Lt. Surge

Lt. Surge (マチス Matis) serves as the Gym Leader at Vermilion City's Gym. He holds the Thunder Badge for the trainers that can defeat him, and specializes in Electric type Pokémon.

In Anime
Lt. Surge first appeared in the anime episode Electric Shock Showdown, where Ash challenges him to a Gym Battle. The battle ended in disaster for Ash, as he was defeated by Surge's Raichu. With Surge believing that power meant everything, he commented on how Ash should evolve his Pikachu as soon as possible or he would never manage to defeat him.

Ash debated over the statement for quite a while, all the while waiting for Pikachu to recover. Deciding not to evolve Pikachu, Ash once again challenged Lt. Surge, which led to more criticism. Ash, this time, matched Lt. Surge's Raichu with Pikachu's speed instead of power, which is all that Raichu relied on. Pikachu, able to get the best of Raichu, led to Ash's victory, where Lt. Surge gave him a Thunder Badge.

Red, Green, Blue Arc
Lt. Surge serves as both a gym leader and a Team Rocket leader. He is first seen in the SS Anne importing stolen Pokémon.

Yellow Arc
In the manga, he was a member of Team Rocket before it got disbanded, though he was angry at Neo Team Rocket because the new leader was just controlling the old members. Though it was resolved when they defeated the one who was controlling everyone.

In Game
Lt. Surge first appeared in the original Pokémon games, as the Vermilion City Gym Leader. He would later be in Pokémon Gold and Silver in the same position. Again, he appeared in the Red and Blue remakes, Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, with an updated appearance.

Fame Checker
-Vermilion City - sign


 * What does this person do?

"Vermilion City Pokémon Gym

Leader: Lt. Surge 

The Lightning American!" 

-Vermilion Gym - Lt. Surge


 * Favorite kind of Pokémon?

"I tell you, kid, electric Pokémon saved me during the war!"

-Vermilion Gym - Gentleman Tucker


 * What is this person like?

"When I was in the Army, Lt. Surge was my strict CO.

He was a hard taskmaster." 

-Vermilion Gym - Gentleman Tucker


 * What is this person like?

"Lt. Surge was always famous for his cautious nature in the Army."

-Vermilion Gym - Sailor Dwayne


 * What is this person like?

"Lt. Surge installed the traps in the Gym himself.

He set up double locks everywhere." 

-Vermilion City - Pokémon Journal


 * There’s a rumor...

"Lt. Surge is rumored to have been a pilot while home in America. 

He used the electricity generated by Pokémon to power his plane."

-Message from Lt. Surge

From: Lt. Surge

To: [Player]

"Hey kid!

You electrified me in our battle!

I didn’t know that there were gutsy trainers like you.

It made me change my mind about you!"

HeartGold and SoulSilver
Rematch

Pokémon Stadium
Gym Leader Castle

Gym Leader Castle Round 2

Pokémon Stadium 2
Gym Leader Castle

Gym Leader Castle Round 2

In Manga
In Pokémon Adventures Lt. Surge is an executive for Team Rocket and along with Sabrina and Koga he fights Red to prevent him from interfering, but as usual, it results in failure.

Voice Actors

 * English: Maddie Blaustein
 * Japanese: Fumihiko Tachiki
 * Polish: Grzegorz Pawlak
 * Spanish: Juan Luis Rovira
 * Iberian Spanish: Gerardo Vasquez

Trivia

 * Lt. Surge's name is a play on the word "surge", as in an electrical surge, since he is an -type trainer.
 * There are several references to Lt. Surge being in the military in the video games (possibly the American army or Air Force). It is said he was Gentleman Tucker's commanding officer in the army during an unspecified war, where his life was saved by -type Pokémon. There is also a rumor that he was a pilot, while in America, who used Electric-type Pokémon to power his plane.
 * Lt. Surge is said to be a member of the United States Army, making him one of the first non-Japanese and -Asian characters in the franchise.
 * Lt. Surge's Pokémon are slightly higher leveled in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver than in the Generation II games.
 * Lt. Surge seems to be proof that the Pokémon series started out in a setting similar to the real world. Seeing as the Kanto region in Pokémon Red and Blue is named and modeled after an actual Japanese prefecture, he too is from a real world location: the United States of America.
 * Lt. Surge shares many similarities to the Street Fighter character Guile due to the fact that they are both muscular blonde Americans who were part of the military. Also Lt. Surge's attire in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver is incredibly similar in appearance to Guile's main attire in the series.
 * In the anime and in Pokémon Yellow his Raichu can use Mega Kick, which Raichu cannot learn.
 * Lt. Surge is the only Gym Leader to have only one Pokemon (in Pokémon Yellow).