#61 VOLCANIC PANIC

In the previous episode, the three young trainers visited Cinnabar Island so that Ash could earn his seventh Pokémon badge. Unfortunately, he had to face the odd Cinnabar Gym Leader Blane and his powerful array of fire Pokémon. The adventure ended with the seemingly invulnerable Magmar pushing poor Pikachu to the edge of an active volcano.

Reluctantly, Ash recalls Pikachu and concedes defeat. Blane commends him for protecting his Pokémon, but reminds the 10-year-old boy that he failed to earn a Volcano Badge. As a parting gesture, he offers the travelers the use of his hot springs, so that they can recover from the battle. Despite the loss, Ash is in a good mood. He takes Blane up on his offer and soon treats Pikachu to a nice hot bubble bath.

In a different part of the public baths, Jessie and James are dunking themselves in hot water. They're trying to get used to the high temperature so there will be no problems when they take on Magmar. Since Blane's fire Pokémon easily defeated Pikachu, Team Rocket figures that they must capture Magmar for their boss. Sneaking into the gym, Jessie and James try to freeze Magmar with some ice missiles. When this attack fails, they start firing the missiles at the volcano itself, hoping that this will sap Magmar's strength. Instead, the barrage triggers an eruption that threatens to destroy the entire island. Only the efforts of Magmar and Ash's reluctant fire Pokémon Charizard can help save everyone.

Ash visited Cinnabar Island with the intention of battling for a Pokémon badge. Now he must fight for his life and the lives of his friends and Pokémon.

#62 BEACH BLANK-OUT BLASTOISE

Although our heroes spend the day at the beach, this adventure is not a fun-filled "Frankie and Annette Meet Pikachu" affair. Nope. They must rescue the king of the turtle Pokémon, while avoiding the hypnotic spell of Jigglypuff.

Let's start at the beginning. Ash, Misty, and Brock race to catch the last ferry off of Cinnabar Island. A rare and raving Wartortle emerges from the ocean and collides with the trio. He frantically relates his story to Ash's Squirtle, who then dons his Squirtle Squad Sunglasses. Before Ash and his friends have time to think, they're following the two Pokémon to a remote island that turns out to be the breeding ground for Squirtles, Wartortles, and Blastoise. The beach is littered with dozing Pokémon. At the edge of the jungle is a huge turtle shell-it's Blastoise, the king of turtle Pokémon. Examining its shell, Ash immediately falls asleep. Nothing can wake him up, except for a little thundershock from Pikachu. Upon closer examination, Brock discovers that Jigglypuff is trapped inside of Blastoise's water cannon. It's this mischievous Pokémon's song that has been putting everybody to sleep.

From their Gyrados-shaped submarine, Team Rocket has been watching events unfold. They harpoon the Blastoise and disappear. Before long, they succumb to Jigglypuff's singing. Can Ash's Squirtle and all of his turtle friends rescue their king before Team Rocket's sub sinks to the bottom of the sea?

#63 THE MISTY MERMAID

Now that the travelers have reached Viridian City, Ash can earn his last Pokémon badge. As they take a rest from their long journey, Misty discovers that her Horsea is not feeling well. Brock thinks that the little guy isn’t getting enough exercise. He needs to swim in the ocean or a large aquarium. Misty realizes that the Cerulean Gym where her sisters perform isn’t far away and it has a huge pool. To help Horsea, the three trainers agree to take a side trip to Cerulean City.

Arriving at the Cerulean Gym, Ash and Brock notice a poster announcing the upcoming performance of a beautiful underwater ballerina. Ash thinks that there’s something familiar about the ballerina, but Brock is only interested in how lovely she is. Misty, on the other hand, is mysteriously embarrassed. The answer to this, we soon discover, is that the beautiful ballerina is actually Misty herself.

Misty’s sisters greet the travelers with a desperate explanation. They’ve performed their underwater show so many times that no one in Cerulean City wants to see them again. Lily, Daisy, and Violet came up with the idea to put on the underwater ballet The Magical Mermaid with baby sister as the star. After some initial misgivings, Misty says that she’ll be in the show. Her sisters are relieved because the first performance is the next day.

