There were a couple of bright moments, I laughed at everyone sleeping and Litten's cat-like tendencies, such as clawing on the door to go out. Behaving exactly like a cat does and the cone of shame was pretty cute as a bonding moment. I also didn't mind and actually preferred Ash not catching Litten, since that bonding would have been rushed af if he had caught it. I'm hoping this is a nice arc and it's a refreshing change of pace in contrast to almost every Pokemon liking him for...what 2 sagas now? Seeing development over time > rushing it for the sake of a capture. Litten's concern about Stoutland's health was also adorable and it's pretty clear that while it is around or Litten decides it's capable to fend for itself, Litten won't be joining Ash.
That said...there were a couple of problems with the episode. Team Rocket were unnecessary, although I liked them not trying to steal Pikachu, you could have just have easily used someone else for all their role in the episode - unless they remember this if they meet Litten later on, in which case I can get behind this, setting up story arcs for later. The main criticism of the episode was that it wasn't really funny, aside the aforementioned sleeping scene, I didn't really laugh all that much - which for a show that proclaims 'A laugh a minute!' is not how it should have gone. I can appreciate good storytelling and setup for the future, but this was quite a serious episode that sort of went against SM's style.
The Marketplace Wanderer, Litten!
