ENGLISH NAME	JAPANESE NAME	POKEMOPOLIS NAME	DODGINESS RATING	ANIMATION	STORY	TEAM ROCKET	MORAL LEARNT
681: The Dragon Master's Path!	686: Doragon Masuta e no Michi! Kibago Bui Esu Kurimugan!	Here Be Dragons			The twerps meet a new trainer and her dragon, Axew masters Dragon Rage	Jetsetters	It's easy to decide to start a Pokémon Journey when your Pokémon is a FUCKING DRAGON!

Today finds Ash and Iris getting in some training again with Scraggy and Axew, the two baby/toddlers tottering about having their little babby-fight. Iris tries once again to have Axew use Dragon Rage, and as before it LOOKS like it is starting right, but ends up blowing up in Axew's face. Cilan amusingly calls it a Dragon Sneeze with a bitter aftertaste, infuriating Iris who pounds the floor in anger. She tells Ash that she has no choice but to keep on keeping on, training a Dragon Type takes a long time. She steps down into the little crater formed by the Dragon Rage and picks up Axew, and Ash recalls Scraggy - training is done for now it seems. But just then rustling in the bushes catches their attention and they turn to see a jet of flame emerge, and then a..... Druddigon! What the hell is a Druddigon? It's one big ass humanoid dragon, and it looks pissed! Have they crossed....



Ash's reaction to this monstrous, furious dragon emerging directly in front of them? Stand right in front of it and use his Pokédex to check it out. With a roar it prepares a Focus Blast, and Ash counters it with an Electro-Ball from Pikachu, which enrages it even further. Before the battle can continue though, a short-haired, tall woman comes running up in front of it. She clearly knows it, but instead of being happy to see her it rushes away, giving us a quick peek at what seems to be a coil of wire around its ankle. The woman rushes after it, followed by the twerps, and Iris zips ahead, finding some caves where Druddigon is likely to be. The others arrive, and Iris tells Axew to go find Druddigon and tell it to come out. It skitters up the wall with surprising agility, enters a cave.... and emerges with a squeak as Druddigon bursts out after it with a roar.

Axew rushes into Iris' hair, and Druddigon leaps down from the cave and lets loose a roar of fury directly into the twerps' faces.... but Iris seems nonplussed by it all. She approaches and tells it that it is fine, it roars in fury.... then pain, struggling to stand as Iris kneels down and unwraps the wire around its ankle. The woman - still unidentified - thanks Iris, but she doesn't know where the wire (she calls it a rope despite CLEARLY being a wire) came from. She figures it might have happened when Druddigon went looking for berries earlier... could somebody have done this to Druddigon?

Oh dear I've got a bad (Good!) feeling about this

The woman finally introduces herself, she's Emmy. The twerps introduce themselves back (well this is only polite after all!) and Ash explains that Pikachu is his partner, which probably delights a large number of desperately jonesing shippers. Emmy is confused how Iris knew where Druddigon was, but Iris explains that Druddigon's find it difficult to move in the cold and the cave she sent Axew into was high up with the sunlight on it so that was probably where it was. Ash is impressed, she knows a lot about Dragon Types, and with a sigh she reminds him that she was brought up in the Village of the Dragons and asks him if he forgot? And... he did!

Meanwhile up high in the rocks looking over them is... Team Rocket! Yes, of course it was them who tried to capture Druddigon, and yes it WAS a wire and not a rope that they used. Jesse is pleased that it got away though, as her unusually well-animated mouth in close-up tells us, because it has lead them to the twerps and another Dragon-Type in Axew, as well as the pick of the Pokémon crop - Pikachu.

As Pikachu and Axew play skip-rope with Druddigon’s tail and Emmy watches, the twerps impolitely head away to talk amongst themselves. They're talking about her village, where everybody was very laid back despite living amongst FUCKING DRAGONS. Iris tells them the absolute best are Dragon Masters, and blushes as she admits that this is what she dreams of being herself. Emmy overhears and enters the conversation even though they've clearly ostracized her from their group and says this explains how Iris knows so much about dragons and asks for a favour - can Iris teach her more? She's only been a trainer for a little while, and the only reason she has a Druddigon is because it belonged to her Dad and he traded it to her.

