Episode Guide #233 - #240 Xatu the Future Talkin’ ‘Bout an Evolution Rage of Innocence As Cold as Pryce Nice Pryce Baby! Whichever Way the Wind Blows Some Like it Hot Hocus Pokémon Xatu the Future Pokémon seen: Pikachu, Togepi, Meowth, Wobbuffet, Xatu, Delibird, Weezing Story: The group continue their journey but another Team Rocket pitfall has just been completed, Ash suspects this and tests the ground but the pitfall was built too strongly it seems, Team Rocket come out of hiding and James’s stomping causes both groups to take a fall down the hole. It’s a long drop and Wobbuffet’s appearance causes the ground at the bottom to break and the group fall further down into a strange tunnel where a girl hurries to get somewhere. On the way the group sees three Xatu which are used to make decisions because of their abilities to see into the future, however they are constantly in a trance. The girl, Callista, makes her way while calling for two of the Xatu to go with her, Team Rocket is left behind with Jessie eagerly wanting to know her fortune. Callista leads a ritual where the Xatu predict the weather, but they’re not solid predictions, despite Callista saying there would be a chance of rain she fears something when it suddenly starts to do so, claiming this could be a sign that a certain day has come. When the group leaves with her, the crowds are angered and order Team Rocket to finish the translating the predictions, they are clueless and soon abandon the crowd to find out where the others went. Callista is at a weather information control centre and raises a Xatu-shaped satellite; the appearance of it sparks a reaction from the gullible people in the audience who seem to believe this is ‘The Great Xatu’. Team Rocket crash into the control room where Callista is told by a Xatu that one of the group can predict the weather but none of the group can and Callista figures the Xatu that told her this may be getting less accurate with age. Callista is the 13th generation of her family that report the Xatu prophecies to the people of the community, Jessie is disappointed in Callista’s methods since she was once a not-so great TV weathergirl who was soon let go, and Callista figures the Xatu was getting her past mixed up with her future before it faints due to her complex past confusing it. The Xatu predict a disaster is about to happen in the form of heavy rain which will cause a flood in the community and bring hardship to them all, the group think the likelihood of this is low but Callista explains that the people here base their lives around the daily prophecies of the Xatu. The group is concerned that it’s wrong to make everyone evacuate because of such a low percentage but Callista can no longer be sure if the Xatu’s prophecies will come true and has convinced the people that her weather data has come from the ‘Great Xatu’ satellite, if the flood prophecy about the flood is wrong she won’t know how to explain it to them and fears it would result in them hating the Xatu. Jessie’s belief in the Xatu’s fortune telling is now at a low and she questions if Callista has ever had her fortune read, Callista hasn’t and wouldn’t want to live in a world where the future is set is stone because it would take away hopes, dreams, goals and wishes, to this Jessie agrees, claiming she’s tried all forms of fortune telling but has learnt you have to rely on yourself to get the future you want. Callista decides to tell the people of the coming flood that the Xatu predicted and so symbols of the people’s appreciation are left behind which appeals to Team Rocket. Callista will deal with the consequences of the results regardless of what happens while Team Rocket decide to steal the treasures before they are washed away. Delibird comes calling so Team Rocket decide to pawn off the items to pay off their debts, Ash is outraged at this and opposes them so Team Rocket convince Delibird to help them succeed by fighting on their behalf. The three Xatu rise to battle but Weezing engulfs them in a smog cloud while Delibird keeps everyone at bay with its Present attack. The Xatu are fine when it all clears having predicted where every present bomb would land, they willingly catch the next ones because it’s the randomised healing blast. Delibird accidentally drops a present and flees before it blasts Team Rocket away, afterwards the healed Xatu alter their past prediction in that the flood will happen today, and that if everyone leaves now, they’ll be saved. They love predicting the future but they think it right to be guided by their predictions and not to be ruled by them. The Xatu say goodbye and teleport out, but transport the group with them as the flood rises and indeed consumes the area. Callista decides she’s going to the city to become a TV weather reporter, the sun comes out while Team Rocket fail to dig out the treasure which is now buried under dry rock, Delibird refuses to help since that’s not part of its job so it leaves for now but will be back to collect, they abandon their quarry and hurriedly move on, as do the group on their way to Mahogany Town with good things sure to come their way in the future. My favourite Quote: Jessie (when she was a TV weathergirl): “This will be low pressure front should, uh... W, what I mean to say is the high pressure front will cause some heavy, uh... Well! Well! Well! The weather’s going to be a big mess tomorrow! That’s the deal!...” Things I’d like to point out: The title pun gets its name from the famous movie trilogy “Back to the Future”. How did Team Rocket get ahead of the group as they fell, shouldn’t they have landed after or at the same as the group instead of somehow overtaking them and landing first? And since they ended up in front of the group how did they land on Team Rocket? Despite what she says, Jessie seems to name one of the pictures differently, there are dice and a crystal ball but two different kinds of cards; playing cards and tarot cards yet she seems to dub one of them as a women’s magazine, unless in speaking of the cards she meant both sets and that the writers decided to add the latter suggestion as a joke. In the motto, Team Rocket mention reading fortunes from a green tea leaf, this is an actual practice in Asia and Meowth even dresses like a fortune teller. But where did they get the costume from? All day they’ve tagged along with the group, so either the costume is their imagining or they’re again overly prepared. I wonder, given how ancient the residents of the underground community look by their costumes and customs, where exactly will they flee to and since Callista just up and made a life