Episode Guide #105 - #112

The Pokémon Water War
Pokémon Food Fight!
Pokémon Double Trouble
The Wacky Watcher!
The Stun Spore Detour
Hello, Pummelo!
Enter The Dragonite
Viva Las Lapras

The Pokémon Water War

Pokémon seen:  

Togepi, Lapras, Pikachu, Staryu, Squirtle, Wartortle, Blastoise, Meowth, 
Weezing, Scyther, Venonat, Marill, Arbok

Story:  

The group arrive in a populated city when a fire breaks out, despite Ash and 
Misty’s efforts to stop it with their Water Pokémon, Squirtle and Staryu 
aren’t strong enough to put it out and are endangered.  
Captain Aidan arrives with a fire-fighting team of Wartortle to save the day, 
but Squirtle feels unappreciated and disappointed in its fire-fighting 
abilities.  
Aidan also trains Squirtle and Blastoise to be fire-fighters, each have unique 
fire-fighting skills, but Wartortle have the best of both worlds.  
Squirtle brings back its old shades and is permitted to train with the 
Wartortle as a fire-fighter.  
Team Rocket lures the Wartortle away and captures them along with Squirtle and 
Pikachu.  
While Team Rocket bicker about who should take one of the Wartortle for 
themselves, a fire breaks out and Team Wartortle is needed.  
Misty leaves to do what she can while the Wartortle escape thanks to 
Squirtle’s plan.  
The group returns in time to save Misty and the lead Wartortle plus Squirtle 
make a quick rescue of a young boy trapped in the fire.  
Soon afterwards, and all of the fires are out, Squirtle and Wartortle have 
earned each others’ respect and Squirtle’s pride is restored.  

My favourite Quote:  

Meowth:  “Attention Pikachu swipers...”  
Jessie:  “Steal now and get a Wartortle absolutely free.”  
James:  “And a Squirtle super special.”  

Things I’d like to point out:  

While putting out a fire, Squirtle stops for a second to basically agree with 
Ash that it should keep it up.  
It Would be if it wasn’t turning away to nod to its trainer.  

During the running, the Wartortle perform a well known serviceman chant but 
with syllables from their names.  

Just because Tracey’s lending his Pokémon doesn’t mean Misty should be so 
aggressive in ordering them around, especially since Tracey was right there 
watching.  
I know there was an emergency but Misty didn’t have to be so loud about it.  

Sources say a segment called Meowth’s party was played after this episode in 
America instead of Pikachu’s Jukebox in which Meowth and many other Pokémon 
were computer-generated.  
I do believe this very feature was included in the Pokémon Channel game and 
was the finale to a 5 part animated cartoon about the Pichu Brothers.  
I’ll be writing a separate guide on said story plus the Meowth’s Party 
feature.  

Who’s That Pokémon?:  

Tangela

Cameos in Pokémon Journey:  

None are planned for Aidan.  

Pokémon Food Fight!

Pokémon seen:  

Pikachu, Togepi, Gloom, Squirtle, Snorlax, Chansey, Meowth, Lapras

Story:  

The group have been stranded on an island for a week due to dangerous ocean 
waves, while looking for food, Tracey accidentally agitates a kid called 
Golzar.  
When Ash has a battle with him, it goes badly since he mixes up his Pokémon, 
and especially when he accidentally damages Snorlax’s Pokéball.  
Golzar forfeits when Snorlax’s hunger goes out of control, but the group is 
left with a sleeping Snorlax to escort to the Pokémon Centre without the 
ability to recall it into its Pokéball.  
The group try methods to drag it up the mountain paths and then some more 
elaborate methods to get it around.  
They eventually reach the Pokémon Centre where a crowd of trainers are anxious 
because the air delivery of Pokémon food has been delayed.  
Unfortunately, Team Rocket intercepts the delivery and order the crowd to give 
up Pikachu in exchange for the food.  
Golzar is disgusted at the trainers and convinces them not to do it, so 
instead; Pikachu must battle Meowth in a robotic suit in a costly battle.  
Pikachu has no hope against it but Snorlax wakes up and battles Meowth 
instead, Team Rocket are no contest against the gargantuan Pokémon and are 
defeated with ease.  
Sadly, Snorlax didn’t come to Ash’s rescue out of love, it came for the food.  
Snorlax’s Pokéball is fixed, Ash and Golzar see eye to eye and the group set 
out for yet another adventure as they leave the island.  

