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Review S16 EP11: A Unova League Evolution!

I actually sort of liked the match. Outside of Swanna's crappy loss and Boldore being knocked out so easily, it was a fun watch. I just really dislike the outcome, since it, while it no doubt made Kotetsu's Lucario look like one of the most powerful regular Pokemon in the anime, the whole match made Ash look bad. At the very least, Ash should have handicapped himself with 5 to make it fair - the match would be over quickly, but it would make Ash look more honorable.

I really want to see what would have happened if Ash brought in his Unova reserves into this match, since he works so much better with them than half his team here.
 
For this terrible League, I was expecting Lucario keeping his Japanese voice and if not, at least an extended version of It's Always You and Me playing in place of Be an Arrow!, neither happened.
 
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I don't for a moment have an issue with Cameron winning - he should have won by even more. Ash didn't choose his best Pokemon and his tactics were terrible - wasting Pignite by leaving it out against Samurott and then wasting Pikachu's last bits of energy on using a Steel move against a Steel type being the worst of them. Pikachu running head on into Lucario's chest with Quick Attack probably isn't the smartest move either.

Ash had seen Cameron battle several times by this point - sure he might throw him off with the 'secret weapon' but that's not an excuse to choose Oshawott over Palpitoad or Snivy over Leavanny. There's a reason that those Pokemon are the ones that won him his Gym badges, not just because they are evolved - but because they have (well comparatively) diverse movesets. If you know you're going against something unknown, you should go for diversity of moves - yet Ash picked his Pokemon with the most generic movesets and then used them badly. He deserved to lose.

Virgil does bug me though - he won a little bit too easily against Cameron, which rubs in Ash's loss far more than need be - and then wins and leaves without it really seeming to affect him. That's the real insult to Ash - having someone do what he has been spending his life on so easily and with so little care about it afterward. He won the league with the same joy that others won the Don Battles. Yet Ash shows so little emotion about losing that it seems like he placed the same lack of importance on the Unova League.

Perhaps Ash should have just gone home after losing to Bianca's dad.

It's really pathetic to think that this is indeed the last tournament for Ash - he will leave Unova achieving nothing at all - not one constellation prize, no full battle defeat of a rival. And no doubt the number of Pokemon he has out of Unova will mean they will all get added to the list of Pokemon that need redemption in battle but will never get it. Snivy, make good friends with Torterra.

Token positive - I liked the Tympole in the fountain out front.

Minor complaint - getting Rival Destinies here is a bit like when Black and White was sung in an episode just after the start of Rival Destinies - I really wish I didn't need to wait for the movies to hear the full versions of these songs.

Minor point - why is this episode called A Unova League Evolution when that happened last week?
 
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The battle between Lucario and pikachu was decent, I would have prefered it if Ash had won this match and fought Virgil in a three eppy match. That either had him lose after giving it his all or winning it just barely it would have at least made up for how crappy this league did turn out to be.
 
Anyone secretly while watching this hope that mid battle Ash would just throw a Thunder Stone at Pikachu. Pikachu would evolve and then thunder punch Lucario down before solo winning the whole Unova league as Raichu and finally getting Ash some progress?
 
I was almost hoping Snivy would evolve during her battle with Lucario and so make the fight atleast half interesting. The episode name was kind of misleading seeing as Lucario evolved last episode lol.
 
BTW, they should've used the Adventures in Unova theme instead of Rival Destinies for the ending flashbacks. Its footage is just the same with the "Yajirushi Ni Natte" that played IN Japan.
 
I just noticed that Virgil's trophy had a little Victini head on it. And when Virgil went to talk to the gang, it sounded like Eevee said "Bye Bye."

He won the league with the same joy that others won the Don Battles.
I was gonna suggest that it might be because he's a reserved and mature character, but then I noticed that Virgil showed a lot more excitement when his brother told him about the party they're throwing for him.

Edit: He also didn't even invite Ash and co. to the party? I know they only have one helicopter, but they can go back for them or something. That's kind of a jerk move, man.

Pikachu was adorable in the shower scene. The only problem was the Cartoon Network logo covering most of him up.
 
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...

...

What the fuck did I just watch?!

That was a very crappy way to end a crappy league, this was just total fucking bullshit at its finest.

I'd have honestly prefered Ash to lose to Virgil, that would have been more believable. Hell, I'd have actually prefered him to lose to Trip (and that's coming from Gengarzilla of all people), at least he knew what he was doing when it came to battling even if he was a insufferebly smug git. Thank fucking goodness Cameron got his ass handed to him my Virgil later on though, it would have been an unsalvagable disaster if Cameron had actually won the whole thing. Cameron's 6-3 loss doesn't really do Ash any favors though, if anything it made him look even worse.