Long lines form outside of the gym hours before the premiere of the ballet. Among the interested crowd are the members of Team Rocket. James is excited about the show—he studied modern dance, after all. But, Jesse and Meowth have other plans. The performance will present a perfect opportunity to capture lots of water Pokémon. Tying up Lily and Violet, Jesse and James don their costumes and enter the ballet as villains. Ash and Brock are the only ones in the arena who recognize the pair as real villains who are plotting to steal the show.

#64 CLEFAIRY TALES

It’s Pokémon Meets The X-Files as Ash and his friends meet a flying saucer full of mischievous aliens.

Jigglypuff is walking through the woods, putting Pokémon to sleep with his song when he spies a weird spaceship falling to earth. He rushes to the crash site and watches a large group of Clefairy disembark from the broken spacecraft.

On their way to Viridian City, Ash, Misty, and Brock stop for a little refreshment. In the middle of enjoying their ice cream cones, they’re interrupted by the appearance of a Clefairy. Misty wants to capture it and soon they’re all running down the street after it. But, the cute little Pokémon succeeds in evading our heroes and they walk back to the ice cream stand where they find that somebody has stolen their backpacks. Brock suggests that they should report the theft to Officer Jenny. Misty and Ash agree.

At the police station, the three young trainers learn that they aren’t the only ones who are victims of thievery. Many of the town’s residents report that they’re missing some important items, from a cook losing his pot to a famous baseball player missing his favorite bat.

Dr. Oswald believes that he knows the cause of the crime wave: aliens. He believes that extra-terrestrials are stealing these items for their own nefarious purpose. Ash and his friends don’t quite believe the wacky scientist but agree to help him track down the aliens. A few minutes later, they find out that Oswald was right when a flying saucer drops down to the sidewalk and two aliens abduct Pikachu.

Of course, the aliens from the saucer are really Jessie and James in disguise and their scheme predictably unravels. Just as Ash rescues Pikachu from Team Rocket’s fake ship, the real aliens, the Clefairy, kidnap the electric mouse. It’s a race against time for Ash to rescue his Pokémon before the Clefairy off into space.

#65 THE BATTLE OF THE BADGE

Finally, Ash arrives in Viridian City where he hopes to win an earth badge. Once he wins this, his eighth badge, he’ll be able to join the Pokémon League.

But, guess who’s in Viridian City as well?

As obnoxious as ever, Gary Oak lords it over Ash that he has already gotten TEN badges. With his ever-present cheerleaders in tow, Gary enters the Viridian City Gym ahead of Ash and challenges the gym leader.

At first, Gary does well. His Nidoking and Arcanine quickly beat the gym leader’s Golem and Kingler. But the oddly familiar gym leader has a big surprise up his sleeve. He sends Mewtwo into the arena. Gary’s Pokémon are no match for this cybernetic creature. He’s easily defeated and knocked unconscious.

While brooding over the latest turn of events, Ash accidentally tosses Togepi in the air. A Fearow snatches the little Pokémon in its beak and our heroes give chase. Eventually, the Fearow drops Togepi into the hands of Jessie and James. Pleased to have ‘captured’ such a rare Pokémon, they rush to give it to their boss who is none other than the Viridian Gym Leader.

Not too surprisingly, the head of Team Rocket is angry that the only rare Pokémon that Jessie and James have ever caught is the very weak Togepi. He vents his anger at them, but is interrupted by some urgent business. Before he leaves, he gives Jessie and James his Pokéballs and orders them to protect the gym. Foolishly, they think that this is a promotion and eagerly plot how to defeat all the young trainers who will soon be challenging them.

(The urgent business that requires the leader of Team Rocket’ s attention involves a special assignment for Mewtwo. Could this have anything to do with the upcoming movie, Mewtwo Strikes Back?)

#66 IT’S MR. MIME TIME

#67 SHOWDOWN AT THE PO-KE-CORRAL

#68 THE EVOLUTION SOLUTION>

Ash learns a lesson about responsibility when his mother organizes a day trip to Seafoam Island. While Misty and Brock plan to go windsurfing, Ash must stay in Pallet Town and train for the Pokémon League.

Bummer.

Visiting the Pokémon Center, Ash discovers a frustrated Prof. Oak trying to solve a mystery about Pokémon evolution. According to his research, a Slowpoke can only evolve into a Slowbro if a Shelldar attaches to its tail. Prof. Oak cannot find an explanation for this extremely silly process. He then realizes that Prof. Westwood, the Pokémon Researcher who created the Pokédex, may have the answer. Much to Ash’s delight, Prof. Westwood lives on Seafoam Island. Now he has a perfect reason to go to the beach.

