Talkback: Pokemon the Series: SM: Ultra Adventures: "Getting Down to the Ire!" [12/28]

[Light Lucario]

Join Ash and Pikachu as they make new friend and explore the Alola region.

Recently:
Mallow masters her Z-Move, but loses to Lana.
James defeats Jessie while Kiawe defeats Acerola.
Sophocles defeats Mina while Lillie loses to Gladion.
The next round of matches are announced.
Gladion defeats James.
Ash trains Rowlet to learn Feather Dance.
Ash vs. Hau begins.
Ash defeats Hau and Rowlet learns Feather Dance.
Kiawe vs. Sophocles begins.
Kiawe defeats Sophocles.
Guzma defeats Lana.
The semi-final matches are announced.
Kiawe vs. Gladion begins.

Last Time:
"The Final Four!"
We’ve reached the Alola Pokémon League semifinals! Ash is lined up to challenge Team Skull’s Guzma, but first, Kiawe will take on Gladion. Their battle allows each competitor to use two Pokémon, and given the skills possessed by both Trainers, this is going to be an exciting match. Gladion has chosen Lycanroc and Silvally to go up against Kiawe’s Alolan Marowak and Turtonator, our powerful Pokémon that have been trained to win. Who will win and proceed to the final round?

This Time:
"Getting Down to the Ire!"
Saturday December 28th, 9:00AM
The semi finals match between Gladion and Kiawe rages on with Turtonator being against Silvally. With both trainers being so strong, who will win the battle? Afterwards, the semi final match between Ash & Guzma is set to begin, Ash is eager to win but Guzma is a strong trainer and is said to be undefeated. Will Ash be able to get through and defeat Guzma?
​

Notes:
The 22nd season of Pokemon is here to keep promoting the seventh generation.
Disney XD is the new home for the Pokemon anime series.
Pokemon Sword/Shield are available now!
Detective Pikachu is coming to the Switch.
Pokemon Masters is available now.

 

[Light Lucario]

I thought that this episode was pretty good. Kiawe vs. Gladion had a pretty good conclusion. Kiawe was really close to winning and he might have if Gladion didn't turn Silvally into a Fire type at the last minute. That really reduced the damage from Kiawe's Z-move. Turtornator used Shell Smash to increase its power and speed, but its defense was weakened as a result. Combined that with Turtornator already being exhausted and Gladion was guaranteed to win the match.

I liked how they handled the aftermath of the battle though. Mimeo didn't only focus on Gladion during the match like I expected after he helped her earlier or get upset at Gladion for winning. She was sad for Kiawe, but both she and Lillie were still happy for their big brothers. I also liked how Kiawe called Gladion his rival. Admittedly, I still don't think that Ash and Kiawe are rivals exactly. That was the impression I got from their relationship early on in SM, but once they became more relaxed and friendly towards each other, I didn't really get much of a rivalry between them. They're more along the lines of sparring partners more so than rivals. They do have a pretty solid friendship though.

I liked the setup for Ash vs. Guzma, particularly with how he saw Professor Kukui when he was looking at Ash. It established how much he dislikes Kukui and how he's treating Ash as a way to get to him as well. Plumeria looking at those broken trophies in the flashback was also pretty interesting. Guzma was so confident, declaring himself the strongest trainer, but he only had runner-up awards and that clearly bothered him. It kind of explained more as to why they saved Guzma for the League, even though I still think that they could have done more with him earlier in the series.

The battle was off to a pretty good start. Guzma's strategy was pretty smart and effective. Scizor was at a major disadvantage against Torracat, so using U-Turn to bring out Golisopod was the best move he could have made. Torracat and Golisopod were pretty even with each other. They both dealt some strong attacks and were going back and forth with each other. Golisopod's Emergency Exit ability kicked in at the wrong time and Scizor was instantly defeated with that Fire Blast. That really got Guzma enraged and probably unleashed a lot of his insecurities regarding his strength. He doesn't even want to think that defeat is an option. Ash still has two Pokemon, but Torracat already took quite a bit of damage and Golisopod is still a Bug/Water type. Overall, it was a pretty good episode.