Red and Blue, the original trainers from the first Pokémon games, are reappearing in Pokémon Sun and Moon. It’s been 20 years since we first saw them—how have they changed since then?
In Red and Blue, Red served as a silent protagonist while Blue attempted to thwart him at every turn. While Red was your typical 10 year old kid, Blue was a huge asshole with a chip on his shoulder, who forgoes saying goodbye for, “smell ya later!”
Over the course of the game Red would be minding his own business, trying to make it to the next gym, only to have a competitive Blue would pop out of the bushes. While Blue did make it to the Elite 4 before Red did, Red still bested him in the end. Red went from being a regular kid to the best trainer in the region.
For the main character, Red’s life after Red and Blue is somewhat of a mystery. The next time he’d change his look would be in Fire Red and Leaf Green, which is appropriate because it’s a remake of the original games and follows the same plot. His official art was updated for the game. After that he goes off the radar. He does show up in White 2 and Black 2's Pokémon World Tournament, where you could battle every Gym Leader and Champion from all the games, but he’s otherwise unchanged.
Blue, on the other hand, has a more traceable arc. He too appears in Fire Red and Leaf Green with updated art.
But he also showed up in Gold and Silver, as the leader of the Viridian Gym, taking over for Giovanni. His official artwork wouldn’t be updated until Heart Gold and Soul Silver.
Red and Blue were both redesigned for the Pokémon Origins anime, but they’re both kids again there.
There you have it. Blue was bested and then found a comfortable position for his skill level. Red became the best Pokémon trainer in the region and did.... nothing.
Here’s how they look as thirty year olds in Pokémon Sun and Moon.
Blue, for his part, looks like he’s chilled out: He’s wearing shorts, he’s got his sunglasses. This is Alola—he’s on vacation. Red looks like... well. He looks like he grew up into sort of a dick. Why is he so grumpy? Did he get sand in his mimosa?
The Internet has been overjoyed to see these two familiar faces again regardless.
One thing’s for sure: you really do have to be careful about who you call ugly in middle school.