Ash finds Misty and Brock enjoying the perfectly wonderful day on Seafoam’s beautiful beach. Nearby, Jessie and James aren’t so lucky. Their boss is still angry over the destruction of Team Rocket HQ. As punishment, he orders them to dig for clams in the sand. Although Jessie and James hate the job, they do uncover a large Shelldar, which Jessie is able to capture. Their boss then gives them a new task to complete: go to Prof. Westwood’s lab and steal whatever they can.

Just like Prof. Oak, Prof. Westwood is obsessed with the problem of the Slowbro’s evolution. He has looked through all the books in his giant library and still hasn’t found an answer. With Ash and friends in tow, Prof. Westwood follows his pet Slowbro down to the beach to watch the strange creature fish. (It does this by sticking its tail in the water.) Misty notices that Slowbro has the same empty expression on its face as Psyduck. It turns that both Pokémon are extremely stupid.

Speaking of stupid, Team Rocket parasail into Prof. Westwood’s lab. When they realize that the only Pokémon around is Slowbro, they plot to use their Shelldar to force the poor Pokémon to evolve into a rare Slowpoke.

#69 THE PI-KAHUNA

So that Ash will be in good shape for his Pokémon training, he jogs down the beach road. Suddenly, a thick cloud of automobile exhaust sends him staggering into the path of an oncoming car. Fortunately, the driver is able to avoid Ash, but the near accident causes a huge traffic jam.

The beach road is filled with cars because today is the day that the Humonga Dunga is going to hit. This giant wave only appears once every 20 years. Hoping to catch the Humonga Dunga, surfers from all around the area flock to this beach on this day. Officer Jenny tells Ash, Misty, and Brock about the legendary surfer Jan, who road the giant wave 40 years ago and planted a flag on top of a tall rock in the middle of the harbor. Since then, surfers have been trying to recreate that daring feat.

After hearing the story, Ash dashes into the surf with his board. He wants to be a great surfer like Jan. At first, Ash does well, but soon a big wave makes him wipe out. He hurts his foot and begins to sink. A new Pikachu is sitting on top of the rocks and sees that Ash is in trouble. Calling his owner, he dives into the water and helps save Ash from drowning.

When Ash awakens, he finds himself surrounded by Misty, Brock, and an old surfer named Victor. He tells the young trainers about his experiences as a surfer and about meeting Jan many years ago. The last time that the Humonga Dunga hit, he tried and failed to plant his flag on top of the rock in the harbor. Afterwards, when he was feeling awful about not doing as well as his idol Jan, he spied a little Pikachu surfing on a piece of wood. He saved that Pikachu and named him ‘Puka.’ Soon, the two were inseparable. They practiced surfing all of the time. Since Puka had the uncanny ability to sense when a big wave was coming, he proved very useful to Victor.

From the periscope of their Gyrados-shaped submarine, Team Rocket sees the two Pikachus playing on the shore. They kidnap them and head out to sea. Ash and his friends race to find their stolen friends before the Humonga Dunga makes its 20-year visit.

#70 MAKE ROOM FOR GLOOM

The start of the Pokémon League is less than two months away and Ash is doing everything to get himself into top shape. At least, that’s what he does most days. Today he’s sound asleep while Brock is making breakfast and his mother is working in the yard. After Mr. Mime and Pikachu rudely awaken Ash, the young trainer quickly ducks out of the house. He convinces Misty and Brock that they should spend the day in the mountains rather than do yard work for his mother.

Soon, the trio comes upon Xanadu Nursery, a huge domed greenhouse in the middle of the forest. Through the glass windows, Brock spies a beautiful young woman. He also sees a peculiar flower Pokémon called a Gloom. The young woman’s name is Florinda and the Gloom is her only Pokémon. She’s very said because her family has entrusted the nursery to her, but she considers herself a failure as a manager and a trainer. Florinda explains that she’s tried everything to make Gloom evolve into a Vileplume. She even bought a magic leaf stone, but that turned out to be a fake. From Florinda’s description, the three trainers recognize the sellers of the counterfeit stone as none other than Team Rocket.

