09x44 - Gathering the g*ng of Four

[bunniefuu]

NARRATOR Anxiously waiting outside the Fennel Valley Pokémon Center

we find our heroes anticipating a mystery delivery for Ash

and the word from Professor Oak.

It's here. Tracey just sent this over.

- Ha. - There.

Thanks, Professor. I am so psyched.

Pikachu, time to say hi to an old friend of ours.

Are you ready? Come on out.

[APPEARING]

Alright. It's Ash's Bulbasaur.

You look great.

BULBASAUR/PIKACHU [EXCITED]

BULBASAUR/PIKACHU [PLAYFUL]

- 'Here I am.' - Huh?

It's Jenny!

[HAPPY]

Squirtle.

BULBASAUR/PIKACHU [EXCITED]

BULBASAUR/PIKACHU/SQUIRTLE [HAPPY]

Thanks so much, Jenny.

I sure hope it wasn't a long trip.

No, not at all.

It's the least I can do

after all the Squirtle Squad's done for me.

Jenny, you stole my heart.

And now I'll have to make a citizen's arrest

for love larceny.

MAX 'Get off it, she's innocent.'

You're the one going downtown.

- Ha-ha-ha! - Huh?

Now, just one more to go.

My boy, your waiting's through.

Huh?

[ROAR]

Hey, Charizard.

We're all down here.

PIKACHU/BULBASAUR/SQUIRTLE [EXCITED]

[Ash laughing]

Wow, it's been a long time.

How's everyone in Charicific Valley?

[EXERTION]

[screaming]

PIKACHU [STUNNED]

♪ Pokémon ♪

♪ It's a battle win or lose ♪

♪ It's the friends you make ♪

♪ It's the road you choose ♪

♪ You got the right stuff ♪

♪ So make your mind up ♪

♪ Find the courage inside of you ♪

♪ If you're strong you'll survive ♪

♪ And you'll keep your dream alive ♪

♪ It's the Battle Frontier ♪

♪ Pokémon ♪

♪ Be the best you can be ♪

♪ And find your destiny ♪

♪ It's the master plan ♪

♪ The power's in your hands ♪

♪ Pokémon ♪♪

ASH "Gathering the g*ng of Four."

PIKACHU [HAPPY]

MAY Wow, you're sure a lot bigger than my Squirtle.

So, I guess it's time for a few introductions.

[APPEARING]

[WATER g*n MOVE]

[HAPPY]/[WATER g*n MOVE]

Awesome. There's nothing like a friendly Water g*n.

They're best friends already.

And I sure appreciate all my best friends

coming here to help me out.

SQUIRTLE A/SQUIRTLE B [HAPPY]

There. Your camping gear is all packed up.

Thanks, Brock.

You're really going up in the mountains, Ash?

- You bet. - But how come?

Well, Max, he wants to re-experience

the feelings he had back when he was first trying

to become a Pokémon Trainer.

Kind of going back to his roots.

That's great.

It's a worthwhile thing to do from time to time.

Oh, yeah, I remember.

Brandon saying somethin' about this once.

"A Pokémon battle is the comin' together

of the mind of the Trainer and the mind of the Pokémon."

That's it, I think going up in the mountains

will help me be able to do that.

And, at the same time it'll help me to find my own style

of battling as well.

Here, Ash. This box is for you.

I made you a batch of home made cookies.

Wow. Thanks, Nurse Joy.

Okay, ready? Let's hit the road.

PIKACHU/BULBASAUR/SQUIRTLE [EXCITED]

[EXCITED]/[FLAMETHROWER MOVE]

[screaming]

Some things will never change.

ASH Yeah, this is perfect.

Would you mind moving those logs?

[AGREEMENT]

[EXERTION]

Bulbasaur. Use Razor Leaf.

[RAZOR LEAF MOVE]

Everybody catch one.

