90: Navel Maneouvers
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How else to explain this episode. Apart from a brief moment during In The Pink, the inherent dodginess of Pokemon has been suppressed by The American Translators in this new series, understated rather than blatant..
But you cannot force order on chaos, and in this episode the dodginess is back in full force!
HOORAH!
As the episode begins, the announcer claims that Ash, Misty and Tracey are our heroes? OUR HEROES?
Please, here at Pokemopolis, our Heroes are Jesse and James and, yes, even Meowth.
Still, we'll let him get away with that for now.
Arriving on the island Joy directed them too, the trio find the place deserted, until a windsailer arrives wearing a cool red Geodude t-shirt.
Ash introduces himself, Tracey introduces himself and even Pikachu introduces himself too! But then the dodginess begins once again!!!!
Danny gets his freak on with Misty!
He claims that she has a beautiful name for a beautiful woman and she blushes coyly as Ash and Tracey gape in shock.
Huh? asks Ash, not getting it like always. Poor boy, you had your chance when Brock left and you didn't take it.
Team Rocket appear very early in this episode, which is nice considering how late they appeared in the last episode. They watch the quartet from their Magikarp submarine, try a little poetry, then prepare their plans.
As the camera pans with the walking foursome, Misty excitedly chats with Danny The Windsailer, Pikachu plays up for the camera, getting into some of that broad physical comedy the French love so much.
It's clear that Ash and Misty have had a spat, even to Danny, who notes that you always hurt the one you love.
In shock, Misty quickly shakes her head and drops the emotionally crippled ten year old like a stone, proclaiming he's too much of a little kid for her.
"She's the kid, not me!" grumbled Ash like the petulant child he is, while Tracey watches, bemused.
Arriving at the base of the huge mountain at the centre of the island, The Japanese writing on the sign has been blurred out and Tracey has to read it for us, as the literal American translation would never fit on the small sign.
Ash and Danny have to climb the mountain alone, and Danny kinda gives Ash a spooky look? Maybe he was just being nice to Misty and he has.... other tastes?
As Ash and Danny climb (not allowed help from their Pokemon), Pikachu mocks Ash silently by running on ahead of him up the mountain.
Misty begs Danny to be careful, totally ignoring poor love starved Ash, and he's so emotionally distraught at his lover's betrayal he slips from his ledge and nearly bites it.
After stupidly trying to call out Bulbasaur to help, Spooky Danny gives him another Spooky Danny look and they continue on up.
While climbing, Pikachu is hit by a suction cup (!) and pulled away from Ash. Emerging from the clouds appear Team Rocket, smoking fish to create a smoke screen (Giovanni has cut them off the Credit Line it seems) as Meowth pulls Pikachu in.
As Ash struggles valiantly and Team Rocket do their speech, Spooky Danny calmly walks up and flicks off the suction cup, knocking Meowth over.
Their motto never finished, Jesse is furious and James slightly turned on, flexing his biceps for Danny even as he yells.
They fire the suction cup at ol' Spooky, but he casually lifts a rock in his place and Meowth pops his balloon pulling back on it. And they're blasting off again, already?
Pikachu begins to freeze as they walk on up the mountain and Ash, genius that he is, takes off his coat and wraps Pikachu up, causing Danny to give him another spooky look.
Clever boy Ash, Pikachu does have a Pokeball you know, and despite it's claustrophobia, it's preferable to death or hypothermia to either of you.
Arriving at the top of the mountain, Misty charges them with sun glinting idealistically in the background. But she stomps right over Ash and excitedly offers to share her blanket with Danny!!!! Causing Ash to proclaim sadly,"What about me?"
HAHA! Dodginess reigns supreme!
Oh yeah, and Spooky Danny is actually The Gym Leader, and after that long ass haul up the mountain Ash has to fight his rival for Misty's affections.
The battle is split into three parts, the first battle a race to see who can freeze a geyser first. Lapras, in only it's second challenge, get's it's ass handed to it on a stick by NidoQueen.
The second battle is to sculpt an ice-sled with three Pokemon and Ash chooses Pikachu, Bulbasaur and.... CHARIZARD!
Ash, you schmuck.
Charizard refuses to help of course, but after trying to fry Ash's ass a couple of times makes some remarkably effectively fine-tuning on the half formed ice-sled with it's flamethrower.
Suspension Of Disbelief, Schpension Of Schmisbelief.
The third challenge is a race down the mountain, and Misty quips that it's all downhill from here.
All downhill from here? Oh, KA-Lever Misty.
Team Rocket return of course (HOORAY!) and Jesse really doesn't like Spooky Danny, claiming he's too positive.
When Danny crashes in a hole, Ash stops to save the day and actually figures out (after only close to a hundred encounters) that it's Team Rocket.
Disguised as snowmen (Don't ask), Jesse James and Meowth make a pretty bad quip of their own and drop Ash, his Pokemon, Spooky Danny and his Spooky Pokemon down the hole.
Sitting at the bottom, Danny shows his maturity by showing appreciation of Team Rocket, telling Ash his friends are quite clever.
Ash quickly sets Danny right about his friendship with Jesse, James and Meowth (he's tried to kill them a couple of times, remember) and then suddenly Pikachu is being nabbed and being placed in an electro static conductor by Team Rocket.
Using Pikachu's power to make their breakfast, Team Rocket find themselves drawn into a snowball fight after Jesse gets smacked right in the face.
Reverting to type and trying to say their motto, Meowth interrupts her again and they proceed to throw Snowballs back until Danny's Electrode is thrown up into the balloon, knocking Pikachu back into Ash's hands.
James starts to call out Victreebell but it angrily leaps out and tries to eat the tasty anti-hero again, leading to Meowth to angrily yell, "TRAIN THAT THING!"
Team Rocket are blasted off again, again, by Electrode's self destruct.
Ash and Spooky Danny continue their race, with Ash losing control and flying into the shrubbery, then smashing his way through the tree-tops and doing that classic Action Hero Ash pose he's perfected since his attempts to make Misty his own began.
Flying in uncontrollable circles (Bulbasaur and Squirtle are having a great time) they fly across the finish line and into the ocean, throwing up a tidal wave and a rainbow.
Spooky Danny can't believe he's lost, and then moves past Misty without a second glance and says the following words (if you naysayers don't believe us, just check out the episode for yourself) :
"Ash, you were great... and now I'm going to give you something you REALLY deserve Ash."
He passes his broach to Ash to signify they're courting, but poor Ash mistakes it for a Trainer Badge (although Misty understands and almost breaks down, thinking she's lost both of them.
This causes Tracey to start laughing, although the translation makes it sound like he's arrghing) and then sets off, while Misty hopefully cries out to Danny that she hopes to see him again.
Forget it, Misty, almost no one wants to get tied down to a single mother.
Almost no one.....
Right, Ash?
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