Episode Guide #225 - #232

Espeon, Not Included
For Ho-Oh The Bells Toll!
Extreme Pokémon!
An EGG-sighting Adventure!
Hatching A Plan
Dues and Don’ts
Just Waiting On a Friend
A Tyrogue Full of Trouble

Espeon, Not Included

Pokémon seen:  

Pikachu, Togepi, Espeon, Jolteon, Vaporeon, Umbreon, Flareon, Corsola, Arbok, 
Victreebel, Meowth, Crobat, Wobbuffet

Story:  

The group make a return stop at Ecruteak City and have arranged to meet Sakura 
there, an Espeon comes running towards them followed by Sakura.  
The group briefly see her four older sisters at their place who are leaving to 
see a dance instructor; Sakura later asks if Misty would battle her Espeon.  
Misty uses her new Corsola and while the battle starts, the sisters are 
greeted by Team Rocket posing as the dance instructors.  
Espeon is battling well and dodges a Spike Cannon attack, catching Corsola off 
guard with Quick Attack, but it recovers its health.  
The sisters release their Pokémon on Team Rocket’s instruction and begin 
dancing, but their Pokémon have never danced and so are invited to have 
some ‘private tutoring’.  
They are taken into another room where they are dropped into a cage, their 
call alerts the sisters who witness the Meowth balloon rising with their 
Pokémon.  
Espeon takes a final hit and loses the battle; Sakura and Misty discuss the 
journey in the Whirl Islands including Misty’s catch and battles in the Whirl 
Cup.  
Sakura wishes she could travel in this way when her sisters return and report 
the news of their stolen Pokémon, Sakura vows to get them back.  
Team Rocket make a stop and gloat on their success but realise they don’t have 
the complete set and need to steal Sakura’s Espeon to make the set worth 
more.  
Sakura realises this and Espeon agrees to serve as bait, Team Rocket soon find 
it and Espeon though it looks like it’s sleeping can tell they’re here and 
reports this to Sakura before it’s netted.  
Crobat follows Team Rocket as they head back to the other Pokémon while Sakura 
claims Espeon can see into the future and therefore will be able to avoid 
danger if there is any.  
Espeon refuses to be lured into a cage by food and turns away as Jessie tries 
to trick it into wearing a collar; it locates its caged friends hidden in the 
bushes.  
James attempts to catch it but it dodges over him and escapes as the group 
arrive, Team Rocket’s Pokémon act irrationally but soon get into a battle 
against Corsola and Espeon.  
Corsola spikes Arbok while Espeon dodges Victreebel’s leaves with Quick Attack 
and follows up with Swift.  
Arbok’s Poison Sting is blocked by Corsola’s horns and Psybeam is unleashed 
onto the two enemies to confuse them, the whole team crashes near the balloon 
which Pikachu destroys to get rid of them.  
Espeon frees its friends and so it and Sakura are given recognition for their 
efforts, Sakura is also given permission to travel the world.  
Misty invites her to join the group again but surprisingly Sakura declines, 
wanting to learn how to fend for herself.  
Everyone says their goodbyes as Sakura leaves on her journey, Misty is 
reminded of her first time setting out on her own and Misty and Sakura make a 
promise to see each other again so she can tell her about all the people and 
places she’s met and visited.  

My favourite Quote:  

(Espeon has located its caged fellow Pokémon)  
Jessie:  “Would you look at that, it just wanted to be with its friends...”  
(Wobbuffet appears from its Pokéball as always)  
Wobbuffet:  “Waaaa-ba-fet!”  
Jessie (nodding before realising Wobbuffet’s presence and getting 
annoyed):  “Mm-hmmm...  Hmmph! That’s the end of our conversation.”  
Wobbuffet (as Jessie recalls it):  “Wob-ba!”  

Things I’d like to point out:  

The title pun comes from the packaging term “Batteries Not Included”.  

When Brock hides behind Ash, he speaks but his lips don’t open.  

Brock seems overeager to be the referee today, I don’t see why since he’s 
almost always the referee when his friends battle without someone else to 
referee the match.  

The four sisters claimed they were going to see their favourite dance 
instructor, and yet they don’t raise a question when Jessie and James show up, 
have they even met this dance instructor or have they only heard of him/her by 
name? They also fail to question why there are two instructors.  

Team Rocket always make the mistake of using their own Pokémon while trying to 
disguise themselves, they might be smart enough to conceal their hair for once 
but surely the combined appearances of Arbok and Victreebel blatantly biting 
on James’s head like last time should have exposed themselves to the sisters.  
And why did James speak like he normally does to Victreebel, telling it not to 
attack him as if he had someone else in mind?  

Why do the sisters have to ask who Team Rocket are? They should have guessed 
from the familiar Arbok, disobedient Victreebel, the Meowth balloon and the 
fact that Team Rocket were Again trying to capture their Pokémon.  
I don’t think the same people dubbed this episode and “Trouble’s Brewing” 
since it should be common knowledge that the sisters are familiar with Team 
Rocket.  

During the Team Rocket motto, James crosses his arms on the last line and he 
only has half a glove (the half that’s a sleeve), his fingers are suddenly 
visible; a hefty colouring error.  

If Sakura is so impressed with Corsola’s recover, she obviously hasn’t trained 
her Espeon enough to gain her own healing attack Morning Sun.  

Why does it take so long for Team Rocket to realise they don’t have the 
complete evolved Eevee set when they’ve previously mentioned that they did, 
couldn’t they count the Pokémon as they were led into the trap, and yes they 
did know Espeon existed at the time of capturing the Pokémon.  

I think this is the first time interaction with the camera has ever been done 
in the series, as Meowth is swatted and then hits and slides down the ‘glass’ 
of the screen.  

For the first time Ash gets annoyed with Brock’s flirting and drags him away 
by the ear.  

Now that’s just stupid, why do Team Rocket catch Espeon in a net only to let 
it out in order to lure it into a cage with food? Why didn’t they just empty 
the net into the cage and lock it?  

Oh come on! Do caged Pokémon lose all their abilities?! Apparently so judging 
on several of the past episodes and this one.  
If Espeon’s Swift attack was enough to break the bars of the cage, surely the 
caged Pokémon could have done something with their own physical or elemental 
attacks to break out themselves.  

Misty claims Sakura’s leaving is just like her own in that her sisters were 
there to say goodbye to her, but in “The Water Flowers Of Cerulean City”, her 
sisters refer to her as the runt of the family and claim she left because she 
couldn't compare with their beauty and talent, this doesn't sound remotely 
like a happy or pleasant departure at all.  

Who’s That Pokémon?:  

(This Pokémon eats its opponent’s dreams!)  
Drowzee

Cameos in Pokémon Journey:  

Now that Sakura is out and about in the world there’s always a chance she’ll 
make an appearance in the future.  

For Ho-Oh The Bells Toll!

