Episode 7 of Best Wishes is also episode 666 of the Pokemon anime series. Does anyone else think it's a bit odd that we got a she-devil-esque Pokemon like Tsutarja for episode number 666? Just throwing that out there since it seems like interesting trivia lol. Anyway, I've seen the episode now and have written my usual essay. Thank God I'm on a forum that allows me the freedom to type my thoughts without getting punished, so long as I avoid touchy subjects. Anyway, there are tons of memorable scenes in this episode that I look forward to talking about and I must admit, after seeing so many generic capture episodes lately, I thought this one was a breath of fresh air. Tsutarja really is a Pokemon we should've gotten in the main cast years ago. Why the long wait? Anyway, things start off with Ash, Iris, and their new companion Dento, on their way to Shippou City to challenge the Gym Leader there. I have to admit, it seems nice to get a new cast member in Best Wishes since Ash and Iris were getting boring. Dento is so faaaabulous, he'll fit right in with them 
I'd like to note that we got some nice Isshu route music at the start of the episode, which made me super cheerful for some reason. Just as I was admiring the music though, I noticed that Ash seemed sad. A few seconds later, it was revealed that he was suffering from hunger. I guess I forgot that we hadn't seen him eat in a while. Iris, being an able girl with experience living outdoors, decided to go search for food in the forest. After Ash and Dento waited a while for her to return, Iris came back with a basket of fruit that she apparently got from the forest. I was a tad confused though, as those fruits didn't appear in the trees in that area. I mean really, bananas, in a non-tropical region? Crazy. Just as Ash and the others were planning on eating the food raw, Dento mentioned wanting to cook them first. Dento started cooking them afterwards which is apparently his specialty in this series. I had to wonder though: where the heck did they get those tables and cooking equipment? Gah! He made some sort of muffins with the fruits, which just makes little sense but whatever. It's an anime I guess, so it might not make sense all the time.
Ash and Iris liked Dento's cooking so much, that they went for seconds but noticed that the food was missing, despite Dento having told them that there was some left. Iris and Kibago then noticed something in the bushes, and they all went to scope things out. As Ash and Pikachu crawled through the tall grass, Ash spotted the thief who took their food; a wild Tsutarja. He seemed pleased to see one in the wild and then, in typical Ash-fashion, decided capture it, which seemed to surprise Iris and Dento. Ash simply threw the Pokeball at Tsutarja, and the Pokemon appeared to be caught. However, at the last second, Tsutarja escaped and fled into the tall grass once more. Too bad. Despite it fleeing, Ash still wanted to capture it so he, Iris, and Dento went searching for it again. After making it out of the tall grass again, Ash and friends spotted Tsutarja on a rock, eating more of that muffin stuff. I thought it looked super cute, honestly. Makes me want my own Tsutarja someday. Ash had Pikachu attack it, and we got some Isshu Wild Pokemon music in there! Awesome, since that theme fit in so perfectly with the situation at hand.
