By JC
Hey guys! Today I’ll be summarizing and reviewing the 23rd episode of Pokemon Black and White. Right away, our heroes walk into the Castelia Gym, a spacious building that resembles a greenhouse garden. Burgh greets them and introduces them to the gym’s unique environment—filled with all kinds of trees and plants straight from Pinwheel Forest. The stadium rises from the ground and the battle begins right away.
Burgh sends out his first Pokemon—Dwebble. Ash counters with Tepig. Tepig leads with Tackle, but Dwebble dodges it and uses Dig. It follows up with a super-fast X-Scissor, which prompts Burgh to explain that it carries a lighter rock on its back. An Ember is blocked by Protect, but Tepig lands a direct hit with another Tackle. It uses Flame Charge next, but is thwarted by Protect, and Dwebble knocks out Tepig with Rock Wrecker. Cilan and Iris discuss strategies while Ash chooses a new Pokemon.
He decides to make it a bug-on-bug match and sends out Sewaddle. It leads with Razor Leaf and the crustacean uses Protect. Sewaddle dodges the incoming X-Scissor with a String Shot and uses Bug Bite, but cannot penetrate Protect. It is able to get Dwebble out of its shell and unleashes a flurry of String Shots, Tackles, and Razor Leaves for the equalizer.
Burgh sends out his Whirlipede, which makes Ash use his Pokedex. Cilan and Iris are worried for their friend as they discuss more strategy. Whirlipede seems to be unaffected by String Shot and uses Steamroller to land a direct hit. Another Steamroller rolls over Sewaddle as it uses Razor Leaf in vain. Iron defense negates the incoming Bug Bite. Burgh continues to dish out punishment with Steamrollers and orders up a Solarbeam for the knockout. Just when Sewaddle looks like it’s done for, it evolves into Swadloon! String Shot still has no effect, but a new move, Energy Ball, catches Whirlipede off-guard. Ash orders a Tackle that clinches the knockout.
For his final Pokemon, Burgh chooses Leavanny. The scene shifts to Team Rocket inside a warehouse. They confer with a woman on a laptop and ask about Giovanni’s next orders. They are told that it’s up to them and to do their best. They are confused and discouraged, but Jessie restores their confidence. Team Rocket proceeds to break out into their theme song as they plot to capture Pikachu. They find a Yamask wandering in the warehouse and Jessie sends out Woobat to combat it, but James intervenes to feed it instead. James’ tactics are successful as the well-fed Yamask accepts his offer to join them.
The battle resumes as Swadloon uses Energy Ball, but Leavanny uses Protect and then String Shot. Ash makes a tough call and commands Swadloon to use Razor Leaf on itself to get free. Burgh orders a Leaf Storm, followed by a Hyper Beam that knocks out Swadloon. Ash is down to his last Pokemon, and as if on cue, Oshawott spontaneously jumps out of his Pokeball. He is disappointed when Ash chooses his buddy Pikachu to battle. Pikachu leads off with Thunderbolt and quickly follows that up with Iron Tail. Leavanny dodges and uses Protect and conjures up another Leaf Storm. Pikachu counters it with Thunderbolt. Pikachu gets tangled up with String Shot and is unable to use Quick Attack. As a result, Leavanny lands a direct hit with Leaf Storm. From a safe distance, it sends out Leaf Storms and Hyper Beams. Pikachu tries his hardest to dodge the powerful attacks and finally gets free when Ash tells him to spin into an incoming Leaf Storm. Burgh tries to use another String Shot, but Ash is ready for it this time. Pikachu catches Leavanny off-guard and hits her with Iron Tail and Electro Ball. Burgh congratulates the young trainer and awards him with the Insect Badge. Satisfied and happy, Ash and the others walk into the sunset.
Yes! Finally the gym battle I’ve been waiting for. I think Burgh uses the same Pokemon in the episode as he does in the video game. Actually, I don’t recall his using Dwebble in the game. Anyways, I don’t remember. I love how they get right down to business; sometimes 20 minutes isn’t enough for a gym match. I can’t complain about the choices. Tepig enjoys a type advantage, Sewaddle gets some love, and Pikachu finally redeems himself (he gets beat up a lot). It’s funny how Cilan and Iris always provide the “correct” or smart strategy, but Ash always battles his own way. Oh, and Burgh kind of got annoying with his remarks, his voice reminds me a little bit of Pegasus from the Yu-Gi-Oh! anime. I made a comment on my last review (of the previous episode) about how this series’ evolutions are bland and seemingly random. Sewaddle did evolve in stereotypical fashion (during a battle), but he didn’t seem to be under epic duress. There is some more plot development and James finally gets his first Pokemon from the Unova region. Battling for the Love of Bug Types! is one episode you do not want to miss!