Doesn't Matter If You're Black or White

News about Pokémon Black and White, the games that'll launch the fifth generation of the Pokémon franchise, is pouring out like so much salt. We now know about the region they'll be set in, the Pokémon you'll be able to start with, and how advanced the graphics are (light years ahead of Generation IV, in case you haven't seen 'em yet). But what really caught my attention is the revelation that the playable characters are a couple of years older than they have been in the past. It's generally implied that the trainers in the Pokémon games are about 10 or 11, so it's believed that the Black and White trainers will be around 13 or 14.

And that got me to thinking - what'll that mean for the anime? For the last two generations, the female trainer has joined Satoshi and Takeshi on their travels, and if they keep up the trend, it could make for an interesting new dynamic, juxtaposing an older traveling companion with the guys. Satoshi might end up learning a thing or two from her for a change, and we all know how girl-crazy Takeshi is - imagine what it'd be like for him to travel with a girl who's closer to his age range. And this is a bit of personal preference here, but I'd really like it if Generation V got rid of Pokémon contests and replaced them with the Pokéathlon from HeartGold and SoulSilver. The as-yet-unnamed female trainer, judging by her promo art, strikes me as the sporty, tomboyish type, which doesn't seem suited to contests as we've seen them in the past; the athletic spirit of the Pokéathlon seems like it'd fit her much better.

So if all this came true, it could mean some very interesting changes in the world of Pokémon in a couple of months. I tried to predict what things may be like, but only time will tell if it turns out to be a reality.