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The Cleffa That Became a Star! (1172)

Evstike

Evstike

Take me back to peak pokemon
I think I finally figured out my problem with this episode. Cynthia's return wasn't bad by any means but it felt somewhat underwhelming. While I'm glad that Journeys finally decided to give a returning character an episode to interact with the cast before they get their obligatory focus episode, they could have done more with it. I don't think it was handled poorly, but Cynthia would have fared much better with her introduction episode focused on her instead of treating her like a COTD. Maybe have her explore some ruins where she meets Ash and Goh and they participate in a raid battle where she shows off her strength with Garchomp. Like I said, Cyntha's return was fine but I wish we got more out of it.
 
masdog

masdog

What is the airspeed of an unladen Swellow?
This is a very solid, emotional episode. The anime has taken on a mature topic and handled it in a way that can resonate with the show's intended audience.

Pros:
  • They reintroduced Cynthia and did so in a way that didn't involve Pokemon battling. I like how they highlighted her interest in archaeology and her emotional intelligence. There is more to the world than battling, and I like how this episode shows that.
  • Ash and Goh's interactions with Kirara.
  • This is a condensed retread of Movie 3, but I think it works here on a few levels. First, the show's target audience wasn't even conceived when when that movie was released, and second, it's a nice bit of fan service for parents. I think the plot works really well here for what they were trying to do.
Cons:
  • Ash has encountered the Unown how many times in episodes? I'm not counting the various movies where they may have shown up...but he should have recognized the Pokemon from the description Kirara gave.
  • A reference to the Ruins of Alph would have been nice to tie back to existing lore.
Meta-Cons:
  • Serebii really needs an eyeroll reaction emoji.
Overall, I think this episode is worth a rewatch. I'll be sure to bring a box of Kleenex with for the next viewing.
 
P

Psajdak

Well-Known Member
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Soniman

Soniman

Break the Limit
I think in terms of Cynthia what the episode was missing from me was a little "see you at the PWC" scene at the end but I guess that wouldve taken a little away from the emotional note the episode ended on, and wow what a emotional episode that was, gotta admit, got feels at the end seeing all the memories Cleffa shares with the girl. It really does feel like something out of Pokemon 3 that I have to wonder if it was intentional by the staff. I dont think Cynthia was robbed here, she got to show her clout as a archelolgist as wel as a Champion in battle with how she took care of the Unkown single handedly. Poor Aceburn though, finally came out of its ball only to get wrecked and sent right back in its ball.
 
CupidKirby

CupidKirby

Well-Known Member
The music really stepped up in this episode. It feels like most of Journeys has been playing the same few tracks. When they do venture outside of them though, they go hard. They captured the sadness / denial / anger of a beloved friend or pet passing away very well.
 
Zoruagible

Zoruagible

Lover of underrated characters
Panky.. said:
Am I the only one going to point out Goh Pheromones moment #1345? He's like "Hey Murkrow, join me" and the Pokemon is like "Sure, sis". They're not even trying at this point.

Ash recalling his previous experiences and encounters with illusory Unown maybe? Why restrict things to one line of thinking only? Not every character interaction involving Ash has to be about battling and PWC only.
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It's stupid but nowhere near as stupid as Sobble and Grookey's captures were. Some of these feel like they write the episode then go "Oh ****, we forgot to get a capture. Um, I got it! He'll just ask for it to join and it'll accept!"

Wish they'd calm down, it's annoying when they think he needs one every episode and then it stops for a few episodes before returning for a long period of time(Or just happening to be in an Ash episode before stopping again!)

Yce288 said:
According to Bublbapedia, The events of this episode are partially based on the player character's encounter with Cynthia in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver and since i only played HG using emulator, i need to check what does this means.
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Basically it was something implemented if you had Arceus from the DP games(which of course you couldn't get legitimately because reasons? I swear how they handled Arceus was freaking stupid, at least Legends looks to be making it available outside of events. Never should have been one in the first place)

If you had it you'd be able to go to the Sinjoh ruins and meet Cynthia. It's been a very long time since I've seen that but I remember those details at least
 
Zweilous

Zweilous

Go-ing for Gold
This was a really good episode. I was worried that all the main story elements would make for a crowded story, but everything linked together pretty well. Overall, it was no Movie 3, but it was still a pretty touching. Pokemon has been surprisingly good at handling death in episodes.