My favourite Quote:  

Ash:  “Do you think everybody in this crowd’s here to have their broken 
Pokéballs fixed just like I am?”  
Golzar:  “Nah, I don’t think there are that many people who are that dumb!”  

Things I’d like to point out:  

Did it honestly take Ash as long as he did to figure out he was in an apple 
costume and of his role in luring Snorlax? Maybe he can’t see it because of 
the awkward shape but surely he must have seen it being made or figured out 
what the plan would be?...  

Is the swallow pool that Ash and the group land in directly below the 
waterfall or did they get washed up there?  
If they were supposed to end up there straight after drop, surely it would 
kill them taking so high a fall only to pretty much hit rocky ground.  

I love the battle between Meowth and Snorlax, Snorlax boasts surprising 
agility and rock hard defences, and shrugs off a robotic Skull Bash technique 
to the head without even flinching.  

I’m not convinced that Ash recognised Hyper Beam, for the simple fact that 
Tracey probably knew of it by watching someone else’s Pokémon initiate the 
attack, while Ash actually used it once with his Kingler (“Round One -- 
Begin!”) but is known to forget things.  

There’s only one problem, if Snorlax honestly was hungry and only wanted the 
food, why did it put so much effort into battling Meowth first? It’s a 
Snorlax; it could easily have pushed past everyone for the food so obviously 
it was helping its friends first and claiming its share of the food as a 
reward.  

Who’s That Pokémon?:  

Marowak

Cameos in Pokémon Journey:  

None.  

Pokémon Double Trouble

Pokémon seen:  

Pikachu, Lapras, Togepi, Meowth, Lickitung, Arbok, Weezing, Alakazam, 
Charizard, Raichu, Wartortle, Machop, Sandslash, Electabuzz, Poliwhirl, Marowak

Story:  

The group arrive on Kumquat Island and another location of an Orange League 
Gym.  
Ash is mistaken by a hotel owner for her son, who left on a Pokémon Journey 
some time ago with his Pikachu.  
Team Rocket go on a rampage on the beach in a huge Rhydon robot, and when 
things get out of control, Luanne steps in with her Alakazam to protect Ash 
and helps to defeat them, while revealing that she’s the Gym Leader.  
Luanne suggests a double battle in which 2 Pokémon battle on each side as a 
team until any one Pokémon is unable to battle, Ash agrees to it.  
Ash goes on to choose Pikachu and Charizard, but they are unable to work 
together initially against Alakazam and Marowak due to their differences and 
ways of battling.  
But the two learn to look out for each other before it’s too late and beat not 
only one Pokémon to win the match, but lead to the defeat of both of Luanne’s 
Pokémon.  
Ash claims his final Orange League Badge, the Jade Star, which means he can 
participate in the Orange League for the chance to win himself the Orange 
League Trophy.  

My favourite Quote:  

Ash:  “What do you mean ‘if Ash loses’? Just once can’t you guys have a little 
confidence in me?!”  
Tracey:  “Uh, sure Ash...”  
Misty:  “In fact we have as little confidence in you as possible.”  

Things I’d like to point out:  

This is the second time Ash has been mistaken for someone else’s kid, and the 
second time he’s had himself pressed against the mother’s... chest (see 
“Hypno’s Naptime”.  

Not a complaint here, when Luanne has her Alakazam block Poison Sting with 
Reflect, it’s quite valid.  
Reflect is used to lower the damage dealt by physical attacks, and Poison-type 
attacks come under that category.  

Luanne’s Double Pokémon Battle isn’t as exclusive as she thinks since it 
becomes a common practice in the Hoenn region; however Pokémon Ruby and 
Sapphire that introduced Double Battles into the videogame world weren’t out 
at the time this episode was aired.  

At least Ash has the right information about getting the better of Psychic 
types.  
In the first set of games, Ghost-type attacks were either small hitters or set 
damage attacks, so that’s why most people didn’t really regard them as a 
Psychic-type’s weakness until the next set of games when a wider range of 
Ghost attacks were invented and a pure Ghost-type joined the huge number of 
available Pokémon.  

In the games, it seems apparent that bone moves wouldn’t work against Flying-
type Charizard because they are Ground-type in nature, even though the attack 
has little to do with shaking the floor, but since the cartoon allows more 
freedom than the game, I’ll let this one slide since Marowak generally hurl 
their bones wherever they need them to go.  