That is incredibly, incredibly pathetic.

Iris says the best way to get her feeling comfortable with being a Dragon Trainer is to battle with one. Emmy obviously is unsure about this, but Cilan agrees it is the best idea, and Ash has only heard "Blah blah blah blah HAVE A BATTLE blah blah blah," and immediately agrees that having a battle would be awesome. The next thing you know, Emmy and her massive Druddigon are facing off against Ash and his... sneezy pig! The outcome is EXACTLY what you'd expect from such an unbalanced battle.....



wait... what?

Druddigon is upended, and Iris tells Emmy to stay calm and put Tepig down. She sends Druddigon back in with Focus Blast, but Tepig avoids it and tries Flame Charge. Emmy freaks out but Iris tells her that Druddigon can handle it and has her get Druddigon to block the attack, then charge in with Dragon Claw. Tepig comes back with Ember and singes an alarmed Druddigon, but Iris convinces Emmy to keep Druddigon charging forward, knocking the Embers aside with Dragon Claw and... knocking Tepig the fuck out! Emmy won! She's delighted, and Druddigon hops about in triumph, while Iris tells her that getting in synch with a Dragon isn't easy and the important thing is to just keep trying.

Cilan asks if Druddigon knows any other moves than Focus Blast, Dragon Claw and Flamethrower, but so far it is just those three. Iris tells her that learning one more move would make a huge difference.... at which point A DEAD HUMAN SOUL CARRYING ITS DEATH MASK WITH IT attacks out of nowhere! It blasts Shadow Ball at Druddigon and the twerps, confusing the hell out of them, but Emmy has already picked up some fighting spirit and tells Druddigon to use Flamethrower... but the attack is blown away by a.... Woobat? The heavy gust blows the twerps back as they struggle to keep their footing, and Pikachu and Axew are blown clear... and caught up in wire nooses, followed by Druddigon, hauling all three struggling Pokémon back. Emmy has Druddigon use Dragon Claw to cut Pikachu free, but it and Axew are then hauled into the air and thrust into the interior of a floating battle station. What's going on?

"Now there's a twerpish question, dumb indeed!"
"The answer to come, as we feel the need!"
"We bring the white light of evil into the future!"
"Crashing the hammer onto the black darkness of the universe!"
"And carving our names in da rock of eternity!"
"The fiery destroyer, Jesse!"
"And with thunderous emotion, I am James."
"Wisest of da wise, Meowth!"
"Now gather under the name of Team Rocket!" they all finish together, the camera zoomed in on the R's on Jesse and James' chests (and coincidentally, Jesse's tits!).

Ash explains to Emmy that they're bad guys who steal Pokémon, but James insists that they're actually geniuses. Jesse says that catching Pikachu will be the icing on the cake that they'll bake for the Boss and.... the whole statement kinda falls apart really. Iris is furious, Axew is HER partner, and she rushes agilely up the cliff and leaps Action-Hero-Ash style for their aircraft... and misses and plunges towards her death! She falls and falls with a scream, Ash standing just about in the right place to catch her except he doesn't actually do anything, he just stands there and watches her plummeting towards death. At the last second she gives up on waiting for him to do anything heroic (or Cilan!) and just twists her body so she lands safely on her feet.

James claims they'll raise Axew properly and evolve it, and Jesse says that then they'll take over the whole Unova region (with one Pokémon? Who are they, Tobias?). Yamask blasts at the twerps to scatter them, then it and Woobat rejoin Team Rocket and off they zip in their air-craft, heading for some mesas to go to ground and make contact with the Boss. The craft starts to shake badly though, as Druddigon attempts to claw its way out. James assures them though that the craft can handle the attack, Druddigon won't be able to break out.

