Ash-tachi walk through a dark wood, and get lost. Ash thinks he sees a little girl... but she disappears. In his pursuit of her, he unwittingly stumbles (not literally) on Saffron City. The trio enter the front gate, and to their surprise, Ash is met by two girls in Hawaiian costumes, who tell him he's won a prize for being the millionth visitor to Saffron, or something like that.
But when they take Ash to get his prize, it's not what they expected. They trap Ash-tachi in a room and steal Pikachu. It's Team Rocket in disguise. The little girl that Ash saw earlier shows up and saves Pikachu, freezing Team Rocket with psychic power. Then she disappears again. Ash goes to Saffron Gym, where he challenges Sabrina... a tall, beautiful and absolutely cold girl, who holds a doll - wait, that doll is the girl who rescued Pikachu! Sabrina - or her doll - says that if Ash loses to her, he has to play with her. Ash agrees, and then Pikachu gets absolutely thrashed by Sabby's Abra/Kadabra.
Sabrina's concept of 'playing' is not like Ash's... she shrinks Ash and his friends to doll-size and they are trapped in a toy city. The three try vainly to run from her as she plays bowling with them as pins. Just as they are about to get squished, a man teleports in suddenly and teleports them all to safety. This is a mysterious resident of Saffron. Ash asks him how he can beat Sabrina, but the man says that even HIS psychic powers are small compared to hers, so ASH has no chance. But Ash persists, and finally he tells him to pick up a ghost Pokemon.
My thoughts... I hate this idea of psychic powers, and ghosts, all that stuff. -_-; But Ash shows a lot of pluck, particularly at the end, even when he is contending with a power he knows nothing about. And I must confess, I find Sabrina most cool (in more ways than one).
22. The Tower of Terror 5/10
Ash-tachi quickly head to Lavender Town to pick up a ghost Pokemon. Pokemon Tower stands forbidding, a creepy, haunted place. But Ash picks up his courage and heads in with his friends. After they are scared by invisible presences, Ash, Pikachu and Charmander wander the place alone. Meanwhile, Jessie/James/Meowth are finding that this old place is falling apart, and prove it by falling through the floorboards after being scared by ghost Pokemon.
Ash fights Team Rocket without realising he is (sending attacks at them, thinking they're ghost Pokemon) and then the real ghost Pokemon appear to him too. They beat Charmander, so Ash recalls it. The ghosts clown around, acting stupidly, but Ash just thinks they're weird. Ghost Pokemon are unhappy that their comedy routines go unappreciated, and go to leave, but a huge chandelier falls heavily on Ash and Pikachu, killing them.
The spirits of Ash/Pikachu join the ghosts, and they all fly around having fun. Ash realises the ghosts weren't trying to scare anyone, just make people laugh and find someone to play with. But Ash cannot stay with them, he has his dreams to follow, and the two come back to life, spirits returning to bodies. Haunter, one of the ghost trio, decides to go with Ash and help him (probably because he thinks it will be less boring than staying in Pokemon Tower). Meanwhile, Gastly and Gengar have fun with Team Rocket... -_-;
This episode reminded me of American cartoons. *starts singing Casper theme song* ^_^. But honestly... a ghost Pokemon to fight psychics... I think that is stupid advice. Ghosts are part poison, Sabrina would ANNIHILATE them! Geez, against a Kadabra, use strong non-elemental attacks, even I know that. -_-;
23. Haunter Verses Kadabra 7/10
Our heroes head back to Saffron, with Haunter tagging along (Ash never caught it, it just agreed to come). But when Ash goes to fight Sabrina, he finds that Haunter has disappeared completely! Desperate, the friends make a run for the gym's exit. Ash is lucky and escapes, but Brock and Misty are turned into dolls for Sabrina's doll to play with.
Ash meets up with the man who saved them in episode 21, and they talk a little. The man has a photo of Sabrina as a child, and says that from the start, her psychic powers were advanced, but she began to pursue nothing but that, shunning her family and eventually destroying the house. The doll is a manifestation of her child's self, the side that was squelched too soon... the man is obviously Sabrina's father, but Ash is too stupid to cotton on. Ash and Pikachu walk along, and Team Rocket nearly catch Pikachu by dropping a net from a high building, but Haunter shows up and distracts them, causing them to fall off. -_-;
Ash is happy to have found Haunter again, and the two go to fight Sabrina. However, when Ash gets there, Haunter is gone again! All of Ash's Pokemon are too scared to fight, and Ash won't force them, so in despair Ash thinks he will have to be turned into a doll too. But Pikachu bravely steps in and fights - doesn't do TOO badly, but will never will. Then Haunter appears and starts poking faces at Sabrina. She just stares at it, impassively, but after it blows itself up, she just cracks, and starts laughing hard. Kadabra, who is psychically connected to her, laughs also, and is too incapacitated to fight, so Ash has won. Misty, Brock, and Sabrina's mother - who had also been turned into a doll - reappear, and Sabrina's doll shatters. She needs it no longer, she has refound herself as a human, and is back with her parents.