for herself, will the others be able to so just as easily? Even if the treasure they left were symbols that shouldn’t be removed from the place, wouldn’t they stand more of a chance in rebuilding their lives elsewhere if they had a little something to pay their way through the next few years? Who’s That Pokémon?: (This Pokémon has star patterns on its back!) Ledian Cameos in Pokémon Journey: None. Talkin’ ‘Bout an Evolution Pokémon seen: Pikachu, Togepi, Caterpie, Spinarak, Weedle, Rattata, Oddish, Gyarados, Fearow, Totodile, Dragonite, Meowth, Wobbuffet Story: The group are close to Mahogany Town but something odd causes the two present Pokémon to suddenly feel sick, the wild Pokémon are also affected in the same way. The group are drawn to a piercing shriek and upon reaching a river they are confronted by a fearsome red Gyarados in pain which attacks. The group are confronted by a Rocket called Tyson who aims to capture them for seeing the red Gyarados and is driven more to do so when they show they have knowledge of Team Rocket. Ash defends himself with Totodile to battle his Fearow, but it too feels sick as soon as it appears, Fearow threatens to use Drill Peck but is stopped by a strong energy blast. A man arrives with his Dragonite, who tells the group to escape into the woods, the Dragonite blows the Rockets down to prevent them from following before it and the man greet the group elsewhere, the Pokémon seem to recover instantaneously, he asks why the group were at the lake when Misty recognises him as Lance of the Elite Four. He’s now a Pokémon G-Man, part of a group of detectives who travels investigating and arresting anyone who improperly mistreats Pokémon. An experiment is being conducted by Team Rocket which links to the red Gyarados, Ash is eager to help but Lance can’t take responsibility for them and orders the group to leave here and head to Mahogany Town. Meanwhile the red Gyarados looks worse off, and a famished Team Rocket trio mistake a Rocket base for a farmhouse and eagerly enter seeking food. Tyson meets with Professor Sebastian inside and congratulates him on his project, but he himself admits there is still work to do to perfect the radio wave, and since the only Pokémon affected is the red Gyarados it needs to be studied on to perfect the wave. Diving equipment isn’t strong enough to capture the Gyarados so it must be lured to the surface, Jessie and James’s intrusion is immediately discovered. They are caged and questioned by Tyson but they are freed after the database proves they are Rockets themselves, Tyson has heard they’ll do anything for a meal so after feeding them they are chosen for the dangerous task of capturing the Gyarados. Lance sneaks around the base and steals a grunt’s uniform while Ash decides he wants to help the red Gyarados after seeing it in pain; the group agree to go back as this plan of the Rockets could affect their own Pokémon if not stopped. A boat is brought to the Gyarados’s position where Jessie, James and Meowth must lure the Gyarados out so it can be caught in its wild state, Team Rocket argue about who should do this when the Gyarados appears and chases them to the surface. The red Gyarados is caught in the reinforced net but so are Jessie, James and Meowth, all are shocked into submission. Totodile is released along with Poliwhirl to swim out towards the Gyarados, the net can’t be broken so easily and the group is spotted, much to Lance’s fear. The Evolution Inducement wave is activated, which instantly makes the Pokémon including Meowth to get sick, the Pokémon are recalled while Pikachu and Togepi get sick again, Brock figures out that the experiment is responsible right before giant shackles trap the group. Because they know too much they are thrown in a cell within the Rocket base indefinitely while the red Gyarados is to be transported to a different location for research. Sebastian reveals to Ash ‘Project R’ (Revolution) in which the radio wave manipulates a Pokémon’s evolution, the Gyarados was the successful result of the first test, and that bringing their Pokémon here has proven the wave can also be used as a weapon against unevolved Pokémon. Because the red colour of the Gyarados is a trait from its Magikarp form, research must be done to complete the wave which will evolve several Pokémon to swiftly create an army. The group is locked away while the trio eat again and are given the task of looking after the base and some of the special equipment. The red Gyarados is loaded into a truck and escorted away, with Lance still posing as a Rocket, the group’s situation seems hopeless but the group are determined as ever to prevent the lives of every Pokémon from falling into jeopardy... My favourite Quote: Jessie (to Tyson): “Hey, who’s that pointy little man behind you.” Tyson: “This is Professor Sebastian; the driving force behind ‘Project R’.” Jessie: “A bit smarmy, don’t you think?” Things I’d like to point out: There are some major errors in numbering; not only does the narrator state that Ash is on his way to Mahogany Town to earn his final badge (a win at Mahogany would make it his seventh badge) but what’s worse is that Ash claims he’s going to get his sixth badge and as if this is his final badge, when everyone knows you need eight badges to enter any big time official league. This can go two ways; the title is similar to two songs, “Talkin’ ‘Bout My Generation” by the Rolling Stones and “Talkin’ ‘Bout a Revolution” by Tracey Chapman. There are three clear factors of the storyline that are based on the game, firstly is the red Gyarados which too is forcefully evolved by Team Rocket (and counts as a shiny Pokémon), the second is Lance finally making an appearance in the cartoon who in the games comes to investigate the red Gyarados and fights alongside the player in stopping Team Rocket using the radio waves. This means three of the Elite Four have now made appearances, Bruno (“To Master the Onixpected!”), Lorelai (although renamed Prima in the episode “The Mandarin Island Miss Match” and mentioned in “Wired For Battle!”) and Lance in this and the next episode, Agatha has been said to appear much later and no time soon. The third and least important of the three is the Persian statues that serve as cameras, in the games; walking past them instantly sets off an alarm that alerts a nearby Rocket until the computer controlling them is shut off. The group really pay this episode for barely having any evolved Pokémon, the nature of the radio waves evolves Pokémon and evolved Pokémon seem to be immune to it like Fearow and Dragonite. The group should have used Noctowl, Corsola