ENGLISH NAME	JAPANESE NAME	POKEMOPOLIS NAME	DODGINESS RATING	ANIMATION	STORY	TEAM ROCKET	MORAL LEARNT
739: Piplup, Pansage, and a Meeting of the Times!	745: Potchama Tai Yanappu! Karei naru Batoru!	Oshawott meets Piplup			Dawn returns. More importantly Piplup meets Oshawott!	Spying a Song	Work off your sexual energy with sports and competition!

Last episode saw the twerps met up with Sinnoh League Champion Cynthia and learned about the Pokémon Junior Cup. Deciding to join Cynthia and travel to Eastern Unova since the Unova League is still 3 months away, we now find the twerps arriving by seaplane in Undella Town. Peering out the window, they're pleased to see Wailord and Wingull, and Cynthia explains that Eastern Unova features many Pokémon from different regions. A Wailord breaches the water and crashes back down as the plane sails overhead. While it is nice to see some of these older Pokémon, it's all completely irrelevant against the REAL story here, as shown at the end of the last episode. Dawn is back, and that means Piplup is back too! And that means at some point Piplup is going to meet Oshawott, and that is the entire reason Pokémon was ever invented in the first place!



Ash rushes out of the plane the moment it lands, convinced he saw a Staryu in the water. The others follow him, the invisible Meloetta struggling to get past other disembarking passengers. Ash was right, he did see Staryu in the water, and Cilan comments that this resort town is a perfect place to relax. Ash is having none of that though, he came to compete in the Junior Cup and he means to train his ass off while they're there. A distinguished looking man with a ridiculous moustache approaches, ramrod back and all. His name is Jervis and he is Cynthia's Butler, which begs the question - is he her permanent Butler who travels ahead of her to prepare her homes for her, or does he live in Undella Town all year long for just in case Cynthia decides to come stay? In either case, it seems that being the Champion (of Sinnoh at least) is good for the old bank-balance!

As Jervis greets the twerps, Team Rocket are watching from a creepy child molester van, wearing their goggles and spotting Meloetta carefully watching Jervis to make sure he doesn't suddenly attack Ash. They decide not to make their move yet, not wanting to have to deal with Cynthia on top of the twerps - for now they know exactly where Meloetta is, and that is enough... for now.

Jervis takes the twerps and Cynthia to an amazingly classy car and they pile into the spacious back seats (which face each other), joined by Meloetta. Jervis is chauffeur as well as butler, driving them along the sea-view road towards Cynthia's home as she tells them a little more about Undella Town. She takes her long vacations here, as it is such an easygoing place. Cilan came to the town on vacation when he was a small boy, and went on one of the Wailord Watching Tours. Ash would like to get in on some of that action too, but is just as excited when he sees some Rattata's running alongside the road. Why anybody would be pleased to see rats out and about in the daylight is beyond me, but Cynthia's rich and they're going to be staying in a wealthy villa so what do they care!?!

Jervis tells Ash there will be plenty more Pokémon for him to see when he gets to Cynthia's home, and Ash thanks him. It seems Meloetta was just waiting to see what Ash thought of Jervis before making her own judgment, and she drifts down into Ash's lap and makes herself visible at once, much to everybody's surprise. They realise that she can turn invisible at will and smuggled herself onto the plane, and Cilan points out once again that Meloetta and Ash clearly make a good human/Pokémon pairing.

They arrive at Cynthia's vacation home and everybody tumbles out of the car to take in the sight of the glorious private home of one of the world's elite. As Jervis opens the door though, Meloetta suddenly gets frightened and disappears from view again, confusing Ash. Cynthia notes that Meloetta is clearly a very shy Pokémon and being somewhere new spooked her, and they head inside. As Ash rushes into the spacious lounge, a familiar face appears behind him and there is a tap on his shoulder. He turns to look but nobody is there, and even Pikachu gets caught in the game of looky-loo as Ash turns back and forth trying to see who is behind them, while the girl in question continually ducks out of the way and a confused Cilan and Iris just stare. Who is it? It's Dawn of course, with Piplup! They're back, baby!

Finally spotting her, Ash is delighted. Dawn waves hello, Ash does too, and then they go right back into their old habits and we get to see a delightfully dorky white-kids high five from the two of them (even though they're both Japanese!). They settle down for a cup of tea, and Dawn says hello to Iris and Cilan and reveals that she learned all about them from Professor Oak. They're surprised to learn she knows Professor Oak, but it seems that Ash has told them at least something about his life prior to meeting them as Iris knows Dawn travelled with Ash across the Sinnoh Region. Iris knows that Dawn is a Coordinator, but she doesn't actually know what a Coordinator is. For once she doesn't try to pretend she knows more than she actually does, and asks for clarification. Dawn explains the difference between a trainer and a coordinator to her - a Coordinator presents their Pokémon to look the best they can, and competes against other Coordinators in Pokémon Contests.