Ash pushes it by using an Electric attack against Marowak, he’s just lucky he 
was able to distract the Marowak or else it would have been absolutely 
pointless.  
I’d go on but I’m sure I’ve bent the rules while writing my own Pokémon 
stories for the past three years (but I normally give a good reason and almost 
always mention which types are ineffective against others).  

Luanne mentions other trainers in an Orange League competition before 
mentioning its leader, but as it turns out, there are no battles against the 
trainers, only the leader.  
Has Luanne not checked up on the Orange League lately or was this just a plot 
the writers mistakenly thought was to come?  

Who’s That Pokémon?:  

Dodrio

Cameos in Pokémon Journey:  

None; again, I won’t be using these Orange Gym Leaders within the fanfic.  

The Wacky Watcher!

Pokémon seen:  

Pikachu, Togepi, Lapras, Magikarp, Meowth, Bulbasaur, Gyarados

Story:  

The group are on their way to the Orange League, but meet a Pokémon Watcher by 
the name of Doctor Quackenpoka, who has long been studying the Magikarp that 
dwell here.  
The Magikarp are heading upstream and the group are hastily pushed into 
helping Quackenpoka with his research.  
Tracey is enthusiastic about it though, as Quackenpoka is something of a 
legend in his eyes.  
The Magikarp return to the island of their birth on an annual basis and 
attempt to swim up the waterfall after having built up their strength, those 
that can’t make it can only keep trying until they are strong enough.  
Tracey stays up late to discuss theories with Quackenpoka, but before long, 
Team Rocket attack but fail to fill up their sub with Magikarp.  
They lose Pikachu shortly after capturing it when James has a mishap with a 
Magikarp, and before they can try again, many of the Magikarp evolve and send 
them flying.  
The Gyarados and Magikarp leave the island and Tracey and Quackenpoka swiftly 
count which ones have evolved to aid Quackenpoka’s research.  

My favourite Quote:  

Dr Quackenpoka:  “After 50 years of watchin’ Pokémon, I still find Magikarp 
hard to understand, even harder to understand than my income tax return.”  

Things I’d like to point out:  

It’s fairly obvious that Quackenpoka’s character was inspired by Groucho Marx, 
one of the famous Marx Brothers, just look at the way he looks, sounds and 
speaks.  

How come Quackenpoka’s submarine/water vehicle sounds very much like a van 
when you hear it move?  

It’s strange how Ash and the group yawn or motion during the Team Rocket motto 
but still keep to tradition and utter “Team Rocket!” as dramatically as they 
can after they’re done.  

Who’s That Pokémon?:  

Poliwag

Cameos in Pokémon Journey:  

None.  

The Stun Spore Detour

Pokémon seen:  

Pikachu, Vileplume, Togepi, Psyduck, Meowth, Poliwag, Victreebel, Goldeen, 
Weezing, Staryu, Arbok

Story:  

Ash and Tracey accidentally get their heads stuck in a Vileplume and are 
paralysed by its Stun Spore, they become sick from it and Misty must take care 
of them until she discovers an immediate cure in the form of Salvao Weed.  
Misty leaves Pikachu to look after the two while she searches for it, while 
Jessie has seemingly become sickened by the same problem.  
James once had the experience as a child and so he and Meowth also set out for 
Salvao Weed.  
Both searchers are aware that Poliwag can help locate the Salvao Weed, and 
Team Rocket chase one into the care of Misty, who battles James and Meowth for 
its safety.  
Goldeen beats Victreebel, Staryu beats Weezing, and Psyduck beats Meowth, the 
Poliwag joins Misty and they gather more than enough Salvao Weed at the lake 
bottom.  
Team Rocket tries to lure Misty into a road full of the usual pit traps with 
items that interest Misty, but she ignores all the bait since she’s got 
something important to do.  
Next, James poses as a woman, and Meowth as an ill baby, but Meowth blows 
their cover and they are defeated again.  
Still, Misty leaves behind some Salvao Weed for the two after discovering they 
want to help Jessie recover, and they return to her while Misty delivers the 
cure to Ash and Tracey.  
Jessie immediately orders an attack on Ash and the group while they are 
recovering, but James and Meowth stay out of it, ashamed of attacking the one 
that helped cure Jessie.  
Jessie and Arbok are defeated and James and Meowth retreat with Jessie 
immediately afterwards.  
Misty is thanked by her friends for helping them and has made a friend in the 
Poliwag that now joins her team of Pokémon.  