Pokémon seen:  

Togepi, Pikachu, Chansey, Wobbuffet, Meowth, Gengar, Ho-oh, Suicune, Entei, 
Raikou, Parasect, Spinarak, Caterpie, Weedle, Tangela, Ariados, Alakazam, 
Gligar, Cyndaquil, Noctowl, Gastly, Arbok

Story:  

The group are still in Ecruteak City planning out the route they’ll take to 
Mahogany Town when a strange ringing occurs from the Tin Tower, which is said 
to happen only when the legendary Pokémon Ho-Oh is near.  
Morty is reunited with a man called Eusine who is on the lookout for the 
legendary Pokémon Suicune.  
The two check the Tin Tower but on the ninth floor the special crystal bells 
(which are said to ring only when Ho-Oh arrives) have been stolen.  
The other bells have apparently rung to alert them of this theft, and nearby 
Team Rocket are the thieves, they wish to make Ho-Oh appear to them but the 
bells don’t ring when shaken, Jessie swings them all around in an attempt to 
make them do so but one of them goes flying and shatters on a rock.  
The bells in the Tin Tower stop ringing while Team Rocket sense an ill wind as 
a result of their misdeed, the group meet Eusine and are reunited with Morty 
who explains that Ash’s appearance here could be evidence that Ho-Oh is coming 
before he explains to Eusine of Ash’s claims to have seen Ho-Oh on his first 
day as a trainer.  
The crystal bells are described to the group and of a legend of the great fire 
engulfing the tower of Ho-Oh except for 32 metal bells and 4 crystal ones that 
were placed in the rebuilt Tin Tower in the hopes that Ho-Oh would return, but 
the bells have never rung until today.  
Eusine claims Ho-Oh watches over the world and that legend states its rage 
will only melt away when the hearts of Pokémon and humans finally meet as 
one.  
Also three Pokémon have apparently been created and sent to observe the humans 
because they are the source of Ho-Oh’s anger after humans attempted to steal 
its power and that of all Pokémon which resulted in the fire of the great 
tower which took the lives of three Pokémon, Ho-Oh drew from nature and its 
power and reincarnated them as the spirits of the north wind, the volcano and 
thunder to create Suicune, Entei and Raikou, they apparently wait for the day 
Pokémon and humans live together in co-operation and harmony.  
When Ash claims he met Suicune, Eusine is outraged; claiming Suicune only 
appears to the most skilled of trainers and so challenges him to a Pokémon 
Battle.  
Meanwhile Team Rocket are surrounded by several Bug Pokémon who are enraged 
that a crystal bell was broken.  
Ash battles Eusine in Morty’s Gym who puts Suicune’s honour before his duty to 
finding the bells, his Alakazam is about to battle against Pikachu, but it’s 
interrupted when Bug Pokémon are reported and then seen to be taking over the 
Tin Tower.  
Everyone is prevented by many Tangela and Parasect from entering the tower and 
must take refuge in the Gym.  
The surrounding town is covered in webbing and a link to the bells is 
realised, since the Crystal Bells are said to maintain peace and harmony 
amongst all the Pokémon they’re acting aggressively towards humans and 
possibly seeking to create a world without humans because of their loss of the 
bells.  
As such Ash is upset since this will surely prevent Ho-Oh from ever returning 
to the world, as a team the large group escape and make their way through the 
webbed forest with Cyndaquil’s help until they find Team Rocket tied up, and 
only three of the bells.  
Ash fails to reason with the Pokémon and Brock ponders how sad it would be if 
Ho-Oh was watching this, the Pokémon attack and Alakazam attempts to protect 
the group with Reflect, but its barrier is infiltrated by Tangela vines and 
hit hard, moments before Ash is hit in kind a mysterious Pokémon appears which 
stops the attacks immediately.  
The webbing is dissolved by a mysterious power, Suicune can be seen nearby and 
its presence causes the Pokémon to leave, Team Rocket attempt to catch Suicune 
but it dodges Arbok’s attack and defeats them utterly with one shot.  
Eusine challenges Suicune to a battle with his Alakazam, it attempts to use 
Disable on Suicune and then Confusion but Suicune’s roar sends the Alakazam 
back into its Pokéball, and has disappeared when the group look up again.  
Suicune is claimed only to have appeared to protect everyone by settling down 
the Pokémon, a rainbow signifies the power of Ho-Oh which dissolves the 
remainder of the webbing around town.  
The group later say their goodbyes and prepare to take their leave, and Ash 
promises should he meet Ho-Oh or Suicune again he’ll let them know how humans 
feel about Pokémon, while Eusine has already embarked on a journey to find and 
catch Suicune.  
Morty believes Ho-Oh still watches them and that it will return one day when 
Pokémon and humans live in harmony.  

My favourite Quote:  

Misty:  “Why do you three always have to make such a giant mess or everything, 
huh?!”  
Team Rocket:  “Because we’re Team Rocket!”  
Misty:  “Or Team ‘Wreck-it’!”  

Things I’d like to point out:  

The title pun is based on the novel “For Whom The Bell Tolls” by Ernest 
Hemmingway.  

Eusine is clearly based on the character with the same name and goal from 
Pokémon Crystal where he makes several appearances and battles should the 
player locate a Suicune anywhere but the Tin Tower.  
In the series, this isn’t Eusine’s first appearance in the Pokémon World, as 
he makes an appearance in the three part Pokémon Chronicles story “LEGEND OF 
THUNDER”, however, in the dub he’s incorrectly named Eugene, voiced 
differently and suggests another legendary Pokémon Raikou needs to be free, 
yet he’s desperate to catch Suicune in this episode, it feels like the 
writers/translators in the English version were either trying to separate his 
character from the one here or they just made a huge mistake.  

Surely a tower housing artefacts so important to the town’s history should 
have at least one security guard.  
Even the games have a better system, placing guards who don’t grant trainers 
access unless they acquire the rare Rainbow Feather.  

We learn that the three Legendary Dogs were once unnamed Pokémon that died in 
the Tin Tower fire and were recreated by Ho-oh, who proves to have the same 
powers as the phoenix it’s based on.  

This is vague, and could go either way, Ash claims as well as seeing Ho-Oh, he 
also met Suicune, but is he referring to the brief appearance on the first day 
in Johto in “Don’t Touch That ‘dile” or fighting alongside it during the forth 
movie storyline, it’s strange that only Ash recalls this but not his friends.  

Morty dubs “Sleep Powder” as “Sleeping Powder”...  I’m just saying.  

How much hair gel does Jessie use? When she’s hanging upside-down her hair 
still curls to one side inside of being affected by gravity like James’s 
hair.  

The Ariados guarding the bells has different coloured eyes, instead of purple 
with black pupils it has black eyes with red pupils, is it meant to be a 
champion of the Ariados, angered to high heavens or a colouring error?  

