Review JN123: The Semifinals II: "Dazzle"

[FinnishPokéFan92]

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The long-awaited battle of Ash vs Cynthia has begun. Feel free to discuss the first part of the match here.

 

[BigDocFan]

A great start to what promises to be a great battle

I feel that Ash has had way too easy a time during the WCS so it was great to see Cynthia proving to be a real challenge

My only complain was how easy Gastrodon went down

 

[cricketlaxwolvesbandy]

Bad start so far. Ash not switching Dragonite out was horrible, Gengar getting a burn on Roserade was nice (even though it’s getting cured) Gengar getting one shot was horrible, Pikachu cutting the rocks with Iron Tail was great but Pikachu one-shorting Gastrodon with Quick Attack made no sense. Pikachu vs Spiritomb was great with Pikachu using Counter Shield and Destiny Bond knocking both Pokémon out.
Next time, wow Dracovish refuses to switch out! It wants to fight! And ugh I’m dreading Mega Ash Lucario vs Mega Garchomp.

 

[Singaporean]

What a heart wrecking episode to see Ash got overwhelming too much all thanks to Cynthia Spiritomb defeat all three of Ash with the swapping tactic. But wait, counterattack from Ash in next episode will soon turn the tide.

Overall rating: B+

 

[BigDocFan]

Full VA list courtesy of Adamant

Rica Matsumoto: Satoshi
Daiki Yamashita: Go
Ikue Ohtani: Pikachu
Kenyu Horiuchi: Professor Okido
Megumi Hayashibara: Musashi
Shinichiro Miki: Kojiro
Inuko Inuyama: Nyarth
Yuji Ueda: Sonansu
Daisuke Namikawa: Lucario
Kenta Miyake: Kairyu
Kei Shindo: Roserade
Yasuhiro Mamiya: Gangar
Hana Takeda: Sarunori
Daisuke Ono: Dande
Tomo Sakurai: Shirona
Fumiko Orikasa: Carne
Yo Kitazawa: Danpei
Takuto Yoshinaga: Hop
Marina Aicholtz: Go's Smartphone Rotom

 

[RetroPokeFan]

Not a bad start to the battle (unless you happen to be a Dragonite though cause this tournament doesn't seem to be a fan of them).

Pikachu put on a really good show and I especially loved the callback to Counter Shield which was a neat little touch.

Now that he's on the side with Ash, I just hope the quality for this battle can go even more upwards instead of downwards.

 

[Reborn Talonflame]

Goodish start. Ash and Cynthia feel like they’re actually responsive.
The episode at times was weird to get into because the music and pacing felt disjointed, but I suppose that’s the intent of the episode. Cynthia’s constant switching didn’t allow time for Ash to settle and assure himself into the fight, reflecting my previous point. It was trying to be a unsettling environment.
And to turn this, Ash brings in his most trusted ally, who is also his most versatile - Pikachu; I think Cynthia states something like “I see you’ve went to your best buddy to turn the tide”.

One part about Ash I haven’t liked this series is how he seemingly never has a plan for anything anymore, just pure improv. That is, he actually had a plan for Gastrodon. He expected Cynthia to counter in the air, as Ash wanted to avoid grounded-combat against Muddy Water if it was used, and thus knocked Gastrodon off-balance by making the Stone Edge stick to its body.
And, Counter-Shield being back was nice.
So, both combatants feel like their battling at the top of their game! Lovely to see. (7/10)

I will acknowledge that Spiritomb taking down three of Ash’s Pokemon is believable because it had the help of Cynthia’s others - Roserade doing good damage against Gengar, Togekiss against Pikachu (exhausting it to prolong movement for Destiny Bond to hit, as a theory), etc.
Sorry to compare, considering he’s not battling, but relative to last week, Leon takes out four with just one alone (Tyrantrum may have been injured by Dragapult, who knows, but it still counts). This is what makes Leon so unbelievably stupid. Even Number Two in the entire world can’t handle that many without some form of support. And begs the question, how much of a gap is there between them?

 

[Audino1008]

Yeah, Pikachu reaaaaally needed a win and a tie here. It's okay that Dragonite and Gengar lost without getting a single win themselves.
I swear sometimes the writers do that on purpoae just to get a reaction out of the internet

 

[puddleths]

Now I see how reserves would've taken away from the JN team's moment to shine. Dragonite and Gengar would've both missed out on getting KO'd against Cynthia!

 

[FinnishPokéFan92]

Now I see how reserves would've taken away from the JN team's moment to shine. Dragonite and Gengar would've both missed out on getting KO'd against Cynthia!

They both have scored wins in the past. They needed to lose in order to display that Cynthia isn't messing around.