An okay episode. It's touching when Pikachu goes in to fight so that Ash won't have to face the consequences of losing... even though it got so badly bashed up last time, and is scared of Kadabra. Also, the Team Rocket scene was funny.
24. Primeape Goes Bananas 4/10
Ash is depressed because his rivals are ahead of him still, and he has hardly any Pokemon in comparison to them. So when he sees a wild Mankey, he tries to catch it. This angers the Mankey (geez Ash, you can't expect to catch every Pokemon you see without weakening it first) and it attacks him. It steals Ash's cap - a genuine Pokemon League cap which Ash is proud of and spent a lot of effort in trying to win. Ash tries to get it back, and then Team Rocket decides to show up to steal Pikachu.
All Ash cares about is the hat, and is annoyed to see them. James kicks Mankey out the way, but that was a bad idea, as the ill-tempered brute decides to evolve. As Primeape, it's even stronger. It bashes up Team Rocket and... well, generally wreaks havoc. Ash still wants his cap back. Panicked running-away-scenes ensue, but finally Ash realises that if he's gonna be a good trainer, he will have to capture more Pokemon. He tries Bulbasaur, Squirtle, but finally it is Charmander with a new-found RAGE attack that weakens the Primeape for capture.
Somewhat tiring episode, mostly involved Ash-tachi and Team Rocket getting beaten up by an obnoxious Pokemon. -_-; But it's good that Ash caught it finally. It's a toughie. And, I like Primeapes. ^_^. But I want to know, why on earth didn't Ash use PIDGEOTTO against Primeape? That poor bird needs more screen time, it's outshone by the three starters and Pikachu. :(
25. Pokemon Scent Station 8/10
In Celadon City, Ash makes the big mistake of insulting perfume, which Celadon is famous for. He is thrown out. Now, he is not allowed to enter Celadon Gym, because that is the place that manufactures the perfume, and the gym leader is the owner. Slight problem. Ash actually gets help from Team Rocket, who disguise him as a girl, to get him into the gym. Team Rocket didn't do this for nothing of course; Ash had helped them escape when they were tied up for trying to steal perfume formulae.
Erika is teaching a class inside, and Ashley (^_^.) is presented as her newest student. Erika talks about how strong her bond with her Pokemon Gloom is, because it saved her life when she was small and she's had it ever since. However, Ash's disguise slips when Pikachu recognises him a little too enthusiastically. But Erika accepts Ash's challenge to battle, and they do. The battles are fairly even, but then Erika sends out Gloom. Ash is at a loss, knowing that Gloom is powerful, and the strong smell it emits is awful. Pikachu goes in to fight, but Team Rocket appear.
They strike back for revenge, doing an awful thing in causing the gym to set on fire. Bad news, since the gym is full of plants. :( Everyone escapes, but outside, Erika can't find Gloom anywhere. It's still inside! Ash doesn't want Erika to get into danger so he impulsively runs inside himself, finding Gloom but trying to hold his breath so that he doesn't breath in Gloom's bad smell. But, Gloom smells fine because it feels safe with Ash and only emits the smell when it feels threatened. The water Pokemon and humans have put out the fire after Ash and Gloom emerge safely from the gym. Erika gives Ash the Rainbowbadge for helping.
Ashley, that was hilarious. *grins* I do not like Gloom's voice, and I do not like Erika at all (I find myself just wanting to SMACK HER) but this episode was quite good. I liked all the cute girls at Erika's gym. ^_^. I always sleep through this episode, so I've only seen the second half. -_-;
26. Hypno's Naptime 3/10
In Hop-Hop-Hop Town, many children have been disappearing, and at the Pokemon Center, the Pokemon have no energy and seem in ill health. Ash immediately decides to 'investigate', in typical melodramatic fashion. ^_^. They work with Jenny and find that the source of the disturbance is at a Pokemon fanclub. There, the members, who live in a city and face a lot of stress each day, have a Drowzee and Hypno. To help them relax and be less stressed out, they have taught Drowzee and Hypno to modify their psychic attacks for that purpose.
They originally had two Drowzee, but one evolved around the same time the children disappearing and so forth began. The Hypno's waves, not designed to work on humans naturally, had side effects and affected other Pokemon and children (who I guess have less strong mental power than adults). When investigating, Misty leans in to look at Hypno and is hypnotised. She runs off, imitating a Seel. The children are all in a park, hypnotised into thinking they are Pokemon.