Nice to see more of the game’s theories coming into play in that Reflect can’t 
defend against Vine Whip because it’s a special attack, although since String 
Shot isn’t a damaging attack, it wouldn’t be blocked in the games, but at 
least Reflect is subject to some conditions of the game if not in full.  
Also, I don’t care how angry the lone Tangela was, Eusine’s Alakazam is 
clearly not as powerful as he made it out to be if one low level Grass attack 
can damage it to the point of needing to be recalled.  

Why did Eusine ignore all requests and attempt to capture Suicune? He saw the 
group’s disgust at Team Rocket attempting to catch it and he should have 
realised capturing this Pokémon might affect the way Ho-oh thought of humans 
since Suicune only appeared to quell the rage of the wild Pokémon.  

Eusine’s battle with Suicune is similar to most players’ fights with the 
legendary dog Pokémon, in that unless steps are taken to prevent it Suicune 
can flee or use Roar to scare the enemy away and make its escape, and then 
it’s a long arduous task in simply locating Suicune again.  

Who’s That Pokémon?:  

(This Pokémon has short feet with suction cups!)  
Caterpie

Cameos in Pokémon Journey:  

There’s a good chance of Eusine making an appearance what with the guarantee 
that all three of the legends will be getting an appearance or mention when 
the time is right.  

Extreme Pokémon!

Pokémon seen:  

Pikachu, Togepi, Arcanine, Granbull, Scyther, Tauros, Wooper, Sentret, Aipom, 
Teddiursa, Natu, Cyndaquil, Totodile, Bayleef, Meowth, Machamp, Rhydon, 
Dodrio, Wobbuffet, Beedrill, Exeggutor, Vileplume, Hitmonchan, Nidoqueen, 
Raticate, Poliwrath, Lickiung, Arbok

Story:  

The group’s path takes them to a winding road that leads to the town of 
Eggseter, an Arcanine charges by on a leash with Gary behind it on a 
skateboard, Gary declines Ash’s challenge for a battle since he’s training for 
a big race.  
The group witness other trainers practising in the same sport but Ash is 
concerned that putting collars and leashes around Pokémon is wrong.  
A man at the cafe called Shelby explains that it’s no problem for the Pokémon 
and that riding Pokémon this way in races is a tradition here (the official 
title is Extreme Pokémon), upon learning that Gary is competing in the 
championship event, it doesn’t take Ash long to get involved himself.  
He’s advised to practice and is luckily loaned the equipment by Shelby who 
works in a Day Care Centre and serves as a Pokémon Nester who protects Pokémon 
Eggs until they’re ready to hatch.  
The whole area is perfect for raising Pokémon and there are several houses 
with people serving as Nesters.  
Shelby briefly explains the origin of Extreme Pokémon before reaching his 
place where the group see some of their eggs and then the equipment Ash will 
be using.  
Ash has experience in mountain boarding but takes a fall during practice and 
is saved by Arcanine; Gary is welcoming of Ash wanting in on the challenge but 
is confident he’ll not win against him.  
Ash chooses his Pokémon to be Bayleef and practices with it, starting with 
changing directions.  
Meowth has the others of Team Rocket view Ash and questions what he’s doing 
before James provides a pamphlet which explains the Extreme Pokémon 
competition, instead of attempting to steal all the competing Pokémon, Jessie 
instead decides they should steal the winner of the race.  
Ash is getting the hang of Extreme Pokémon when Shelby explains that 
participants must also carry a dummy egg halfway through the race without 
dropping it.  
The course comprises of the winding path that leads to Shelby and his wife’s 
Day Care Centre, but trainers can take any route they like, after retrieving a 
dummy egg the group must bring it back to the start of the race to win.  
A Scyther too fast for its trainer causes a pile up at the start of the race 
but Ash and Gary among others manage to get around it and get the race 
started.  
Ash and Gary are soon in the lead but Arcanine picks up speed, Team Rocket 
watch the race and decide Arcanine is the clear winner and net it, Ash stops 
to help his rival by riding his board up a mountain curve and driving it into 
the balloon so that it crashes.  
A camera is knocked out at the halfway mark and there Ash and Arcanine safely 
escape, Wobbuffet and James appear to the rest of the team with stolen Pokémon 
Eggs and Arbok threatens Ash, luckily Bayleef catches up but is hurt in the 
battle so Arcanine attacks as soon as Gary arrives.  
Bayleef retrieves the eggs as Team Rocket flee and Arcanine’s Flame Wheel 
deals with them.  
Gary is grateful for Ash’s help but the two must get moving as the opposition 
is catching up, the two receive their dummy eggs and continue their race.  
Gary still gets the lead and Bayleef struggles to keep up and on the narrow 
mountain path they’re on Ash is unable to get past Gary so he and Bayleef take 
a detour and leap off a very high cliff to get level with Gary, at the last 
moment of the race Arcanine makes a dive while Bayleef hits itself with Vine 
Whip to push its jump further to reach the finish line split seconds before 
Gary and Arcanine.  
Gary takes his defeat well and says his goodbyes, but Shelby and his wife have 
something to add to Ash’s prize of a trophy in thanks for helping them save 
their eggs and give Ash a special Pokémon Egg which will hatch into a Pokémon 
someday soon, though what kind is a secret for now.  

My favourite Quote:  

Shelby:  “To win a competition you must become one with your partner so you 
must choose carefully.  Character, trust, physical strength; there is much to 
consider.”  
Ash (turning to Pikachu):  “Physical strength...”  
Pikachu:  “Pi-Ka-chu! Pika-chu!...”  
Ash:  “Sorry Pikachu...”  
Pikachu (surprised and disappointed):  “Pika?”  

Things I’d like to point out:  

Gary’s still in nice guy mode since he’d even consider that Ash battling his 
Arcanine could in any way result in its getting injured, the old Gary would 
surely have made up a lame excuse which put down Ash’s skills.  

Ash is so predictable, one moment he’s concerned because Pokémon have collars 
and leashes and then he switches not because of the fact this is a tradition 
in the town or a want to race his Pokémon, as soon as he hears Gary is 
competing in the race Ash immediately wants to get in on it.  
If Gary decided to jump of a cliff would Ash immediately do the same just to 
do it better than him?  

After two occurrences of Butch and Cassidy running the Day Care Centre I was 
starting to think the process of breeding and hatching eggs would never be 
shown in the cartoons (Ash even has to ask what happens at a Day Care Centre 
seeing as the previous ones were fakes).  
The breeding side isn’t gone into but that’s understandable, excluding 
Togepi’s appearance way back, the taking care of and hatching of eggs is 
explored and begins with this episode.  

Ash claims Totodile is hard to control sometimes but that doesn’t stop him 
from using it in the fifth Pokémon movie where a similar event to this one 
(only in water) takes place.  

Another misleading clue in the Who’s That Pokémon section, Mr Mime’s 
specialties aren’t to clone themselves, the closest thing to that is the move 
Substitute which only creates a fake illusion of the user, Mr Mime get this 
technique naturally but a different hint should still have been used 
considering Substitute hasn’t even been used in the series and the closest 
thing to cloning is the technique Double Team (that and the first movie).  

