Anime: Brawly is in charge of the Knuckle Badge and resides in Dewford Town. Brawly's name contains the word brawl in it, referring to fighting; his Japanese name Tōki can be literally translated as "fighting spirit." Brawly specializes in Fighting-type Pokémon, and once trained alongside Kanto Elite Four member Bruno.

In the Pokémon anime series, Brawly is a Gym Leader who likes to Surf and train his Pokémon at the same time. His Pokémon move like the waves, always changing and avoiding attacks through the course of battle. He also has a private island which has a training facility and a battle field that has many geysers on it. Ash loses to Brawly the first time, when he relies only on brute strength. However, in the rematch, his Corphish and Treecko use the forces of nature to defeat Brawly's Machop and Hariyama.

Manga: Brawly also trains his Pokémon by surfing with them in Pokémon Adventures. His strategy is to use "subtle forces" over speed and power to use his opponents' strength against them. He also likes to save his Pokémon's evolutions for battles.

During his match with Sapphire, his Makuhita evolved into Hariyama. Sapphire figured out that his use of Counter could be overcome by moves which attacked with multiple hits, such as Double Kick. Due to a misunderstanding, she was also expecting Brawly's Pokémon to evolve.

Brawly sided with Team Aqua in the Hoenn conflict because he wanted more places to surf. He changed his mind after Kyogre and Groudon started their rampage. His opponent during the Kyogre/Groudon fiasco was Mack. Using direct, brutal strength instead of his usual strategy, he defeated him at the cost of his own Pokémon. He was last seen on the Pokémon Association's airship "Ba.Goon," resting from his injuries.