Pikachu and Ash are leaving Pokemon after 25 years

End of an era.

The Pokémon company has announced that for the first time in a quarter of a century the main storyline in the anime won’t feature Ash and Pikachu. A new series debuts next year, but will include two new protagonists named Liko and Roy in the Japanese version.

Fans will also see the three Paldea starter Pokémon in the upcoming series: Sprigatito, Fuecoco and Quaxly.

Viewers will have to wait to see what's next for the world's greatest Pokémon trainer. The current anime, Pokémon Ultimate journeys: The Series will wrap up with a collection of special episodes celebrating Ash and Pikachu’s achievements over the last 25 years. https://twitter.com/Pokemon/status/1603699094689652736 Ash, known as Satoshi in Japan, had his first appearance in 1997 and has since has gone on to become one of the most recognisable fictional characters of all time due to his huge popularity and the success of Pokémon. After years of trying, he finally became the world’s top Pokémon trainer last month by winning the Masters Eight Tournament of the Pokémon World Coronation Series.

Taito Okiura, the vice president of marketing for The Pokémon Company International celebrated Ash’s long-awaited victory: "Ash Ketchum’s determination and perseverance to achieve his goal of becoming the world’s top Pokémon Trainer over the course of 25 seasons represents the very best of what it means to be a Trainer.

"We cannot wait to celebrate this moment with Pokémon fans when the newest season of Pokémon Ultimate Journeys: The Seriesand this adventure-defining episode air around the world in the coming year. This is a season fans won’t want to miss!"