Cilan offers to do an evaluation of Piplup and Dawn figures out that he is a Connoisseur. As he proudly tugs on his bowtie, Iris is more interested in peering at the puffed up little Piplup as it saunters about on the table in front of her. She grabs him by the cheeks and tugs in childish delight, gasping over how squeezable he is, while Dawn checks out Axew with her Pokédex. Iris picks up the now slightly sweating Piplup and rubs her cheek against his, asking Ash to use his Pokédex on Piplup. It informs them that Piplups have trouble walking without falling down but are very proud, and Piplup proves this by strikes a FANTASTIC pose in front of Iris and Cilan.



Yesssssssssssss

Dawn explains that she came to Unova because she heard that Cynthia was going to be a special attraction at the Junior Cup, and when she got in touch with Cynthia she learned that Ash was coming too. She's been so busy that she hadn't had a chance to get in touch with Ash herself, and tells them about going to Nimbasa City to see the Pokémon Musical, which gave her all kinds of ideas for future Pokémon Contests. She also went to Elesa's fashion show for tips on how to make men want her and women hate her apparently.

As she speaks, Meloetta starts becoming slightly more visible, and is spotted by Piplup. He points excitedly at her and she disappears, and Dawn doesn't see what Piplup is trying to show her. Ash can guess though, and tries to call Meloetta out to see them, but there is no sign of her. Dawn worries that she did something to upset the unseen Pokémon, but Cynthia reassures her that it will just take time for Meloetta to get over her shyness.

Outside, the twerps call out their Pokémon to show off to Dawn, who happily rushes in to say hello to them all before sending out her own Pokémon. As a result we see for the first time in a long time Togekiss, Buneary, Pachirisu, Mamoswine and.... Quilava!?! Yes it seems that Dawn's Cyndaquil has evolved at some point. Buneary hasn't changed though, hiding behind Mamoswine's hoof she gets over her shyness when she spots Pikachu and blushingly approaches. Standing next to Pikachu is - of course - Oshawott, and he immediately - of course! - falls in love the moment he sees her. His scalchop falls off in his dismay and... yes.... yesssss! Piplup meets Oshawott!



Piplup proudly puts the scalchop onto his head and puffs out his chest, but the scalchop slowly slides off and hits the ground. Oshawott chuckles in bemusement but then Pachirisu comes happily rushing forward and gives it a good kick, sending it flying and a frantic Oshawott chasing after it.

The twerps are only interested in cooing over Buneary's lust for Pikachu though. Well not quite Ash, who is interested to see that Cyndaquil evolved, and even more interested in having a battle with Dawn, telling her it's been too long since they did it.

If the boy ever hits puberty, these poor girls are going to have exhausted pelvises.

As Mamoswine sniffs the air, sensing Meloetta's presence, Dawn asks about the Junior Cup and reveals that she is going to be taking part as well. They intend to use Cynthia's house as a training camp, and Ash's excitement pleases Meloetta who finally makes her appearance right in front of Dawn's startled face. Dawn freaks slightly and Meloetta hides behind Ash, though both quickly recover and say timid hellos to each other. Piplup is anything but timid though, gaping up at Meloetta and falling instantly in love with her. As his eyes turn into hearts and his beak opens wide in awe, Oshawott returns with his scalchop and realises that Piplup has fallen for HIS girl... and he doesn't like it! YES!

Cynthia and Jervis watch from a balcony, pleased to see Meloetta is feeling more comfortable with the others. Team Rocket are also watching from the bushes, clearly pleased to see Meloetta is letting her guard down as well.

Piplup is proudly squeaking away to Meloetta, infuriating Oshawott even more. The little otter tries to get Piplup's attention and is further infuriated when the penguin casually brushes him off. He tries again and is brushed off again, and this time he's had enough and lets rip, blasting Piplup with an Aqua-Jet. The twerps are horrified, Dawn rushing to check on Piplup while Ash insists that Oshawott go and apologise. The angry little otter does as he is told, stomping up and bowing to Piplup who crosses his arms and turns him back in a miff, just pissing off Oshawott even more.

It's everything I hoped for!