The twerps are rushing through the forest keeping their eyes on the aircraft. Iris is thinking about when she and Axew set off on their journey in the first place, and the Elder woman gave her advice on the many Pokémon and Trainers they'd meet on their journey, the experiences that would await, excitement and sorrow, good times and bad times - once they succeed in overcoming all adversities then she will be well on her way to becoming a Dragon Master. Iris considers that this is just one of those bad experiences that needs overcoming, and she rushes forward a little faster, the others struggling to keep up.

Inside the hold of Team Rocket's aircraft, Druddigon has succeeded in denting the wall but little else. Axew tells it to step back and then braces itself, and begins to glow with Dragon Rage. Whether it succeeds in this or not is unclear, but the resulting explosion is enough to severely damage Team Rocket's craft and send it crashing down to the ground. Team Rocket emerge surprised, they didn't know that Axew could pull off a move like that, but James says that once it agrees to join them, this is going to be a real asset.

Druddigon pounds its way out and with Axew on its back they head away. Jesse says they won't get far, while on the other side of the mesa Iris pauses the twerps to get up on the branches of a tree and listen/sense where Axew is. She sets off in a completely different direction than Cilan thinks would be the fastest, but Ash says he trusts her "sense" and follows after her.

Druddigon skids to a halt as it gets near the edge of a ledge, and Axew flies off of it and hits a mossy rock. Druddigon seems concerned but Axew laughs it off, but before they can continue on Yamask and Woobat get in their way. Team Rocket arrive and tell them there is no escape, and Druddigon attempts to use Focus Blast on them, but with the characteristic grace that Team Rocket has except when they don't, they easily dodge the attack.



Jesse says she likes how feisty Druddigon is, but James says that they're through playing kids' gam-

NINTENDO REPRESENTATIVE: You are NOT through with playing kids' games, you will play kids' games forever. Do not suffer our wrath.

-es and has Yamask use Shadowball, before Jesse has Woobat use Gust. They tell Druddigon to join them willingly and they will take over the Unova Region, but Iris says this isn't going to happen. Team Rocket are shocked to see the twerps there (as they should be, they were probably flying at 50-60mph while the twerps were running at maximum 10-12mph), and Pikachu's Electro-Ball gives the distraction needed for Axew and Druddigon to be reunited with their trainers.

Team Rocket aren't giving up though and James has Yamask use Nightshade, making the DEAD HUMAN SOUL even creepier as it sends out waves of dark energy over them all. Druddigon protects Emmy from the brunt of the attack, and she is immeasurably grateful for it, and then it comes back itself with a fourth attack at last.... Draco Meteor!

OH SHIIIIIIIIIT!



It blasts into the air and explodes out in a circle of meteors which come crashing down over Team Rocket (and presumably behind where the twerps are standing), one of which hits Yamask direction and knocks it out. James and Jesse are just more convinced of the worth of capturing it though and send in Woobat with Gust, but Pikachu blasts it away with Electro Ball, and then Axew uses Dragon Rage.... correctly!?!



Blue arcs of electric energy in the shape of dragons bursts from its mouth and straight into Team Rocket. Iris stares with wobbly eyes of joy, the twerps cheer, the smoke clears and... Team Rocket are nowhere to be seen! Where are they? They got the fuck out of dodge when the attack came and strapped on their jetpacks, and head away complaining bitterly about the twerps always getting in their way. And with that, they're off, Team Rocket's.... jetting off again!

Iris hugs Axew with delight and presses her cheek against Axew's, in utter bliss at Axew finally learning to use the attack correctly. Cilan comments that it was a long time coming but the taste was well worth the wait. Ash is impressed with Druddigon’s Draco Meteor too, and Emmy says she has finally decided to set off on her journey with Druddigon. Iris is more determined than ever to be a Dragon Master, Ash of course wants to be a Pokémon Master, and Cilan.... well Cilan has a very good sense of fashion.

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