Good
  • When they first hear about the town trapped in eternal night, Ash, Goh and Pikachu look shocked. Grookey just smiles. It's so weird and it was clearly a conscious decision. It reacts when Ash makes that breakfast line soon after.
  • The concept of the episode is pretty good, as are the effects night has on the town. I like when we get these less standard episodes.
  • Grookey's small moments were great - climbing on Sudowoodo, waving goodbye to it. That's one thing that the anime doesn't enough credit for, and it's how they've been adding little details or background events to make Pokemon a little more lively and full of personality. It started with SM, right?
  • I was like, "Grookey, there are some wilting flowers. Do your stick thing." And when they didn't do it, I was disappointed. But then they did do it, and it was great.
  • Pikachu remembers Cynthia, aww. Also, he ran right into her boobs.
  • Cynthia knows about Ash entering the PWC, hell yeah. I wouda liked to see him tell her about his rank, though. It would have been great to see her react to being in the Hyper Class.
  • The Unown who granted Kirara's wish spelled out NIGHT.
  • I really liked Cynthia in this episode. She knew about Unown, she got donuts for everyone, she was quick to pick up on Kirara's shifts in mood, and she was the one to figure out how to beat the illusory Pokemon.
  • The ending was so good. I was worried that Kirara would do a complete 180 with the defeat of the illusion Pokemon. While she does realize she was being selfish and apologizes, she still cries and laments her loneliness. The gang didn't solve the issue with platitudes, and the Unown were able to give her enough closure to move on. And even then, she's still going to carry Cleffa in her heart.

Bad
  • I wish this took place in a canon town, like Violet City. Violet City's right next to the Ruins of Alph, so it'd fit.
  • I liked how Goh caught Murkrow, though the whole thing was too quick. And then they just move on immediately and it's like ??? At least with other captures, we see Goh actively chasing them, or helping them, or taking advantage of a nearby Pokemon. I'd have liked to see more with this. I feel like Goh could have utilized his Pokemon in the episode, to show people that it's not an omen of misfortune and actually a good Pokemon.
  • Grookey was kind of off-model a few times this episode. It was distracting.

Other
  • What the hell was that mom's dress?
  • There was a spiky-haired brunette with a red headband. I saw him and nearly had a stroke. Some things are best left forgotten.
  • You know, maybe depicting Cynthia from the side isn't a good idea, when you're depicting the side where her face is covered.
  • Kirara should have kept the Unown.
 
masdog

masdog

What is the airspeed of an unladen Swellow?
Zweilous

Zweilous

Go-ing for Gold
masdog said:
NGL...Goh's expression there is kinda...creepy. Like "come get some free candy from my 1978 Ford Econoline" creepy.
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He found out she was lonely and realized she'd be perfect for his collection. The Murkrow scene was foreshadowing.
 
Dragonsoldier77

Dragonsoldier77

Bittersweet Satisfaction
Panky.. said:
It's definitely a filler to me, the Cynthia connection is pretty flimsy and her role in the episode is very much replaceable by any strong adult trainer. You can slot in Leon, Raihan etc. here and nothing much changes.

Full review in the next three days, check link in sig.
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Eh i don’t think you even need an adult trainer for this episode. Just have goh solve everything like he did in this episode and have ash do the fighting so he doesn’t feel like a background character like usual.

Frankly i think they shot themselves in the foot by shoehorning cynthia in here, and taking some focus away from an otherwise good episode. She didn’t get to do much aside from showing off scale shot. She didn’t even get to show off her expertise since goh already solved everything before meeting her. Unless just being in museum is supposed to be all what her profession amounts to.
 
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