My favourite Quote:  

James:  “You’d think these kids today would have something on their minds 
besides Pokémon.” (Groans)  

Things I’d like to point out:  

Another impression from Pikachu, it’s a little obscure but it looks like an 
Ash impression, complete with zigzags on the cheeks.  

As well as reading the title of this episode, Misty gets an episode more or 
less to herself, Misty gets to be herself without Ash hogging all the 
limelight (as well as Pikachu), and James and Meowth have some freedom without 
Jessie bossing them around.  

Jessie isn’t as sick as she makes herself out to be, okay, maybe she’s got a 
slight case of sickness from Stun Spore, but not as bad as Ash and Tracey 
since they could barely move, and Jessie has the strength to beat up on James 
and then stand up while waiting for James to brew to antidote.  

Not that I’m an expert (or knowledgeable about this), but are the costumes 
that James and Meowth are wearing supposed to be fisherman clothes?  
Meowth may be covering for a Japanese style of clothing by instead saying that 
it was the first thing he could find and steal from the local costume shop.  

I hope all of the items used to bait Misty belong to Jessie and therefore were 
in Team Rocket’s balloon or submarine, Misty said herself that the nearest 
island was 30 miles away, and since there’s no Pokémon Centre on this island, 
it’s doubtful there are big shops here either, with the possible exception of 
a costume shop according to Meowth.  

It’s refreshing to see other characters get an episode to themselves, Misty 
gets to be herself without Ash hogging all the limelight and James and Meowth 
have some freedom without Jessie to boss them around.  

For the first time in a long time, James dresses up like a woman because he 
actually has to, not because he seemingly wants to, but why does he recite the 
Team Rocket speech in a female voice, even after removing the disguise? James 
has got some issues, it has to be said.  

For the first time, Meowth gets to play a part in the main part of the Team 
Rocket motto; he fills in for Jessie and isn’t punished for extending his part 
in the speech.  

Um, Arbok floats in the air, and descends really slowly despite being a snake, 
this happens straight after smashing up the hut.  
Enough said.  

If what everyone was suffering from was simple Paralysis from Stun Spore like 
in the games, the Salvao Weed should also cure Paralysis from Electric 
attacks, since the condition is the same despite the different sources.  

Who’s That Pokémon?:  

Dragonair

Cameos in Pokémon Journey:  

None.  

Hello, Pummelo!

Pokémon seen:  

Lapras, Pikachu, Togepi, Dragonite, Meowth, Squirtle, Charizard, Bulbasaur, 
Snorlax, Chansey, Kingler, Muk, Tauros, Ditto, Onix, Gengar

Story:  

The group arrives on Pummelo Island, the location of the Hall of Fame and the 
arena where Ash will battle for the Orange League Winners’ Trophy against the 
undefeated new leader of the Orange Crew, Drake, in a 6-on-6 battle.  
Team Rocket feebly tries to steal Dragonite from Drake, but are blasted off 
within a minute of encountering him.  
Meanwhile Ash attempts to wake Snorlax, with disappointing results, so Ash 
eventually decides to switch it with a Tauros.  
Ash meets Drake and learns that after 3 of one trainer’s Pokémon are defeated, 
there will be a field change; in the meantime he battles on a field with rock 
and water factors.  
Pikachu battles Ditto, who transforms into one itself and puts up a great 
fight, equalling Pikachu but more skilful on the field.  
It’s eventually worn down and defeated because Pikachu is in better shape, 
next is Onix, who Ash wisely battles with Squirtle.  
Ash ultimately succeeds, but things go wrong when Tauros battles Gengar, it’s 
confused and recalled, and Lapras takes a shot at it, literally, but a 
combination of Ice Beam and Night Shade collides and builds up into a huge 
explosion that engulfs both Pokémon...  

My favourite Quote:  

Commentator:  “The battleground is crumbling beneath them, Ditto’s navigating 
the rocks and debris with ease but it seems that Ketchum’s Pikachu just 
doesn’t have the knack for playing the field.”  

Things I’d like to point out:  

The song used when Dragonite first appears is the same one used in the first 
movie when a Dragonite is first seen; it’s obviously become the permanent 
theme for all Dragonite.  

