Warning: Spoilers for Pokémon: Aim to Be A Master, episode 3As Ash's final days in the Pokémon anime continue, he's reunited with two more of his former traveling companions, Brock and Cilan. However, it's actually Brock and Cilan who have some catching up to do, thanks to a 10-year-old anime special.
Brock, of course, traveled with Ash the longest out of his companions, from the very beginning all the way through Sinnoh. When the anime for Black and White started, transitioning to the XY anime and the special was simply lost in the mix. The strangest thing about the special, however, is that while Cilan and Brock meet and become friends, the two of them never realize that they've had a friend in common all this time: Ash.
Pokémon's Brock and Cilan Finally Reunite After a Decade
In episode 3 of Aim to Be A Master, both Brock and Cilan make their returns to the anime. Interestingly, Brock and Cilan were shown to be watching introduces Cilan to Pokemon's Misty, who recognizes him from the Cilan-shaped lure that Ash used for fishing in the previous episode.
Why Pokemon's Brock and Cilan Make a Perfect Pair
The episode in which Brock and Cilan first meet was aired in October 2013, nearly ten years before this one, so the plot point of Cilan and Brock being mutual friends of Ash went unaddressed for nearly 10 years. It's especially interesting knowing that Brock and Cilan were watching Ash's championship performance together, as it suggests they maintained a friendship, and didn't simply encounter one another and then move on. It actually makes a lot of sense for Pokemon's Brock and Cilan to be friends, as both were slightly older traveling companions with a ion for food, especially food for Pokémon, and both were formerly first gym leaders. Still, Cilan's popularity has never quite recovered from "replacing" Brock.
Depending on one's perspective, it's either fortunate or a shame that Cilan wasn't able to stick around for the Pokémon anime's final days as well, but it seems Brock, at least, will be traveling with Ash once again.