All that doesn't even cover what I think is the worst part of this league. Remember back when this awful league conference started? Cameron wouldn't have been able to participate in that league in the first place if Ash himself hadn't hauled his (Cameron's) stupid ass over there to register. That's what I think is the worst part, Ash set himself up for failure this time... At least this league proved that Ash needs to use his Unova reserves much more often, considering how bad Oshawott, Snivy, and Unfezant did here and how much ass Krookodile, Palpitoad, and Leavanny kicked during that last battle. As for Virgil winning the league, I really don't mind. Hopefully that will shut up the small minority of people who claim that Eeveelutions are gimmicks.

In a nutshell, this episode is the lowpoint of BW and I would never recommend it to anyone.
 
Now for my review of this episode. It's episodes like this that make me question why I even watch this show anymore. The Unova League is honestly the worst League I have ever seen to hit my TV screen. This has nothing to do with the dub: this is just the writing in general. This whole thing was a trainwreck from start to finish, and only a few rays of hope like Ash vs. Stephan stood out. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough to save this League from being a total disaster in my eyes.

This episode was, needless to say, horrendous. Ash losing to Cameron in the most predictable way possible, and yet the most stupid and ironic way, as well? I swear, in no show I have seen does the protagonist actually end up regressing in proficiency when they've been on the air for 15+ years doing the same thing over and over again. This was literally the straw that broke the camel's back for me in terms of hoping Ash would eventually meet his goal. I really don't recommend this episode to anyone. Heck, I'd say you're better off avoiding the Unova League and skipping straight to Episode N. It saves you a lot of grief and is significantly more enjoyable. I'd have to strongly agree with mostly everyone on this episode.

I give this episode a 1/10. It's one I would avoid if at all possible.

Usually I just complain for the sake of it and to give people a few chuckles at my antics, but this time I'm serious. This is one of those episodes where it's just dejecting and sad to watch...
 
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I still say the worst episode this league was Lost At The League!, but this one comes right after. I really hope the show shapes up come Episode N as that has potential to be the best thing about Best Wishes.

I mean Charizard is returning which I think is awesome right there.

I hope once Episode N ends Ash Oaks most of his Unova team as it's worse than his Johto team was, and that's only because they weren't given a lot of screen time and only had 2 evolved Pokemon with him Bayleef & Noctowl. I really hope he Oaks all of his Unova team except for Pikachu (of course), Oshawott

& Charizard

and brings in Gible, Bayleef & Totodile as they all need to evolve.
 
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I'm just amused how much people hate this league while I don't find it bad at all - no, I like it. The ending of this conference wasn't bad, just a regular. We know that they can't let Ash win without ending the series. And I'm not bothered that Ash actually caused his loss. There's no way to predict such a thing.
And I'm always enjoying Iwane's animation in any episode.

The dub did its usual job. Alot replaced music and little bit annoying dub voices.
 
Its hated because Ash in DP almost won the league and only lost because he faced a guy with legendaries.

Ash did better in the Hoenn league too despite only using the same set of Pokemon.

This was Ash's worst performance in a league since the Indigo one.
 
I'm just amused how much people hate this league while I don't find it bad at all - no, I like it. The ending of this conference wasn't bad, just a regular. We know that they can't let Ash win without ending the series. And I'm not bothered that Ash actually caused his loss. There's no way to predict such a thing.
It's not the fact that Ash lost the league that everyone dislikes about it - we all saw that coming - it's HOW he lost the league that gets everyone.

Losing to a trainer who apparently doesn't know what a full battle is and only brings five Pokemon into battle against Ash's six, uses his so-called secret weapon right away instead of saving it for later, and throws away two of his Pokemon two against two of Ash's with a humongous type disadvantage doesn't make Ash look like a skilled trainer, especially in comparison to previous series. Cameron's new Lucario was his only saving grace, but had he brought six Pokemon into battle and chose his match-ups more wisely, he very likely would have won regardless of Riolu's evolution. Not to mention Cameron losing to Virgil 6-3 in the next round, making Ash look even worse.

I would hardly call this a "regular ending" to a league.
 
This episode and the league has many problems:
-1. Virgil doesn't get any battlke with Ash when it was hyped to be a important rival for the league.
-2. There were only three battles, a 1vs1, 3vs3, and 6vs6. In Sinnoh, it was 18 and in Hoenn 23. This is my major dissapointment.
-3. The only wins went to Pikachu, Pignite and Krookodile (and in the skipped battle, Scraggy). In Sinnoh, when Ash bring his reserves, all of Ash's Sinnoh pokemon got wins except Torterra.
-4. How they lose. Seriuously, this fuck kid who only bring 5 pokemon has the abilities of winning a battle with Ash? Sorry, ut in this final battle, Cameron was more idiotic than usual! fopr his standars.

Things that I also don't like.
-5. The fact that this saga (and the league) has too many rivals. Seriously, we don't need more than 3 rivals apart from CotL.
-6. The League was made too early. If the league was made at the end of the saga, it will be more exciting and Ash will have a more developed team because the writers can afford a evolution of Snivy by them (we know that Ash's Dewott is a dream species for Ash) or pokemon like Palpitoad and Boldore.

I liked Ash vs Stephan, Pikachu vs Lucario, the chemistry between rivals and yeah.

