My version is in the proper aspect ratio, so I was sure CN had aired today's Pokemon episode in widescreen. That's weird..
But hey, it's just like gambling. You never know the outcome! Or in Shakespeare's phrase: "To be cropped or not to be cropped- that's the question"
Anyways, a really entertaining episode. What I had considered a "filler" before, once again turned out to be pretty amusing and profound.
I don't know where to start:
First of all, you can't help liking Ash's clueless expression when it comes to love. Together with his even more clueless comments, that was just priceless (btw. that's what I call a comic relief; not a Pokemon acting goofily)
I don't know why, but I also liked the whole setting with the orchard and the friendly girl and so on. Watching Pokemon for 12 years now, I'm somehow surprised that so many people our heroes have come across so far are extremely hospitable. But today's CoD sure was unique with regard to hospitality : After a short introduction she willingly offered them to spend the night at her place. Wow! I guess people in the Pokemon world sure trust each other. If only this were the case in our world too...
Well, you could actually write much about the rivalry between Piplup and Elekid, but I want ot limit myself to the best scenes:
- Piplup failing to build a bridge. That moment when he sadly and jealously looked up to Marill and Elekid somehow moved me.
- That short elbow-fight...just like in real-life situations. Great!
- Piplup being confronted with the truth at the end of the episode. His expressions were hilarious. Add Brock's advice, especially in light of the fact that Brock himself constantly fails to impress women, and you get a perfect conclusion of a decent and funny episode!
However, as a Pokemon fan who primarily focuses on training, battling and battling strategies when watching Pokemon, I was a little bit disappointed to see how easily Piplup was defeated. Sure, he was at a disadvantage, but are we still supposed to believe that type disadvantage is that much of a problem?
Given the circumstances (Marill watching while the the rivals were fighting), it would have been wise to use Bide to endure the Electric attacks and then surprise and possibly OHKO Elekid. This would certainly have looked heroic and Piplup would have won Marill's heart in no time!
Mindlessly using water attacks without preventing Elekid from launching counter-attacks,however, was pretty much a greenhorn mistake.
So from a tactical point of view today's episode could have been better, but well, I guess it was meant to focus on other aspects.
All in all, an entertaining episode with the emphasis on humor
6.5/ 7 out of 10 points
