In Pokémon games, the final gym leader is expected to be the strongest, but in Pokémon Sword and Shield, this may not actually be the case. Galar's gym leaders are all skilled Pokémon trainers, but their arrangement may not be the most accurate representation of their true skill. At the very least, their final member may not be as untouchable as one may think.
In Sword and Shield, the final gym leader is Raihan, a Dragon-type trainer. Since Dragon trainers have always been either the final gym leader, a member of the Elite Four, or the champion, this is little surprise. His team is as powerful as one would expect, although it is not purely Dragon-type. He also uses a Gigalith and Sandaconda to employ Sandstorm strategies that his Flygon and Duraludon are immune to. Players may wind up filling Sword and Shield's Galarian Pokédex looking for ways to beat him. Despite this, there is one Galarian gym leader that he has never defeated. This person is Melony, the sixth gym leader in Pokémon Shield.
Pokémon Sword & Shield's Raihan Has Never Defeated Melony
It's not difficult to understand how Raihan could struggle with Melony. After all, he is a Dragon-type trainer, and as a user of Ice Pokémon, Melony wields one of Dragon's only weaknesses. Not only that, but Ice-type moves are also effective against Ground-types, making short work of his Sandaconda as well. Her signature Lapras also knows Surf to deal with Gigalith. Duraludon is his only Pokémon Melony can't hit super-effectively, but after her first battle, her Darmanitan picks up Earthquake to do exactly that. Ice Pokémon may have a weak reputation, but Melony's team is no joke, countering Raihan's well apart from his access to some Fighting and Rock-type moves.
While Melony being able to beat Raihan doesn't sound surprising, it should be noted that instances like this are not the norm in the Pokémon universe, or at the very least not well-known. One example comes in the first two gym leaders of Sword & Shield, Milo and Nessa. Milo is Grass-type while Nessa is Water-type, so one would expect Milo to triumph.
However, Nessa remains firmly ranked above Milo, implying that even with an advantage, her skill is still greater than his. This sort of type relationship between gyms could explain why Scarlet and Violet are changing Pokémon's gym dynamic. With that in mind, Melony must also have worked out strategies that specifically work against Raihan in addition to having a type advantage.
Why Melony Isn't The FInal Gym Leader In Pokémon Sword & Shield
That does leave one question unanswered. Namely, if Raihan has never been able to beat Melony, how come she isn't the final leader instead of him? The answer likely lies with the seventh leader, Piers. As mentioned previously, Melony has a type advantage as well as superior tactics to employ against Raihan. She doesn't have that same luck against Piers. It's possible that Melony has a losing record against Piers, who is extremely strong even without Dynamaxing, which keeps her from advancing through the ranks in spite of how many times she has beaten Raihan. Considering that Piers is Sword and Shield's best gym leader, there's no shame in losing to him.
Raihan's inability to beat Melony is an interesting bit of trivia, although not completely surprising. While having strong Pokémon is always useful, type advantages and good strategies are just as important. As a result, in Pokémon Sword and Shield Raihan not only meets his match in the form of Leon, but Melony as well.
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