Hilbert Black (PA)

Hilbert Black is the protagonist of Pokémon Anthology in its first volume, titled "Black & White". On his fourteenth birthday, Hilbert was initially ready to begin his journey through the Unova region and chose his starter Pokémon, a loyal Oshawott he nicknamed Sheldon. However, an incident involving his friend's Tepig causing destruction and injuring Hilbert made his mother fear for his safety and decided he was not ready to leave the house. Eager to prove himself to his overbearing mother, Hilbert finally seized the opportunity to do so when he captured a Pikachu that was feeding on the electricity in his house using his wit and battle prowess.

Personality
Incredibly unlucky with a sense of dry wit, Hilbert is someone who is both oblivious to the world around him and yet incredibly self-aware. Uneducated in the traditional sense but cool as a whip thanks to his own self-determination and wit, Hilbert has an air of confidence about him that he was born with. He doesn't care what anyone has to say about him, he knows he is cool and knows what he is capable of.

He embraces his fate as the universe's butt monkey, but still questions it and, using his wild imagination, attempts to piece the puzzle together as to why he has such grim cosmic luck. Hilbert has an intense sense of justice for those around him, which many find admirable.

Black & White
On his fourteenth birthday, Hilbert received a package from Professor Juniper bearing gifts of Pokémon: a Snivy, Tepig and Oshawott. Hilbert was to choose one, with his friends Cheren and Bianca taking their pick from the box as well. Hilbert chose Sheldon the Oshawott, a loyal and determined little Water-type.

A battle broke loose in his bedroom, and ended with the bedroom destroyed. Bianca's Tepig had a sneeze trapped in his nose that unleashed unexpectedly on Hilbert's rear end, burning his Pokédex and causing him to hit his head and lose consciousness. Hilbert's mother refused to let her son leave for his Pokémon journey whilst his friends went ahead on theirs.

Five months of confinement in his own home has caused Hilbert to become miserable and annoyed with his home life. Determined to find any way to prove to his mother that he can take care of himself in the outside world, Hilbert finally gets that opportunity when the power starts to go amiss in their home. The TV is unplugged, and Hilbert finds a strange yellow rat Pokémon feeding on their electricity from the vent. He is attacked and electrified by the creature, but uses his own wit--distracting the creature by having Sheldon battle it, and then grabbing it while down with insulated rubber gloves--to capture it.

He brings it to Professor Juniper, who calls it a "Pikachu" and seems impressed with Hilbert. She gifts him with his charred, but fixed, Pokédex, six Poké Balls, and a device called a Cross-Transceiver and encourages him to talk to his mother and convince her to let him finally leave on his journey. Hilbert uses one of the Poké Balls to capture the Pikachu officially, and Juniper also encourages him to try interacting with it without the use of rubber gloves. He does so, introducing himself to the Pikachu, only to be met with a hostile zapping, signaling that he has a lot of work to do in order to earn this rambunctious Pokémon's trust.

Trivia

 * Hilbert is based on the protagonist of the Pokémon Black Version & Pokémon White Version video games, sharing his name and appearance.