How Lysandre Could Still Play a Role in Pokemon Legends: Z-A

Nintendo Switch players will soon return to the France-inspired region of Kalos in Game Freak’s upcoming Pokemon Legends: Z-A. Set after the events of Pokemon X and Y, Pokemon Legends: Z-A will have players embody a young tourist as they explore Lumiose City and encounter various Pokemon thanks to the city’s new urban redevelopment project. Along the way, players will run into a few familiar faces such as the gigantic AZ and his unique Floette as well as entirely new ones, including Urbain or Taunie. However, one major figure from X and Y’s story could potentially make a surprising return and threaten Lumiose’s peaceful redevelopment: the leader of Team Flare, Lysandre.

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By Enricko Ozoa

The History of Pokemon X and Y’s Lysandre

Throughout most mainline Pokemon games, trainers have encountered several villainous gangs and criminal organizations that often serve as the games’ main antagonists, such as Team Rocket, Team Galactic, and Team Plasma. This tradition continued in Pokemon X and Y with Team Flare, a red-uniformed crime organization dedicated to building a better, more beautiful world. Before Calem and Serena even properly meet Team Flare, they unknowingly meet its leader Lysandre at Professor Sycamore's lab in Lumiose City, where he first expresses his desire to see a beautiful world come into fruition. Later, it’s revealed that Lysandre is a descendant of the younger brother to Kalos’ ancient king and is responsible for the creation of the Holo Caster at Lysandre Labs.

After players receive their seventh gym badge in Anistar City, Lysandre announces to the entire region that he is the leader of Team Flare and that they intend on reactivating Kalos’ ultimate weapon to eliminate everyone who isn’t a part of their organization to prevent the world from becoming “ugly.” This ultimately leads to Calem and Serena journeying to Geosenge Town’s underground Team Flare Secret HQ to try and stop Lysandre from activating the ultimate weapon. Here, Lysandre explains that the only way to make the world beautiful is to reduce the number of living things, including the extinction of all Pokemon to prevent them from being used in war and thievery. Once Xerneas or Yveltal are captured or defeated, Lysandre challenges the trainer to a final Pokemon battle with a Mega Gyarados.

The Unresolved Fate of Lysandre

Upon facing defeat, Lysandre attempts to use the ultimate weapon’s remaining power to either make Calem, Serena, Shauna, and himself immortal or to destroy everything and everyone in the HQ, depending on if X or Y is played. Regardless of the choice, Lysandre fires the ultimate weapon, destroying it, the HQ, and seemingly himself in the process. While Lysandre’s exact fate is never fully disclosed in Pokemon X or Y, an alternate version of Lysandre, who successfully activated the ultimate weapon, does briefly appear in Pokemon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon’s post game as a member of Team Rainbow Rocket.

Lysandre’s fate is left ambiguous in Pokemon the Series: XY and Pokemon Evolutions similar to Pokemon X and Y, but he is shown to have survived Team Flare’s fall in the Pokemon Adventures manga.

Lysandre’s Potential Return in Pokemon Legends: Z-A

It’s currently unknown if Pokemon Legends: Z-A will be a direct sequel to Pokemon X, Pokemon Y, or some kind of mix of the two games, but there is potential for Lysandre to return in Z-A if the game follows up on X's events. Lysandre could have survived the destruction of the ultimate weapon and Team Flare’s Secret HQ if he had indeed become immortal, similar to how AZ and his Floette had become immortal 3,000 years ago. If this turns out to be the case, Lysandre could pop up in a brief cameo in the game or potentially play a larger role as either an antagonist or a redeemed individual aiding the player.

One way Lysandre could reappear in Pokemon Legends: Z-A is by being the secret leader of Quasartico Inc. With Jett and Vinnie revealed to be former Team Flare members who are using Lumiose’s urban redevelopment plan as a cover to regrow Team Flare’s ranks and attempt to rebuild the ultimate weapon with the power of Zygarde. Alternatively, Lysandre could reappear as a more optimistic hermit who has changed his ways after seeing how beautiful Lumiose has become through the city’s urban redevelopment plan, bringing people, Pokemon, and nature together. Lysandre could even appear seeking guidance from AZ at Hotel Z, with the two being the only immortal humans in the world while being somewhat related from common ancestry.

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