When I think about it, the fact that trainers must battle all four of the 
Orange Crew before they can battle Drake is a little unfair, mostly because of 
Cissy’s part in it.  
Because of her, trainers have to own a Water Pokémon, and possibly one that 
the trainer can ride on.  
Danny’s challenge is probably a little worse, as the trainer must also have an 
Ice Beam user and Pokémon with the ability to carve or burn ice effectively.  
At least Rudy and Luanne have specialty Gym Battles with skills relevant to 
battling Drake (fighting with a type against the same type, and working as a 
team).  
This is why I planned to expand on the Orange Crew in my stories.  

As far as I can tell, Ash has Never used any of the many Tauros he caught in 
the Safari Zone (in the missing episode “The Legend of Dratini”), when Oak 
goes through the Pokémon available to switch for, and then they appear around 
him, why does only one Tauros appear? I know Ash can only take one of them, 
but who decided that this particular one was best? Oak? And since Ash uses 
this same Tauros time and again, what is the point of keeping all the others 
and wasting Oak’s resources and time on them (I’ve heard that they originally 
deliberately got in the way of incoming Safari Balls to be with the rest of 
their herd in the missing episode).  

Despite the similarity and ownership of a Dragonite, Drake is not based on 
Lance of the Elite Four (nor is he based on Drake of the Hoenn Elite Four 
though that’s more obvious than the former comparison).  

This is the first 6-on-6 battle shown in full (Ritchie’s didn’t count because 
it wasn’t shown from start to finish), it’s not been done before but these 
tend to need two episodes to cover, the same applies to the next two 6-on-6 
battles that Ash fights in the Johto League.  

The beginner’s luck factor, is... stupid; Ash only does well with Pokémon not 
trained until a special event because he’s the hero of this series, I’m sure 
if any other character used an untrained Pokémon in a place known for expert 
and high level Pokémon, they’d lose, and get moaned at for not training the 
Pokémon enough.  
I’ve had experiences in the game in which training low level Pokémon against 
high ones to speed up experience gain has gone horribly wrong, especially when 
I get over my head and believe they’re good enough to go all the way and win 
without their higher level partners helping out.  

Ash is scared to switch Pokémon because he thinks Ditto will just transform 
into whatever he chooses.  
In the games, Ditto can only transform once, and then it’s stuck as whatever 
it’s become until it either wins, becomes unable to battle or is switched 
out.  
In the cartoon this doesn’t seem to apply, but at least we learn later on that 
Ditto can only use the attacks that the opponent it imitates has learned, 
similar to the games except Ditto can only use whatever four (or less) attacks 
that the opponent knows.  

Pikachu gets all bruised up during its battle against Ditto, but almost 
straight after it’s switched out, the bruises disappear and it looks as good 
as new.  

Bad move choosing Tauros to battle Gengar, especially that it shouldn’t have 
had Fissure in its available attacks since Tauros don’t learn it naturally, 
without that all that’s left are Normal moves which go right through Ghost-
types.  
If Ash had reason to know Tauros had been taught Fissure, then I’d have no 
problems, but he tends to gain new attacks from out of nowhere when it comes 
to Pokémon left at Oak’s or simply in Championship matches.  

Who’s That Pokémon?:  

Dragonite

Cameos in Pokémon Journey:  

Yes again, Tetsubo goes on to bash heads against Drake for the Winner’s Trophy 
as summarised in the side story “Diary of a Champion”, but he challenges 
different Gym Leaders to earn four badges.  

Enter The Dragonite

Pokémon seen:  

Lapras, Gengar, Pikachu, Togepi, Meowth, Venusaur, Tauros, Electabuzz, 
Bulbasaur, Charizard, Dragonite, Squirtle

Story:  

After the explosive attack, Lapras and Gengar are both knocked out, there’s a 
field change and now Ash must fight on a sandy desert-like arena.  
Team Rocket sit in the audience waiting for Dragonite to be worn down by Ash 
in order to steal it, but soon find it difficult to leave their seats to do so 
when they get hooked on the battle at hand.  
Venusaur is next, who is battled by Tauros (fully recovered), and the Fissure 
strategy doesn’t work because of the sand absorbing the shock, but after 
withstanding a Solar Beam and Vine Whip, Tauros comes out on top.  
Electabuzz is next, as is Bulbasaur, the two Pokémon go at each other, but 
Bulbasaur is mowed down by a paralysing Thunderpunch.  
Charizard is brought in and is dealt a lot of damage, but ends the match with 
the good old Seismic Toss.  
Drake draws his final Pokéball, with the Dragonite that everyone’s been 
waiting for.  
It’s a furious battle between the two flyers, but Dragonite is far more 
skilled and has a wide range of attacks, and so, Charizard falls before 
Dragonite does.  
Squirtle is next, dealing some damage but receiving far more, and the same 
goes for Tauros.  
But before that particular fight, Team Rocket attempt to steal Dragonite while 
it’s tired, but it easily escapes and beats Team Rocket.  
Tauros’s defeat leaves Ash with only one Pokémon left, Pikachu, and with a 
very sneaky dodge (using Pikachu’s springy tail as a springboard); Pikachu 
overcomes a Hyper Beam and gives the Dragonite a Thunder attack up close and 
personal.  
Ash wins the Winners Trophy and will be remembered for years to come in the 
Hall of Fame.  

