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Description
Show: Pokémon
Episode: 88
Year: 1999/2000

Writer(s): Atsuhiro Tomioka

Takeshi Shudo is well known for being the original head writer of the Pokémon anime in its original seasons from Kanto to Johto, but despite his position he wrote very few episodes by himself and had very little creative control within the series proper despite creating the basic groundwork for the series itself as well as adapting Ash, Misty, Brock and even the Team Rocket Trio. Even though he didn't write anything for the Orange Archipelago season beyond the second movie this episode in particular is based upon a concept Mr. Shudo had for a grand finale to the anime. His original idea was to have every Pokemon in the world revolt against humankind and inevitably conquer the earth with Pikachu and Meowth as the rulers in this Pokemon Utopia. I can't say for certain that it would've been the best course of action for the grand finale of the show but it's defintiely a cool idea in concept and I think it could've been pulled off. However this episode by itself uses a more toned down version of the plot for something great as well.

Back in Generation 1 Psychic Pokemon were the most broken and powerful species of Pocket Monster out there! There really wasn't that much that could stop them unless you level grind to the maximum, and even then you'd still have a difficult time. Even in the anime's early years what could resist the power of Psychic Pokemon wasn't entirely clear and their attacks were made out to be extremely broken and on-par with a Legendary Pokemon. Team Rocket's main goal is to obtain all the rare and powerful Pokemon of the world for conquest, so what better way to get them than through mind control? Hypnosis/Mind control plots such as this are always a delight when done right and not just a way to show the series is running out of ideas (you're day will come Day of the Jackanapes).

Imagine your very best friend in the whole world just suddenly turned against you and tries to kill you without a moments notice! A mysterious force is spreading through Mandarin Island and causing every Pokemon to turn against their trainers, even Ash's Pikachu is affected along with Togepi! The only Pokemon unaffected is a lone Gastly owned by the resident Officer Jenny, since as a ghost-type its resistant to psychic attacks, hinting that a Pokemon is at work here; and yes I know Gastly is also a poison-type, the anime has never been good with dual-type rules. And things really get outta whack when Team Rocket's Pokemon turn on them, even MEOWTH! I should also point out this is one of the last times we see Jessie's Lickitung in action as well, since it was largely a useless addition to the team and barely did anything.

As it turns out Botch and Cassidy have been the ones brainwashing all the Pokemon on the island, putting them under their control and prepping them to be shipped to Giovanni. Bitch and Cassidy back in the beginning worked very well as more serious foils to Jessie and James' goofy antics, proving how formidable Team Rocket really was beyond the trio we know and love. Their very first plan was a fake Breeding Center that almost managed to work, and while they got arrested from that time they did get one thing out of it: an extremely powerful Drowzee! It is this Drowzee through a modification of its Hypnosis attack and it's funky groove that every Pokemon within its hypnotic radius has fallen under their control! And let me just say Pikachu and Meowth among every other Pokemon look absolutely terrifying with those evil glares and red glowing eyes! Still, watching those 4 recite the motto is funny enough.

Whenever Pokemon delves into the supernatural or unusual You can expect it to be a very interesting experience. I've never really seen a Pokemon's Hypnosis be used for mind control before or since this episode, and its a shame because it is a very useful mod to it. Compare this episode to "Hypno's Naptime", where the worst thing that happened was kids acting like Pokemon via Hypno's powers and Drowzee being used to cure them. Here it's Drowzee causing the hypnotic pandemonium; and it is honestly really creepy.

It's episodes such as these that also show Jessie and James at their very best. When they fight on the side of good they're extremely competent battlers and strategists that don't just go for the same one-trick Ponyta tactics of pitfalls and shock-proof robots. It's no wonder Takeshi Shudo loved these 3. The Trio themselves may work for a criminal organization but they themselves aren't pure evil. Rather, they're just good people who do bad things because they had to stop living honest lives for one reason or another, and I'll get into that another time. The fact that they're not just helping Ash and co but THE POLICE of all things proves that they genuinely love their Pokemon and would do anything to keep them safe, even if it means "blemishing their criminal records".

I have to give Messy and Lames credit for their plan, using a cart of empty Pokeball's to coerce Cassidy and Blotch was sheer genius! The final showdown against Bonk, Cassidy and Drowzee is pretty impressive for the time seeing all those Pokemon combine their attacks while one Gastly blocks them all, with Ash showing a level of balls I haven't seen since Mewtwo Strikes Back; tricking his Brainwashed Buddy into blowing up Team Rocket's little mind control tower. I would also like to make note that this is the very first time we see Togepi using Metronome as it apparently first learns it from Drowzee and it surprisingly works for the first and only time, not coming off as a total deux ex machina. I see it as Togepi learning it for the first time in a way.

So in the end while Takeshi Shudo didn't personally write this episode I do see it as using one of his concepts and modifying it a bit to better fit the show as a whole. The idea of a worldwide Pokemon revolution while cool, is surprisingly too dark even for a series that can get Eggs-istential at times. The idea of such a thing would be too Gastly for my tastes if it were to be the end of the show. Now if you'll excuse me I gotta get some sleep, I'm starting to feel Drowzee....

Pokemon is owned by Nintendo, Gamefreak and The Pokemon Company.