[EXERTION]

[EXERTION]

[EXERTION]

[EXERTION]/[PAINED]

CHARIZARD/BULBASAUR/PIKACHU [EXERTION]

Squirtle, use Rapid Spin

and sweep up all those leaves.

[AGREEMENT]/[RAPID SPIN MOVE]

Bulbasaur, use Vine Whip

and Pikachu, you use Quick Attack to gather the leaves.

[VINE WHIP MOVE]

[QUICK ATTACK MOVE]

[EXERTION]

Great job, guys. Now we've got a nice soft bed to sleep on.

[PLEASED]

PIKACHU/SQUIRTLE/BULBASAUR [SURPRISE]

[ANNOYED]/[WATER g*n MOVE]

[ANNOYED]

CHARIZARD/SQUIRTLE [ANGRY]/[EXERTION]

BULBASAUR [SCARED]

Come on. Cut it out.

[VINE WHIP MOVE]

CHARIZARD [EXERTION]

[PAINED]

BULBASAUR [EXERTION]

CHARIZARD [EXERTION]

[ANGRY]

[IRON TAIL MOVE]

CHARIZARD [SURPRISE]

Hey, guys? Time out.

[FLAMETHOWER MOVE]

[groans]

That hurt. Uh.

[ANGRY]

Pikachu, you don't want to do that.

We're all buddies.

[screams]

CHARIZARD/SQUIRTLE/BULBASAUR [PAINED]

That's more like it.

We've got to get some food.

And we've all got to pitch in or there won't be enough, okay?

Yeah.

CHARIZARD/SQUIRTLE/BULBASAUR [AGREEMENT]

Hey, look.

Here we go.

First, Bulbasaur, use Razor Leaf.

Huh.

Huh?

[ROAR]

That's weird.

What's with Charizard?

[STEEL WING MOVE]

Hey, isn't that a Steel Wing?

[EXERTION]

Awesome. When did Charizard learn that?

[EXERTION]

Alright. Squirtle, use Water g*n.

[WATER g*n MOVE]

Use Vine Whip, Bulbasaur.

Use Quick Attack, Pikachu, to catch 'em.

[QUICK ATTACK MOVE]/[EXERTION]

[VINE WHIP MOVE]

Nice catch. Good job.

SQUIRTLE/PIKACHU/BULBASAUR [EXCITED]

Okay, Charizard. Let her rip.

[FLAMETHROWER MOVE]

[WORRIED]

I know.

It's just that Charizard's so excited to see everyone

that things got out of hand.

CHARIZARD [SHEEPISH]

Why don't you try it again?

[AGREEMENT]

[EXERTION]

You see? That's just right.

BULBASAUR/SQUIRTLE/PIKACHU [HAPPY]

Sittin' here like this

makes me think of the first time I met you.

Pikachu, I can still remember meetin' you on the first day

I set off to become a Pokémon Trainer way back.

I slept late and then Professor Oak gave me my first Pokémon.

And that was you, Pikachu.

At first you hated going in your Poké Ball

and you wouldn't do anything I asked you to do

but somehow, we wound up being buddies anyway.

Bulbasaur, I remember when we met

you were protecting the Pokémon in the Hidden Village.

Now, you're an ambassador at Professor Oak's Research Lab.

And Charizard, when I first met ya

you were still a little Charmander.

Then you became a Charmeleon

and then you became a Charizard.

Man, you've gotten me out of so many jams

I can't tell you them all.

Oh, yeah, and you, Squirtle

you were up to no good when we first met.

And look at you now.

You're a member of the Squirtle Fire Squad.

A lot's happened over the years.

BULBASAUR/PIKACHU/SQUIRTLE [AGREEMENT]

♪ I wanna hear what you've got ♪

♪ 'Cause I know it's hits the spot ♪

♪ Can we hang on the edge? ♪

♪ Of everything ♪

♪ Of everything you say ♪

♪ Oh oh oh ♪

♪ Go on ♪

♪ Go on ♪♪

JAMES That Twerp group sure musters up memories.