Despite this, Ash and his friends enjoy the lovely plants inside the nursery. No one enjoys it more than Ash’s Bulbasaur. The little creature runs from plant to plant, sniffing flower buds. Eventually, he comes upon some Pokénip that makes him goofy. efore Florinda can stop him, though, he turns to smell a plot of stun stem. Instantly, Bulbasaur passes out. Luckily for Bulbasaur, Florinda’s Gloom produces a nectar that is an antidote for the stun stem effect. The green Pokémon recovers in time to capture Jessie and James who are stealing all of the nursery’s valuable plants.

This time, Team Rocket is ready for the worst. While Jessie and James are tied up, Meowth makes a bomb out of ground stun stems. He tosses it at our heroes and they all collapse on the floor. Their only chance for rescue comes from Gloom and its insecure trainer Florinda.

#71 LIGHTS, CAMERA, QUACK-TION

Still training for the Pokémon League, Ash leads his friend to a nice campground beside a beautiful lake. (As always, Jigglypuff is following close behind.) Although the travelers like camping, one thing that Misty and Ash don’t like is Brock’s chili. It’s too spicy. They’re arguing about this when an attractive young trainer approaches. Her name is Katrina and she doesn’t waste any time challenging Ash to a battle. Out of the Pokéball that she flings at the ten-year-old boy pops a Raichu. Ash responds with Pikachu. It looks like it’s going to be a tough scrape, until Team Rocket makes an untimely entrance.

Jessie and James capture Pikachu with a butterfly net. Well, they think they’ve caught Pikachu. Actually they’ve caught a very angry Raichu who uses his thunderbolt to shock them.

Suddenly, a short man yells “Cut” and our heroes discover that the whole encounter with Katrina and Team Rocket was being filmed. The man turns out to be none other than Golden Growlithe Award-winning director Cleevon Speilbunk. (He directed Brock’s favorite film, I Saw What You Ate Last Tuesday.) Now he’s working on a new project. It’s a feature-length film with a cast full of Pokémon. The director introduces the young trainers to his star, a Wigglytuff.

Meowth laughs at the little guy, but Wigglytuff slaps him silly. This sort of attitude explains why Wigglytuff’s first co-star disappeared. As Brock says, “You get slapped by critics and co-stars.”

Speilbunk explains that he’s auditioning Pokémon for his film and our heroes eagerly bring out their best and most talented specimens. Even Jessie and James have stars in their eyes as they send Arbok, Weezing, and Meowth to the try-outs. In the end, though, it’s Misty’s Psyduck that wins the part. He gets to play opposite Wigglytuff in Speilbunk’s Pokémon version of Romeo and Juliet

Heaven help us.

#72 GO WEST YOUNG MEOWTH

WARNING: In this episode, all members of Team Rocket sing and dance, including Meowth! To quote Ash: “That was scary.”

Ash, Brock, and Pikachu are exercising on the porch when a special delivery letter arrives. It’s an invitation from Cleevon Speilbunk to attend the Hollywood premiere of Pokémon in Love, the new movie starring Misty’s Psyduck. Everyone has visions of how wonderful Hollywood is going to be.

Team Rocket overhears the news and makes its own plans about traveling west. One member of the team, though, has unpleasant memories about the movie capital. Meowth remembers how, as a young kitten, he lived on the street, struggling to get enough to eat. That was until he saw a movie that bragged about all the ice cream and fried chicken in Hollywood. Meowth was on the next train to California.

In the present, Ash, his mother, Misty, and Brock arrive in Hollywood and discover that it’s not all like they imagined. Speilbunk’s letter directs them to the bad part of town, where they find a rundown theater. Is where the big premiere is going to be?

Jessie and James also arrive in town. They make plans about crashing the premiere and then wonder where Meowth has gone.

Team Rocket’s walking/talking Pokémon wanders through the seedy side of Hollywood thinking about the past. When he first came to town, his life was difficult, until he joined a gang of street meowths led by a Persian. As a gang member, he was able to steal all the food he wanted, but that wasn’t enough to make him happy. One day, he saw a rich, female Meowth in front of a jewelry story. He immediately fell in love. But Meowsy would have nothing to do with him. He was poor and dirty, unlike the humans who took care of her.

With love in his heart, Meowth set out to make himself more human. He eavesdropped on a dance class and taught himself how to walk. Listening to another class, he learned to read and speak like a human being. Even though he changed himself, Meowsy still would have nothing to do with him. At this point, Meowth joined Team Rocket so that he could steal enough money to make himself rich. Now that he’s back in Hollywood, he wants to find Meowsy to show her how successful he is.