Pikachu used it's Quick Attack on the wild Tsutarja, but it managed to dodge that like a champ and didn't even flinch! Tsutatja then finished off it's muffin crumb, and got serious. I loved that smug expression on it's face though; now I get where the fan-name "Smugleaf" comes from lol. Ash ordered Pikachu to use it's Thunderbolt, but that sneaky Tsutarja used it's Attract on Pikachu in order to put a stop to Ash's strategy. I laughed at Pikachu's voice while in it's infatuated state haha. Ash was confused, but Dento was smart and explained the effects of Attract for him. Tsutarja used it's Vine Whip against Pikachu, and slapped it around a bit; nice. I found it odd that the vines came out of it's collar though. Anyway, Ash went to Pikachu's aid since it was hurt and he got hit by Tsutarja's Vine Whip. Oh yeah baby, feel the burn! At least he now knows what his Pokemon have to go through in every battle haha. Tsutarja was surprised to have Ash suddenly intervene and it fled using it's Grass Oath. Yes, Grass Oath; not Grass Mixer or Leaf Storm, just Grass Oath. Back to the episode, despite Tsutarja having hurt Pikachu, Ash was still determined to find it and capture it. I’ve said it before; Ash is as sadistic as they come
In an attempt to find Tsutarja again, Ash sent out Mamepato to do some aerial scouting. I knew he'd resort to his old ways. Well at least Mamepato appeared; now the complaints about it not appearing can end (I hope). Meanwhile, in some rocky area near a mountain, Team Rocket was receiving yet another message from Boss Giovanni. After getting instructions, Team Rocket started formulating a plan and as they were, Tsutarja overheard. It attempted to leave but that grass was 100 times noisier than normal grass and Team Rocket noticed it! Jessie tossed a Pokeball at it but Tsutarja managed to run quickly and then dodge the Pokeball. Jessie sent Meowth to battle it with Scratch, but Meowth attacked a rock instead. Looks like Tsutarja knew how to use Kawarimi no Jutsu teehee. Tsutarja fled to some rocky area and rested on the rocks. It then thought about how Ash had saved Pikachu from Vine Whip earlier, and I wondered why it was thinking back to that since it seemed pretty weird. Mamepato located Tsutarja at that point and started circling the sky above it, which alerted Ash and the others of it's location and they ran to the rocky area. Why did we get Giant Hole music though? It sounded really depressing for the current situation. Tsutarja then woke up and noticed that Ash and friends had found it's little hideout :c
Just as Ash called up to Tsutarja, we got Mijumaru pulling yet another "Psyduck" by popping out of it's Pokeball without being told to haha. I loved that little music that played as it came out and how it sounded so Japanese; a reference to the fact that Mijumaru's line is based on the samurai? Mijumaru apparently wanted to prove it's worth, so it agreed to battle Tsutarja itself. Just as Ash, Pikachu, and Mijumaru were climbing the rocks, Tsutarja used it's tail to cause the rocks to tumble down on them! They barely dodged them by hiding behind that bigger rock and I thought that was a little violent. Just as Tsutarja was leaving, Ash and his Pokemon arrived and I thought Ash having Mijumaru on his hat was the cutest thing ever! Ash had Mijumaru use Water Gun on Tsutarja, but it dodged it. Iris and Dento appeared then and I was like "about freaking time!". Tsutarja then used Vine Whip again, but Mijumaru deflected it with it's shell and then proceeded to use Shell Blade. Sadly, Tsutarja just had to use Attract again which made Mijumaru useless. Tsutarja made quick work of Mijumaru after that with another Vine Whip, and Ash had to return Mijumaru to it's Pokeball. Geez, how hard can it be to capture one pesky little Tsutarja? Come on Ash, get it together man!