Yeah, a bittersweet mixture of empty hands and broken heads.

I know. Let's grab the whole gob of them.

Easy for you to say.

If it was that easy to do we already would have.

Alright, let's get back to where we once belonged

and just grab Pikachu.

[AGREEMENT]

Huh?

JESSIE 'Noodles. Hot and fresh off of the noodle tree.'

- 'Hungry?' - Sellin' food way up here?

Great. I'm starvin'.

Excuse me.

I'd like the biggest bowl of noodles you got.

- Slaking-size. - Of all the dumb luck.

Our noodle making batteries have bit the noodle making dust.

Disaster. Let's see. What to do?

An Electric-type Pokémon would put us

knee deep in noodles in no time.

Hey. We could use Pikachu.

Pikachu? Talk about a coeenkeedink.

In we go.

JAMES/MEOWTH/JESSIE 'And off we go.'

Hey, wait!

We've waited for "Nine Seasons."

I would say that's paying our dues.

JESSIE/JAMES And now, you lose.

Hey, you're Team Rocket.

And we'll still be through "Season Ten."

[laughing]

JESSIE/JAMES/MEOWTH We've still got it.

Charizard, let's go.

[ANGRY]

ASH/SQUIRTLE/BULBASAUR [ANGRY]

CHARIZARD/BULBASAUR/SQUIRTLE [EXERTION]

Bulbasaur, aim your Razor Leaf at their balloon.

[RAZOR LEAF MOVE]

Ha, this is one of those crazy times when flyin'

in a lead balloon ends up being a good thing.

[grunts] Charizard, Flamethrower now.

[FLAMETHROWER MOVE]

Not gonna work.

Your hot-headed hi jinks won't work on us.

Squirtle, use Water g*n.

[WATER g*n MOVE]

You need to cool down more than we do.

[AGREEMENT]

Okay, then we'll take turns.

Flamethrower, Charizard.

Squirtle, Water g*n, now.

[FLAMETHROWER MOVE]

[WATER g*n MOVE]

CHARIZARD/SQUIRTLE [EXERTION]

Those Twerpish twits.

Either they have too much time on their hands

or they're plain dumb.

Hey, guys? I don't think those dopes are as dopey as they look.

- Huh? - Are you saying that we are?

[WORRIED]

Bulbasaur, use Razor Leaf on that balloon crack.

[RAZOR LEAF MOVE]

[screaming]

[SCARED]

I gotcha.

PIKACHU [HAPPY]

[groaning]

- Your head's cracked too. - Better cracked than fat.

Your head's perfect, right?

[AGREEMENT]

Alright, let's all get them.

Pikachu, use Thunderbolt.

[AGREEMENT]

[THUNDERBOLT MOVE]

Squirtle, use Water g*n.

[WATER g*n MOVE]

Bulbasaur, Razor Leaf now.

[RAZOR LEAF MOVE]

Charizard, use Flamethrower.

[FLAMETHROWER MOVE]

[screaming]

Memories indeed.

Augh, if I had a taste of what we spent on props

to trap the Twerps..

- Huh? - Huh? Say.

I'd love a taste of that.

- It's all gone. - Hey, I see some soup in there.

Split it three ways.

Shall I just let it soak into your fat heads?

JESSIE/JAMES/ MEOWTH We're blasting off again.

[AGREEMENT]

Good job. How are we doing?

PIKACHU/BULBASAUR/SQUIRTLE [HAPPY]

PIKACHU/BULBASAUR/SQUIRTLE [SURPRISE]

Charizard, what?

[CURIOUS]

Huh?

BRANDON Well, what do we have here?

[chuckles]

ASH 'Brandon.'

[chuckles]

BRANDON 'That was a fine looking combination'

you did back there, young man.

- Wow. You really mean it? - Yes.