Eventually, Meowth does find his long-lost love. She’s joined that street gang that Meowth used to belong to. Now, he must fight the gang’s leader to win Meowsy back.

Meanwhile, back at the theater, Ash and his friends enjoy the premiere.

#73 THE MASTER OF THE ONIXPECTED

In just three weeks, Ash will be trying out for the Pokémon League. He spends every day getting ready. Sometimes, though, it looks like he’s goofing off. That’s what Misty thinks when she finds Ash and Brock watching a video. Calling them “couch potatoes,” she turns off the TV. But, Brock and Ash object. The video that they were watching featured Bruno, one of the Elite Four Pokémon Trainers. They were hoping that by watching him, they could learn his Pokémon secrets. Actually, they wish that they could meet Bruno in person, but don’t know how to contact him. Ash’s mother does! She heard that Bruno is staying near Mt. Hideaway. Brock imagines that Bruno is hiding there to keep his Pokémon secrets secret. The three young trainers decide to hike there to track down Bruno.

Although the journey to Mt. Hideaway is relatively short, it’s over some rough terrain. Ash and Brock are exhausted, but Misty feels fine. They stop to rest at an old woman’s house. She gives them meatballs to snack on and tells them that the Mt. Hideaway area is famous for its Onix. For some reason, the rich soil near the mountain makes these rock Pokémon grow larger than normal. The old woman also tells them that someone has been stealing her meatballs. The culprits soon make their presence known. It’s Team Rocket dressed as old men.

Once Ash, Misty, and Brock resume their journey, they soon run across a huge Onix track--with a huge Onix in it! They race to get away from the stampeding creature, until Bruno saves them at the last moment. Ash and Brock beg Bruno to teach them all of the Pokémon secrets he knows. He agrees, as long as they agree to do everything he tells them to do.

Soon, Ash and Brock are fetching water, splitting logs, and cleaning twigs. They think that these jobs are supposed to teach them lessons, but they’re really just making it easier for Bruno to prepare his dinner. He admits that he has no Pokémon secrets. The only reason he’s there is to capture the largest Onix. Doing that would prove that he’s the strongest Pokémon trainer around. Team Rocket overhears this and plots to capture the largest Onix first. That way, people would realize that they’re stronger than Bruno and they could easily get into the Pokémon League. Soon, Jessie and James set off with bazooka in hand. They may think they’re hunting for Onix, but they’re really hunting for trouble.

#74 THE ANCIENT PUZZLE OF POKEMOPOLIS

Ash is finally buckling down and training. He and Brock are using Pikachu and Vulpix to battle in the woods. At the most crucial moment, though, Jigglypuff bounces right into the middle of the struggle. Pikachu and Vulpix are forced to divert their electric and fire blasts to avoid vaporizing Jigglypuff. The blasts pound the side of a hill, clearing away huge chunks of earth and revealing an ancient temple.

The explosion draws the attention of Dr. Eve and her team of archeologists. They’ve been searching for the ancient city of Pokemopolis. Vulpix and Pikachu’s blast seems to have uncovered the fabled city that was mysteriously destroyed and buried long ago.

In the rubble, Brock discovers a weird artifact. Eve rudely snatches it up. She’s certain that this will prove her theorizes about the lost city. When Brock and his friends try to get the credit that they deserve, Eve shows them other artifacts that she has found. Chief among these is a stone tablet that explains how the city was destroyed. Apparently, two forces, one light and one dark, fought at the city. This struggle crushed the homes of the Pokémon-loving people of Pokemopolis.

Nearby, Team Rocket observes the archeological dig. Convinced that a treasure is buried under the city, they wait until dark and send Arbok burrowing into the ruins. He emerges with a dark object that suddenly sucks them all inside and begins floating in the air. Actually, a giant, invisible Gengar is carrying the object. His loud footsteps awaken Eve and the trainers. Unbeknownst to them, Gengar’s presence is also causing the artifact that Brock found to glow.

Now visible, the Gengar tramps off through the woods in the direction of Pallet Town. Ash and Brock give chase. They try to stop the rampaging creature with their Pokémon. But, once anything touches the creature, it’s sucked into the dark object. Angered, the Gengar returns to the archeological dig. To everyone’s surprise, the artifact that Brock found transforms into a giant Alakazam. Now, the two creatures, one dark and one light, begin to fight.