Cilan and Dawn have instantly picked up the source of their grumpiness, but Ash is more concerned with reminding everyone that he wants a battle goddammit he wants to battle gotta battle he's got blue-battles give him a battle a battle battle battle battle! But Cilan battle-blocks him, telling Dawn that he wants to battle her first, saying it will give him a chance to do an evaluation. He picked up an ecstatic Pachirisu and looks it over, and Dawn tells a clearly dejected Ash that he'll get his chance to get hot and heavy with her again just like old times, but first she wants to go with this taller, more mature and distinguished guy!

Jervis acts as the referee, and Cilan calls out Pansage, with Dawn using Piplup. Iris and Cilan are impressed with Piplup's entrance and Dawn reminds him that a Coordinator makes sure to make an impression right off the bat. Cilan tries to do the same by having Pansage use Bullet Seed, but Piplup proves more than a match by swivelling with Drill Peck and sending Bullet Seed back on Pansage, who cowers in fright. Iris and Ash are excited by the move, noting that it made Pansage's attack look like fireworks, while Piplup shows how he feels about the whole thing in the way that only Piplup can.



God, I've missed this proud little penguin so much!

Cilan talks up Dawn and Piplup's skill but comes back immediately with a Rock Tomb, but once again Dawn uses the move against him. She has Piplup spin and Bubblebeam, creating a "wall" that shatters the rocks as they fall to entomb him. Once again Pansage's move is negated and made into a pretty display on Piplup's behalf - if this was a Contest, Dawn would be kicking Cilan's ass, even though she's done relatively little physical damage to Pansage so far. Ash is more excited than before, asking Dawn if that is what he thinks it was. Yep, it was a Counter-Shield, a move that the two of them perfected together back in their Sinnoh Days, making a welcome comeback.

But we're in Unova now and..... it's evaluation time! Cilan tugs his bowtie and poses extravagantly, shocking Dawn who is new to all of this, while Iris cringes in embarrassment. Cilan - mirrored by Pansage - offers his evaluation of Piplup as a Pokémon, as well as the relationship between him and Piplup. It is highly flattering, though his constant references to taste/recipes leave Dawn and Piplup utterly confused - why is he talking about food?

But now it is time for Cilan to deliver his piece de resistance! As in many cases, his evaluation serves as an opportunity for him to put his opponent off-guard and gather his own resources, and he takes this change now. Ordering Pansage to use its most powerful move, he unleashes a massive Solar Beam directly at Piplup!

Dawn responds quickly though, having Piplup use Ice Beam, and the two powerful moves crash directly into each other, forcing the beams to rise up towards the sky as they pressure against each other - heat vs. cold, the sun vs. ice, and finally it all explodes in a massive (and pretty) "fireworks" display that would generate massive points at a Pokémon Contest.



But this isn't a contest, so who is the winner? Meloetta doesn't seem to care, she's so delighted by the light show that she flies out and flits about by an ecstatic Piplup. Oshawott emerges from his Pokéball to see Piplup and Meloetta dancing about hand in hand and is furious, even more so when Piplup.... yes! YES! When Piplup turns and cocks a smug look in Oshawott's direction! Yessssss!

Jervis suggests a time-out to the battle and Ash approaches Meloetta, telling her that battles are exciting and they want to be able to count on her to cheer them on at the Junior Cup. Meloetta seems pleased to be wherever Ash is, a fact that has been clearly picked up by Team Rocket who are still watching from the bushes. They have accepted that Meloetta is going to be a "permanent twerp" and decide that it is time for them to inform Dr. Zager of their progress.

Back inside, Piplup watches as Jervis pours a cup of tea for Dawn. She thanks the butler and then tells Iris that her next battle will be with her. Cilan reminds them that his battle never officially ended, and Ash shouts out that he doesn't want anybody to forget that he gets to scre.... to battle Dawn next. Their excitement is calmed down when they hear Meloetta singing, looking out to the ocean where the mythical Pokémon is perched happily on a rock, her song being recorded by Team Rocket.

That night, Dr. Zager listens to the recording alongside Team Rocket and is delighted - this is the soundwave he's been searching for, or at least a part of it, anyway. He knows enough about Meloetta to know that she must be incredibly relaxed and content to let her guard down and sing even a part of "this" song, something that they need for their next plot to succeed. It seems that they're going to be playing a more subtle part over the next few episodes - rather than stealing Meloetta and trying to force her to sing for them, they're going to keep spying on the twerps and recording Meloetta's singing, in the hopes of getting the full song they require. Zager tells them to contact the Boss and let him know their current progress, and he is going to put the next phase of their plan together. What is it? According to them it is the most important plan/scheme that Team Rocket has undertaken to far. But if we want to find out what it is, we'll have to wait, because this episode is over.

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