Tsutarja then left again, and we got some more sad music playing for a few seconds. Ash had Mamepato go after Tsutarja and Ash and Pikachu quickly followed. I thought it was funny to see Iris and Dento just stop running since those clothes really aren't the best choices of outfits for them to be wearing in a forest after all. Tsutarja tried to escape Ash by heading to the trees, but Ash wasn't giving up so easily. He actually grabbed a vine and starting swinging from vine to vine to catch up to Tsutarja. It reminded me of Tarzan. The trees thinned and Tsutarja landed on a lily pad on a pond just as Ash and Pikachu's vine ripped and they also fell on a lily pad. Apparently though, the pond was more like quicksand that started to pull both Ash and Pikachu under. Was this the end of our heroes?! Nope. Iris and Dento, fresh from their coffee break, got there in time to toss a vine at Ash to pull him back to land. All of this happened as Tsutarja watched from the grass on the other side of the pond. I still didn't understand what it's problem was. Did it hate Ash and his Pokemon? Was it jealous of the bond between Ash and his Pokemon? What? It was at that point in time that I noticed that Ash, Iris, and Dento had strayed very far from their camp :x
Just as Tsutarja was getting a drink from a stream, it noticed that Mamepato was circling above in the sky and Ash and Pikachu arrived soon after to challenge Tsutarja for the 50th time in the episode. Ash sent out Pokabu which surprised Iris. Dento explained how the Fire-type Pokabu was strong against the Grass-type Tsutarja. Pretty basic stuff there, Iris. Ash had Pokabu use Ember but Tsutarja dodged and used...Attract. Predictable. It hit Pokabu and it started to teeter a bit and it's voice was hella creepy! Ash returned it and Tsutarja made a gesture that could be translated as "bring it on!" So cool. Just as Pikachu was ready to give it a shot, Mamepato decided that it wanted to battle Tsutarja. Ash had Mamepato use a Flying-type move of some sort but Tsutarja dodged it. Tsutarja then launched another Attract and, although Mamepato tried to dodge it, it was caught up in it! Luckily though, Mamepato was unaffected by it, so it must mean that it's a female. Tsutarja then used Vine Whip on Mamepato but it was able to dodge. Tsutarja was getting desperate and used it's Grass Oath but Mamepato dodged it and hit Tsutarja with another Flying-type move! Things were getting really tense at this point and I'm surprised Tsutarja was able to stick around.
Ash had Mamapato use Air Cutter and then Quick Attack which both proved effective against Tsutarja. Ash tossed the Pokeball but Tsutarja escaped again! Grr. Tsutarja still had fight left in her and she attacked Mamepato once more. Mamepato then used Air Cutter once more and then Tsutarja smirked. Ash tossed the Pokeball one last time, and it seemed like Tsutarja allowed herself to be caught. Hmm. Well Ash captured it at last anyway! He then brought out his snake and seemed content that he finally caught his fifth Isshu region Pokemon. Even Iris and Dento seemed pleased, although it might have just been because the whole tedious ordeal was over with at last haha. The last scene was cute since it showed Ash and his five Pokemon together. Aww. Well this episode was, odd to say the least. Attract got boring after the first use and it only helped confirm some of Ash's Pokemon's genders. Team Rocket's lack of an actual role was surprising though, so I'll give the writers credit for not resorting to using them all the time in this series. I was expecting a fun episode, but this one was just average; not too fun but also not too bland. I'm giving this Tsutarja episode a 8/10 which is the same as I gave the previous episode. Sadly, it looks like the episodes are slowly going downhill, but oh well. Until next time, stay faaaabulous.
I'd like to note that we got some nice Isshu route music at the start of the episode, which made me super cheerful for some reason. Just as I was admiring the music though, I noticed that Ash seemed sad. A few seconds later, it was revealed that he was suffering from hunger. I guess I forgot that we hadn't seen him eat in a while. Iris, being an able girl with experience living outdoors, decided to go search for food in the forest. After Ash and Dento waited a while for her to return, Iris came back with a basket of fruit that she apparently got from the forest. I was a tad confused though, as those fruits didn't appear in the trees in that area. I mean really, bananas, in a non-tropical region? Crazy. Just as Ash and the others were planning on eating the food raw, Dento mentioned wanting to cook them first. Dento started cooking them afterwards which is apparently his specialty in this series. I had to wonder though: where the heck did they get those tables and cooking equipment? Gah! He made some sort of muffins with the fruits, which just makes little sense but whatever. It's an anime I guess, so it might not make sense all the time.
Ash and Iris liked Dento's cooking so much, that they went for seconds but noticed that the food was missing, despite Dento having told them that there was some left. Iris and Kibago then noticed something in the bushes, and they all went to scope things out. As Ash and Pikachu crawled through the tall grass, Ash spotted the thief who took their food; a wild Tsutarja. He seemed pleased to see one in the wild and then, in typical Ash-fashion, decided capture it, which seemed to surprise Iris and Dento. Ash simply threw the Pokeball at Tsutarja, and the Pokemon appeared to be caught. However, at the last second, Tsutarja escaped and fled into the tall grass once more. Too bad. Despite it fleeing, Ash still wanted to capture it so he, Iris, and Dento went searching for it again. After making it out of the tall grass again, Ash and friends spotted Tsutarja on a rock, eating more of that muffin stuff. I thought it looked super cute, honestly. Makes me want my own Tsutarja someday. Ash had Pikachu attack it, and we got some Isshu Wild Pokemon music in there! Awesome, since that theme fit in so perfectly with the situation at hand.
