I hadn't played a Pokemon game since Red and Blue, so a few years ago I started Sword. I got to about this point and then my short attention span couldn't handle all the cutscenes anymore and I never continued. Maybe now's the time to come back.

So far Hop's rival energy is just not working for me. He's annoying in a "I've got big dreams, you're part of my journey to the top!" shonen protagonist way, so not likeable, but you feel like a villain crushing his dreams, so he's not fun to hate