Eve realizes that this is the same thing that happened to ancient Pokemopolis. If they can’t find a way to stop these terrible Pokémon, they’ll all be destroyed. Ash, Misty, and Brock’s only solution is Jigglypuff. Perhaps this creature’s song will be enough to subdue the Gengar and Alakazam.

#75 BAD TO THE BONE

Before he heads off to join the Pokémon League, Ash visits Prof. Oak for some last minute advice. Pallet Town’s chief Pokémon expert has only one thing to tell the 10-year-old boy: if he’s not ready for the Pokémon League now, he might as well quit and go home. In other words, Ash is finally ready to head to the Indigo Plateau and join the league.

The next day, Prof Oak, Ash’s mom, and Mr. Mime say good-bye to the young trainers. Ash is sad to leave home but excited about finally getting a chance to join the Pokémon League.

Taking a shortcut through a field, the three travelers encounter Otoshi, a young trainer who challenges Ash to a battle. The loser has to hand over all his Pokémon badges to the winner. At first, Ash doesn’t want to risk losing his badges, but Otoshi shames him into the battle. They fight and, in the end, Ash wins. When he asks Otoshi to hand over his badges, the young trainer breaks down and cries. His eight badges were stolen by Team Rocket. Even though it may mean that he will be late for the start of the Pokémon League trials, Ash vows to track down Team Rocket and retrieve Otoshi’s badges.

Two members of Team Rocket, James and Meowth, are having their own trouble finding Otoshi’s badges. Apparently, Jessie stole the badges and ran off, hoping to enter the Pokémon League with them. With the help of his Pidgeotto, Ash pops Team Rocket’s balloon and interrogates Meowth and James. When it looks like Otoshi won’t be getting his badges back, his prize Pokémon, Marowak, abandons him in frustration. Ash and his friends must locate Jessie, win back Otoshi’s badges, reunite the trainer with his Marowak, and get to the Indigo Plateau before it’s too late.

#76 ALL FIRED UP!

Ash is excited about nearing the Indigo Plateau where he’ll finally get to compete for the Pokémon League. Eventually, the young trainer and his companions notice that the sides of the road are lined with people waving flags with Pokéballs on them. At first, Ash thinks that the flag waving is for him, but it’s actually for a runner carrying the torch.

According to legend, the flame of a Moltres lit the torch, which is used as a symbol for the Pokémon League and all of the trainers coming to the competition. Ash figures that since he’s a trainer, he can carry the flame. When he asks the runner if he can have the torch, Officer Jenny says he can’t. But another voice says he can.

From a van traveling behind the runner emerges an old man with a thick beard. This is Charlie Goodshow. He’s in charge of the Official Pokémon League Competition Flame. He admires Ash’s tenacity and spunk and says that the young trainer has every right to be a torchbearer. Soon, Ash is running down the road raising the torch high above his head.

Jessie and James swoop down from the clouds in its Meowth-shaped balloon. They set off an explosion that causes a crevasse to open in the road that swallows up Charlie’s van. Ash stands on the edge watching when Meowth hits him in the face and steals the torch. As the bad guys escape, Ash feels awful about losing the torch.

Charlie, though, tells him not to worry. He has another Moltres flame hidden in a lamp. He lights another torch and each of our heroes takes turns carrying it to the huge stadium on the Indigo Plateau.

In the Pokémon League Village, Ash runs into Gary Oak. His old enemy taunts him, saying that because he didn’t battle as many trainers as he did, Ash will obviously fail. That night, his mind filled with doubts and fears about the coming competition, Ash has difficulty sleeping.

The next day is filled with pomp and circumstance as the competition begins. Ash and Gary join the ranks of the other trainers who march into the stadium. In the stands, Misty and Brock watch the elaborate proceedings.

As a new torchbearer climbs the stairs leading to the large central flame, two mysterious figures stop her. It’s Team Rocket! They swipe the torch and the central flame with their giant robotic machine. They’re about to ruin the ceremony, but Ash and Pikachu rush to the rescue. Unfortunately, Jessie and James tip the flame over and dose our heroes in fire. Will Ash and his electric mouse be cooked alive?

#77 ROUND ONE—BEGIN!

