ENGLISH NAME	JAPANESE NAME	POKEMOPOLIS NAME	DODGINESS RATING	ANIMATION	STORY	TEAM ROCKET	MORAL LEARNT
722: Climbing the Tower of Success!	728: Nankan Toppa!! Tenku no To o Nobore!	The Towering of Fun, Yo			The twerps take part in a contest to climb a tower and make a wish	Sigh	Soul stealing demons infiltrated your fun festival? Eh, no big deal!

Today finds Ash mooning happily over his six Gym Badges, talking up his awesome battle with Skyla. Iris tells him only a kid would continue to brag about his battle this long after it was over, but she can't get him down, he's over the moon. They pause in surprise as they take in the sight of Mistralton city ahead of them. Apparently they headed out into the forest for awhile after winning the Gym Battle? In any case, the city is dominated by a huge, tall tower raising up high above all the other buildings. Cilan tells him this is Mistralton Tower, and then to their surprise who should show up but Stephan! Of course Ash gets his name wrong, and of course none of us notice because the variations that the twerps come up with pretty much sound like Stephan anyway! Ash asks if he is here to have a Gym Battle too, but nope, Stephan is here for the Wishing Bell Festival, which takes place in Mistralton Tower. He shouldn't have mentioned that, because if there is anything Ash loves, it is inserting himself into a festival he never heard of and instantly winning it! So who will it be, Stephan or Ash, who is...



They head into the city and stop in a deserted park to find out more about the Wishing Bell Festival. He explains there is an obstacle course to get through, then climb the tower in a race, and whoever gets there first wins the festival and gets to ring the bell - and legend says that whoever rings the bell will get a wish come true. Ash and Iris are delighted, though Cilan seems bemused and sceptical. Iris quite rightly points out that it's meant to be fun, who cares if it REALLY works, and she and Ash eagerly decide to take part in the Festival as well. They head to what is presumably the sign-up desk, joining a long queue of trainers of all ages eagerly pairing up with Pokémon. Ash picks Pikachu, of course, and Iris goes with Axew, while Cilan picks Pansage. Stephan plans to use Sawk, who can burn off some of that insatiable sexual tension by running his ass up some stairs. Ash checks it out with his Pokédex, remembering enough to remember they've met before. Stephan brags that Sawk has really worked up in strength, and that Ash and Pikachu don't stand a chance. A voice gets their attention and they turn to find Miles of all people is there, shocking Stephan who can't believe they know THE Miles, the guy who runs the festival!

They explain all about the Gym Battle with his granddaughter, and then Miles gets everybody gathered together to explain the rules of the Festival. He points out the tower, explaining about the obstacles and then the race up to the top. The rules are pretty much exactly what Stephan already told the twerps, it's not exactly a complicated festival. Stephan burns with passion, proclaiming he will win, and then the Festival begins!

The first "obstacle" turns out to be a rather simple "True or False" event. He asks if it is true that all first time trainers get to choose between a Fire Type, a Water Type, and a Rock Type - those who agree head over the circle sign, and those who think it is false go to the X sign. Cilan laughs that the question is a little bland, and starts heading for the X Sign while a laughing Stephan begins heading to the Circle Sign saying it is true. The twerps roar at him it's false, and he quickly joins them, while the small handful of people who got it wrong moan in disbelief at their stupidity. Stephan isn't, he's laughing at his narrow escape.

The next question is about whether or not a Castelia Cone can ONLY be bought on a Tuesday. Cilan ponders this one carefully, while Ash remembers going to a store in Castelia City but it was closed. Stephan says he thinks it's a Wednesday, and that he just FEELS it, which causes Ash and Iris to collapse. Cilan shouts out that a photographic memory is a necessity for a Connoisseur, and thinks back to the first time he ate a Castelia Cone - he can remember it like it was yesterday! Well was yesterday Tuesday? Iris demands he gets to the point and he declares that it was, so the twerps leap into the Circle Sign along with the small number of other contestants, and they're correct! And a whole hell of a lot of others were wrong!



Dawwww lookit that one Pokémon giving its stupid trainer a hug!