Some of the racers’ choice in Pokémon eludes me, Vileplume and Exeggutor 
aren’t particularly known for their speed, and since when has Hitmonchan been 
a good runner, the same applies with Machamp (and quite frankly, putting a 
leash on human-shaped Pokémon seems a little weird and insulting).  
Also, why did the Pokémon Team Rocket imagined would be worth capturing 
coincidently compete in the race? The only possible excuse is that maybe their 
pictures were in the pamphlet.  

If these really are the Extreme Pokémon Finals, shouldn’t Ash have had to 
compete in any kind of race or test beforehand to qualify? Gary could easily 
have been here for some time before Ash arrived, he is always one step ahead 
of him after all.  

Team Rocket’s plan is slightly flawed; didn’t the thought occur to them that 
maybe without their interference another Pokémon could have won? They judge 
solely on who gets an early lead, didn’t they think there were any chance 
Arcanine would expend all its stamina and therefore fall behind? Apparently 
not.  

Meowth’s image of baby Pokémon working for them is incorrect in that there’s a 
Rhydon and Machamp along with the babies (who coincidently are the same four 
Pokémon that Shelby showed the group earlier).  
Unless they did some extreme training to evolve them, Team Rocket at best 
would only end up with a Rhyhorn and Machop.  
And what’s with the glasses, they’re a similar shape to the ones Ash’s 
Squirtle owns.  

Gary’s Arcanine uses virtually the same attack as the Arcanine in “The Stolen 
Stones!” but it’s correctly dubbed as Flame Wheel, not Fire Spin.  

The competition has got to be the worse challenge ever, Ash and Gary were 
technically the last to leave the starting line and yet they got so far ahead 
they were able to have Gary run on foot some of the way to the halfway mark 
and join Ash in the Team Rocket battle and still not have the other opponents 
catch up in that huge amount of time.  

Funny how Ash wins a trophy (larger than the Orange Island one) but doesn’t 
wave it around or show it off even after his other reward of a soon-to-be 
newborn Pokémon.  

Who’s That Pokémon?:  

(This Pokémon can make a clone of itself!)  
Mr Mime

Cameos in Pokémon Journey:  

None.  

An EGG-sighting Adventure!

Pokémon seen:  

Pikachu, Togepi, Meowth, Articuno, Moltres, Zapdos, Wobbuffet, Kangaskhan, 
Chansey, Growlithe, Exeggcute, Jumpluff, Arbok, Weezing, Victreebel

Story:  

Ash is curious about what sort of Pokémon his egg will hatch into, Team Rocket 
spy on the group and plan to snatch the egg with the hopes it might even hatch 
into a legendary Pokémon.  
Dark clouds signal a storm which although excites Pikachu forces the group to 
take shelter, while the lightning bolt that just struck is found to have 
destroyed Team Rocket’s robot before they had a chance to use it.  
The group find a Pokémon Centre where Joy happily offers them a room since 
they are the only guests here tonight, while the group sleep the Rockets break 
into the Pokémon Centre and quietly break into the group’s room but while they 
quarrel Togepi wakes and teleports the egg to safety (although it’s left 
outside).  
Team Rocket are distracted when Wobbuffet alerts them to some food while 
outside a baby Kangaskhan alerts its mother to the abandoned egg so it pockets 
both it and its baby before moving on.  
After a brief nightmare regarding the egg Ash wakes suddenly to find the egg 
has really vanished, in the morning Officer Jenny arrives which causes Team 
Rocket to flee the kitchen.  
This particular Jenny is also a detective but she has a habit of stating the 
obvious and pointing the blame at the wrong people.  
The group check the Chansey first and then locate the egg case outside while 
Team Rocket head back to the kitchen, a lead to an Exeggcute nest turns up 
short so the group head back to the room where Jenny blames Brock with an 
elaborate story of how he grew jealous of Ash and Misty’s egg-related Pokémon 
and then stole the egg, but the others defend him.  
Team Rocket are completely full while Brock is eventually cleared of the 
charges when marks on the locks are found.  
Jenny releases her Jumpluff whose spores expose footprints on the floor, more 
thoughtless accusations are thrown around before Jumpluff drops its spores in 
the hallway which leads to Team Rocket’s faceprints where they tripped, so 
it’s assumed Victreebel grabbed the egg from a distance.  
They are found in the kitchen but with a little trickery Team Rocket escape 
and make a run for it, the group encounter the Kangaskhan with Ash’s egg, 
which checks Ash to make sure his scent matches the egg.  
The group comes to the conclusion that the Kangaskhan beat Team Rocket to 
protect the egg and so they thank it, but Team Rocket snatch the egg in their 
balloon.  
Arbok is beaten by Kangaskhan’s Dizzy Punch and Growlithe severs the cord so 
the egg drops, Ash barely catches it and Pikachu sends the balloon flying.  
Joy and Jenny are thanked for their help and now the group resume their 
journey while once again trying to predict the identity of the Pokémon inside 
the egg.  

My favourite Quote:  

Brock:  “STOP IT!...”  
(Team Rocket panic, thinking they’ve been caught)  
Meowth:  “Oh?...”  
Brock (talking in his sleep):  “... I told you I’ve already sworn my love to 
somebody else!...”  
James:  “The boy appears to be dealing with some issues.”  

Things I’d like to point out:  

Most of the legendary birds’ voices are different than the ones used in the 
second Pokémon movie, Articuno’s seems the most valid to change since it was 
recently in the series but Zapdos’s voice sounds like a cheap copy of 
Moltres’s scream.  

Of course the title is a pun of “An exciting adventure”, with Pokémon Eggs 
getting used in the story more and more an egg-related pun was sure to happen 
sooner or later.  

Team Rocket might be dim enough to bicker and argue in the group’s bedroom 
while attempting to steal their egg but at least they were smart enough to 
lock the door behind them before attempting to steal the food.  

How did Growlithe know which of the two guys was Ash by name alone without 
being informed or having had knowledge of him?  

An unimportant observation but the font style in the Who’s That Pokémon hint 
is different, usually long sentences are written with smaller letters.  

Why does Jenny claim Ash was cradling his Pokémon when Brock stole it? Or at 
least, why does no one correct her on the fact it didn’t happen this way since 
the egg was left on the desk?  

If there are no footprints near the table, how did the group place the egg on 
it? Unless Ash placed it on there from the bed and then recklessly pushed it 
to the right-hand side.  
More importantly, since Ash clearly stepped all over the area with his bare 
feet, why don’t they show up when Team Rocket’s faces show up on the hallway 
floor?  

If the visualisations of Jenny’s deductions are her own then she shouldn’t 
know that Team Rocket own an Arbok and Weezing unless she’s done research on 
them, seeing as the group only mention they have a Victreebel.  

