The final episodes of Ash’s Pokémon journey have aired, and the legend has presented his adventure. As Ash tracks down the wounded Latias, fans realize that this particular Pokémon is a familiar companion to Latias, and its companion Pokémon Latios, played in the fifth Pokémon movie, Pokémon Heroes: Latios and Latias.
In the film, Ash finds a girl being chased by two members of Team Rocket. The girl has become an illusion created by Lattice – what criminals really are. Ash and this Lattice grow closer in the course of the film, to the point where it seems that he has developed a love for Ash. The Laties and Latios in the movie are known for having many abilities that these Pokemon do not normally have, such as the ability to impersonate humans and turn invisible.
In the first episode of Becoming a Pokemon Master, Ash encounters Latias, who is injured after crashing into a pond in the forest. Ash takes it out of the water and tries to heal the wound. Lattice takes off his bandages and tries to run away when he wakes up, but is soon attacked by Team Rocket, thinking they might steal his Pokemon. Ash and Lattice both run into Team Rocket’s machine, and Lattice is surprised that Ash went to great lengths to protect him. Pikachu can free both of them by using thunderbolts, which freeze the ash on the lattice. Once Team Rocket is captured, Lattice leaves, but is seen watching Ash from afar and eventually follows him.
The Latios follow Ash for most of the minor episodes, and eventually enlist his help in rescuing their partner, Latios. Ash allows Latin and Latios to return home to save them from the Pokemon Hunter. The series finally confirms that these Latias and Laties are related to the movie Pokemon Heroes in the episode “Ash and Latios”, showing them returning to the Alto Mare that appeared in the film. While the Laties are not the main characters in the film, since Ash is not credited, the Latias and Laties shown here are likely the baby Latias and Latios seen at the end of the film.
The Pokemon Heroes movie is a fan favorite, and marked the end of an era as it was the last movie to feature Ash, Misty, and Brock. It makes a lot of sense to bring back elements of the film for Ash’s final story, as it ties in with the last time the three characters were together. The story helped show Ash’s growth since that movie, as he was able to easily gain more trust from Latis and Latios than before. And this has made the final installments give long-time Pokemon fans even more respect than they already have—exactly the kind of thing the end of a long-running series should do.