In the far-off region of Sinnoh, a girl named Dawn has reached her 10th birthday and has set out from her hometown of Twinleaf to meet Professor Rowan in Sandgem Town to receive her Starter Pokémon. Her dream is to take part in Super Contests positioned throughout the land. On her way, however, she gets lost. When she manages to reach the Lab, the three Starters, Turtwig, Piplup, and Chimchar, are fighting and manage to escape the building. Now it's up to Dawn to get them all back so she can begin her journey.
A young boy named Ash Ketchum embarks on a journey to become a "Pokemon Master" with his first Pokemon, Pikachu. Joining him on his travels are Brock, a girl-obsessed Rock Pokemon Trainer, and Misty, a tomboyish Water Pokemon Trainer who may have a crush on him. Ash and Co. end up traveling through various regions, including Kanto, the Orange Islands, and Johto, and then enter the Pokemon League competitions there.
Along the way, they run into many confrontations with Jessie, James, and Meowth, a trio of Pokemon thieves who are apart of an evil organization called "Team Rocket". But every time Team Rocket try to do their evil deeds, they fail thanks to Ash and his Pokemon.