Is Jessie trying to make up her own attacks now? There’s no such thing as a 
Fang Attack (Hyper Fang, Super Fang, Bite and Crunch yes and even a Poison 
Fang becomes a signature attack for a future Pokémon Jessie owns but not Fang 
alone), she probably meant Bite but wanted it to sound cooler.  

Who’s That Pokémon?:  

(This Pokémon helps Nurse Joy in the Pokémon Center!)  
Blissey

Cameos in Pokémon Journey:  

None.  

Hatching A Plan

Pokémon seen:  

Pikachu, Togepi, Meowth, Phanpy, Wobbuffet, Psyduck, Weezing, Arbok

Story:  

The group’s thoughts have been on Ash’s egg, which starts to glow as a sign of 
it nearly being time to hatch, but Team Rocket have a plan to steal the 
newborn Pokémon.  
As morning light shines the egg hatches into a Phanpy, Ash then tries to use 
the Pokéball to recall it but it dodges the recall shots thinking it is all a 
game and unable to obey commands.  
Phanpy is lured back by some food but Team Rocket appear and mock Ash’s 
inability to recall his Pokémon, as they grasp Phanpy with a long cord and 
grabbing hand Pikachu shocks them, but the device conducts the electricity and 
hits Phanpy as well.  
Team Rocket are blasted off but a startled Phanpy runs away scared, its trust 
for Ash seemingly broken.  
The group splits up to find Phanpy and while Psyduck ruins Brock’s plan to 
lure it with food, Pikachu feels responsible for Phanpy having run away.  
Phanpy is hungry and therefore lured over to Team Rocket’s breakfast where it 
steals their food from right under their noses, Team Rocket are surprised by 
this, research its attacks and find it’s a Ground Pokémon with an advantage 
over Electric-types.  
This entices Team Rocket to win it over to their side to fight Pikachu by 
bribing it with food, but Meowth’s tail is appealing to the little Pokémon.  
The group reconvene while Ash once again tries to comfort Pikachu, Team Rocket 
reappear with Phanpy and Meowth waves his tail around (painted to look like a 
Phanpy’s trunk) and then dodges as Phanpy lovingly charges forward so that 
Pikachu is hit and prone to capture.  
Phanpy still thinks it’s playing a game despite the danger, Pikachu’s 
electricity is useless against Team Rocket’s insulated costumes and Weezing’s 
smokescreen clouds their escape.  
Team Rocket stop to celebrate but put Phanpy inside a cage where Pikachu 
comforts it and soon works with it to ram the side of the cage in order to 
have it tumble down a hill and break to pieces against a tree.  
The two Pokémon are quickly followed and come across a rapid river, Pikachu 
leads the way across some stepping stones and Phanpy follows Pikachu but 
misses the second stone and even Pikachu is dragged away when trying to save 
Phanpy.  
It clings to a final stone before a waterfall that lies ahead, Ash climbs an 
overlooking tree branch and lowers a rope but Pikachu can’t risk letting go, 
Phanpy gets washed away when Ash lifts Pikachu to safety so Ash dives in and 
retrieves Phanpy, throwing a lifeline upwards as he falls for Brock and Misty 
to pull him back up.  
Phanpy is saved and its trust in Ash is restored but Team Rocket arrive, 
Meowth tries to lure Phanpy again but it won’t be fooled, Arbok and Weezing 
attack and Phanpy chooses to fight them, it uses Rollout to beat the Pokémon 
back but Smokescreen affects it, Pikachu launches an electrical attack which 
Jessie and James are immune to regardless if their Pokémon are not but 
unfortunately for them the balloon explodes and sends them all on their way.  
Ash is proud of his newest Pokémon and has high hopes for it as a battler.  

My favourite Quote:  

James:  “Look, the cage is gone!”  
Pikachu:  “Pi-Ka Chu!...”  
Meowth (alerted to Pikachu and Phanpy’s location):  “Agh! An’ that’s not all! 
They’re making a run for it!”  
Jessie:  “What are you saying?!”  
James:  “Oh, that they’re making a run for it.”  
Jessie:  “Yeah I heard that!”  
James:  “You asked!”  

Things I’d like to point out:  

Brock words loosely relate to the message used in the games for when eggs are 
almost ready to hatch.  

Though Ash didn’t realise it back in “Roll On, Pokémon!” when he was trying to 
catch a Donphan, he was destined to own the Phanpy he receives today, and for 
the first time add a Ground Pokémon to his team though I shudder to think how 
often the series will neglect the fact that Electric attacks do nothing to 
Ground-types when there’s one being seen so often.  

The Pokéball on top of the egg case is revealed to be Phanpy’s Pokéball (to 
save having to catch the Pokémon after hatching it), but since Togepi didn’t 
have an egg case nor Pokéball, it technically means that Misty could 
theoretically carry six Pokéballs with six other Pokémon inside as long as 
Togepi doesn’t have one, on the other hand this also means Misty has nothing 
to prove that Togepi belongs to her other than its belief and love of her as 
its mother-figure.  

Phanpy shouldn’t have been damaged by Pikachu’s attack in any way considering 
it’s a Ground-type; however the sparking of electricity could easily just be 
startling the baby Phanpy.  
And yet somehow for at least a minute after Phanpy is focussed on again, it’s 
still sparkling as if under the effects of a Thunder Wave-induced paralysis.  

A brief reference is made to how Meowth’s tail was always appealing to 
Snubbull, even though in its last appearance in an episode resulted in it 
evolving into Granbull.  

There are serious colour errors in that Meowth paints his tail blue to 
resemble a Phanpy, the first is the fact that as Meowth approaches the group 
there is nothing on his tail, yet in the next shot in which he’s still walking 
forward, his tail is painted, when Team Rocket celebrate Meowth’s paint is 
gone (but in this scene it may have been removed because the mission was a 
success), but it’s painted up again as soon as Meowth needs to lure Phanpy 
again, and finally it disappears when Team Rocket blast off.  
Because of this, Meowth’s claims that it takes an hour to paint his tail that 
way and doesn’t wash off would appear to both be false.  

How did Brock know there were rocks at the bottom of the waterfall, unless the 
group extensively researched this area it’s doubtful as they appear in line 
with the Pokémon crossing the rocks and unable to see the surroundings below.  

Why did Ash climb a tree and drop a rope instead of simply calling Bayleef to 
help, Pikachu wouldn’t even have had to let go of the rock if Bayleef 
navigated her vines around it and Phanpy and lifted them out of the river.  

Unless Phanpy’s male parent was a Pokémon with Rollout, it shouldn’t have 
learned the attack so soon after hatching, the only exceptions lie in 
specialised breeding to give baby Pokémon attacks they would not normally 
learn so fast (if at all), the same goes for Take Down which is used by Phanpy 
next episode.  