 

[Reborn Talonflame]

Now I see how reserves would've taken away from the JN team's moment to shine. Dragonite and Gengar would've both missed out on getting KO'd against Cynthia!

There’s really no winning this for either side.
If the reserves came back, one or two is likely to be down without doing much, so people would complain that a certain former powerhouse didn’t get a meaningful return.
If the JN team fought Leon, they wouldn’t feel as the most deserving (emotional attachment wise) to make Ash Champion, unlike the reserves. But, that attachment is still yet to be earned through one final battle, where it could make or break members, like Lucario, for me in terms of my personal affinity for them.

Hell, Dragonite still hasn’t managed to pull off its special Draco Meteor move, so that’s bound to come up against Leon. And, hopefully Dragonite gets a win.
I don’t think there’s really a guarantee on what would be better, just your preference.

 

[PrettySylveon]

One thing I’m glad I got from this episode was the use of the Destiny Bond move. Glad to see it return ever since the Hoeen league (Glalie was effected by it). My boy Pikachu held his own and got two wins (especially since one win was against a Pokémon it had a type disadvantage to).

Ash really should have recalled Dragonite when it got hit by the hypnosis, because that Dream Eater move was no joke.

I’m really keeping my fingers crossed that Ash wins against Cynthia. I want to see Ash battle Leon (although he may lose).

 

[BigDocFan]

I agree that Dragonite should have been recalled after the first Dream Eater, it allowed Dragonite to go down without putting up much of a fight

 

[Beatsy Ray]

Ash really should have recalled Dragonite when it got hit by the hypnosis, because that Dream Eater move was no joke.

Switching out wouldn't really have helped since Dragonite would still be asleep whenever Ash sent it back out. In that situation it really is best just to hail mary and hope it wakes up in time. It would be different if Spiritomb wasn't already at full health because then Dream Eater would be much more troublesome.

 

[WatcherMark]

Now this is more like it. After years and years, we finally get Satoshi vs. Shirona and if this episode is anything to go by it won't disappoint.

I can absolutely believe that Mikaruge would manage to take down half of Satoshi's team. When he was using Dream Eater against Kairyu I was initially aghast that Satoshi didn't switch her out... until I remembered that I've had plenty of battles where one of my Pokemon has been asleep and I've left it in hoping it wears off in time (and it usually doesn't). Gangar getting knocked out quick was a shame, although it's had plenty of time to shine and it didn't feel cheap since it was already weak from Roserade's attacks and Sucker Punch can be that annoying.

I also appreciated how Pikachu was handled in this episode. Obviously he's very powerful now and will need to show his stuff against Leon in a few episodes, so having him be kept in place by a Serene Grace boosted flinch then being knocked out by a Destiny Bond seems like a perfect way to get him out of the match quick without making him seem weak. Of course, this also means we won't get to see Pikachu vs Gablias (yeah, I know he'd lose in that fight) at all now but you can't have everything I guess.

My only issue was with how quickly and easily Toritodon was knocked out. Although I did appreciate Satoshi's strategy of keeping Toritodon in place by sticking the Stone Edge fragments to its body so he could attack from the ground without falling prey to Muddy Water, I don't buy it getting knocked out by a single Quick Attack. Ah well...

Now to look forward to Part 2.

 

[PrettySylveon]

Something tells me that this battle will be split into at least three episodes.

 

[BigDocFan]

Something tells me that this battle will be split into at least three episodes.

3 episodes minimum has been confirmed as JN125 as the Semi-Final in its title

So with Gengar and Pikachu defeated, it looks like Mega Lucario will be the decider in this match

 

[LagCross]

Why does this reminds me of Ash's battle with Katie back in Hoenn except Pikachu didn't job this battle.

 

[Sai]

Gengar getting one shot was horrible,

What? Gengar took multiple attacks in the episode from Spiritomb, Roserade's Magical Leaf. How in earth was Gengar one-shot? Did you watch the episode?

Pikachu cutting the rocks with Iron Tail was great but Pikachu one-shorting Gastrodon with Quick Attack made no sense.

Pikachu literally slammed two heavy boulders on top of it and Gastrodon's sticky body couldn't drop them. I don't see a problem there.

Now I see how reserves would've taken away from the JN team's moment to shine. Dragonite and Gengar would've both missed out on getting KO'd against Cynthia!

Gengar caused serious damage to both Roserade and Spiritomb. Getting a win is not as important as contributing.

Pikachu carrying the battle really proves how strong it was really is and true Champion tier. Had Destiny Bond not done it in, Pikachu probably would have beaten Togekiss as well.

 

[L-05308]

The last two times Ash faced an opponent with Dream Eater, he kept his Pokémon in - if a Pokémon is asleep it’s going to be taking attacks sooner or later….