Sticking with Who You Know (617)

[JudySpell]

I wouldn't have said it's progressive at all. In fact it's borderline homophobic. The episode uses Pikachu and Piplups brief infatuation to generate humour implying that it's somehow funny, weird or unusual for a boy to be attracted to, display affection for or love another boy. This is compounded by the fact it was involuntary infatuation created by a machine. That, unconsciously perhaps, reinforces notions of Heterosexism, suggesting that the only valid forms of attraction and desire are between people (or Pokémon) of the opposite sex and that everyone else should be treated as a joke.

Sounds very SJW-ish to me. I didn't think there was a big issue with how Pikachu and Piplup's attraction was set up.

 

[Pikachu52]

Sounds very SJW-ish to me. I didn't think there was a big issue with how Pikachu and Piplup's attraction was set up.

The problem is very simple. The use of same sex attractions as somehow being irritating or humorous in this episodes and it's implication that same sex relationships are lesser to heterosexual ones reflects the same inherent heterosexist prejudices that form the foundation for measures such as California's Proposition 8 and similar measures in other US states. If the anime's not going to give us fair or realistic LGBTQIA+ representation the least it could do is not use it as a joke.

In any case, given the generally negative reviews this episode has received, combined with it's fairly lacklustre plot and lack of anything particularly compelling about, I have to ask the question as to why it was included in the first place. One could certainly argue that's it's completely pointless and the DP series would not have suffered from it's total exclusion.

And I reject the label SWJ - it's a label largely created by conservatives to ridicule and demean anyone who points out discrimination, inequality or anything that makes them uncomfortable without engaging in an argument. If there's no problem explain why the attraction set up isn't a problem

 

[Gillachu]

Lmao I thought that the romantic music that played when Pikachu and Piplup hugged here was so effing funny.

 

[Moonstardust]

The romantic soundtrack that we heard when Pikachu and Piplup hugged was my favorite moment here. I liked when Ash and Dawn tried pulling them apart.

 

[Mrs. Oreo]

I liked when Ash and Dawn tried pulling them apart.

Yea that part of the episode was quite funny and I thought Brock's plan would've worked yet it didn't. I would've liked if we had seen Pachirisu and Buizel being attracted to each other here too so we could've seen them hug. :]

 

[Wednesdayz]

Wow @ Brock being so insensitive when he implied that male Pokemon being attracted to other male Pokemon was unnatural. It seemed rude of him to say that since he's supposed to be opend minded. :c

 

[Alloutℯ]

Tbh, the episode turned out better than I imagined it to be. Sure it wasn't great or anything but it really wasn't that bad. The Pikachu/Piplup scenes pretty much saved the ep.

 

[Leonhart]

I didn't necessarily understand what the whole lovey-dovey stuff was all about since it seemed excessive. I know that the scientist's experiment was meant to make Water-types and Electric-types get along, yet it seemed so ridiculous that Pochama and Pikachu would act like lovers.

 

[Daizy]

Octillery and Mareep hugging made such a disturbing Pokemon pair, even worse than Piplup and Pikachu. Anyway this episode has to be one of the most weirdest science themed episodes ever.

 

[Scorbunnie]

I will confess that when Pikachu and Piplup began their hugging session I thought that there was a real romance happening until I saw them sticking like magnets which gave me the idea that there was something freaky going on. Turns out that it was an experiment gone horribly wrong but the result was funny

 

[Leonhart]

I will confess that when Pikachu and Piplup began their hugging session I thought that there was a real romance happening until I saw them sticking like magnets which gave me the idea that there was something freaky going on. Turns out that it was an experiment gone horribly wrong but the result was funny

It was their 180 degree turn from being at odds with each other after Pikachu accidentally zapped Pochama, to them randomly becoming friendly and apparently being in love that made me question right away whether there was something going on behind the scenes. It didn't seem natural for them to be so attracted to each other like that when they had never acted that way before this episode.