The “Pokémon” anime adapts the original video games, a long-running RPG series where you capture, train and battle magical Pocket Monsters. Ash was the original protagonist of the anime, debuting in 1997 and finally retiring from the series in 2023. In “Pokémon Journeys,” Ash finally became the very best, like no-one ever was, so it was time for “Pokémon Horizons” to follow new young leads.
Natochenny played Ash for 17 years, but she was not his original voice. For starters, in the original Japanese audio track, Ash is voiced by Rica Matsumoto. For the first eight seasons, “Pokémon” was dubbed into English by the New York voiceover studio 4Kids Entertainment, featuring Veronica Taylor as Ash. In 2006, The Pokémon Company directly took over dubbing duties and recast; enter Sarah Natochenny as Ash. As she recalled to Crunchyroll:
“This was my first animation dubbing. I didn’t know what I was doing. At my audition, I had no idea what dubbing was. All I knew was that acting was my basic skill, talent, and passion and I happened to be able to apply it to ‘Pokemon.'”
Obviously, the recast came with controversy; the new voices definitely threw me for a loop when I was eight-years-old. That reflexive backlash made Natochenny feel discouraged. “The reaction I got when I first started … You’re doing what you love and you finally book your first huge role on a show that you loved as a child and people are like ‘You’re terrible,'” she told Crunchyroll. “That’s really painful to experience.”
By the “Pokémon: Diamond & Pearl” series, though, the flames had died down and she came into her own. She didn’t begin Ash Ketchum’s journey, but she helped bring it to a fitting close. It helps that Natochenny is very passionate about “Pokémon” and playing Ash. She even has a cat named Pikachu (who doesn’t shoot Thunderbolts, unfortunately), and she considers Ash’s own pet “probably the greatest animated creature ever drawn.”
As for her new part as Unicorn, Natochenny is Russian-American herself, and Russian is her first language. (She previously dubbed the lead in the anime “Alya Sometimes Hides her Feelings in Russian,” about a Russo-Japanese girl.) That alone makes her a natural pick for the Russian Unicorn, and she’s further praised “Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man” for “cinematically [reflecting] the NYC I was born and raised in.”
On a personal note: @MrJeffTrammell created a Spiderman series that cinematically reflects the NYC I was born and raised in. His team elevated the art of animation with gorgeous movement and a sick soundtrack. I can’t believe I get to work on another nostalgic, dream show. 💙💙 pic.twitter.com/PQrI5fcpr2
— Sarah Natochenny 🥸 (@sarahnatochenny) January 30, 2025
“Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man” is streaming on Disney+.