Arbok doesn’t appear to move its tail very far if at all between the shots in 
which it extends its tail towards Phanpy while remaining in the balloon, Ash’s 
words, Pikachu’s activated attack and everyone in the balloon being shocked.  

Who’s That Pokémon?:  

(This Pokémon’s spiky fins can pierce its opponent’s skin!)  
Seadra

Cameos in Pokémon Journey:  

None.  

Dues and Don’ts

Pokémon seen:  

Pikachu, Togepi, Meowth, Wobbuffet, Psyduck, Noctowl, Onix, Cyndaquil, 
Poliwhirl, Crobat, Bayleef, Corsola, Geodude, Totodile, Goldeen, Phanpy, 
Pineco, Staryu, Victreebel, Weezing, Arbok, Delibird, Persian

Story:  

The group find a football goal (the American kind) where Team Rocket are 
dressed as players who throw a football shaped bomb at them, Ash kicks it back 
towards them and this continues between James and members of the group while 
the countdown ticks away, Pikachu’s electricity serves as a distraction to 
make them miss and the bomb explodes and sends them up for a field goal.  
Team Rocket are prepared for this with parachutes but Wobbuffet’s blundering 
makes them crash.  
They hold a ridiculous meeting among themselves to discuss why they keep 
losing, who to place the blame on, analysing their numbers, their Pokémon and 
skills of each group but it results in a fight among them.  
Jessie considers phoning the Team Rocket home office for some new Pokémon but 
given the team’s outrageous debts it wouldn’t be wise to do so.  
The group find a caged Delibird and a speaker which invites them to capture 
it, Arbok and Weezing attack but it retaliates with an Ice attack and then 
dodges and does the same to Victreebel, Arbok and Weezing are defeated and 
frozen too but Wobbuffet’s Counter puts a stop to the Delibird.  
Before Jessie can catch it, Delibird is recalled and an old lady reports this 
was a test and that she’s a talent scout for Team Rocket who doesn’t believe 
they’re really members since they designed their own costumes.  
Team Rocket is seemingly low on members and the old woman claims she’ll give 
them money if Jessie and James join, but Jessie is concerned that they’d be 
found out if they joined Team Rocket twice.  
Their proof of being Rockets (including Meowth) have expired along with 
several other problems and are said to have been removed from the database 
completely.  
The old lady suggests they re-register for the Rockets, when they do, a human 
resources Rocket called Wendy reports to the Boss Giovanni the apparent new 
candidates, Wendy recalls an event in which Jessie promised to pay her back 
for a Fruit Smoothie, she hasn’t done so to this day.  
Giovanni recognises them and is advised to block their re-instatement but the 
Boss decides to give them a chance to pay back their loans.  
There’s one more test to pass in that the group must attack a trainer head on 
and steal their Pokémon, Ash and the others are passing by and Team Rocket are 
lent the Delibird in order to pull off a successful theft.  
Delibird is said to give presents and gives spheres to the group which soon 
explode on them, Phanpy is used but is soon frozen and Delibird hurls 
exploding spheres everywhere, hurting Pikachu in one of the blasts before the 
group takes refuge.  
Another sphere is dropped on Pikachu but luckily it rejuvenates Pikachu’s 
health, one of the occasional drawbacks of the Present attack.  
Pikachu comes out of hiding and surprises Team Rocket with its recovery and a 
massive Thunderbolt attack.  
The old lady overlooks the loss but feels the group have to make compromises 
since they’re a little short staffed, Jessie, James and Meowth pass the test 
but are ordered by the Boss to be worked hard until the debt is paid.  
Wendy is outraged but gets even by adding several charges, fees and other 
factors to leave Jessie with a very large bill for the Smoothie she never paid 
for.  
Team Rocket is happy despite crashing but Delibird is confiscated from them, 
it will serve as Team Rocket’s direct deposit and will visit them monthly to 
collect the money they owe the team, beginning with Wendy’s little surprise 
for Jessie.  
Like the good guys, Team Rocket move on while Jessie doesn’t even remember the 
incident with the Smoothie, she sees the bright side of the Delibird’s monthly 
calling in that since they have no money, they can use it as a secret weapon 
to capture Pikachu.  

My favourite Quote:  

James:  “Besides that they have that... Togepi.”  
Jessie:  “Big deal, we’ve got our Wobbuffet to be as omni-presently annoying 
as that puny little pest.”  
Wobbuffet (in a proud pose):  “Waaaa-buffet!”  

Things I’d like to point out:  

Despite Jessie’s quick judgement of the attack, Delibird appears to be using 
Icy Wind rather than Blizzard, if it was really a Blizzard attack, it’d be a 
heck of a lot stronger, unfortunately Delibird performs the same attack later 
when instructed to use Blizzard by James.  

Though in a shocked state, Meowth appears to be posing as a Beckoning Cat 
again.  

When the Boss threatens to strike out Jessie, James and Meowth as members, I 
wonder if he meant to kill them, disown them or let the police have them.  

I’m surprised that after voting for everyone including its own trainer Jessie, 
Wobbuffet is Extremely quick at lowering its arm and voicing its complaint 
when its turn to be voted for the blame for Team Rocket’s failures comes 
about.  

This episode confirms the fact that Jessie and James designed their own 
outfits to the point a real Rocket member thinks they’re merely fans of Team 
Rocket.  

Since it’s apparent that the Team Rocket trio have treated their company like 
a loan service, shouldn’t it frown upon the fact that Jessie and James keep on 
dressing up for their encounters when half of the time it’s not even necessary 
seeing as they sometimes dress for show rather than to disguise themselves?  
I doubt they borrow the costumes for free seeing as most of the time they 
simply discard them upon revealing themselves without a care for the condition 
they’d get in.  

Team Jet and Team Helicopter?...  I sure hope Jessie isn’t serious about such 
teams existing, isn’t it enough that there are two other official teams 
appearing in the next series without such ridiculous team names coming into 
it? I mean, Team Helicopter?...  It has no ring nor does it sound remotely 
serious or scary in the slightest.  

Please tell me that Ash simply forgot to listen to the entire Delibird entry 
(involving the fact that Present is in fact an attack technique, not a gift), 
surely a Pokédex wouldn’t leave such a huge space between sentences unless a 
button had to be pressed.  
In the Pokémon games most Pokédex entries comes in two pages so a button must 
be pressed to move to the next page.  

Who’s That Pokémon?:  

(This Pokémon uses paint to mark its territory!)  
Smeargle

Cameos in Pokémon Journey:  

None, although I worry the suggested short staff complicates the fact that 
I’ve created four groups that serve as regular Rocket bad guys for my 
characters, and about three others that don’t appear as often.  

