Saul Bennett

Saul Bennett (also known as "Bandit") is a fictional character in the All My Pocket Monsters series. He is a highly sought-after journalist.

Biography
Initially, very little is known of Saul's background prior to meeting the gang. It is understood that he grew up in Viridian City as the son of Germaine and Frederik Bennett, who were very wealthy, very famous scientists. He went missing at the age of six, after his parents' death, and was not seen again until he was accepted into Celadon University at the age of seventeen, where he completed his jornalism degree. He is already a well-established journalist and has worked on a number of high-profile stories before meeting the group. Professor Oak has said to be a fan of his work.

Prior to the series' start, Saul has been kidnapped and therefore remains missing for the first half of season one.

He is twenty-one at the beginning of the series.

Season One
Although he is mentioned as the reason for Esmé seeking Derek, Saul does not actually appear in the first season until the tenth episode, as he has been kidnapped by Professor Elm's graduate program, Stars of Tomorrow. It is believed that he had been working on an extensive investigation into Stars of Tomorrow prior to being kidnapped. Allegedly, he had sent Esmé to beseech Derek for help in rescuing him, though this later turns out to be untrue. It is revealed that it had in fact been orchestrated by Professor Elm (a fact Esmé was unaware of) and was essentially a trap for Derek.

When Derek eventually infiltrates the program in order to extract him – and ends up being taken captive himself – Saul admits that he had let himself be kidnapped, as it was the only way he could gather the information needed for his report. Soon after, Saul breaks them out of the program by incapacitating the guards, hacking into the security system and hijacking a helicopter, proving that he had the ability to escape at any time but had chosen not to.

Later, after locating Alice and exposing several Jennys as spies for Team Rocket, Saul accompanies Derek back to Saffron City. In the seventeenth episode, “The Tell”, while Derek publicly declares war on Professor Elm, Saul teams up with Allen in order to assemble the Jennys and take down Team Rocket. In the next episode, he is seen being reunited with his sister before breaking into the Team Rocket base of operations by dismantling the security system and assisting in the physical assault on the building.

At the end of season one, Saul is seen with Esmé and the others in the congratulatory scene. He is also present at Deirdre's memorial service.

Season Two
By the beginning of the second season, Saul has relocated to Viridian City with Esmé, though he is still free-lancing for the Saffron City Times and Trainer's Weekly. He is initially living with his partner, Taylor, before she chooses to move back in with her mother and has apparently become very good friends with Flynn, as he pens Flynn's coming out article. He is seen covering Ash Ketchum's funeral and is present during the Pacifiers' first attack. Flynn moves in with him in the fourth episode, “Nevermore”. Also during this episode it is revealed that Saul has published a damaging article on Alice's prestigious uncle.

In the fifth episode Saul is attacked by masked assailants, who threaten to kill him if he does not halt his investigation into the Saffron City Council. He disregards their warning and, after discovering the Council had been helmed by Giovanni decades ago, is sent back in time with Derek in order to see how Giovanni had obtained power. After they are returned to the present day, Alice reveals that Saul has worked for Giovanni. He explains to Derek that he was adopted and trained by Giovanni from a young age, remaining part of Giovanni's task force until the age of seventeen when he decided to abandon the program in order to take care of Esmé. With Adele's help, Saul ultimately defeats Del – who had forced him into working with Giovanni again by threatening Bronx's life several episodes earlier, and had kidnapped him briefly.

Throughout the rest of the season, Saul is instrumental in infiltrating and disassembling each of the Saffron City companies associated with Galaxia Industries. When he is ordered to cease and desist by the Saffron City Times in the episode “Wanted”, he quits his position and sets up an underground radio station, coined Pornograffiti, supplying the public with news of each company's treachery. Pornograffiti acts as a communication base, as well as tech and weapon manufacturing.

When Esmé, Saul, Adele and Derek are fleeing The Next Step two episodes later, Esmé is killed when the mountainside becomes unstable. This has an extremely detrimental effect on Saul, to the point where he refuses contact with anyone and becomes extremely heedless, often to the point of causing himself grievous harm and, at one point, death. He is snapped out of this eventually and reaffirms his relationships, which he had ended.

By the season finale, Saul has assisted Allen, Adele and Fleur in rendering all of the Leagues powerless. In the second last episode, “Freefall”, he uses his radio station to rally the entire population of Kanto in the fight against the Pacifiers, who intend to publicly sacrifice Flynn as a show of power. He also reveals that Galaxia Industries has been using the Legendary Pokémon and genetic mutation in order to take over the Pokémon world. He is present during the city-wide battle against both the Pacifiers and the Next Step, losing his Lucario during the fight. He intercepts an attack aimed for Derek by shooting Val, but is not known if Val survives this.

At the end of the finale, after Derek has rescued Flynn and the new war against Pokémon has been declared, Saul is asked to take Flynn into hiding for his safety. Saul agrees to the task and is last seen escorting Flynn out of Saffron City as it is torn apart behind them.

Personality and Traits
Saul is very outspoken. His weapon of choice is intelligence as opposed to brute force, and he is known for being both quick-witted and guileful. He is shown to have a considerable amount of patience. His most notable personality trait is his extreme aversion to dishonesty, always choosing to tell the truth regardless of the consequences. He is deeply analytical.

Though he is quite friendly, he is prone to making satirical and/or cutting remarks, usually as a means of showing affection. This frequently causes friction with people who do not know him particularly well. He has referred to himself as pansexual and is shown to be polyamorous. Like most of the characters he is exceptionally loyal to his loved ones.

Saul is a chronic insomniac. He has been known to be very reckless with his own safety when upset, though he makes a point of not endangering anyone else. He is less likely to trust someone than any other member of the group.