There was real connection between all of you.

You see, these are my first Pokémon.

We've been together so long we really know each other.

- I understand. - So I heard the news.

Your assistant said you got the Pokémon you wanted.

It's true, and that's why I came back here

to accept your challenge right away.

That's awesome.

I have a suggestion for our next bout.

- I say a four on four battle. - Four on four?

Yes, I'd be most curious to see what sort of battle

you would mount with these four old friends of yours.

Great. Hey, you've got a deal.

JENNY/JOY/SAMUEL/MAX/MAY/BROCK Nice to have you back.

- Gee, thanks. - So.

I guess the time for your rematch has finally come.

Yeah.

And if you defeat Brandon

you'll be a candidate for Frontier Brain.

- Huh? I didn't know about that. - Oops.

I guess it must've slipped my mind.

'Trainers that win the Battle Frontier'

'are entered into the Hall of Fame.'

That puts them in the running to become Frontier Brains.

Wow, what an honor.

We're always on the lookout for talent.

The whole reason for the Battle Frontier

is to attract great Trainers.

So Scott, you must be more than a fan.

Hey, you're talking to the owner of the Battle Frontier.

The owner?

Aren't you supposed to wear a suit and tie?

Max, the boss wears what he wants.

- Yeah, I guess so. - Here's the deal.

I built lots of battle facilities

because I wanted to expand the art

the art of the Pokémon battle.

Wow, if Ash becomes a Frontier Brain

he'll be incharge of his own battle facility?

How cool is that?

Hold on, I've got to beat Brandon first.

Right. Time for a poem.

"Over confidence can be like waking a Snorlax, you see."

I'd sure like a Pokémon for me.

[laughs]

I always wanted to try and do that.

Good luck. We'll be cheering.

Thanks.

Awesome. The Pyramid's top opened.

That was Brandon's idea, Max.

That's so Ash's Charizard can fly wherever it wants to.

Now, the Frontier Battle rematch at the Battle Pyramid

is about to begin.

The challenger is Ash from Pallet Town.

Right.

Next, the man of the hour, Frontier Brain

and the man in charge of the Battle Pyramid

the Pyramid King, Brandon.

This will be a four on four battle, from start to finish.

Only the challenger will be allowed to make substitutions.

And now, introducing Brandon's Pokémon.

Dusclops, I need your assistance.

[APPEARANCE]

Huh.

Dusclops. The Beckon Pokémon.

Its body is completely hollow and, like a Black Hole

it can swallow anything.

Some say that its victims never return.

Now, that's an exceedingly rare find.

From years of researching those ruins.

Okay, Charizard. I choose you.

[APPEARING]

- 'Isn't Charizard something?' - Dusclops is a Ghost type.

This should be a pretty even match-up.

A Ghost-type and a Fire-type.

- Oh! - Well, you're both my type.

Is it Jenny or Joy?

Oh, how will I choose?

I'll help ya. We choose neither of 'em.

- 'Aah, no fair.' - So.

Can't wait to see what Ash comes up with for this battle.

- Begin. - Charizard, Flamethrower.

[FLAMETHROWER MOVE]

Dusclops, use Will-O-Wisp.

[WILL-O-WISP MOVE]

- Look at all that power. - Those two are evenly matched.

Charizard, Steel Wing now.

[STEEL WING MOVE]

Hey, Charizard learned Steel Wing. That's great.

Dusclops, use Shadow Punch.

[SHADOW PUNCH MOVE]

[PAINED]

That Shadow Punch must be strong to land before Steel Wing.

Shadow Punch's a move that's a guaranteed sure shot.

[ANGRY]

We've got to use that rage.

Charizard, Dragon Breath, go.

[DRAGON BREATH MOVE]

DUSCLOPS [PAINED]

- Charizard, great shot. - Dusclops, Mean Look.

[MEAN LOOK MOVE]

[SURPRISE]/[PAINED]

Professor Oak, what was that move?

