Sidney: Offense First, Opening Hoenn's Elite Four

He's the first of the four, and he's already picked his side before the battle even starts. Sidney holds the opening seat of the Hoenn League's Elite Four, in Ever Grande City, where he champions the Dark type. The games describe him with a nuance worth pointing out: his look is intimidating, his manners belie his look, and he cares far less about the outcome of a battle than about the battle itself.

Contents

• The Opening Seat of Hoenn's Elite Four
• A Doctrine He Owns: Strike First
• Absol, His Ace in the Mobile Game
• In the Manga, an Ally Rather Than an Opponent
• Sidney at a Glance
• Frequently Asked Questions

The Opening Seat of Hoenn's Elite Four

Sidney sits on the Elite Four of the Hoenn League, whose headquarters stands in Ever Grande City. His specialty is the Dark type, and he's the first of the four members a challenger for the title faces: he's the one who gets things started.

That position is more than just a line in a table. The Elite Four must be faced in order, so no one reaches Phoebe, Glacia or Drake without first finding an answer to his Dark-type Pokémon.

One detail changes the picture in the remake of his generation: once the Delta Episode is complete, the four members' teams are no longer the same. In other words, you battle the same opponent twice in a single game, and you can't prepare for the second version the way you did for the first.

A Doctrine He Owns: Strike First

Sidney's official portrait comes down to a contrast. He cares about battling for its own sake, far more than about the result: he loves the fight itself, without making the score the measure of it. And while his presence is intimidating, his manners actually turn out to be very courteous.

His battle plan, on the other hand, doesn't bother with any nuance. For him, offense comes before defense, and his motto boils down to letting might, not right, settle the argument. He sorts people without a second thought into those who have that strength and everyone else.

His tastes follow his doctrine. Sidney openly professes a fondness for the dark beauty of Dark-type Pokémon — a statement of style as much as strategy, which explains why his seat and his personality look so much alike.

Absol, His Ace in the Mobile Game

The franchise's mobile game recruited him on August 9, 2021. There he wears his Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire outfit, from the generation that made him known to the widest audience, rather than a brand-new costume.

He teams up there with an Absol, and this partner has a Mega Evolution: the duo can switch to Mega Absol during battle. In the core games, by contrast, Absol closes out a team of five, alongside Mightyena, Shiftry, Cacturne and Sharpedo — with Crawdaunt replacing the latter in Emerald, and the Delta Episode reshuffling the deck in Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, where the team grows to six.

The choice is consistent all the way through. A Dark-type companion, pushed to its limit by Mega Evolution, serves exactly the agenda of a Trainer who prefers attack to caution: you don't build this duo to last, you build it to finish.

🔥 The dark partners have their own shelf: browse our Pokémon Figures.

In the Manga, an Ally Rather Than an Opponent

The manga adaptation gives him a role the games never do. There, Sidney answers the call of Steven Stone, alongside Wallace, as the clash between Groudon and Kyogre threatens Hoenn with imminent destruction.

The plan they settle on relies on the Legendary giants. It's his Zangoose that breaks the seal of the Desert Ruins, to rouse Regirock from its slumber and enlist it in the region's defense — a use of Zangoose that's a far cry from a League battle.

The operation succeeds, and all three giants end up awake. Regirock is then placed in Sidney's care, with Drake's help: two Elite Four members who, for the length of this crisis, stop being obstacles and become bulwarks.

Sidney at a Glance

Frequently Asked Questions

• What type does Sidney use?
  The Dark type. He's the first of the four members of the Hoenn League's Elite Four, based in Ever Grande City, so the final challenge starts with him.
• Does Sidney appear in the anime?
  No. To date, the anime series has never featured him: you'll only find him in the games, the manga and the trading cards.
• What Pokémon does Sidney use in the mobile game?
  An Absol, his sync pair partner since August 9, 2021. This partner can Mega Evolve into Mega Absol, and Sidney wears his Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire outfit in the game.
• What does Sidney do in the manga?
  Called in by Steven Stone along with Wallace, he uses his Zangoose to break the seal of the Desert Ruins and awaken Regirock, as Groudon and Kyogre threaten Hoenn. Once all three giants are awake, Regirock is entrusted to him, with Drake's help.
• Does his team change over the course of the game?
  Yes. The Elite Four's lineups change once the Delta Episode is over: you can't prepare for the second battle the way you did for the first.

In short

Sidney is the kind of character whose role and personality say the same thing: an opening seat, the Dark type, and a doctrine that puts attack before caution. The games give him a full Dark team led by Absol, the manga gives him Zangoose and then custody of Regirock, and the anime has never given him anything at all. Then there are the cards: his first card dates back to the EX Power Keepers expansion, released in France on August 24, 2007.