He has been noted as having a bottomless stomach, as he is often seen eating or wanting to eat. He is almost always shown eating some kind of candy.

Abilities
Due to working for Giovanni, Saul has received extensive espionage training. He is shown to have an inexplicable talent for tasks that enable him to glean information from people, such as reading lips, understanding patterns and codes and interpreting body language. He also possesses the ability to quickly process multiple information streams and rapidly respond to changing tactical situations. It is said that he has a genius-level intellect.

He has proven to be an extremely efficient hacker, hacking into a number of highly-structured and covert associations throughout the series. He is also highly skilled in the art of parkour, able to scale buildings and manipulate most landscapes with relative ease. His agility, flexibility and dexterity is greatly advanced; he is capable of numerous complex manoeuvres, including aerialist and acrobatic feats.

Saul is exceedingly proficient in hand-to-hand combat, able to disarm people of varying size and strength, with his fighting style seeming to rely on precise, concentrated strikes as opposed to strength-based attacks. It is insinuated that he has an unusually high pain threshold and has made consistent references to withstanding torture.

Saul is able to pilot small aircraft, though he does not hold a license. At several points throughout the series he is shown with a longbow, which he seems to have an expert level of control using.

His most notable weakness is water, as he is deeply hydrophobic. It is implied that this is because of a drowning incident early in his life, but this never expounded upon. He does not have a particularly strong stamina, causing him to burn out quickly.

Family
Saul is the only son of Germaine and Frederik Bennett. They did not seem particularly fond of their son and Saul himself seems to despise them, insinuating that they had a troubled relationship. He does not show any signs of sadness at their deaths, and rarely mentions them in a positive light.

While working for Giovanni, Saul accidentally discovers Esmé during a raid on the building she had been living out of. Saul becomes entirely devoted to Esmé's safety and wellbeing, giving up a career under Giovanni in order to protect her, despite knowing that doing so would cause him to be hunted for the rest of his life. Although the two are not blood-related or legally adopted, they consider each other family and are very close.

He keeps close tabs on her at all times, even when he is deeply undercover in the midst of an investigation, and will sacrifice anything in order to keep her safe. Esmé is known for being the only person that Saul will oblige, regardless of the request. Her death in season two devastates him to the point where he becomes borderline suicidal. He is seen talking to her throughout the rest of the series, believing her spirit to be watching over him.

Friendships
Despite his ease in social situations Saul does not appear to have very many friends. His best friend is also his work partner, Bronx. The two have a great professional relationship, continuing to work together even after Saul is fired from the Saffron City Times. Bronx helps him to set up Pornograffiti. A running gag between them is Saul's constant efforts to improve Bronx's dismal love life. He is deeply upset by Bronx's death in the season two finale. He is also close to his personal assistant, Marriott.

After becoming an active member of the group he takes a particular shine to Flynn, with the two becoming very good friends. They move in together in season two after Flynn's apartment block is burned down. Their relationship is very brotherly. Flynn provides Saul with priceless emotional support after Esmé's death. Saul loves Flynn dearly, choosing to abandon his own life in order to keep Flynn safe.

Saul and Alice's friendship comes under fire during the second season after Saul releases an article on her uncle, tarnishing her family's otherwise perfect reputation. He refuses her pleas to retract the article and issue a formal apology. Their mateship is further destroyed by Alice's suspicions that he is still working with Giovanni and frequent attempts to turn the group against him. They never recover from this.

Saul retains an antagonistic relationship with Derek throughout the series, with their verbal spats occasionally escalating into physical brawls. Ironically, despite this apparent hostility, Saul and Derek have unparalleled communication abilities, frequently finishing each other's sentences and often acting out entire conversations with body language alone. They actively seek out each other's advice and company, and have a highly efficient professional dynamic.

Romantic Interests
Saul is openly polygamous and often has several partners at any one time. It is unknown how many people he is dating in the first season, though he does make vague references to at least three different lovers, one of them being Taylor.

In the second season, he is involved in long-term relationships with both Taylor and Raith, moving with Taylor to Viridian City. However, she becomes homesick and chooses to move back in with her mother and so they pursue a long-distance relationship. He breaks up with everyone after the death of Esmé but rekindles both romances at their joint request. Though he is romantically interested in both of them, he seems to be particularly fond of Taylor, as she is the only one he has confessed to loving.

Saul makes a comment on Deirdre's sexual prowess in the first season, confirming that he has slept with her (this is further elaborated upon by Deirdre at several points). The depth or length of their former relationship is unknown, though it is believed to have been of a purely physical nature.

Throughout the series it is consistently insinuated that Saul is strongly attracted to Derek. This is confirmed in the second season finale, during which Saul kisses him.

Appearance
Saul's hairstyle is the most frequently updated. Originally there is a lime green stripe through his hair but this changes size, location and color throughout the series. He has a large Milotic tattoo covering the entirety of his back, though the reason behind the tattoo is unknown. In the second season his neck is badly scarred after an attack by the Next Step, and he covers this with a tribal Moltres tattoo. He has green eyes.

Saul has no battle outfit, as he does not battle professionally. He is almost always seen in waistcoats and/or tailored suits.

Pokémon
As Saul is not a registered Trainer, Coordinator, Master or Professor and does not work in a Pokémon-related field he is not legally allowed to own Pokémon. Despite this, he retains possession of a full-grown Lucario, dubbed Luke. The two seem particularly close, often sparring together. Luke is rarely kept within his Pokéball. They are able to communicate freely using non-verbal means, but this is due to the Lucario's psychic abilities rather than any talent on Saul's part. It is not known how he came across or learned to control Luke. Because his ownership of Pokémon is against the law he relies on forged documents to avoid arrest.

Saul's Lucario is killed during the battle in the second season finale.