and Crobat since they are at their final stages. Misty complains that the radio waves manipulating Pokémon evolution is interfering with nature. Sorry to burst everyone’s bubbles but technically isn’t the capture and training of Pokémon kind of messing with nature too? This is not Sebastian’s first appearance, as he briefly appeared in the “Pokémon Chronicles” episode “LEGEND OF THUNDER (PART 1)” having created the Miracle Crystal in an attempt for two Rockets to catch Raikou. Who’s That Pokémon?: (This Pokémon uses a bone of its ancestors as a boomerang!) Marowak Cameos in Pokémon Journey: I try to use many of the game storylines in the fanfic considering newer trainers are playable as the games grow, this storyline is currently a 50/50 choice whether to go with a second or modified evolution scheme or to disregard it completely. Rage of Innocence Pokémon seen: Gyarados, Meowth, Pikachu, Togepi, Wobbuffet, Arbok, Cyndaquil, Fearow, Bayleef, Dewgong Story: The Rockets head towards another base to properly study the red Gyarados, Lance separates from them to inform the police of Team Rocket’s activity before returning to the base where Jessie and James guard the group in their cage. Pikachu is still sick from the inducement wave, Team Rocket gloat and foolishly open the cage to snatch Pikachu and use a remote to remove its binding shackle but the machine opens all of them so Ash can reach his Pokéballs. Cyndaquil is released and Smokescreen is used so the group can escape while briefly binding Team Rocket and their Pokémon in the shackles. Meowth recovers and joins the team for the chase; Arbok attacks but is deflected by Dragonite’s energy and soon defeated as is the team by Dragonite’s Twister attack. The group apologise to Lance for disobeying him but he understands they just wanted to help; he has Dragonite destroy the base and drives the group near Mahogany Town where the Rockets are. The Gyarados is loaded into a net carried by two helicopters, Sebastian plans on meeting Tyson later and the Rocket trio report their failure and the destruction of the base to him. The Gyarados is lifted into the air but wakes up and shakes down the copters due to the wearing off of the waves and their effects. Gyarados lands in the water and starts destroying everything around it before heading downstream towards Mahogany Town. Ash tries to reason with it upon the group’s arrival but he is rejected, Dragonite is called to help but Tyson catches up to confront Lance while the other Rockets pursue the Gyarados. Tyson uses two Fearow but they are outbattled by Dragonite, Rockets attempt to net the Gyarados with electrified nets but Ash and Bayleef cut the ropes which allows Gyarados to use Hyper Beam to send the Rockets away, but it grows weak from everything that’s happened to it and before it can squirm back to water, the usual Team Rocket members net the Gyarados. Ash grabs hold and climbs up despite Team Rocket trying to shake him off, they try to lose him in the lake but the water wakes Gyarados and it shakes the balloon down and continues downstream. Ash must again battle Arbok with his recovered Pikachu and manages to win again. While the Team Rocket trio are blasted out of the way, Dragonite recovers from a few hits and defeats Tyson’s Pokémon with Twister attack, just in time for Jenny and the police to arrest him. The group make a stand near Mahogany Town and continue to try and reason with Gyarados, it attacks regardless and the group is saved by an old man’s Dewgong who neutralises a Hyper Beam with Ice Beam and also blocks the route ahead. He criticises the group and tells them feeling for Pokémon is pointless and their attempts to befriend the Gyarados is putting everyone at risk. The Gyarados turns back and is faced by Lance’s Dragonite which incapacitates it with Thunder Wave and Twister, Lance vows to help Gyarados rid itself of its pain, sorrow, anger and fear before the last hit is dealt by Hyper Beam so that he can capture it in a Pokéball. It’s successful and Lance promises Gyarados will be taken care of and to Ash that he’ll do as he would and become good friends with Gyarados, the Rockets are sent to jail and Lance says his goodbyes while the group have a Gym Battle to look forward to. My favourite Quote: (Jessie attempts to open only Pikachu’s shackle but every shackle falls off at the push of a button) Jessie: “This is an equal opportunity opener?!” Things I’d like to point out: The title pun is from the story “Age of innocence”. Surely the Pokéballs should have been removed from the group like Professor Namba did in “A Promise is a Promise”, surely even with their arms tied (at their sides, not behind their back or anything) one of the group could have reached a Pokéball and summoned a Pokémon to help free them (since it’s been seen in the past that Pokémon can be released without the Pokéball having to be thrown). And why did Jessie feel she had to release Pikachu from its shackles? There was no need, and even though it was weakened it could have easily recovered, shocked them and escaped if not restrained. How did Team Rocket free themselves from the shackles on their own, if the binding traps seemingly prevented the group from simply reaching their Pokéballs then how did Jessie, James, Arbok or Wobbuffet activate the control so quickly? Jessie seemingly refers to two things in her statement to Lance, He-Man as in “He-Man and the Masters of the Universe” and possibly “X-Men”, though she probably meant to say Ex-Man as if to threaten Lance with deadly force. Surely a Pokémon as powerful as the raging red Gyarados should have needed a more powerful Pokéball to catch it, in the games even if a Pokémon is on minimal health, lesser Pokéballs on strong or high level Pokémon will only be escaped from and destroyed. Who’s That Pokémon?: (This Pokémon can just barely fly above the ground!) Dunsparce Cameos in Pokémon Journey: Lance appears in the first series having set up a Gym for the best of trainers (Scott and Tetsubo are the only ones of the group that battle and win), in Scott’s, it’s explained that Lance’s original Dragonite passed away some time ago and that the Dragonite he uses nowadays is a new one he started training. He could easily have done this and become a G-Man so the only continuity flaw is that his Dragonite in the story had a nickname and that Lance claimed to be unbeatable last episode. As Cold as Pryce Pokémon seen: Pikachu, Togepi, Meowth, Dewgong, Phanpy, Wobbuffet, Weezing, Arbok, Totodile, Noctowl, Piloswine, Nidoking, Golem, Ursaring, Magmar, Cyndaquil Story: The group start the day by heading to the Gym and