Just Waiting On a Friend

Pokémon seen:  

Pikachu, Togepi, Ninetales, Meowth, Wobbuffet, Totodile, Arbok, Victreebel, 
Bayleef

Story:  

Ash and the group cross a foggy path and Ash takes a small fall, Brock follows 
and is warned by a girl called Lakoko who owns a Ninetales of the dangers 
walking these mountains in the mist, she invites the group back to her 
master’s mansion but Team Rocket follow with the intention of stealing Pikachu 
and Ninetales.  
The group arrive at a huge building that seemingly appears from the fog, while 
the group are fed and Ninetales appears fond of Brock Team Rocket have snuck 
inside and start snacking away on several cookies from a gigantic pile they 
find.  
Brock acts his normal self but Lakoko takes his suggestion to stay with her 
seriously and advises the group to remain here until morning.  
But Misty notices something strange, in that Lakoko has no reflection in the 
mirror and the suspicious way she covers for this.  
Lakoko explains that the owner of the mansion left to go on a journey years 
ago, that the staff left one by one over the years since he never returned and 
Lakoko and her Ninetales have been waiting here alone for him to return.  
She requests that Brock stay here with her permanently and even agrees to 
marry him when he gets the idea in his head, but when Brock goes to hug her he 
falls right through her, her lack of substance does not go unnoticed by Ash 
and Misty who try to get out of here fast with Brock.  
Brock is taken elsewhere and Lakoko suddenly turns on the two, evicting them 
from the mansion along with their belongings, while Team Rocket are finding 
even more food in great volumes.  
Brock believes all of Lakoko’s lies even when his clothes are suddenly 
changed; Ash and Misty decide to find and reveal the truth about Lakoko and 
find a painting of a man resembling Brock with Ninetales.  
They also find a strange Pokéball and a diary of the owner who left the house 
but the shocking truth is that this was written 200 years ago, which means 
Lakoko is a ghost.  
Ash and Misty attack Lakoko and her Ninetales with Totodile and reveal her for 
what she is, she disappears and the mansion’s true appearance is revealed, 
along with all the food Team Rocket have stolen turning into leaves.  
The group rushes to escape as the Ninetales chases them down, they end up in 
the room with the picture and items where Ash tries to explain that the old 
owner has long passed on to the Ninetales and that Brock is not him.  
Lakoko reappears and commands Brock to stay; Totodile and Pikachu can’t beat 
the Ninetales because it boasts supernatural powers as well as powerful Fire 
attacks.  
Brock seizes the old Pokéball and upon seeing the image of its master within 
Brock, Ninetales gratefully returns to its ball.  
Lakoko explains her story once again but it turns out that Ninetales has been 
speaking through the illusion of Lakoko, and while the staff gave up on 
waiting throughout the years, it remained for its master to return but after 
50 years of waiting Ninetales knew its master had passed on and tried to leave 
the mansion but found that some power kept it here (likely the Pokéball), and 
after 150 years of waiting, the Ninetales found it had gained its strange 
powers, Ninetales saw Brock and his similarity to its master and thought if he 
lived with it, everything would be as it used to be and apologises for this.  
Team Rocket catch Ninetales in a net, partly because they’re angry after the 
illusions made them eat leaves they thought were cookies and because they 
think a 200 year old Ninetales is of great value.  
Bayleef frees Ninetales while the Rocket Pokémon attack and Ninetales fights 
them using its powers but while saving Brock from an attack, he drops the 
Pokéball which shatters on the floor.  
Bayleef finishes off the Pokémon and Ninetales and Pikachu send Team Rocket 
off again.  
With the Pokéball broken so is the spell, now that Ninetales is free it can go 
anywhere it wants to now and for that it thanks the group through Lakoko 
before saying goodbye and disappearing into the fog.  

My favourite Quote:  

(After Brock falls through Lakoko while trying to hug her who turns out to be 
a ghost)  
Brock:  “I think I misjudged the distance of that joyous jump there.”  

Things I’d like to point out:  

Oh come on! Why does Ash look so surprised while scanning Ninetales on the 
Pokédex, he’s previously scanned two others on it (Blaine’s and Zane’s, who 
were probably both named like that because they kind of rhyme with ‘flame’).  

Why does the mansion suddenly appear from out of nowhere, we discover 
Ninetales makes the illusion of the mansion looking new and intact but even if 
it was an illusion instead of ridiculously thick fog what would be the point 
in making the mansion become visible like that? It would only raise suspicions 
quickly.  

Brock blatantly lies to Lakoko, he’s never owned a Ninetales, only a Vulpix, 
the statement would have been equally as effective if he’d told the truth 
since it had the potential to evolve into Ninetales.  

What’s with guys that have Brock-like eyes and abandonment? Brock’s father 
abandoned his children and the master of the mansion abandoned his Ninetales, 
let’s hope Brock doesn’t turn out the same way if he finds someone or continue 
to attempt to charm girls while in a relationship.  

The power spoken of by Brock about 1, 000 years of power is similar to the 
Pokédex entry; only it’s a 1, 000 year curse it speaks of.  

I feel foolish, I must admit I was a little distracted while watching this the 
first time and didn’t realise that Lakoko is more than an illusion created by 
Ninetales, Lakoko serves as a way for Ninetales to communicate with Brock (and 
possibly as a way to lure him to the mansion since he can’t resist girls).  
This is why Lakoko repeats her story, but in the second one, you can see 
Ninetales is the only one that remains and starts to act out the expressions 
Lakoko does as she explains.  
I think it was the whole Brock wanting Ninetales to hear the story Lakoko was 
about to explain that threw me off, that simple line would have best been 
changed to something like Lakoko needing Ninetales to be present or that now 
it had realised its actions were wrong, it was okay to have Ninetales out of 
its ball while it/Lakoko explained herself/itself.  

Sources say the staff in the mansion either left or died; they 
didn’t ‘mysteriously disappear’.  

Here’s a question, if Ninetales couldn’t leave the mansion, how did it travel 
all the way out to meet with Brock and invite him back? The only possibilities 
are that Ninetales’s power has grown to the point it can bend the rules or in 
finding someone similar to its master it was able to temporarily leave so as 
to be able to fetch him.  

It’s highly possible that Ninetales isn’t travelling the world but is instead 
passing on to the next life.  

Who’s That Pokémon?:  

(This Pokémon can disguise itself as a tree!)  
Sudowoodo

Cameos in Pokémon Journey:  

None, but Pokémon Journey has already had a ghostly incident in the side 
story “Haunting Past” and more are liable to happen in the future.  

