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Description
Animated Atrocities: Cameron's Secret Weapon/A Unova League Evolution

Show: Pokemon
Episode(s): 766-767
Year: 2012/2013

Writer(s): Yukiyoshi Ōhashi (Cameron's Secret Weapon), Shinzō Fujita (A Unova League Evolution)
Director(s): Shigeru Ueda, Hiromasa Amano, Atsushi Ogata (Cameron's Secret Weapon), Yūji Asada, Masaaki Iwane (A Unova League Evolution)

This mismatched staff might explain why this battle is one of the worst in the entire series. With a multipart episode you wanna keep your staff as close as possible to maintain consistency and continuity between episodes as to make things flow more organically unless you feel the secondary staff on part 2 can follow along with the staff from part 1 and maintain the intentions. I'd say that, but then I remembered Cameron is the worst fucking trainer in the entire series!

Seriously, I don't think I've ever encountered a character in Pokémon that is so completely idiotic in his inception! Having a character that has flaws and makes missteps is nice as it keeps them from being bland or Sues, but this goes too far into just making Cameron a fucking invalid! He makes Ash at his absolute most incompetent in this or any other series of the anime look like a fucking champion! And you know you're a terrible trainer when your own PARTNER POKÉMON shows it's ashamed of you! But beyond that Cameron is a special kind of terrible when it comes to Ash's rivals; and unlike most of them Ash actually got to hang out with him for quite some time in an attempt to flesh him out, which unlike with Alain in the Mega Evolution specials only served to emphasize how bad he is as a trainer!

This kid honestly thought he needed 7 BADGES to enter the UNOVA LEAGUE which he though was in JOHTO'S ECRUTEAK CITY! His existence was the only reason they even brought up Marlon at all because he needed another badge! And it's very clear that this kid is supposed to be a clone of Ash with Riolu as his Pikachu and many of his Pokémon representing ones Ash owns. How else can you explain this tard being able to train a FUCKING HYDREIGON? A Pokémon known for being super vicious and uncontrollable? At first, his battle with Ash starts out relatively alright (minus nobody bothering to switch out Pokémon for typing) with both parties seeming evenly matched. I expected Hydreigon to wipe out at least 2 of Ash's Pokémon, Cameron didn't call it his secret weapon for nothing, but then the battle just gets pathetic...

Cameron honest to God is worse at typing than Ash is! He tries to fight a Pignite with a Ferrothorn! A Pokémon that has a QUADRUPLE WEAKNESS to fire! He pulls the same shit using the WATER Pokémon Samurott and Swanna (which also has quadruple weakness to Electric being partially Flying-Type) to fight PIKACHU! It would be one thing if he used them in an anti-weakness strategy but they both go down in essentially one shot with no effort whatsoever! This leaves the match 2-3 with Ash at a hefty advantage and... oh wait, NO IT DOESN'T! As it turns out Cameron though this big, important semifinal match was 5-ON-5! So he only had Riolu left on his team! Aren't you supposed to register your team prior to a match to prevent stuff like this? That's how Ash did it with Gary and why Pikachu wasn't used after all.

You would think that this battle by now would be a cinch for Ash to win, right? WRONG! As it just so happens, Cameron gets the same exactly lucky last-minute come-from-behind bullshit you usually reserve for Ash, only about a thousand times more convoluted when his Riolu evolves into Lucario and SWEEPS ASH'S TEAM! Now, when this kinds thing happens with Ash's Pokémon evolving for a come-from-behind victory the Pokémon in question usually doesn't sweep the opponents remaining team at all unless they're Pikachu; they actually uses this well in his battle against Burgh where his Sewaddle evolved into Swadloon defeating Burgh's Whirlipede, but fallling to his higher evolved form Leavanny.

Not even Ash has had the insurmountable luck Cameron got in not only beating Ash's Unfezant as a Riolu, but upon evolving into Lucario and learning Aura Sphere absolutely TROUNCES Ash's Snivy and Pikachu; who, mind you already battled prior so they're very worn out. in this way we aren't given a proper gauge for Lucario's increased strength at all since he's basically wailing on the scraps! The dialogue from the sidelines does imply Lucario is indeed stronger, but that's not enough because again, he's battling Pokémon that have already been weakened! The show seems to believe Lucario is this untouchable, unbeatable God Pokémon and that's why Ash can never have one despite him clearly deserving one and that it's power is wildly inconsistent; this was especially bad with Korrina and her Mega-Lucario!

