Larry: the Gym Leader who switches types for the Elite Four

A Gym Leader in a suit and tie, briefcase in hand, whom nobody recognizes in his own town. Larry runs the Medali Gym, in Paldea, where he champions the Normal type. He also sits on the Elite Four, where his superiors make him field Flying types. He's the only one to hold two posts with two different specialties.

Contents

• "Agent Lambda," a Gym Leader in a suit and tie
• A Gym test that takes place at the table
• Third in the Elite Four, with a team he didn't choose
• "Why make things complicated?": his philosophy of simplicity
• In Horizons, the regular at the counter
• Dot's Terastal test, and a hefty bill
• Larry at a glance
• Frequently Asked Questions

"Agent Lambda," a Gym Leader in a suit and tie

Larry looks nothing like what you'd expect from a Gym Leader: a knotted tie, a briefcase, a serious expression, a drab look and a face that routine seems to have worn down. The game sums him up with a nickname, "Agent Lambda" in the French version ("lambda" meaning ordinary, average), and with a day job that has nothing to do with being a Trainer — the League pays him as a salesman.

His low profile goes a long way. Many of Medali's residents couldn't pick out their Gym Leader on the street, and some don't even know their town has a Gym. The post is filled and the man is there, but nothing points to either.

His type of choice fits the portrait: he sees himself in Normal-type Pokémon. As for battling, his profile doesn't sugarcoat it — he's presented as the ideal opponent for an intermediate-level Trainer, without his results being anything to write home about.

A Gym test that takes place at the table

Larry is a big fan of restaurants, especially the Treasure Eatery — the establishment that also houses his battlefield. So the trial to reach his Gym doesn't involve getting through an obstacle course: you have to figure out, then order, the secret menu item.

You collect the clues by battling other Trainers, and one of them comes from Larry himself, seated at a table, without the player knowing who they're talking to. Once the order is placed, the restaurant opens up into a Gym and the Gym Leader gets up from his chair.

Once defeated, he gives the player the Normal Badge, along with TM025 Facade. The battle has worked up his appetite: he suggests they stay and have lunch together, picks up the tab, then goes back to work.

🐂 Normal-type Pokémon have their own section: see the Pokémon figures.

Third in the Elite Four, with a team he didn't choose

The second half of the character comes to light at the League building, where Larry reappears to announce that he also holds the third seat in the Elite Four. Holding both roles isn't unheard of — Koga had already held both posts — but Larry is the first to hold them at the same time, and the first known Trainer to switch type specialty depending on which hat he's wearing.

He makes no secret that this extra duty doesn't thrill him, and the reason is bureaucratic: his superiors won't let him use his Normal types and give him a Flying-type team instead. It was Geeta who assigned it to him, and he doesn't handle it well — which doesn't stop him from wanting to do his job properly.

His defeat sets off a scene that says everything about his place in the org chart: he's supposed to announce Hassel in a loud voice, and can't manage it, so Rika does it instead and he gets told off. He then watches Rika's and Poppy's battles, starts to offer a word of encouragement before the battle against the Top Champion, and Hassel cuts him off; he still comes to congratulate the player once Geeta is defeated.

"Why make things complicated?": his philosophy of simplicity

The game brings him back in Mesagoza, with the rest of the League, for the player's battle against Nemona. Then comes the Gym inspection: the player's arrival doesn't surprise him; he guesses right away what's going on and thinks delegating like this is typical of Geeta. What does surprise him is that she'd hand the mission to a student to free up time to compete in the Academy Ace Tournament — in her position, he would have said no.

Eager to get it over with, he takes the player back to the Treasure Eatery and lays out his view of the job there. Normal suits him just fine, so why go looking for complications? These days, he says, people only get excited about the flashy and the eccentric; a trip is something to savor, but true comfort is still your own home.

This third defeat draws a worn-out office worker's line out of him: he'll have to take some time off to get over such an emotional jolt. It also makes him understand why he's being made to use the Flying type — stick to the beaten path and you miss out on some views. He still makes a point of adding that none of this amuses him and that the boss ordered him to do it, then heads off, mentioning in passing that overtime wasn't part of the instructions.