Pikachu used it's Quick Attack on the wild Tsutarja, but it managed to dodge that like a champ and didn't even flinch! Tsutatja then finished off it's muffin crumb, and got serious. I loved that smug expression on it's face though; now I get where the fan-name "Smugleaf" comes from lol. Ash ordered Pikachu to use it's Thunderbolt, but that sneaky Tsutarja used it's Attract on Pikachu in order to put a stop to Ash's strategy. I laughed at Pikachu's voice while in it's infatuated state haha. Ash was confused, but Dento was smart and explained the effects of Attract for him. Tsutarja used it's Vine Whip against Pikachu, and slapped it around a bit; nice. I found it odd that the vines came out of it's collar though. Anyway, Ash went to Pikachu's aid since it was hurt and he got hit by Tsutarja's Vine Whip. Oh yeah baby, feel the burn! At least he now knows what his Pokemon have to go through in every battle haha. Tsutarja was surprised to have Ash suddenly intervene and it fled using it's Grass Oath. Yes, Grass Oath; not Grass Mixer or Leaf Storm, just Grass Oath. Back to the episode, despite Tsutarja having hurt Pikachu, Ash was still determined to find it and capture it. I’ve said it before; Ash is as sadistic as they come
In an attempt to find Tsutarja again, Ash sent out Mamepato to do some aerial scouting. I knew he'd resort to his old ways. Well at least Mamepato appeared; now the complaints about it not appearing can end (I hope). Meanwhile, in some rocky area near a mountain, Team Rocket was receiving yet another message from Boss Giovanni. After getting instructions, Team Rocket started formulating a plan and as they were, Tsutarja overheard. It attempted to leave but that grass was 100 times noisier than normal grass and Team Rocket noticed it! Jessie tossed a Pokeball at it but Tsutarja managed to run quickly and then dodge the Pokeball. Jessie sent Meowth to battle it with Scratch, but Meowth attacked a rock instead. Looks like Tsutarja knew how to use Kawarimi no Jutsu teehee. Tsutarja fled to some rocky area and rested on the rocks. It then thought about how Ash had saved Pikachu from Vine Whip earlier, and I wondered why it was thinking back to that since it seemed pretty weird. Mamepato located Tsutarja at that point and started circling the sky above it, which alerted Ash and the others of it's location and they ran to the rocky area. Why did we get Giant Hole music though? It sounded really depressing for the current situation. Tsutarja then woke up and noticed that Ash and friends had found it's little hideout :c
Just as Ash called up to Tsutarja, we got Mijumaru pulling yet another "Psyduck" by popping out of it's Pokeball without being told to haha. I loved that little music that played as it came out and how it sounded so Japanese; a reference to the fact that Mijumaru's line is based on the samurai? Mijumaru apparently wanted to prove it's worth, so it agreed to battle Tsutarja itself. Just as Ash, Pikachu, and Mijumaru were climbing the rocks, Tsutarja used it's tail to cause the rocks to tumble down on them! They barely dodged them by hiding behind that bigger rock and I thought that was a little violent. Just as Tsutarja was leaving, Ash and his Pokemon arrived and I thought Ash having Mijumaru on his hat was the cutest thing ever! Ash had Mijumaru use Water Gun on Tsutarja, but it dodged it. Iris and Dento appeared then and I was like "about freaking time!". Tsutarja then used Vine Whip again, but Mijumaru deflected it with it's shell and then proceeded to use Shell Blade. Sadly, Tsutarja just had to use Attract again which made Mijumaru useless. Tsutarja made quick work of Mijumaru after that with another Vine Whip, and Ash had to return Mijumaru to it's Pokeball. Geez, how hard can it be to capture one pesky little Tsutarja? Come on Ash, get it together man!