are told by a lady called Sheila that the Gym Leader Pryce has gone to the mountains to meditate and are escorted to the waterfall where he is at. Team Rocket aren’t far behind as the group strive to keep up with the surprisingly energetic and speedy Sheila. Ash is shocked to find that the Gym Leader Pryce is the old man from yesterday that despises Pokémon friendships, and because Ash is too emotionally involved with his Pokémon his request for a Gym Battle is swiftly rejected. They argue over their views before Pryce uses Dewgong just to prove Ash is wrong, if Ash can beat it he’ll get a Gym Battle but he foolishly uses Phanpy who is easily beaten by the Ice-type and is frozen in mid-attack. Pryce walks away from Ash but he chases the old man wanting another chance, during the chase Pikachu gets lost in the thick foliage as do Team Rocket who catch up with Ash just before Pikachu does. Wobbuffet causes the group to trip and land in a heap and Ash fails to escape when the path ahead stops at a chasm, Pryce appears and though tries to help him escape during a Smokescreen, the rocks crumble and they fall. Totodile and Noctowl save the two from crashing but regardless they end up in a cavern, Team Rocket leave but not before Meowth accidentally reveals to the others of Ash and Pryce’s predicament. Totodile’s depletion of energy from saving Ash is cured from Pryce’s herbs and he thanks Ash for the way he saved them, and although Ash was only able to do so because his connection with the Pokémon made him think to use them Pryce still thinks he needs to be stricter when it comes to battling. Sheila explains to the others while they prepare to scale down the mountainside of how Pryce used to be close to his Pokémon and that since his Piloswine abandoned him he started acting cold towards all Pokémon. Pryce seems to know some of the way around here since he’s been here before and is shocked when they find a bracelet that belonged to his Piloswine. Sheila and Pryce continue to tell the story of his past when he trained with Piloswine much like Ash and his Pokémon, they won several battles but were once faced with a Magmar and fought regardless of the disadvantage. Piloswine was hurt in battle and Pryce recklessly tried to block a Fire Blast for it, they lost and Pryce was seriously burned. After that, Piloswine simply up and left him and it hurt Pryce a lot after what he did to protect it. This is why he stopped caring for Pokémon, the two continue on while Ash questions what the bracelet was doing here when they find a crystal room where Pryce’s Piloswine is located, encased in ice. Frozen with it are herbs that help to heal burns and Ash figures it went to get them for Pryce but fell into this cave. After a tearful begging by Pryce for Piloswine’s forgiveness, Cyndaquil defrosts the ice and Pikachu shocks Piloswine so that it is eventually resuscitated. Pryce is reunited with his Pokémon and has it use Rest to restore its health; they soon leave the cave and rejoin the group where Sheila is overjoyed to see Piloswine again. The reunion is interrupted by Team Rocket but Pryce protects Pikachu for saving Piloswine’s life by having Piloswine get back into the game and beating them easily. Pikachu finishes up as always and the group return to town where Ash’s request for a battle is accepted but will have to take place tomorrow... My favourite Quote: James: “Meowth, you’re the one who told me to give them the great Weezing smokeout.” Meowth: “An’ would ya jump off a bridge if I told ya to, huh?!” Things I’d like to point out: The title is an obvious pun of the term “As cold as ice”. Shouldn’t Piloswine’s Ground side have provided some protection against Fire attacks? Dual-type Pokémon aren’t always weak against an element if another is strong against it. Pryce exaggerates just a little in that only the top half of his body, and seemingly just the arms and head were burned, not his entire body. While we’re on the subject though of serious burns, how come Pryce can be burned and left with lasting injuries while Ash can take Charizard’s attacks on a regular basis and get off with only some cartoony blackness? I assume Pryce’s visit to the cave took place prior to his Piloswine’s leaving since it knew the area had healing herbs for burns and if Pryce had come here after he lost his Piloswine surely he would have found it frozen unless he got no further than the rock blockage that Totodile blasts aside. Pryce shouldn’t be so concerned that Piloswine would have forgotten him, since it was frozen it probably hasn’t thought at all during the years and decades and time hasn’t occurred from its perspective, the only concern would be that it might not have recognised him since he’s aged so much. Who’s That Pokémon?: (This Pokémon is composed of three Magnemites!) Magneton Cameos in Pokémon Journey: Hopefully a much nicer, caring Pryce will appear for a couple of Gym Battles. Nice Pryce, Baby! Pokémon seen: Pikachu, Togepi, Dewgong, Seel, Shellder, Piloswine, Meowth, Wobbuffet, Lapras, Cyndaquil, Marill, Poliwhirl Story: In the morning Ash prepares for his battle in the Mahogany Gym and Ash bases his strategy on Cyndaquil’s type advantage. Sheila finds Pryce grooming his Piloswine and has been here all night; Ash arrives at the Gym and is invited inside. Team Rocket watch from nearby and sneak into the area where Pryce keeps his Pokémon while Ash discovers the battlefield is mostly made up of ice with several towers of cold rock scattered around and a pool of water in the centre. Brock has concerns that there’s no one to judge the match but Sheila reveals that she’s a high ranking judge and takes her place. It’s a 2-on-2 battle of the usual Gym rules, Pryce uses Dewgong which lands in the pool so Ash uses Cyndaquil, but the victory isn’t as clear cut as Ash thought. Cyndaquil’s Flamethrower is dodged and Dewgong attacks with Ice Beam, Cyndaquil slips up on the ice and is hit, Dewgong then uses Aurora Beam but Ash has Cyndaquil melt the ice with its flame and dodge. Another Aurora Beam is dodged and Cyndaquil uses Flamethrower, but the Dewgong dodges by diving underwater. Cyndaquil uses Quick Attack and leaps in on Ash’s order, although the water doesn’t seem to harm Cyndaquil it isn’t as great a swimmer as the Dewgong which charges forward with a Head Butt. At the last moment, Cyndaquil in ordered to use Swift attack which blasts Dewgong out of the water and leaves it completely vulnerable to Flamethrower which shoots it into an ice tower and into submission. Brock recognises Ash’s strategy to make Pryce let his guard down, and Pryce comments positively on this and