola.

He also acted as an opponent who Elio had to defeat in a one-on-one battle for his Brionne to evolve into a Primarina during a Sync Pair Story.

Other Appearances

Other Media

• Gladion appeared in the Pokémon anime, where he was featured in the Sun/Moon-based series. His backstory was changed to be rooted in a childhood incident in which a Nihilego was released from one of Faba's experiments and nearly attacked Lillie before she was saved by Type: Null. Gladion had felt powerless and decided to become stronger to protect Lillie. He left with Type: Null for this purpose and to avoid Faba. He also avoided his family in general due because he assumed that Lusamine was aware of Faba's activities. He was shown to have nicknamed his Pokémon 'Silvally' long before it evolved. It was stolen by Faba for a period, during which Gladion worked with his mother, and they came to a better understanding of each other in the process. He later helped to save Lusamine after she let herself be captured by Nihilego in Gladion's place. Gladion later became a member of the Ultra Guardians, and he worked with Lunala in the big battle against Necrozma. Gladion also competed in the Manalo Conference and made it to the finals, where Ash ultimately defeated him in order to secure the championship. Afterwards, Gladion left with his family in search of Mohn. This storyline was concluded in an episode of the Pokémon Journeys series, in which they discovered Mohn and helped him to recover his memory.
• In the Pokémon Adventures manga, he appeared as a supporting character in the Sun/Moon/Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon arc. He was shown to seek out other Pokémon that could potentially help him and Type: Null to fight off Ultra Beasts. He was also accepted at Team Skull as an enforcer, but Plumeria refused to let him be a true member, and Guzma refused to listen to his warnings about the Aether Foundation and the Ultra Beasts. Although he was initially at odds with the protagonists, he ultimately helped them and Lillie at the Poni Altar. He later spent some time injured by the energy released by Type: Null's evolution into Silvally, but he later worked with Moon against Faba. They were ultimately distracted by Ryuki, while Faba was abducted into Ultra Space. Gladion was last seen heading into Ultra Space with others in an attempt to save Faba.
• In Pokémon Evolutions, Gladion made a brief appearance during an episode based on the story of Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon. He was seen in a flashback witnessing when Lusamine used Nebby to open the Ultra Wormhole at Aether Paradise.

Trivia

• His Japanese name is Glazio, which seems to be based on "Gladiolus", which is also known as "sword lily". His English name seems to be based on the same root.