In Pallet Town, Professor Oak is joined in front of the TV set by Ash’s mother, Mr. Mime, and a group of neighbors. They’re all there to watch the Pokémon League Competition and to cheer on Ash.

Recovering from the excitement of the opening ceremonies—most of which was caused by Team Rocket’s intrusion, Ash checks in at the Pokémon Village desk. It’s there that he learns where his first battle will take place and whom he will be fighting. (It’s also the place where Brock can leer at the lovely receptionist).

Dressed as television reporters, Jessie and James wander about the Pokémon Village. They hope to steal Pokémon from the trainers that they interview. Unfortunately, no one seems to have any rare or interesting Pokémon. But one trainer does draw their attention. Wearing outlandish clothing and performing Pokémon magic tricks for passersby, Mandy is not your typical trainer. He’s also a bit conceited and his flippant attitude angers Team Rocket.

While walking through the Pokémon Village, Ash and his friends run into Gary Oak. He hopes that Ash will succeed in his initial battles—so that he’ll have a chance to beat him. After Gary has left for his first battle, Ash receives a phone call from Professor Oak. The chief Pokémon expert in Pallet Town was wondering if Ash needed to swap any of his Pokémon. Misty was just saying the same thing. Deciding that this might be a good idea, Ash asks Professor Oak to send him his Krabby. Since Ash’s first battle is at the Water Field, he could use another Water Pokémon.

Finally, the moment of truth arrives. Ash enters the arena to face Mandy. Surprisingly, Jessie and James get on the loudspeaker to offer Ash encouragement. They dislike Mandy so much that they’re willing to root for their worst enemy. Soon, a platoon of Officer Jennys takes Team Rocket into custody and the match can now begin.

The older, more experienced trainer tosses out an Exeggutor and Ash counters with Krabby. The battle is hard fought and Ash nearly loses. But at the last second, Krabby not only prevails; he evolves into a Kingler. Stunned, Mandy launches first a Seadra and then a Golbat. Neither is effective against the crustacean Pokémon and Ash is declared the winner.

According to Brock, the Pokémon Trainer’s Book says that winners should show dignity and restraint. Ash is showing the exact opposite range of emotions. He’s jumping up and down and waving to the TV cameras. Although he has every right to be happy, he still has many battles ahead of him in the competition.

#78 FIRE AND ICE

This exciting episode begins right in the middle of Ash’s second match in the Pokémon League Competition. Battling in the Rock Field, both competitors already have two victories in the match, meaning that each is down to his final Pokémon. The Red Trainer chooses Nidorino and Ash responds with Squirtle. The Nidorino attacks, but Squirtle withdraws into his shell and rolls away. At the last moment, he uses his water gun attack and then finishes the Nidorino off with a skull bash. Ash Ketchum wins!

While most of the audience goes wild, one spectator is not particularly pleased. Gary Oak sarcastically encourages Ash to enjoy the victory because he’s definitely going to lose once they face off in a later round.

Outside the arena, Team Rocket roots through the trash looking for valuables. Then, James announces that he has thought of a sneaky plan to capture Pikachu. The bumbling villains slink off, laughing.

Back at Pokémon Village, Misty is surprised to discover Brock and all the Pokémon sitting around eating. Where is Ash? He should be taking his tired Pokémon to the Pokémon Center to be recharged. Actually, Ash and Pikachu are out searching for a restaurant because the young trainer is starving! Misty catches up with him and chastises him for ignoring his Pokémon. Ash complains that he needs to eat first. Luckily, he finds an all-you-can-eat restaurant so that he an fill his empty belly.

Once he’s done eating, Ash joins Misty and they visit the local Pokémon Center. Unfortunately, all of the other trainers in town have decided to do the same thing. Joining the end of a very long line, Ash and Misty are very unhappy. They are also a little confused. Where is Brock? He told Misty that he would meet them there.

Eventually, Brock does materialize. He’s in seventh heaven due to all the Officer Jennys and Nurse Joys in town to help out with the competition. Every time one passes by, he gets all dreamy-eyed and hearts float around his head.

At this point, Ash notices that someone is beckoning to him from an alley. It’s a nurse who offers to lead them to a temporary Pokémon Center that doesn’t have a line. Of course, the nurse is really James and the center is a ridiculous trap set by Team Rocket. Although Jessie and James do briefly capture Pikachu, Brock’s Onix rescues the little guy and chases off the hapless villains.