In Horizons, the regular at the counter

His first appearance in the series isn't a battle but a meal: Horizons slips him into a flashback featuring Friede, whose former teacher Lucca takes him to the Treasure Eatery, and Larry is already sitting on his usual stool at the counter. Another series, Pokémon: Paldean Winds, does the same: Iono names him as one of Paldea's Gym Leaders, and the streamer's video shows him sitting at a table with his Staraptor.

A later episode hands him a victory he didn't have to earn. During a friendly match against Coral and Kofu at Naranja Academy, the Explorer's Glalie uses Self-Destruct and knocks out every Pokémon on the field; Dendra rules in his favor, since the side that sets off Self-Destruct is counted as the loser. Coral protests — a win is a win — and he replies that a rule you make up for yourself means nothing out in society.

The rest of the time, the series keeps him on the sidelines as an observer. He drops by Nandy and Mokichi's place as a customer for one episode, where he praises their new dish by repeating that nothing beats simplicity. He also sits in with the Elite Four twice over the course of the series, the second time when the group explains to Dot, Liko and Roy that Area Zero is home to species with unusual biology, "Paradox Pokémon" — and he congratulates them after their victory against Geeta.

Dot's Terastal test, and a hefty bill

One Horizons episode finally pulls him out of his background role. Dot, Liko and Roy find him in the middle of a meal at the Treasure Eatery, and Roy is stunned to learn that this Elite Four member also runs a Gym. Larry accepts the challenge — the practical test of the Terastal program — has the restaurant's battlefield set up and states the rule: two Pokémon against two.

His Dudunsparce opens by paralyzing Dot's Quaxly, which will weigh on the rest of the battle. Tinkatink then stands up to the giant and blocks it when it uses Hyper Drill; Larry then switches Pokémon, and his Staraptor settles that exchange. Quaxly comes back in, fails, then finds an opening by imitating moves it saw that very day — and evolves into Quaxwell mid-battle.

Dot Terastallizes her Pokémon, but the paralysis catches up with it; Larry seizes the moment, Terastallizes Staraptor and finishes things with a single Facade, the very move his badge gives the player in the games. He passes her on the test anyway, praising her reading of the field, her adaptability and her timing in choosing when to Terastallize, before being left crestfallen by a particularly steep restaurant bill. Later, he leaves the Academy without a word, catches the young Trainer's eye and gives her an approving nod, which she returns.

Larry at a glance

Frequently Asked Questions

• Where is Larry's Gym and how do you get in?
  In Medali, in Paldea. You have to figure out, then order, the secret menu item at the Treasure Eatery, the restaurant that also houses the battlefield: you collect the clues by battling other Trainers, including Larry himself, seated at a table and not yet identified.
• Which badge and TM does Larry give out?
  The Normal Gym Badge and TM025 Facade. Since the battle has worked up his appetite, he then invites the player to lunch, picks up the tab, and goes back to work.
• Why does Larry use Flying-type Pokémon in the Elite Four?
  Because his superiors won't let him field his Normal-type Pokémon. The Flying-type team was assigned to him by Geeta and he doesn't handle it well, although he eventually sees the point of leaving the beaten path.
• Is Larry a tough opponent?
  He's presented as the ideal opponent for an intermediate-level Trainer, without standing out for his battle record. In the anime, however, he wins his battle against Dot by Terastallizing his Staraptor.
• Who does Larry battle in Horizons?
  Dot, in one episode of Horizons, for the practical test of the Terastal program, two Pokémon against two. He wins the battle but passes her on the test anyway, praising her reading of the field and her sense of timing.

In short

Larry boils down to a single contrast: a drab office worker who holds two of the most prestigious posts in Paldea. The game gives him no flair and no grand speeches; it gives him a secret menu item, a bill, a chain of command and a type he didn't choose. That's exactly what makes him memorable — the only Gym Leader whose toughest battle seems to be his workday.