New series restarted Pokémon Horizon has made it clear that Riko is not Ash Ketchum, and that is extended to her role in the series, which marks a stark contrast to Ash.
In the first episodes of the original Pokémon anime, fans met Ash Ketchum, just another 10-year-old boy starting his Pokémon adventure. There’s nothing special about Ash, at least at first; he’s every boy, exploring the world from a pretty normal person’s perspective. Though Ash then goes on to fulfill the ancient prophesies, master the Pokémon’s mysterious Aura powers, unlock exclusive transformations and moves, and eventually become the World Champion, no There is no indication of this in the first place. On the other hand, Riko, the heroine of Horizons, started with something that clearly made her special.
The Pokémon that made Riko the Chosen One long before the ashes
In episode 3 of Pokémon Horizons, Riko is left to search for the villains, who brought along her Sprigatito after they lost at the end of the previous episode. Riko and the party track down the perpetrators using Rockruff’s nose. Riko tries to exchange her pendant, which their former leader Amethio is very interested in, but he suggests that without her the pendant wouldn’t be of any use to them. Friede and Amethio agree to a winner-take-all battle: if Amethio wins, he will deliver Riko and the pendant, and if Friede wins, Sprigatito will be returned. However, this battle turns out to be just a ruse when Riko goes to rescue Sprigatito on her own. The episode ends with the spaceship setting sail to Paldea, Riko’s hometown, as her mother apparently hired Friede and his crew as her bodyguards.
With everything that has happened to Riko so far, she definitely needs some bodyguards. Now it is clear that there is something special about Riko in particular, aside from being the owner of this pendant. Riko’s mother must have had reason to believe that bad guys might be trying to harm her, or that she never hired Rising Volt Tacklers in the first place. The Pendant is also shown to transform into an unseen Pokémon in the second episode, creating a barrier that protects Riko from an attack. The Pendant Pokémon seems to have acted on its own in response to Riko’s danger, suggesting there may be a rather close connection between Riko and this mysterious Pokémon. It’s even possible that Riko is the only one who can bring a Pokémon out of a pendant, hence why Amethio needs her too.
While it’s still unclear exactly what makes Riko special, it’s clear at this point that Riko is no ordinary kid. That fact alone has been established Pokémon Horizon beyond what happened before, puts Riko in a very different role from Ash, if only a consequence of the new Pokémon’s focus on the plot.