The third question is about Officer Jenny and Nurse Joy.... which is Miles' favourite? Holy shit! He blushes furiously as the various leftover contestants just stare in shock at this creepy old man and his incredibly inappropriate question. Cilan does his best to try and analyse the available data, but here he fails where Brock would have probably sensed a kindred spirit and figured it out. He begins freaking out at the lack of data, but they hear cynical laughter and turn to find themselves facing... Max!?! No, not quite, though he does have that Conroy-esque arrogance as he informs Cilan that his brain isn't up to HIS level. Who is he? He's Ricky, and he is... a psychic!

Ash and Stephan are astonished, as Ricky shows off his Elgyem and declares he will prove his psychic ability now by reading Ash's mind (haha) and discerning that he is.... a Pokémon trainer! Stephan and Ash gape in wonder, how could he have possibly known!?! Iris sighs as she reminds them that EVERYBODY taking part in the Festival is a Pokémon Trainer, and then Miles gets their attention again, demanding they figure out which one of the clones gives him an old man boner. Ricky throws his hand up and tries to enter Miles' mind, probing deep and then declaring that it is Officer Jenny. The twerps rush to that side, and Miles begins to reveal the answer... when Elgyem sneaks a look over Miles' shoulder and zaps Miles with psychic energy, causing the perplexed old man to change his answer from Nurse Joy to Officer Jenny. The twerps get it right, but only due to judge-tampering.... and Cilan noticed!

It's time for the next event, which is a scavenger hunt. The surviving trainers rush to a line of papers, each of which have an item that they must locate in only 5 minutes. As Ash rushes about asking local vendors if they have a Thunder Stone, Iris is in search of a Super Rod when she remembers that Cilan is a fishing connoisseur. She rushes to ask him to give it to her, and he whips out his rod and strokes it happily while she cries.

Oh Japan.

Stephan is begging Sawk to give him his black belt for the scavenger hunt, but Sawk doesn't want to expose its lack of genitals and starts running away as he chases after it trying to strip it down. Ricky has found a spoon easily enough but the hunt requires him to bend it, and he tries to use his psychic powers - with an unknown assist from Elgyem. Ash bellows for help, having no luck finding the Thunder Stone, but then one of the spectators calls out to him that he has one and tosses it... to Pikachu! Ash squawks in horror and warns Pikachu not to touch it, leaping through the air and grabbing the stone to prevent an unwanted evolution. He's just in time, grabbing the stone and turning to assure himself (and Nintendo's shaky financial investors) that Pikachu is still Pikachu.

They rush to the line and present their scavenged items along with the other contestants, though one of them was supposed to get NeverMeltIce and all he could find was regular ice, which melts in his despairing hands and costs him a spot.

The next event involves rowing in a barrel with the Pokémon across the finish line. They all get inside but the barrels struggle to maintain their balance, one of the contestants tipping over right at the start line. Cilan is the first to figure out how to get things done, asking Pansage to use its arms like Dig to help them paddle faster. Ash clicks next and has Pikachu use his tail like a propeller, and Axew gives Iris a boost with Dragon Rage directed at the water. Ricky just laughs as he watches them pull away, before "he" uses Psychic to lift the barrel out of the water and get them across the finish line. Cilan is still happy to get over in second place, followed by Ash in third and Iris in fourth. That means there is only one spot left, and they all look back to see that Stephan is amongst the stragglers. Hearing there is only one spot left gives him energy, however, and Stephan and Sawk both swim at top speed, hauling the barrel with them and getting over the line in 5th place. That round is over, and it leaves only... the Impression Round!?!

They're to be handed cards with the names of people and Pokémon on them, and will have ten minutes to use a series of available costumes/props to do the best impression of them that they can. Ash gets Alder and Bouffalant; Iris and Axew get Professor Juniper and Darumaka; Cilan and Pansage get Elesa (!) and Emolga; Stephan and Sawk get Nurse Joy (!!) and Audino; and Ricky and Elgyem have to do Officer Jenny (!!!) and Herdier (not like that). They rush to grab costumes, and Ash is the first to show off his impression. It's pretty good, he laughs and roars out in a very Alder-like voice while Pikachu gruffly declares,"PI-KA-CHU!", and Miles gives it a pass. Next is Iris with a HUGE hairdo and Axew in straight up a Darumaka costume (Iris herself isn't sure why Juniper would be paired with a Darumaka) and she passes too. Stephan is humiliated in his Nurse Joy costume while Sawk's gender is called even further into confusion by its Audino costume (literally a faceless Audino costume they found in the pile). Miles grunts that it is a little disturbing but Stephan still passes, and then out comes Ricky and Elgyem wearing.... no costumes at all! Miles is confused, but Ricky promises to explain and has Elgyem use Psychic again, creating the impression of Officer Jenny and Herdier standing right in front of Miles, who instantly passes them. Then out comes Cilan and...



