Ritchie is a young boy, friend, and rival of Ash Ketchum. He teamed up with Ash to get the Pokémon back which were stolen. He was then forced to battle Ash in the Indigo League and defeated him, early in the series. Once in Johto he helped Ash save a baby Lugia and its mother from the clutches of the notorious Team Rocket. All of Ritchie's Pokémon have nicknames with the exception of Eevee. He was present in Pokémon Chronicles and has not been seen since. He is same age as Ash.
Zippo is Ritchie's Charmeleon that first appeared as a Charmander. It defeated Ash's Pikachu but forfeited against his Charizard. Zippo reappeared as a Charmeleon when Ritchie met Ash again.
In Pokemon Diamond and Pearl, during the contests, there is a contestant named Luis. He seems to be based off of Ritchie because of his outfit and having a Pikachu nicknamed Sparky.
Ritchie mentioned in Oaknapped that he and Ash tend to catch the same Pokemon.