A Tyrogue Full of Trouble

Pokémon seen:  

Pikachu, Togepi, Tyrogue, Primeape, Mankey, Bayleef, Hitmonchan, Hitmonlee, 
Tauros, Butterfree, Meowth, Wobbuffet, Hoppip, Sandshrew, Skiploom, Onix, 
Arbok, Weezing

Story:  

The group take a short cut through a cave and find a Tyrogue on the path 
ahead, it looks miserable and Brock offers it some food.  
When nothing happens, Brock checks for other kinds, that’s when Tyrogue 
strikes, stealing several containers of Pokémon Food and running away, it 
calls its friends Mankey and Primeape to serve as a distraction while it 
escapes.  
Bayleef attempts to stop it but is outfought; further fighting breaks a pile 
of rocks which causes a falling boulder to threaten the group.  
A muscular man called Kiyo and his Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee break the boulder 
to pieces with their bare hands/feet, when Ash shows him the Gym Badges he’s 
earned Kiyo is surprised that Ash managed to win the Storm Badge from Chuck 
and reveals himself to be Chuck’s protégé who is known by the name Blackbelt.  
He’s training for the P-1 Grand Prix and the group rest at his hut and are 
fed, Kiyo knows of the troublesome Tyrogue that has caused problems for many 
travellers and the residents here right before a man reports that Tyrogue has 
been vandalising a local barn, it and its buddies are spotting hassling some 
Tauros by riding on them.  
It leads a stampede towards the group and Togepi blindly gets into danger, 
it’s surprisingly saved by the Tyrogue.  
Kiyo charges head on and stops the lead Tauros with his physical strength and 
sends it charging in another direction while Togepi is given back to him and 
the group.  
Team Rocket view these events as a reason to recruit Tyrogue while Kiyo calms 
several people down who want Tyrogue to be thrown in jail, Kiyo thinks he can 
change Tyrogue if he’s given a little time.  
Kiyo explains that it’s not naturally bad, it just has a problem with larger 
Pokémon and with humans, because it was abandoned by its trainer while under 
orders to perform rigorous training, Kiyo tried to feed the famished Pokémon 
but it was now bitter and distrusting of humans so its heart became hardened 
and cold.  
Kiyo wants to train Tyrogue with care and make it a winner but he feels he 
needs to melt Tyrogue’s heart first.  
Meanwhile Tyrogue and its friends share some food they just obtained with some 
hungry little Pokémon when Team Rocket invite it to join them, but Jessie 
makes the mistake of stealing from one of the Pokémon and Tyrogue punches the 
team far for this.  
Kiyo brings the group to one of Tyrogue’s favourite spots and challenges it to 
a friendly battle, Tyrogue dodges Hitmonchan’s punches because it can read 
them, Tyrogue deals a great hit that defeats the enemy in one go, Hitmonlee is 
next but it swiftly dodges and with a Double Team to mask its position it 
defeats the second opponent.  
Tyrogue is caught shortly afterwards by Team Rocket and is lifted up by rope 
onto the balloon, Kiyo quickly runs up a mountain and leaps onto the balloon 
before literally punching a hole into it.  
Kiyo frees Tyrogue and claims nothing will hurt it again as he does, a boulder 
is dislodged and comes falling down but Kiyo leaps in front of it and holds it 
up to Tyrogue’s surprise, Kiyo believes in Tyrogue and needs it to forgive and 
forget the past but most importantly Kiyo needs Tyrogue to believe in him.  
The rest of the group arrives and Onix knocks the boulder away, Arbok and 
Weezing fight but Onix protects everyone from Poison Sting and Pikachu defeats 
Weezing... and Arbok as a result, Onix finishes by tackling and knocking Team 
Rocket out of the area.  
Kiyo challenges Tyrogue to a battle much in the style of his master Chuck, 
Kiyo blocks a punch and is surrounded by the fakes of Double Team, he sits and 
concentrates to block the real one’s assault.  
Tyrogue is dealt a hit but deals one back which is blocked, Kiyo dodges a 
punch and hurls Tyrogue into the lake using its own power.  
Tyrogue is defeated and its ragged blue cape falls off, Kiyo carries Tyrogue 
out explaining it’s his wish that they live and train together and win the P-1 
Grand Prix together.  
Kiyo removes a red cloth from his arm and gives it to Tyrogue, it agrees to 
train with Kiyo who also invites the Mankey and Primeape to come along as 
well, with all in order and Tyrogue’s heart opened once again, the group say 
their goodbyes and move on with their own journey.  

My favourite Quote:  

(Team Rocket have a fighting sports theme to their motto)  
Jessie:  “Pow! To protect the world with a mean right hook.”  
James:  “Wham! To unite all peoples with my kickboxer look.”  
Jessie:  “To denounce the evils of honest fights.”  
James:  “To extend our arms and punch out your lights!”  

Things I’d like to point out:  

The opening scene looks like Ash and the group are walking on the spot, if the 
further part of the background was at a great distance it might have worked, 
but the foreground was scrolling way too slow.  

The Pokédex is all wrong, firstly, Tyrogue evolves into Hitmonlee and 
Hitmonchan, it doesn’t evolve from them, and the third branched evolution 
Hitmontop isn’t mentioned at all.  

Even when the boulder is split in four, there should be more follow-through as 
only small pebbles shower the group while the bigger pieces of the boulder 
aren’t seen nor heard crashing down.  

Blackbelt Kiyo is based on a character of the same name and classification in 
the games that lives in Mount Mortar and gives the player a Tyrogue if they 
can beat him, since the group go through a cave in the Ecruteak vicinity; it’s 
highly likely they just passed through Mount Mortar.  

Surely based on Chuck’s look, either Kiyo has by far surpassed his master 
(with his physical appearance rather than his Pokémon) or Chuck only recently 
let himself go and gained weight.  

Ash hasn’t shown off his badges as much as he used to in Kanto, which just 
makes me wonder, since badges obtained in odd numbers (Zephyr Badge first and 
Plain Badge third) are on the left side, and even ones are on the right 
(Hive Badge second and Fog Badge forth), why does the Storm Badge get put on 
the right side and the Mineral Badge on the left instead of the other way 
around?  

Ash says he needs the Mahogany Gym Badge to qualify for the Johto League, but 
either he’s making a mistake or simply phrasing things wrong, he needs two 
more badges to enter the League.  

Didn’t Ash not only compete in a P-1 Grand Prix tournament but win the entire 
thing with his old Primeape, that and beat a Poliwrath who was also champion 
of the same event? Why doesn’t he remember/mention any of these things to 
Kiyo?  

I’m not sure if this is an error or not but when performing Mega Punch, 
Hitmonchan’s eyes turn completely blue for around 2 seconds.  

How many times has Ash seen Double Team in action? One would think enough 
times to remember and not have to ask what the technique is when being 
performed, one would be wrong in this regard.  

Let me guess, since Kiyo already has a Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan, Tyrogue will 
probably evolve into a Hitmontop to complete the trio of Hitmon’ Fighters, 
this is a complete guess however.  

There’s a minor glitch in the final shot of the episode, the background 
clearly jumps since one moment the rock structure is tall but suddenly shifts 
to a low rock structure that slowly rises up again on a curve, it seems 
someone was meant to properly loop the background but slacked off in their 
duties.  

Who’s That Pokémon?:  

(This Pokémon evolves into Ariados!)  
Spinarak

Cameos in Pokémon Journey:  

None.  

Episodes #217 - #224
Episodes #233 - #240
Back to the Episode Guide
Movie and Mini-movie Guide
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