The only good thing I can say about the League finale is that fortunately this MORON doesn't win the whole enchilada; Virgil, the Sue who has literally ALL THE EEVEELUTIONS but is still more of a real character and overall more deserving rival to Ash than Cameron beats him and becomes the Unova League Champion! I knew Ash wasn't gonna win the league this time when he got assistance from Roxy as the only way to beat her, but I didn't want him to lose LIKE THIS! The sad thing is Virgil is the only rival Ash never actually battles and that's honestly a very big shame, with Trip having been knocked out in the prelims by Ash in just one attack. As much as Best Wishes utterly raped Ash's character I still think he deserved better than this!

Comparing this to his losses against Ritchie and Alain is a very middle ground. Ritchie's was far more convoluted as if the universe was just ITCHING to torture Ash just for fun a la Stressed Eric; but being it was the first league I could easily let it slide somewhat despite the immense annoyance. Against Alain, an already established character from the Mega Evolution Specials and someone Ash has battled against twice AND LOST you'd expect him to at least defeat him in the league and win this time with all the hyping XY did as a way to get you pumped since it bucked many of the trends the anime usually does. Alain was always meant to be Ash's final opponent in the league and I can accept that, but the loss felt very very forced to me especially going by later dialogue that implies Ash SHOULD HAVE WON. Add to that Alain essentially being an unintended HENCHMAN for Team Flare and never once questioning their motives and it makes it hard to accept Alain as a victor because he was an asset in TERRORISM, whether he knew it or not.

But this battle, although the result was inevitable, was far more frustrating just having someone STUPIDER THAN ASH defeat him despite being at a major handicap! It's not the most forced loss Ash has ever received but it's damn sure the most infuriating by miles! The guy who beats Cameron and moves on to win the league, Ash never actually fought! But the fact that Cameron was basically a side companion for Ash for a time makes it all the more aggravating since we see just how INCOMPETENT he truly is! How the hell did this kid even manage to RAISE A HYDREIGON without getting eaten!

Cringe-Inducing Audio: 3
Cringe-Inducing Visuals: 0
Lackluster Writing: 10
Annoyance: 10
Disturbing Content: 0
Unnecessary Cruelty: 3
Rancid Morality: 0
Low Production Values: 5
Unfortunate Implications: 0
Character Derailment: 8

Final Score: 39/100

Pokemon is owed by Nintendo, Game Freak and The Pokémon Company.

Animated Atrocities is from

Regulas314

Description
Animated Atrocities: Cameron's Secret Weapon/A Unova League Evolution

Show: Pokemon
Episode(s): 766-767
Year: 2012/2013

Writer(s): Yukiyoshi Ōhashi (Cameron's Secret Weapon), Shinzō Fujita (A Unova League Evolution)
Director(s): Shigeru Ueda, Hiromasa Amano, Atsushi Ogata (Cameron's Secret Weapon), Yūji Asada, Masaaki Iwane (A Unova League Evolution)

This mismatched staff might explain why this battle is one of the worst in the entire series. With a multipart episode you wanna keep your staff as close as possible to maintain consistency and continuity between episodes as to make things flow more organically unless you feel the secondary staff on part 2 can follow along with the staff from part 1 and maintain the intentions. I'd say that, but then I remembered Cameron is the worst fucking trainer in the entire series!

Seriously, I don't think I've ever encountered a character in Pokémon that is so completely idiotic in his inception! Having a character that has flaws and makes missteps is nice as it keeps them from being bland or Sues, but this goes too far into just making Cameron a fucking invalid! He makes Ash at his absolute most incompetent in this or any other series of the anime look like a fucking champion! And you know you're a terrible trainer when your own PARTNER POKÉMON shows it's ashamed of you! But beyond that Cameron is a special kind of terrible when it comes to Ash's rivals; and unlike most of them Ash actually got to hang out with him for quite some time in an attempt to flesh him out, which unlike with Alain in the Mega Evolution specials only served to emphasize how bad he is as a trainer!

This kid honestly thought he needed 7 BADGES to enter the UNOVA LEAGUE which he though was in JOHTO'S ECRUTEAK CITY! His existence was the only reason they even brought up Marlon at all because he needed another badge! And it's very clear that this kid is supposed to be a clone of Ash with Riolu as his Pikachu and many of his Pokémon representing ones Ash owns. How else can you explain this tard being able to train a FUCKING HYDREIGON? A Pokémon known for being super vicious and uncontrollable? At first, his battle with Ash starts out relatively alright (minus nobody bothering to switch out Pokémon for typing) with both parties seeming evenly matched. I expected Hydreigon to wipe out at least 2 of Ash's Pokémon, Cameron didn't call it his secret weapon for nothing, but then the battle just gets pathetic...