This is the worst league because in Kanto we know that they can't write battles but in Unova we know that they can.
 
I'm gonna be honest: I liked Lucario v Snivy & Pikachu. With Snivy, the bitch had it coming (underdeveloped both way and a snob to boot). With Pikachu, I'm just a sucker for when the Anime goes DBZ on us.

Iris: Cilan, what's the scouter say?!

*Cilan puts on scouter. Presses button. It gives a fast series of beeps, explodes. Sideline characters stare & gasp*

Also, it's always nice to see Lucario in action in general (even if they stuck him with a total retard of a trainer this time). And well...I just LOVE how karmic is was! Now Ash knows how those Gym Leaders felt! :lol:

That said, I'll agree with everyone else that it was just an unholy mess. What it is with the producers rushing through a storyline I'll NEVER understand :eek:hdear:. And don't tell me it's so they can move onto the next storyline, because wanting to get one story out of the way to move onto the next one is NO excuse for shitty, shitty writing. At all. :mad:
(No producers, running through a plot as fast as possible won't make new games come out a second sooner, nor guarantee great sales. And just what the hell will you have for the characters do while we wait? And that tired old excuse about the show being for kids doesn't cut it anymore. They have standards too ya know.)

They should've made the League a few episodes longer, not have interrupted it when a Pikachu Short style filler, and given people more depth (especially Kotty, Virgil, & poor Pink Haired Vegeta), and just FUCKING THOUGHT ABOUT THINGS FOR A SECOND. Seriously, do these people ever sit down and think things through or do they just start drawing whatever they feel like like some hack manga-ka? (Just so you Admins know, that's not intended to be bashing. Just a hard question).

Though heck, it's mostly been a slog every since Nimbasa. The Seismic Disaster screwed things up, then BW2 made things worse for some bizarre reason. Heck, it's feeling like even the producers know they fucked up royally and are trying to make it up to us with Episode N and Decolora Adventure (not sure if I accept the apology though).

So aside from a cool opening battle, this was a terrible ending to a terrible league of a terrible saga :dead:

Oh Team Plasma, take me away!
 
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Well Well.. Snivy vs. Lucario I was screaming "Attract.. Attract now. USE ATTRACT GODDAMNIT!!!" in my mind while watching this battle. Ofcourse Ash has to disappoint me and lose the battle. So he sends the pikachu in. Just like with snivy, he acts like he just got into his very first battle and spams quick attack... I have nothing else to say about this battle. Complete waste of time and pathetic.
Cameron's lose against Virgil was also pathetic. I understand Eeveelutions had to win for marketing reasons but 6-3 loss? really? That made ash look worse than his match vs. Ritchie :goof:
Anyway, Worst episode ever. Near the end of the episode, writers say "Ok so we seem to have 3 minutes to fill. You got any idea?" "Hmm.. How about filling it with worst flashbacks ever?"
1/10

People seem to have enjoyed Episode N. I'm looking forward to it. Atleast we get some good moments from this saga
 
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I am disappointed in the fact that we never got to see a full-battle with Virgil featuring more than a single Pokemon, as the victor of the entire league. I liked how his Flareon hopped on his shoulder so effortlessly after defeating Lucario, that was quite slick move. It's pleasant that they especially bring the helicopter, since when he arrived on it, it was only since his brother needed run an errand in the area anyways? It could still be for that cause, it wasn't mentioned, though. It's nice to have that mention of a family celebration back home, it provides a homely atmosphere to the scene.

I don't mind Ash ranking in the Top 8, or losing to Kotetsu, though I do feel the forgetting the sixth Pokemon fiasco was just unnecessary, and Ash's tactics weren't amazing either. Still, for his only Unova team, it is an achievement. He used only one fully-evolved Pokemon in his match versus Cameron, and that was Unfezant, which is intriguing to note. What I was concerned for was Cameron's Lucario not becoming some stoic beast, but fortunately, he maintained his affable nature, which was a relief. It was cute to see him flattered when Ash complimented him.

Even though Lucario is his signature, and it was a great way to emphasise Team Eeevee's power, I still think it'd be cool if they had the sixth Pokemon, missing from Ash's match, battle instead here.

It was really generous of Bianca to think of having Castelia cones as a celebration gift for Virgil, since no one else even considered presents. Pity he exits just as she arrives, though! It was neat of Ash to consider Virgil when he told them he was cheering on for Cameron in Vigril VS Cameron's battle.

Bianca's exit is a bit short- I don't know, I wished for more time, for her to remark on what she'd do next after the League. Cameron's raring to go, which is so typical of him.

The sauna scene with Kenyan was interesting, just had to have lodged in there one last time, with a collapsed Pikachu too. I like how Stephan's focused on the next adventure, as opposed to dwelling on anything, portrays his character well, and how he senses that Ash will continue to battle- he certainly knows the guy.

I was fond of the little montage at the end, it's a fine way to wrap up a league, after all. Though it's far from my favourite, and there's a lot to improve for me, I didn't mind the Unova League; it was enjoyable somehow.
 
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