1001 Animations is from

Regulas314

Description
Show: Pokémon
Episode: 88
Year: 1999/2000

Writer(s): Atsuhiro Tomioka

Takeshi Shudo is well known for being the original head writer of the Pokémon anime in its original seasons from Kanto to Johto, but despite his position he wrote very few episodes by himself and had very little creative control within the series proper despite creating the basic groundwork for the series itself as well as adapting Ash, Misty, Brock and even the Team Rocket Trio. Even though he didn't write anything for the Orange Archipelago season beyond the second movie this episode in particular is based upon a concept Mr. Shudo had for a grand finale to the anime. His original idea was to have every Pokemon in the world revolt against humankind and inevitably conquer the earth with Pikachu and Meowth as the rulers in this Pokemon Utopia. I can't say for certain that it would've been the best course of action for the grand finale of the show but it's defintiely a cool idea in concept and I think it could've been pulled off. However this episode by itself uses a more toned down version of the plot for something great as well.

Back in Generation 1 Psychic Pokemon were the most broken and powerful species of Pocket Monster out there! There really wasn't that much that could stop them unless you level grind to the maximum, and even then you'd still have a difficult time. Even in the anime's early years what could resist the power of Psychic Pokemon wasn't entirely clear and their attacks were made out to be extremely broken and on-par with a Legendary Pokemon. Team Rocket's main goal is to obtain all the rare and powerful Pokemon of the world for conquest, so what better way to get them than through mind control? Hypnosis/Mind control plots such as this are always a delight when done right and not just a way to show the series is running out of ideas (you're day will come Day of the Jackanapes).

Imagine your very best friend in the whole world just suddenly turned against you and tries to kill you without a moments notice! A mysterious force is spreading through Mandarin Island and causing every Pokemon to turn against their trainers, even Ash's Pikachu is affected along with Togepi! The only Pokemon unaffected is a lone Gastly owned by the resident Officer Jenny, since as a ghost-type its resistant to psychic attacks, hinting that a Pokemon is at work here; and yes I know Gastly is also a poison-type, the anime has never been good with dual-type rules. And things really get outta whack when Team Rocket's Pokemon turn on them, even MEOWTH! I should also point out this is one of the last times we see Jessie's Lickitung in action as well, since it was largely a useless addition to the team and barely did anything.

As it turns out Botch and Cassidy have been the ones brainwashing all the Pokemon on the island, putting them under their control and prepping them to be shipped to Giovanni. Bitch and Cassidy back in the beginning worked very well as more serious foils to Jessie and James' goofy antics, proving how formidable Team Rocket really was beyond the trio we know and love. Their very first plan was a fake Breeding Center that almost managed to work, and while they got arrested from that time they did get one thing out of it: an extremely powerful Drowzee! It is this Drowzee through a modification of its Hypnosis attack and it's funky groove that every Pokemon within its hypnotic radius has fallen under their control! And let me just say Pikachu and Meowth among every other Pokemon look absolutely terrifying with those evil glares and red glowing eyes! Still, watching those 4 recite the motto is funny enough.

Whenever Pokemon delves into the supernatural or unusual You can expect it to be a very interesting experience. I've never really seen a Pokemon's Hypnosis be used for mind control before or since this episode, and its a shame because it is a very useful mod to it. Compare this episode to "Hypno's Naptime", where the worst thing that happened was kids acting like Pokemon via Hypno's powers and Drowzee being used to cure them. Here it's Drowzee causing the hypnotic pandemonium; and it is honestly really creepy.

It's episodes such as these that also show Jessie and James at their very best. When they fight on the side of good they're extremely competent battlers and strategists that don't just go for the same one-trick Ponyta tactics of pitfalls and shock-proof robots. It's no wonder Takeshi Shudo loved these 3. The Trio themselves may work for a criminal organization but they themselves aren't pure evil. Rather, they're just good people who do bad things because they had to stop living honest lives for one reason or another, and I'll get into that another time. The fact that they're not just helping Ash and co but THE POLICE of all things proves that they genuinely love their Pokemon and would do anything to keep them safe, even if it means "blemishing their criminal records".

I have to give Messy and Lames credit for their plan, using a cart of empty Pokeball's to coerce Cassidy and Blotch was sheer genius! The final showdown against Bonk, Cassidy and Drowzee is pretty impressive for the time seeing all those Pokemon combine their attacks while one Gastly blocks them all, with Ash showing a level of balls I haven't seen since Mewtwo Strikes Back; tricking his Brainwashed Buddy into blowing up Team Rocket's little mind control tower. I would also like to make note that this is the very first time we see Togepi using Metronome as it apparently first learns it from Drowzee and it surprisingly works for the first and only time, not coming off as a total deux ex machina. I see it as Togepi learning it for the first time in a way.

So in the end while Takeshi Shudo didn't personally write this episode I do see it as using one of his concepts and modifying it a bit to better fit the show as a whole. The idea of a worldwide Pokemon revolution while cool, is surprisingly too dark even for a series that can get Eggs-istential at times. The idea of such a thing would be too Gastly for my tastes if it were to be the end of the show. Now if you'll excuse me I gotta get some sleep, I'm starting to feel Drowzee....

Pokemon is owned by Nintendo, Gamefreak and The Pokemon Company.

1001 Animations is from

Regulas314