Cameron honest to God is worse at typing than Ash is! He tries to fight a Pignite with a Ferrothorn! A Pokémon that has a QUADRUPLE WEAKNESS to fire! He pulls the same shit using the WATER Pokémon Samurott and Swanna (which also has quadruple weakness to Electric being partially Flying-Type) to fight PIKACHU! It would be one thing if he used them in an anti-weakness strategy but they both go down in essentially one shot with no effort whatsoever! This leaves the match 2-3 with Ash at a hefty advantage and... oh wait, NO IT DOESN'T! As it turns out Cameron though this big, important semifinal match was 5-ON-5! So he only had Riolu left on his team! Aren't you supposed to register your team prior to a match to prevent stuff like this? That's how Ash did it with Gary and why Pikachu wasn't used after all.

You would think that this battle by now would be a cinch for Ash to win, right? WRONG! As it just so happens, Cameron gets the same exactly lucky last-minute come-from-behind bullshit you usually reserve for Ash, only about a thousand times more convoluted when his Riolu evolves into Lucario and SWEEPS ASH'S TEAM! Now, when this kinds thing happens with Ash's Pokémon evolving for a come-from-behind victory the Pokémon in question usually doesn't sweep the opponents remaining team at all unless they're Pikachu; they actually uses this well in his battle against Burgh where his Sewaddle evolved into Swadloon defeating Burgh's Whirlipede, but fallling to his higher evolved form Leavanny.

Not even Ash has had the insurmountable luck Cameron got in not only beating Ash's Unfezant as a Riolu, but upon evolving into Lucario and learning Aura Sphere absolutely TROUNCES Ash's Snivy and Pikachu; who, mind you already battled prior so they're very worn out. in this way we aren't given a proper gauge for Lucario's increased strength at all since he's basically wailing on the scraps! The dialogue from the sidelines does imply Lucario is indeed stronger, but that's not enough because again, he's battling Pokémon that have already been weakened! The show seems to believe Lucario is this untouchable, unbeatable God Pokémon and that's why Ash can never have one despite him clearly deserving one and that it's power is wildly inconsistent; this was especially bad with Korrina and her Mega-Lucario!

The only good thing I can say about the League finale is that fortunately this MORON doesn't win the whole enchilada; Virgil, the Sue who has literally ALL THE EEVEELUTIONS but is still more of a real character and overall more deserving rival to Ash than Cameron beats him and becomes the Unova League Champion! I knew Ash wasn't gonna win the league this time when he got assistance from Roxy as the only way to beat her, but I didn't want him to lose LIKE THIS! The sad thing is Virgil is the only rival Ash never actually battles and that's honestly a very big shame, with Trip having been knocked out in the prelims by Ash in just one attack. As much as Best Wishes utterly raped Ash's character I still think he deserved better than this!

Comparing this to his losses against Ritchie and Alain is a very middle ground. Ritchie's was far more convoluted as if the universe was just ITCHING to torture Ash just for fun a la Stressed Eric; but being it was the first league I could easily let it slide somewhat despite the immense annoyance. Against Alain, an already established character from the Mega Evolution Specials and someone Ash has battled against twice AND LOST you'd expect him to at least defeat him in the league and win this time with all the hyping XY did as a way to get you pumped since it bucked many of the trends the anime usually does. Alain was always meant to be Ash's final opponent in the league and I can accept that, but the loss felt very very forced to me especially going by later dialogue that implies Ash SHOULD HAVE WON. Add to that Alain essentially being an unintended HENCHMAN for Team Flare and never once questioning their motives and it makes it hard to accept Alain as a victor because he was an asset in TERRORISM, whether he knew it or not.

But this battle, although the result was inevitable, was far more frustrating just having someone STUPIDER THAN ASH defeat him despite being at a major handicap! It's not the most forced loss Ash has ever received but it's damn sure the most infuriating by miles! The guy who beats Cameron and moves on to win the league, Ash never actually fought! But the fact that Cameron was basically a side companion for Ash for a time makes it all the more aggravating since we see just how INCOMPETENT he truly is! How the hell did this kid even manage to RAISE A HYDREIGON without getting eaten!

Cringe-Inducing Audio: 3
Cringe-Inducing Visuals: 0
Lackluster Writing: 10
Annoyance: 10
Disturbing Content: 0
Unnecessary Cruelty: 3
Rancid Morality: 0
Low Production Values: 5
Unfortunate Implications: 0
Character Derailment: 8

Final Score: 39/100

Pokemon is owed by Nintendo, Game Freak and The Pokémon Company.

Animated Atrocities is from

Regulas314