My favourite Quote:  

Commentator:  “In the Winner’s Trophy Competition whenever three of either 
trainer’s Pokémon are defeated, the field is changed, and now both these 
trainers will have to adapt and come up with brand new battle strategies.”  
(While Ash takes a breather, Drake grasps Dragonite’s Pokéball and speaks to 
it before staring at the Dragonite statue at the highest point of the arena)  
Drake:  “You’re the only strategy I’ll need to win.”  

Things I’d like to point out:  

The title is a pun of the film “Enter The Dragon”.  

Ash isn’t fast on his feet in this battle, if it were me in his position; I’d 
have at least tried to order Lapras to dive underwater to minimize damage from 
the explosive attack.  
I figured what with the cliff-hanger occurring at that point, Ash would have 
done that and saved his Lapras from defeat while defeating Gengar.  
It’s especially a big loss since Lapras’s Ice attacks would have made the 
battle against Dragonite a lot easier since Ice is good against both 
Dragonite’s Dragon and Flying-types to do double effective damage to it.  

For the first time, one of Ash’s battles results in a draw, after this 
episode, draws in Pokémon Battles occur more often.  

I don’t know how Charizard is supposed to be at a high level after the many 
months it refused to battle.  
Pokémon grow in level only by battling and gaining experience, but Charizard 
has rarely fought anyone since evolving to its highest stage and so should be 
on a lower level compared to Pokémon like Bulbasaur and Squirtle who battle 
more often than it (even if it happens to be against Team Rocket on virtually 
every day).  
Still, there’s proof that somehow it reached a higher level than Bulbasaur, 
seeing as it takes a lot from the Electabuzz who now has an advantage using 
Electric attacks against a Flying Pokémon, the only real difference that would 
benefit Charizard would be the fact that it’s fully evolved, but in the games, 
evolution only raises a Pokémon’s stats by so much.  

I don’t know how Charizard is supposed to be at a high level after the long 
months of it refusing to battle.  
Pokémon grow in level only by battling and gaining experience, but Charizard 
has rarely fought anyone since evolving to its highest stage and so should be 
on a lower level compared to Pokémon like Bulbasaur and Squirtle who battle 
more often than it (even if it happens to be against Team Rocket on virtually 
every day).  
Still, there’s proof that somehow, it’s reached a higher level than Bulbasaur 
seeing as it takes a lot from the Electabuzz who now has an advantage using 
Electric attacks against a Flying Pokémon, the only real difference that would 
benefit Charizard would be the fact that it is fully evolved, but in the 
games, evolution only raises a Pokémon’s stats by so much.  

Another count for the ‘Round the Moon’ Seismic Toss for Charizard, it only 
seems to do this on particularly high stake or important battles.  

This may or may not be true, but notice how Charizard’s tail flame starts to 
grow immensely before the Dragon Rage attack.  
This happened in “Charizard Chills”, but the attack was dubbed as a Rage 
attack, was it originally supposed to be a Dragon Rage attack?  

After everything Ash has been through, the trophy is something of a letdown; 
they could have at least made it a little bigger.  

This final statement isn’t so much an insult, but an observation (one that I 
should have thought of earlier), with all the projectile attacks flying around 
the field and occasionally missing their targets, it’s a miracle (or just 
plain fortunate and lucky) that no one in the audience is hit and 
wounded/killed by it all seeing as there appear to be no barriers of any kind 
to protect them.  
For Team Rocket to get seats suggests that it’s free to watch the Winners Cup 
Battle, maybe it’s because of the risk involved as explained above!  

Who’s That Pokémon?:  

Tentacruel

Cameos in Pokémon Journey:  

Tetsubo and Rick earn a place of their own in the Orange League Hall of Fame 
by beating Drake (“Diary of a Champion”).  

