The Cave of Trials continues on with Korrina's quest to find the Lucarionite to Mega Evolve her Lucario. With no luck finding it in the shops in Geosenge Town, Korrina + Ash & Co. are led up to the mountain and into a deep, dark cave, where apparently horrible things are waiting for those not worthy. It is a solid episode containing everything a viewer could ask for: progress, battling, humor, very little Team Rocket, and even some AmourShipping. Lucario vs. Blaziken is a cool battle, but after getting trounced from the get-go Lucario makes an overly-easy comeback. The animation throughout the episode was great, and the little sound effect and tiny animations details definitely add a lot to the episode's entertainment value. We get a little bit of every character in this episode, with Korrina and Ash's similar emphases of determination and never giving up, Clemont's awkwardness around the camera, and Serena's interest in jewelry and, of course, Ash. We actually get a lot of Serena for such a Korrina-focused installment, from her fearfulness of the terrors lying within the cave to three separate instances of AmourShipping: sliding up closer to Ash for the picture (a subtle but very nice touch), admiring and blushing at the photo afterward, and keeping close to Ash before walking into the cave. Like I've said in previous reviews, I think shipping adds a lot enjoyment to a show that rarely deals with romance; AmourShipping is a smaller but still significant plot line for the saga.
Overall, an enjoyable episode. It was odd to see the episode end on a Mega Evolution cliffhanger, but I guess it just adds some anticipation for next week's installment.
Grade: B+