Ash’s trust in his Pokémon to do so. Piloswine appears next while Team Rocket outside view the Ice Pokémon and plan ways to use some of them to open a frozen snack shop, open a chain, pay back their loan and make the Boss proud, but Meowth slips on the ice and awakens a Seel followed by all the other Pokémon who recognise them as evil-doers and freeze them. Brock figures Piloswine will have as much trouble with the water as Cyndaquil who uses Flamethrower, but Piloswine’s Blizzard attack hinders the attack and Cyndaquil and masks its Take Down attack until it’s too late. Cyndaquil crashes through an ice tower and the group question how Piloswine avoided the water until they can see that the Blizzard attack froze the water over. Pryce orders Piloswine to overlook its debt to Ash and battle its hardest against his next choice of Pokémon; Pikachu. Pikachu dodges a Fury Attack and is told to use Thunderbolt but it slips, Pikachu tries to run to safety with Agility but slips again, its speed factor is useless in this environment. Piloswine hunts it down and slams into a rock, Pikachu barely dodges but Blizzard is used afterwards. Pikachu dashes forward and blasts Piloswine with Thunder at close range but all it does is stop Blizzard, it didn’t damage the opponent. Ash thinks about the ice pillars, Piloswine charges and Pikachu uses Agility to the disbelief of everyone but Pikachu slides across the ice deliberately to dodge Blizzard and get underneath Piloswine. Blizzard is used again but Pikachu uses the pillars to bounce off and alter its direction, Pikachu slides again under Blizzard and stops underneath Piloswine where it clings and uses Thunder. Pikachu faces Piloswine who uses Rest, Pikachu is told to interrupt it with Quick Attack but Piloswine finishes healing quickly and smacks down Pikachu with Fury attack and Take Down which hit their mark. Pikachu is tiring but vows to carry on, Quick attack slams into Piloswine’s Fury Attack and Pikachu’s is stronger. Pikachu uses a full power Thunderbolt and Piloswine retorts with Take Down, Pikachu jumps onto its face and uses Thunder which causes the ice to crack and Piloswine to fall in the water, not only weakening it but making it more susceptible to Thunderbolt. Piloswine seems to recover and Fury Attacks Pikachu again, Pikachu unleashes yet another Thunder attack and looks close to defeated. Piloswine stands strong but Pryce stares strangely at all of this, Pikachu stands to fight but Pryce literally throws in the towel and Ash is announced the winner. Pryce thinks his Piloswine has had enough and so Pryce has decided to give in and award Ash the Glacier Badge, Ash is concerned about not actually having defeated Piloswine but Pryce and Sheila explain that Ash deserves it because he has proved his skills, abilities and strategies and that he did well because he’s close to his Pokémon. Ash is informed of the next Gym’s location and Pryce has faith in his future success and thanks him for opening his eyes to how important friendship with one’s Pokémon is. The group leave with a warm hope for the journey ahead while Team Rocket are completely frozen and awaiting the sun to thaw them out. My favourite Quote: Pryce: “I can see; in order for attacks like that to work there must be complete trust between Trainer and Pokémon, and Ash, it’s obvious to me that you have that with All of your Pokémon.” Things I’d like to point out: The title pun is taken from the signature song by Vanilla Ice; “Ice Ice Baby”. The ice battlefield isn’t as new an experience for Ash as Misty thinks; he fought on an ice field in the third round of the Kanto Pokémon League (“Fire and Ice”) although for some reason the slippery surface wasn’t an issue for any of the Pokémon including Pikachu. Why does Brock make such a big deal out of the Gym Battle needing a referee? It’s true that all eight Johto Gyms use referees but a great deal of the Gyms in Kanto and the Orange Islands didn’t have one, including Pewter City where Brock used to be a Gym Leader. Cyndaquil was so not the best choice to battle Dewgong, when picking Pokémon types; it’s not just about having a type that’s strong against the opponent but also taking into account if the opponent has an advantage over the Pokémon. Cyndaquil wouldn’t have pulled through had Pryce taught his Water/Ice Pokémon some Water attacks instead of sticking with his chosen element. How come Pryce has so many of the same kind of Pokémon (particularly the four Lapras)? If he hired others to serve as assistant Gym Leaders that would be fine, but still Pryce should limit the number of Pokémon he takes care of in the Gym. Why does Pryce now ask that Piloswine set aside the fact Ash saved its life, it had no such problems when beating Cyndaquil outright so Pikachu should have been mentioned since it was the opponent at the time and technically the one that actually saved Piloswine. Pryce is only missing one Pokémon that would otherwise have him use the same Pokémon as his game counterpart; in this case one Seel. It'd be unfair if Pryce hadn't shown some mercy, considering Rest is highly unfair when his Piloswine somehow negates the price one has to pay for using the technique in that the user should fall asleep for about two turns of battle afterwards. This is definitely one of the most dramatic fights I’ve seen in that Pikachu takes a lot of damage, dishes out a lot of its specialty type attacks and has to struggle every step of the way, funny how in some of the recent battles Pikachu has barely been able to stand up to one or two Gym Pokémon attacks. However, despite how many times it hits it with these attacks, Pikachu’s Thunderbolt, Thunder and Electric attacks in nature Should Not Have Affected Piloswine Because It’s Also A Ground-type! Brock claims soaking Piloswine doubles the electric power but since Piloswine should be immune to it no matter how wet it is, double the power of zero is still zero. Pikachu’s technique of sliding across the ice and bouncing off the ice towers is similar to the games in that some Gyms have obstacles before a trainer can reach the Gym Leader, in this case Pryce’s whole Gym has a slippery floor that sends the trainer sliding in the direction they take and ice towers are the only things that can stop this so the player can change direction and eventually reach Pryce himself. This is the first time a Gym Leader has chosen to forfeit a match to Ash, usually in these situations it’s Ash that has to forfeit. Who’s That Pokémon?: (This Pokémon’s stinger is poisonous!) Weedle Cameos in Pokémon Journey: The Mahogany Gym will be seen more than once with conclusive