Tsutarja then left again, and we got some more sad music playing for a few seconds. Ash had Mamepato go after Tsutarja and Ash and Pikachu quickly followed. I thought it was funny to see Iris and Dento just stop running since those clothes really aren't the best choices of outfits for them to be wearing in a forest after all. Tsutarja tried to escape Ash by heading to the trees, but Ash wasn't giving up so easily. He actually grabbed a vine and starting swinging from vine to vine to catch up to Tsutarja. It reminded me of Tarzan. The trees thinned and Tsutarja landed on a lily pad on a pond just as Ash and Pikachu's vine ripped and they also fell on a lily pad. Apparently though, the pond was more like quicksand that started to pull both Ash and Pikachu under. Was this the end of our heroes?! Nope. Iris and Dento, fresh from their coffee break, got there in time to toss a vine at Ash to pull him back to land. All of this happened as Tsutarja watched from the grass on the other side of the pond. I still didn't understand what it's problem was. Did it hate Ash and his Pokemon? Was it jealous of the bond between Ash and his Pokemon? What? It was at that point in time that I noticed that Ash, Iris, and Dento had strayed very far from their camp :x
Just as Tsutarja was getting a drink from a stream, it noticed that Mamepato was circling above in the sky and Ash and Pikachu arrived soon after to challenge Tsutarja for the 50th time in the episode. Ash sent out Pokabu which surprised Iris. Dento explained how the Fire-type Pokabu was strong against the Grass-type Tsutarja. Pretty basic stuff there, Iris. Ash had Pokabu use Ember but Tsutarja dodged and used...Attract. Predictable. It hit Pokabu and it started to teeter a bit and it's voice was hella creepy! Ash returned it and Tsutarja made a gesture that could be translated as "bring it on!" So cool. Just as Pikachu was ready to give it a shot, Mamepato decided that it wanted to battle Tsutarja. Ash had Mamepato use a Flying-type move of some sort but Tsutarja dodged it. Tsutarja then launched another Attract and, although Mamepato tried to dodge it, it was caught up in it! Luckily though, Mamepato was unaffected by it, so it must mean that it's a female. Tsutarja then used Vine Whip on Mamepato but it was able to dodge. Tsutarja was getting desperate and used it's Grass Oath but Mamepato dodged it and hit Tsutarja with another Flying-type move! Things were getting really tense at this point and I'm surprised Tsutarja was able to stick around.
Ash had Mamapato use Air Cutter and then Quick Attack which both proved effective against Tsutarja. Ash tossed the Pokeball but Tsutarja escaped again! Grr. Tsutarja still had fight left in her and she attacked Mamepato once more. Mamepato then used Air Cutter once more and then Tsutarja smirked. Ash tossed the Pokeball one last time, and it seemed like Tsutarja allowed herself to be caught. Hmm. Well Ash captured it at last anyway! He then brought out his snake and seemed content that he finally caught his fifth Isshu region Pokemon. Even Iris and Dento seemed pleased, although it might have just been because the whole tedious ordeal was over with at last haha. The last scene was cute since it showed Ash and his five Pokemon together. Aww. Well this episode was, odd to say the least. Attract got boring after the first use and it only helped confirm some of Ash's Pokemon's genders. Team Rocket's lack of an actual role was surprising though, so I'll give the writers credit for not resorting to using them all the time in this series. I was expecting a fun episode, but this one was just average; not too fun but also not too bland. I'm giving this Tsutarja episode a 8/10 which is the same as I gave the previous episode. Sadly, it looks like the episodes are slowly going downhill, but oh well. Until next time, stay faaaabulous.