Jesus Christ, Japan.

Unfortunately for Cilan and the balls he tucked as carefully between his thighs as possible in those skin-tight pants - he fails! Despite multiple efforts to be sensual like Elesa, Miles is having none of it and fails him every time, as well as Pansage and its attempts to be a cutie-pie Emolga. Cilan moans in despair, asking what he did wrong, and Miles admits he is a big Elesa fan (and a huge horndog!), and that Cilan just didn't do it for him.

The next event is the Forest Race, in which the twerps, Stephan and Ricky have to get past hostile Pokémon in the forest and get to the tower. There are only three spots available, so they have to move it! They charge in at speed, Ricky making the best progress thanks to "his" Psychic Powers. At first Iris seems to be doing well as she swings on vines, but an attack from a Chandelure soon slows her progress, and gets her running the wrong way..... past the finish line? What? To her surprise she has found her way to victory and the assembled spectators cheer her on as she crosses the finish line.

Meanwhile, Ricky manages to cross the finish line just ahead of Ash and a panting Stephan, who collapses as his name is announced (very slightly) wrong again. But where is Iris? Cilan calls them over with a laugh to reveal the truth... Iris is standing on a tree stump inside the forest giving an enthusiastic victory speech to some very confused forest Pokémon (apparently they're not ALL hostile). They bring her out of the forest and out of the illusion that Chandelure put her in, and is incredibly embarrassed to find out what has happened to her. But now it is time for the final race - they must climb the tower using Litwick-shaped candles (so they don't eat their souls?), being careful not to let their candles go out. Miles heads inside, saying he'll be waiting for them up top, joined by Cilan and Iris who by virtue of knowing Miles get to leave all the other trainers who failed outside.

It begins, and the three rush inside and discover the forbiddingly high spiral staircase that runs along the interior wall. They rush up, barely escaping an attack from one of several Pokémon inside whose job is to put out their candles. They get past and keep going, Ash enthusiastically declaring it won't be long now... and then the camera timeshifts as they find themselves a more than short amount of time later continuing to stagger up the stairs. They're attacked from behind and slide down not icy stairs... all but Ricky who is lifted up by Elgyem's psychic power and floated safely up. Ash and Stephan scramble up the ice and are quickly behind Ricky, but he gets to the top first.... so he wins? Not quite, there is one last challenge, it's a small flock of Pidove that immediately use Gust. Ash and Stephan quickly shield their candles, helped by Pikachu and Sawk, but Ricky remains supremely confident of "his" Psychic Powers to protect him, and Elgyem uses Lightscreen. Miles says this won't be good enough and the Pidove start using Air Slash. Ricky laughs at the idea, but then to his horror Lightscreen smashes and his candle is put out, it's down to just Ash and Stephan! They send in Pikachu and Sawk to fight them past the Pidove, then start rushing around the roof of the tower towards the finish line. They're neck and neck as they run, and then.... Stephan's Litwick Candle turns out to be a REAL Litwick which happily turns and blows out the light on Ash's candle! Ash is out of the race, and Stephan wins!



Stephan doesn't even care that they got his name (imperceptibly!) wrong, because he won! He hugs Sawk happily, then both gape as they realise the Litwick is real, which even Miles didn't know. He stares at the little soul-eater... then just laughs casually oh well and doesn't think anything more of it!

Stephan gets to ring the bell, and the twerps tell him they wish that his dream comes true... then jinx it by asking what it was. He tells them that he wished people would say his name correctly in the future... and that he hopes to win the Clubsplosion. What the hell is the Clubsplosion? It's the big ass fighting tournament being sponsored by the Battle Club, and you know what that means! Ash gets to fight! Also Don George will be there! Fighting and Don George! What could be better? Tune in next time to find out!

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