battles. Whichever Way the Wind Blows Pokémon seen: Pikachu, Togepi, Oddish, Vileplume, Bellossom, Bayleef, Gloom, Meowth, Wobbuffet, Arbok, Victreebel Story: The group are now headed to Blackthorn City for the final Gym Battle when they find some weakened Oddish in a meadow. Brock’s food rejuvenates them and they are guided to a huge tree where some Vileplume and Bellossom are fighting over a dispute. Bayleef separates them but they refuse to make up with each other, a researcher called Steven arrives and explains that many Grass Pokémon live here and that the Vileplume and Bellossom have divided the area fairly among them. Brock explains the ways Gloom evolve into either Vileplume or Bellossom through branched evolution. Steven demonstrates that the wind carries enough traces of evolution stones and the direction of the wind determines the stone and evolution (Leaf Stones for Northeast winds and for Northwest Sun Stones) and this is a problem since the wind is causing an imbalance and there are currently more Vileplume. Ash and Bayleef equip masks in order to break up another fight without being affected by Stun Spore, Steven has broken up his share of fights and explains most Oddish have left the area because of the quarrels. Team Rocket stop for a picnic in an area that soon becomes a battlefield, Jessie and James are affected by Stun Spore and Meowth checks out a small lab and swipes some Salvao Weed to cure them. They plan on giving many of the Grass-types to the Boss while Steven explains the fights occur because one huge tree blocks sunlight at certain parts of the day so the Vileplume and Bellossom go to each others’ side to get out of the shade. Winds start again which results in the Bellossom outnumbering the Vileplume and another fight that must be stopped. A group of Vileplume and Bellossom are discovered to be staying out of all the fights while Team Rocket are caught in the middle of yet another one. The group contemplate on how to stop the fighting completely and Steven fears a storm will bring about many more Vileplume who will surely overpower the Bellossom, he considers this might work out in the long run even though Misty doesn’t think any side should win since they’re both as bad as each other. It happens during the night but the wind changes and Bellossom are now due to equal the numbers, the wind continues to shift and in the morning a larger battle than before is set to be waged. The group hurry to prevent it but it’s Team Rocket that break it up briefly, dropping a smoke bomb on the crowd and attempting to catch the Grass Pokémon in a bag, but they are overpowered by the war. The group come to the conclusion that they can’t interfere, the Vileplume and Bellossom must see for themselves that this fighting is pointless. Team Rocket soon realise they didn’t plug in their masks to an air supply and become paralysed again. All the Pokémon are hurt and are alerted to the evolved Pokémon that refuse to fight because it appears they know it’s wrong but Meowth translates the truth in that the non-fighting Bellossom actually wanted to be Vileplume and vice versa, the reason they aren’t fighting is because they didn’t want to fight against the Pokémon they originally wanted to become. Misty explains that there’s a reason they became what they were and they have to make the most of it, and Brock adds the fact that they were once the same kind of Pokémon. Team Rocket meanwhile have recovered with the medicine they still possess and are trying to bag whatever Pokémon they can, which provokes the Vileplume and Bellossom to band together. They have their masks equipped adequately this time and have Arbok and Victreebel attack, they are quickly defeated by Stun Spore and the two humans continue to force Pokémon into the bag, the local Pokémon fight as one and Bayleef finishes Team Rocket off with Vine Whip. The Grass Pokémon are all friends now and the group depart from the now peaceful area. My favourite Quote: James (to the Vileplume and Bellossom while capturing them): “Come here you little salad fixings!” Things I’d like to point out: The series should check ahead with the games before naming characters, especially characters as important as Steven in the third games to the point he gets a cameo in the series much later on. If Brock’s branched evolution speech was simple to Ash then he shouldn’t have had to ask Brock to explain it when his first statement was clear enough. If Meowth was questioning the smell of Stun Spore, shouldn’t he have exhaled some of it and become paralysed himself? Stun Spore shouldn’t even need to be inhaled to take effect, the dust touching someone alone should be enough. If Meowth could briefly comment on the smell, how was he not affected by Stun Spore? He clearly covered his nose to safeguard himself so again this confirms he can smell even though he has no visible nose. However I don’t think commenting on the smell was a logical line nor did Meowth actually breathe in any Stun Spore to know that it smells. Team Rocket shouldn’t have hinted they fell asleep from Stun Spore, “The Stun Spore Detour” makes it very clear that Stun Spore paralyses its victims since Salvao Weed is the cure and it’s used again in this episode, I think the lines that suggest Team Rocket were sleeping and their snoring was an error in the translated script. Another Meowth’s Dream Moment as he imagines the Boss waking up to some Bellossom dancing and Vileplume decorating him room with Gloom and Oddish in the garden; all to relax him and make him proud of the trio, somehow I doubt the Boss would be particularly impressed or at least he probably wouldn’t keep the Pokémon in his home. It’s a little strange that the passive Gloom so soon after evolving side with the Pokémon they’ve evolved into and get into fights while hurting the Pokémon they used to be in the process. Why does Ash think Bayleef is worrying about the Bellossom just because they’re currently the lesser side, as a Grass-type Bayleef is likely more concerned for both types of battling Pokémon, or possibly more so for the unevolved Pokémon that get caught in the crossfire. It’s surprising James sides in any way towards Vileplume (in this case, building a themed robot to capture them compared to Meowth’s Bellossom one) seeing as it should probably bring bad memories of Jessabelle’s one. It’s strange even for an instant for Jessie to pose with the rose occasionally associated with James, and while she holds this James for no explainable reason holds a butterfly-themed mask over his protective gas mask. Isn’t leaving the Pokémon to fight their battles and realise the error of