Then Team Rocket appear to steal Drowzee and Hypno. Ash's Pidgeotto sends them flying off pretty quickly, and then the psychic Pokemon are taken around to reverse the effects of their hypnosis. Order is restored to the city. Of course. ^_^. One of the Pokemon in the Center which was in pain before, still is, despite the second hypnosis. This Pokemon, a Psyduck, follows Ash-tachi and is accidentally caught by Misty. And so it begins... ^_^.
This episode's plot was pretty boring, to me. However, there are some amusing jokes and interchanges in there to keep one laughing, so it's not a total loss.
27. Pokemon Fashion Flash 8/10
In a street famous for Pokemon breeders, Brock is looking for a particular person who he respects. It is a beautiful woman breeder named Susie, who is extremely talented in her field. But lately, she is worrying because new Pokemon salons - one in particular, called Salon Rocket - are focusing on a Pokemon's style over substance, and she thinks it is wrong to just dress up Pokemon in a fancy way, ignoring their inner beauty. Her own Pokemon, a Vulpix fashion model, is beautiful but a little petted. Susie is surprised when it eats Brock's food - it usually only eats things she makes - thinking he must be a good breeder too.
Misty takes Psyduck to Salon Rocket to see if it is any good. She thinks Psyduck needs a Pokemon makeover. ^_-. Meanwhile, Susie gives a lecture on Pokemon massage, an idea thought up by Brock to help prove that there was more to caring for a Pokemon than looks. When Misty gets to Salon Rocket, she finds it is actually run by Team Rocket, who give HER a makeover instead of Psyduck (she looks hilarious) and then 'kidnap' her. Psyduck runs back to Susie's salon, and rallies help. Ash-tachi challenge Team Rocket. After Ekans and Koffing beat Pikachu and Geodude, Susie steps in with Vulpix.
Vulpix effortlessly defeats all of Team Rocket, proving that it is more than just a pretty face - something with Susie was standing up for by fighting. Then she gives Vulpix to Brock, for helping her to believe in what she was doing.
Quite a good one. Team Rocket is funny. James: "Roses, the flowers of love and romance!" ^_^. Those guys were having FUN. They should take up horribly tacky Pokemon fashion as a profession. ^_^.
28. The Punchy Pokemon 7/10
Ash tries to capture a Hitmonchan, but it actually has a trainer. This man, Anthony, is very competitive and spends all his time training his fighting Pokemon for a big fighting Pokemon tournament. Anthony's daughter, Rebecca, secretly asks Ash and his friends to beat Anthony's Hitmonchan, because her father is not spending enough time with his family. So Ash enters the competition with Primeape, and Brock with Geodude. Meanwhile, Team Rocket steals a Hitmonlee and enter with that.
The competition is fierce, and Primeape, acting on its own accord, is thrown right out of the ring... but Ash dives to save it. Touched that his master would injure himself to protect it, Primeape now obeys Ash. Together, they beat lots of competitors, while Geodude is instantly defeated. When Rebecca dives to save her father's Hitmonchan, her father dives to save her. By cheating, the Rockets' Hitmonlee beats Hitmonchan, and the finale is between Hitmonlee and Primeape. Primeape just manages to come out on top. Anthony realises his family is more important than obsessive training. Ash leaves Primeape with him so that he can truly become a strong fighting Pokemon!
Yeah, good strategy Brock, enter a fighting Pokemon tournament with a Pokemon that is NOT ONLY non-fighting, but has a WEAKNESS to fighting... what genius. -_-; I really don't see why Ash had to give away his Primeape. I mean, just after he'd made friends with it! Is that how he treats his friends? Primeape already WAS a champion!
29. Sparks Fly for Magnemite 2/10
Ash and company come to a very polluted city. Pikachu is feeling sick, but the Pokemon Center's power is off... power is off all over the city. Dangerous, as Pokemon in intensive care are at risk. Pikachu would rather go with Ash than stay at the Pokecenter, so the group charge off to investigate why the power is gone. They go to the powerplant, where a Magnemite is attracted to the sick Pikachu for some reason.
After Ash chases Magnemite off, a lot of Grimer appear. They have been multiplying and clogged up the power generator, which is why the power is off. Everyone runs away from the Grimer, but eventually, they have to fight. Pikachu, Magnemite, and a lot of Magnemite's electric friends ('mites and Magnetons) electrocute the Grimer hard and save themselves. Ash manages to actually capture the head of the Grimer, a large, unpleasant-smelling Muk. Pikachu now feels better, because its sickness was caused by a buildup of electric energy; now that it had released a lot, it was well.
