S16

Ash and his friends Iris and Cilan have foiled Team Rocket’s latest evil plan, but a new danger lurks on the horizon! But first, with eight Gym badges in hand, Ash is ready to take on the region’s ultimate challenge: the Unova League, where he’ll face familiar rivals and new opponents in his ongoing quest to become a Pokémon Master! Meanwhile, Iris has been having some trouble connecting with her powerful and stubborn Dragonite—can a visit home to the Village of Dragons help sort things out for the aspiring Dragon Master? And what exciting new adventures await our heroes beyond the Unova League? The answers to come, as the journey continues!

Spoiler warning: this article may contain major plot or ending details.

• Ash learns that the Unova League will be held in Vertress City. (BW098)
• Ash and his friends visit the Village of Dragons. (BW100)
• Iris has a rematch with Drayden and loses again. (BW101)
• The Vertress Conference takes place, beginning with 128 competitors. (BW103 - BW108)
  • Stephan advances to the second round after defeating Radley. (BW103)
  • Ash, Virgil, Bianca, and Cameron advance to the next round after defeating Trip, Ultimo, Mikael, and Kendrick respectively. (BW104)
  • Ash and Trip end their rivalry and become friends. (BW104)
  • Cameron defeats Bianca, eliminating the latter from the tournament. (BW104)
  • Ash, Stephan, Cameron, and Virgil make it through the third round. (BW105)
  • Ash, Cameron, and Virgil advance to the next round after defeating Stephan, Kenton, and Flora respectively. (BW106)
  • Ash has a Full Battle with Cameron in the quarter-finals and loses, finishing in the Top 8. (BW106 - BW108)
  • Virgil defeats Cameron in the semi-finals and goes on to win the Vertress Conference. (BW108)
• Ash and his friends return to Nuvema Town after the conclusion of the Vertress Conference. (BW109)
• Ash and his friends meet N. (BW110)
• Ash and his friends meet Cheren, the Aspertia City Gym Leader. (BW111)
• Ash meets Looker again and Cilan and Iris meet him for the first time. (BW112)
• Ash, Iris, and Cilan encounter the villainous Team Plasma, including Colress, for the first time. (BW112)
• Ash and his friends meet N again, who decides to travel with them. (BW114)
• Ash reunites with his Charizard, and puts it in his active rotation. (BW116)
• Ash and his friends meet Anthea and Concordia for the first time. (BW117)
• Ash and his friends find out that N used to be a member of Team Plasma. (BW118)
• Ash, Iris, and Cilan are escorted to the White Ruins by Cedric Juniper's assistant, who later is revealed to be Looker undercover. (BW120)
• N surrenders the Light Stone to Team Plasma in exchange for Colress freeing Ash's Pikachu from his control. (BW121)
• Ghetsis arrives and starts the ritual of awakening the Legendary Reshiram. (BW121)
• Looker arrests Ghetsis, Colress, and the other Team Plasma members, thereby bringing down the team. (BW122)
• Ash, Iris, and Cilan leave Unova for Kanto, via the Decolore Islands. (BW123)
• Iris and Cilan meet Professor Oak in person for the first time. (BW128)
• Ash, Iris, and Cilan meet Alexa, a reporter from the Kalos region, for the first time. (BW134)
• Alexa joins Ash, Iris, and Cilan during their travels to Kanto. (BW134)
• Ash encounters Clair again while Iris, Cilan, and Alexa meet her for the first time. (BW136)
• Alexa is revealed to own a Noivern. (BW137)
• Ash, Iris, Cilan, and Alexa arrive in Kanto. (BW141)
• Iris and Cilan decide to head to Johto and separate from Ash and Alexa, who continue on to Pallet Town. (BW141)
• Ash and Alexa leave Kanto for the Kalos region. (BW142)

• This is the only season to have more than one official title.
• This is the first season where Ash doesn't earn a Badge or a Symbol.

• Pokémon BW: Adventures in Unova page at Pokémon.com

This article is part of Project Anime, a Bulbapedia project that covers all aspects of the Pokémon anime.