Before returning to the Village, Ash and his friends are able to take all their Pokémon to a real center to get recharged. This is a good thing because Ash has a third round match the next day at the Ice Field. That match proves to be really tough, with Ash relying on Pikachu to fight off a powerful Arcanine.

#79 The Fourth Round Rumble

Gary is battling his 4th match of the Pokémon League. His Nidoking is battling against a Golem. After a little fighting, Nidoking is defeated and Gary is out of the Pokémon League. This defeat makes Ash nervous that he too may lose his fourth battle. Brock tells him not to give up, and so he doesn't. Meanwhile, Team Rocket are trying selling things to get money. They seem to be good at it as they sell out of official Pokémon League badges, well, Meowth is up to his usual tricks and they aren't official, he is in fact making them out of bottle caps, but they sure sell well anyway. They decide to try a distraction with some fake Pikachu being taken away by there balloon, a couple of Officer Jenny's spot the balloon and Growlithe takes it down. Jessie and James were going to use the distraction to allow them to steal all the spectators Pokémon with a vacuum. The Jenny's notice there vacuum and ticket it. Team Rocket run for cover and disguise themselves as snack salesmen and start selling hot-dogs and ice-cream. Ash enters his last arena before he can battle in the Indigo arena. His opponent Ginette starts with a Beedrill. Ash fights the Beedrill with his Bulbasaur. After a few close calls, leech seeds it to death and wins. Next, Bulbasaur battles Scyther. Again it's close, but Bulbasaur wins again. Then, Ginette brings out a Bellsprout. Ash believes it is going to be an easy win, but surprisingly to everyone, Bellsprout defeats Bulbasaur. Ash sends Pikachu to take care of Bellsprout, but poor Pikachu is knocked out cold by Bellsprout's thin, twig arm. Luckily, before battle, Ash had gotten his Muk and this was his last hope for this match. Muk proves to be invulnerable to Bellsprout's attacks. Muk moves towards the helpless Bellsprout and smothers it. Ash has won his 4th match, and it's on to the central Indigo arena. After the match, Jessie and James found they had a successful day, and sold many hot-dogs and ice-cream, they are quite pleased with their ability to sell. Maybe they should go into business as a fast food chain!

#80 A Friend in Good Deed

Ash and the gang are going to find a place to eat, after a successful 4th win, Ash is getting ready for his fifth battle, he doesn't know who he's up against yet. His mom invades the kitchen inside the restaurant and starts making something for Ash. Her cooking is great, leaving the chef asking for the recipe, so they all have a nice dinner. Later, as Ash is getting on the elevator to go back outside, a boy named Richie is rushing to catch the elevator too. Ash stops the door for him and he gets on. They are going down, just as the power goes out. They are trapped in the elevator, but Richie has a plan to get Pikachu to power the elevator the rest of the way down. Once they get out, they hear an announcement that they have to get their Pokémon inspected by the Pokémon League, or they are disqualified from the competition. It's really another plan of Team Rocket's to steal everybody's Pokémon, they fool everyone and get all the Pokémon until Pikachu shocks Jessie as she tries to pick him up, and so they reveal themselves. They successfully get away, but Ash and Richie chase after them. Ash decides to dive down the mountain, but Ritchie stops him. Ash becomes mad at Richie, as they continue the chase. They leap out in front of the van, and so James swerves aside, falling over into a stream, the van is still going and Jessie and Meowth are okay. Unfortunately, James was knocked unconscious by the fall. Jessie manages to steer them to safety. Later on, Ash is sorry for becoming mad at Richie, realizing that his life was saved, and the two boys camp out for the night. The following morning they find Team Rocket and the stolen Pokémon. Jessie and James wake up to discover them, and lock the door. They start driving away, so Ash searches the bag for one of his Pokémon, but can't find which ones are his. Pikachu finds Bulbasaur, but Bulbasaur can't seem to penetrate the wall. Richie calls out his Charmander (which is called Zibo), which gets through the wall. Ash and Richie eventually succeed in getting all the Pokémon back (Ash finds out that Richie has a pikachu too called "Sparky"), and return to the League building to find out who Ash is battling for the fifth round. It turns out to be Richie... both of them friends, both with ambitions of becoming the greatest trainer in the world.