When Team Rocket finally realises that Pikachu was sick (and attracting the Magnemite, for that matter) because it was magnetised, they try to steal it using a giant magnet. However, this now does nothing but catch lots of Magnemite/ton, as Pikachu is immune. -_-; This episode also had an environmental lesson; it was due to the pollution in the city that the Grimer had multiplied so much.
Aww, the Pokemon in the Pokemon Center were so cute. Other than that, I just hate this episode. It's boring, pointless and dark... as in, backdrop, as well as having not very much humour. (Some good quotes while Ash-tachi are wandering through the power plant though.)
30. Dig those Diglett 8/10
A dam is being constructed, but the construction is constantly being delayed and destroyed by earthquakes caused by many Diglett... since the problem is Pokemon, the dam surveyor calls in many famous Pokemon trainers to deal with it, including Gary - Ash and company were not called in, they were just in the right place at the right time. However, none of their Pokemon will come out the Pokeballs to fight.
Jessie and James want to steal all the trainers' Pokemon, but their own are too weak, so they evolve into Arbok and Weezing. Ash and company discover that the Diglett and Dugtrio are responsible for building and maintaining beautiful landscapes, keeping the forest and mountains as it is. Building the dam would destroy their home, and that of many other Pokemon. Everyone's Pokemon recognised this, which is why they wouldn't leave their balls. Team Rocket attack to steal Pikachu, presumably, with their new Pokemon, but are defeated by many Diglett and Dugtrio. Construction of the dam is cancelled as the surveyor recognises the Diglett's reasons for protesting.
I am perhaps a little biased with this rank, because Ekans evolved, and I love Ekans and Arbok. ^_^; But, although the plot wasn't that great, this episode wasn't too bad. There were a lot of amusing quotes, as well as an appearance by Gary. ^_^.
31. The Ninja Pokeshowdown 5/10
Having reached Fuchsia, Ash and company enter a weird house... Ash finds a Venonat and chases it through the house, but ends up encountering booby traps and almost killing himself. -_-; The house belongs to Koga and his younger sister Aya. The Venonat is Aya's, and she fights Ash with it, who wins. Then Koga appears to tell her she needs more training.
Koga, who is the gym leader, challenges Ash with his own Venonat, which is stronger than Aya's. The battle is interrupted by Team Rocket, who intend to steal lots of poison Pokemon. Misty sends Psyduck to see what it can do - not much. But as the 'battle' continues, Psyduck's headache gets worse and it can use its strong psychic powers, disable and confusion, to get rid of Team Rocket. Ash and Koga finish the battle, with Koga's Venonat, who evolves, and a Golbat, against Ash's Charmander. Ash wins a Soulbadge.
Sadly a fairly uninteresting episode, for a gym battle! Um, Psyduck was funny, but its little routine - leaping out its Pokeball without being called, running around uselessly for a while, then saving the day - gets a bit old in future episodes.
32. The Flame Pokemon-athon 8/10
Thinking they are in the Safari Zone, Ash tries to catch a Tauros, but is stopped by a Growlithe. Growlithe belongs to Lara Laramie, a Ponyta riding girl whose family owns the ranch - which is NOT the Safari Zone, they just raise lots of Pokemon. There is to be a big Pokemon race tomorrow to decide who gets 'in with the Laramie clan', whatever implications that holds. Lara will enter on her Ponyta, but an accident causes her to fall and break her arm.
Lara asks Ash to enter the race for her, riding Ponyta, because she really wants it to win and prove itself. Also, Lara's mean rival, Dario, will be racing with his Dodrio and she wants to beat him. So Ash enters the race with Ponyta, Misty with Starmie, Pikachu with Squirtle and Brock with Onix. They ride their Pokemon strongly, although all around them, their competitors and other racers are falling... why? Team Rocket, hiding along the track, create pitfalls and other difficulties to stall the other trainers, so that Dario, who hired them, can win. It was also Meowth who was responsible for Lara's accident in breaking her arm.
Despite everything, Ash manages to catch up to Dario and his Dodrio. Ponyta, through evolving into Rapidash, just manages to surge ahead and Ash wins, by a hair, after a tense buildup. (But did you think the writers would REALLY let Dario win? ^_^.)
Lara Laramie is sooo cool. She's my fave Pokemon character-of-the-day, along with Victor and Florinda (Levelling up to the League). And her voice, I love it! ^_^. This episode had decent action, which was the main theme; not humour or learning lessons like most.
The story so far: Ash Ketchum, with three badges under his belt, goes on to get more...
21. Abra and the Psychic Showdown 8/10