their ways already a tried and failed method, the Pokémon have been fighting long enough and if they haven’t learned by now, what made Steven think it would be any different this time? Surely Misty’s asking Meowth to translate her words for the Pokémon is a complete error in dubbing, the Pokémon should be able to understand everything she says, it’s the Pokémon that can’t be understood easily by humans. And what’s with this destiny talk? When it comes to the shifting winds it’s very much random chances as to which Gloom is in the path of which wind and therefore which evolution it takes on. The Pokémon that didn’t get to become what they wanted to must be suffering from more than an identity crisis, Bellossom look very much like female Pokémon and so Vileplume look more like males in this regard so it must really confuse them becoming more feminine or masculine than they intended to become for the rest of their lives. Who’s That Pokémon?: (If this Pokémon is not well trained it will bite your friends!) Arcanine Cameos in Pokémon Journey: None. Some Like it Hot Pokémon seen: Pikachu, Togepi, Meowth, Wobbuffet, Magcargo, Psyduck, Poliwhirl, Flareon, Arbok, Victreebel Story: The group cross a hot rough territory while Team Rocket rest in one of the many hot springs and are soon blasted off by a geyser right under them. The group tire from the heat when they spot a Magcargo followed by several others all around the place, they move on only to find a huge Magcargo blocking the path ahead. When woken, it angrily attacks and scares them away with Flamethrower, Misty retaliates with her Water Pokémon but Magcargo’s shell protects it and it uses Rock Slide followed by Body Slam which is dodged but one Flamethrower weakens Poliwhirl. Misty is laughed at by a boy called Eagan who has a passion for Fire Pokémon; the Magcargo disappears into a cave which angers the boy who was looking to catch it. Misty and Eagan clash with their type preferences and a battle nearly ensues before Eagan leaves claiming he’d easily beat Misty. Team Rocket are now in their balloon but are caught in another geyser and sent away. The group don’t get far when Eagan appears from a cave right before the Magcargo does, he challenges it with his Flareon but it retreats into its shell to avoid Flamethrower and then brings rocks down, Flareon dodges some but is hit and damaged and Flamethrower is useless again against the protective shell and the attack is returned in kind unto the Flareon. Magcargo leaps up for a Body Slam and Misty advises Eagan to have Flareon dodge but he orders a flaming tackle which is deflected and Eagan is warned of its fatigue, Eagan ignores the warning and has Flareon continue battling but it’s defeated as the Magcargo’s Flamethrower overcomes Flareon’s. Misty laughs at Eagan like he did to her since he rejected their help and lost, regardless Eagan is invited to join the group for lunch. Team Rocket hatch a brief scheme but a regular Magcargo sends them running, Misty and Eagan make up after he accepts he made a mistake and they find a similarity in that they don’t like to give up in battle. Eagan even appreciates Misty’s like of Water Pokémon after her analogy of water being a useful factor in being able to change its form and adapt to situations. The giant Magcargo reappears and Eagan challenges it again with Flareon, Rock Slide threatens it but Eagan uses Misty’s theory of the adaptive factors of water in his and Flareon’s battling, Flamethrower makes the enemy retreat but Flareon secretly waits on the shell until Magcargo surfaces and blasts it. A second Flamethrower causes a retreat which Flareon uses to tackle the shell hard, one last Flamethrower and the mighty Magcargo is weak enough for Eagan to capture. Unfortunately Team Rocket immediately snatch the Pokéball from up in their balloon, Poliwhirl breaks the cord and Arbok and Victreebel attack only to be fought off by Poliwhirl and Eagan’s new Magcargo with Pikachu as the finale to defeat them. Misty and Eagan respect each other’s specialty type and have a friendly goodbye before the two groups part ways on different roads. My favourite Quote: Wobbuffet (emerging from a hot spring): “Woaaa-ba-fet!” Jessie: “Your blubbering blueness doesn’t even bug me; I’ll just lie here blissfully and ignore it...” Things I’d like to point out: The title is based on the film of the same name which starred Marilyn Monroe. The original angle looked like the path was completely blocked but when Magcargo returns to sleeping, there’s sort of a gap around its head that the group could creep around or jump over, of course they probably didn’t have the guts to jump over a Lava Classification Pokémon that can shoot flames, not just because they might wake Magcargo but because its slimy body might be as hot as or made of lava. This is the first time Rock Slide attack has been used, Rock Throw has been used in the past and this new attack just looks more like a powerful version of Rock Throw and not really that different. It’s been a long time but one thing is still clear, Staryu is still getting replaced by that bumbling Psyduck, Misty clearly wanted Staryu to fight Magcargo but when Psyduck appears and messes things up, she forgets about Staryu and uses Poliwhirl instead! It’s general knowledge that I like Staryu/Starmie and it’s probably the subconscious reason I’ve lately stopped liking and gotten bored of Misty’s character in the show. When Team Rocket are blasted by a geyser the second time, what happened to their balloon? It disappears completely in the jet of water. The Who’s That Pokémon clue is almost right but not quite according to the Johto Pokédex, Mantine is not the heaviest Johto Pokémon, someone forgot about a certain little old Pokémon called... Steelix! The Pokémon is a huge snake made of metal and weighs in at a hefty 882.0 pounds over Mantine’s apparent 485.0 pounds. I don’t know where Mantine gets all that weight though as according to the Pokédex, it somehow outweighs Tyranitar, a huge dinosaur-like Pokémon with rock skin yet somehow Mantine can fly on top of that. What is wrong with Misty, for someone who can obsess so much about one type of Pokémon, she has no right to criticise someone who does exactly the same thing, and why aren’t the others (or at least Brock who used to specialise with one type) defending Eagan even as annoying a character he was. Wobbuffet tends to be heard in some of the blast offs, even if it’s nowhere to be seen at the time of the explosion, it’s heard as Team Rocket flee the little Magcargo even though Wobbuffet wasn’t burnt nor is seen running away, it’s going a little far