It's called "Mean Look."

When it strikes a Pokémon it can't leave the battle.

- Then, Charizard's stuck. - Uh.

[ANGRY]

Charizard, use Steel Wing.

[STEEL WING MOVE]

Good. Now, get closer.

CHARIZARD/DUSCLOPS [EXERTION]

That's a direct hit.

Dusclops has got Charizard's wing.

Now, Confuse Ray.

DUSCLOPS/CHARIZARD [CONFUSE RAY MOVE]/[SURPRISED]

No. If that Confuse Ray hits, Ash's in big trouble.

What a move.

Brandon only allowed Steel Wing to hit

so he could deliver Confuse Ray.

[CONFUSED]

Charizard.

[PAINED]

Charizard.

Return.

It won't work.

Charizard looks totally confused now.

Returning to the Poké Ball would get rid of the confusion.

But Charizard can't return to the Poké Ball

because of that Mean Look.

A typically brilliant attack from Brandon.

As brilliant as you are beautiful.

Ah, Charizard. Snap out of it.

[STRUGGLING]

Now, Shadow Punch.

[SHADOW PUNCH MOVE]

CHARIZARD [PAINED]

Please, snap out of it.

[PAINED]

- Charizard's still confused. - What's Ash gonna do?

I was wondering what you were doing afterward.

There's got to be a way.

Dusclops, Will-O-Wisp.

[WILL-O-WISP MOVE]

[PAINED]/[STRUGGLING]

Charizard.

We've been through so much together

and you've been working so hard to get stronger

well, now's the time to step up and prove it.

Time to show what you're made of, let's go.

[ANGRY]

Charizard.

[ROAR]

Excellent, Charizard's confusion's been healed.

Charizard. Dragon Breath, Go.

[DRAGON BREATH MOVE]

DUSCLOPS [PAINED]

Good work. You've brought out Charizard's fighting spirit.

But the battle's not over.

Dusclops, Will-O-Wisp.

[WILL-O-WISP MOVE]

[PAINED]

[STRUGGLING]

Man, you can tell Charizard's really

starting to get tired out.

And Dusclops is looking pretty tired too.

It's coming to a head for sure.

Charizard. Quick, Steel Wing.

[STEEL WING MOVE]

Now get closer.

[EXERTION]

DUSCLOPS/CHARIZARD [EXERTION]

A direct hit?

But Dusclop's hooked on Charizard's wing.

Alright, Seismic Toss.

[SEISMIC TOSS MOVE]

Now what?

A Fighting-type move like Seismic Toss

has no effect on a Ghost Pokémon.

Oh, no. I forgot.

Ash, I'm afraid that's checkmate.

Shadow Punch.

[SHADOW PUNCH MOVE]

[PAINED]

Aah! Charizard.

[STUNNED]

Charizard is unable to battle.

[gasping]

NARRATOR A feeling of worried panic descends on our heroes

as the old friend Ash thought would give him some

winning momentum is out in the first round.

Will Ash ever be able to defeat Brandon

and become Master of the Battle Frontier?

♪ Yo ♪ ♪ Pokémon Masters ♪

♪ Your heart beats faster ♪

♪ Training for the top 'cause you know you can't stop ♪

♪ Your training kicks ♪ ♪ Now ♪

♪ Pokémon Pow ♪ ♪ Wow ♪

♪ The power of a master all before you will ♪

♪ But don't let it get to your head young Trainer ♪

♪ The road is long and filled with danger ♪

♪ Everyone says they deserve to be number one ♪

♪ But who can top you? ♪ ♪ The answer is none ♪

♪ Because they've never seen an expert like ♪

♪ One who knows the difference between Mewtwo ♪

♪ Or someone who can tell you the type ♪

♪ Or someone who can tell you which Pokémon's ♪

♪ First you kick it in Kanto ♪

♪ Then you head to Johto ♪♪