Viva Las Lapras

Pokémon seen:  

Lapras, Pikachu, Togepi, Meowth, Tentacruel, Marill, Goldeen, Poliwag, Staryu, 
Squirtle

Story:  

Ash is proud to have won the Winner’s Trophy and the group are now headed 
home, but Lapras takes a sudden detour and catches up with a school of 
Lapras.  
Ash reminisces with the way he met Lapras, and the guys figure this is the 
group that Lapras was separated from.  
Sadly they ignore and leave behind Ash’s Lapras on purpose, but the group 
discover that they’re scared of humans, especially since poachers are 
illegally trying to catch them.  
Ash figures the poachers are Team Rocket, but they’re in the Pokémon Centre 
suffering from injuries done to them by the pirate poachers Jenny describes 
and their leader, dubbed by the police as Captain Crook.  
Captain Crook’s gunfire against the Lapras turns out to be Pokéballs 
containing Tentacruel which attack the Lapras.  
Tracey returns to land to alert Officer Jenny while Ash and Misty head out to 
rescue the Lapras.  
While Misty leads a team of Water Pokémon to destroy the ship’s weapons, Ash 
leads the Tentacruel away (and Team Rocket come between the two and are 
blasted off as always).  
Misty and the Pokémon restrain the pirates but Ash is outnumbered by the 
Tentacruel until the other Lapras finally rally round having learned to trust 
people.  
Sadly, Ash and Lapras must say their goodbyes so it can be with its friends 
and family.  

My favourite Quote:  

Ash (referring to Team Rocket’s injuries):  “Well I’m sorry you’re hurt but 
you can’t say you didn’t deserve it.”  
James:  “You’re right, we had it coming!”  
Meowth:  “Guess we Are pretty crummy, ain’t we!”  
(Jessie hits them both with her crutch)  
Jessie:  “This is no joke, we’re victims!”  
Jenny:  “In that case you should come down to the station house and give me 
all the details.”  
Jessie:  “Hmm?”  
Jenny:  “And while we’re at it I’ll check out Your file.”  
Jessie:  “All of a sudden I feel much better.”  
James:  “We’ll be on our way Officer.”  
Jessie:  “Ba bye!”  
(Team Rocket beat a hasty exit through a glass window and keep on running)  

Things I’d like to point out:  

Not much of a stretch as to what this title gets its name from the Elvis 
Song “Viva Las Vegas”.  

It’s very strange that Officer Jenny knows that Team Rocket is a trio, 
especially since she appears not to know anything about them because she’s 
asking Ash to tell her everything about them.  
This is obviously a mistake made by those translating the series but it’s one 
that’s easily overlooked.  

During the Team Rocket motto, it’s funny how the ripping of bandages is like 
the usual removing of disguises and costumes, except that the bandages are 
necessary to them today and Jessie and James hurt themselves in the process.  

James claims not to like poached eggs, which after checking back on, is true.  
In “Who gets to keep Togepi?”, James wants to cook the egg that contains 
Togepi in many different ways despite Meowth’s protests, he lists several ways 
of cooking it but poaching doesn’t come up.  

Jessie claims that they were stung by Tentacruel, but in the flashback they 
were blasted by actual cannonballs and launched into an island.  
Unless she’s referring to an earlier experience before this episode, or Team 
Rocket lied about how they’d become injured, this is yet another mistake.  

Ash is an idiot for forgetting that water conducts electricity, I’d forgive 
him for the mistake if he’d underestimated Pikachu’s electricity and figured 
it wouldn’t reach them, but surely any smart person would at least consider 
the other Lapras before shocking the Tentacruel.  

It’s not hugely noticeable, but there are more pirates than just the captain 
and his first mate, you can see them all when Jenny is arresting them and Team 
Rocket (though how they ended up back here to be caught by Jenny isn’t 
explained, and neither is their appearing next episode as if they’d not been 
arrested).  

Kind of a big coincidence that Ash no longer needs to travel across water and 
that he just happens to find Lapras’s family now that the Orange League is 
over for him.  

During the Lapras flashback, the instrumental to “The Time Has Come” is 
played, which hasn’t been heard since Ash considered letting Pikachu go 
in “Pikachu’s Goodbye”.  

Who’s That Pokémon?:  

Electrode

Cameos in Pokémon Journey:  

None.  

Episodes #097 - #104
Episodes #113 - #120
Movie and MiniMovie Guide
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