adding Wobbuffet’s voice to the end of Team Rocket scenes when it gets plenty of air time as it is. How long was it between encountering Magcargo since the lunch break, it just seems a little rushed with the in-betweens and as if Flareon was pointlessly recalled only to be released from its Pokéball such a short time later. The baseball rewrite of the motto seems so completely out of place in relevance to any factor of the episode, so much so that I bring it up here rather than my usual disregarding of it in relation to the episode guide. Who’s That Pokémon?: (This is the heaviest Johto Pokémon!) Mantine Cameos in Pokémon Journey: None. Hocus Pokémon Pokémon seen: Pikachu, Togepi, Murkrow, Spinarak, Parasect, Meowth, Wobbuffet, Aipom, Arbok, Weezing Story: The group encounter a Murkrow belonging to a girl called Lily dressed in witch’s clothing and claiming to be a Pokémon Magician. She needs Pikachu’s Thunderbolt for a spell of hers and demonstrates how her magic works by using ingredients from Pokémon to create magic potions. Misty accepts to be the target of a spell to give her softer smoother skin but is shocked when the spell calls for many Spinarak to shoot their webbing onto her body in order for this to happen. The spell Lily wants to cast will allow a person to read a Pokémon’s mind, a spell no one has cast before. A Stun Spore from a Parasect is another key ingredient which Murkrow has found, Ash challenges it but it uses Sleep Powder instead in response to Pikachu, a second shock gets Lily some Stun Spore but Team Rocket strike and capture Pikachu. Lily is overjoyed and sends Murkrow to get some dirt from Meowth’s claws, but the resulting struggle pops the balloon and Pikachu is freed. They end up on a fragile cliff but regardless Lily runs across, retrieves the dirt and gets off the edge, resulting in Team Rocket taking a fall. The last ingredient on the list are tears from an Aipom, Team Rocket overhear what it’s all for and scheme to snatch the potion for new ways to do wrong and get rich out of it. They snatch the Aipom in a net and steal Lily’s case of ingredients too but upon landing they can’t read the majority of it, it turns out that violence can’t be used to make Aipom cry the right sort of tears, so they perform for it. James’s jokes don’t make the Aipom laugh, let alone cry, and so Meowth does a puppet show to try and make Aipom emotional, Jessie performs a theatrical piece which fails too. The group catches up to them and Arbok attacks, Murkrow fights back with Icy Wind and Pikachu holds off Weezing’s attack while the others free Aipom. Weezing’s sludge supply runs dry and Murkrow knocks it into the team so Pikachu can blast them as always. This causes Aipom to laugh until it cries and the tear is barely caught in Lily’s jar thanks to Pikachu. The spell is concocted in front of the group and Ash volunteers to try it first, Pikachu adds the final ingredient and Ash is immersed in smoke and changed... into a Pikachu himself. Lily realises that a page continuing the spell is unclear but luckily the spell isn’t permanent. With that in mind, Ash takes time to enjoy himself and play with the other Pokémon as one of them. My favourite Quote: Jessie: “Let’s all just remain calm!” James: “If I never see you guys again just know that I love you!” Meowth: “Wow. Talk about losing yer cool.” Things I’d like to point out: Having lost his badges to Murkrow the last time he encountered them shouldn’t Ash be the slightest bit vigilant now that he has seven and a single Murkrow is in such close range? The title pun is obviously based on the magic term “Hocus Pocus”. Lily is based on Hex Girl Trainers from the games but given her British accent and magical potions it’s likely she’s loosely inspired by the Harry Potter books and films, plus Lily is the name of Harry Potter’s mother. I am Not counting the ingredients Lily uses as Pokémon seen, only if a living breathing Pokémon is visualised. The only ingredient that seems more unusual than the others is the flower petal with the kiss of a Jynx, aren’t Jynx’s lips bigger than that and wouldn’t a Smoochum’s kiss have been more suitable considering they kiss all manner of things? Ash saying he’ll get Stun Spore from Parasect when he wins is odd, wouldn’t saying he’ll get it by battling it be better? And wouldn’t it also be a good idea Not To Stand In The Way Of Any Kind Of Powder Attack?! Given that there was a lot of Stun Spore two episodes ago you’d think Ash would have learned from it. Parasect aren’t known to learn the technique Sleep Powder, but they don’t really need it since they have a specialty attack called Spore which has the same effect but is much more accurate. Since they don’t learn Sleep Powder there’s obviously been a dubbing error. Lily was so awestruck by Meowth’s ‘cuteness’ but isn’t too bothered about him once she gets the ingredient out of him, and how stupid is her Murkrow? It goes for James and Jessie before Meowth but then somehow pecks away without looking while somehow rising up and making a hole in the balloon accidentally. Again Team Rocket think of a scheme involving giving people the opportunity to communicate with Pokémon for money, but no one mentions the obvious fact that Meowth can translate what Pokémon are saying. James claims the writing in Lily’s book is written in text from ancient Pokémonia around the age of the third king; does this have any link with the Pokémopolitans spoken of in “The Ancient Puzzle of Pokémopolis”? Thank goodness James stopped Jessie from beating up Aipom, there’s already enough talk about how Pokémon Training and Battling seen in a certain light can be considered cruel without this adding to it. Looks like Wobbuffet has been given the invisible (black) outfit last seen in “Holy Matrimony!” to ‘subtly’ pull the background behind Jessie, even though it yells as loudly as usual. Another Pokémon disappearance, Weezing clearly ends up in the heap, but when Team Rocket are blasted, Arbok and Wobbuffet are among the group but not Weezing. When Ash is turned into a Pikachu, Pikachu, Murkrow and Togepi come to play with him, but in the next shot Togepi is still in Misty’s arms, and then the next it’s playing with Ash; big mistake animators. Who’s That Pokémon?: (This Pokémon can store thermal energy from the sun!) Dewgong Cameos in Pokémon Journey: Surprisingly, a similar situation is in the works of a person getting into a Pokémon's body, only this person doesn't have it easy and can't be understood by humans like Ash does. Episodes #225 - #232 Episodes #241 - #248 Back to the Episode Guide Movie and Mini-movie Guide Back to the Pokézone