Review HZ013: A Sudden Picnic

[BigDocFan]

The latest episode of Pokemon Horizons has aired, discuss here

https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/HZ013

 

[RetroPokeFan]

Horizons is back in action after a two week break with a decent relaxing sort of episode where Roy dukes it out with a Wattrell.

I definitely wasn't expecting them to have Spinel come out of the shadows this early either. Seems like he's gonna be a good antagonist if things go well.

 

[BigDocFan]

Spinel is certainly proving to be a credible threat, he isn't as overused as Team Rocket were but he is causing trouble

Was nice to see Levincia appear, albeit briefly

 

[Eitarou]

Roy's ingredients didn't vanish into the ether immediately after falling off the bread. 0/10, this was a completely innacurate portrayal of sandwich-making.

 

[Sakuraa]

I enjoyed this episode. Roy continues to be the most adorable character in the series. Trying to complete that huge ass sandwhich and not expecting it to fall was adorable. I love how he took a selfie to send to Dot while she was alone. Also the way he had Fuecoco sing to counter Wattrel's attack was cute and funny. It was also nice to see Liko continue to break Dot out of her shell and interact more with the group. I'm excited to see Roy bonding with the Wattrel in the next episode. I really enjoy that element of his character in that he likes to spend a lot of time with particular Pokémon he's had meaningful interactions with. I do hope he'll at least try to catch it at some point, but considering that the preview looks like he wants to teach it to fly, I doubt it honestly. Either way, I'll give this episode an 8/10.

 

[Singaporean]

What a comeback after a two week break with the before the storm comes with new explorer member prepare to test Rising Volt Tacklers. While Roy being tricked by Wattrel twice till he finally went back and try to catch it at next week. Also, Liko still haven't figure out dot is Nidothing. My guess it truly have to wait till series conclusion like Meyer as Blaziken Mask and Professor Kukui as Masked Royal.

Overall rating: B+

 

[Max1996]

Some nice Dot development, and we're seeing Spinel in full already, this was a good episode.

...And in hindsight, I don't know why I thought the rest of the Rising Voltacklers weren't aware of Gurumin/Nidothing.

 

[Emelie]

This series is too slow for its own good. Glad that Roy might be catching a Pokémon at least. I hope they let Liko catch something soon. Another thing I noticed is that Roy does a lot of things without Liko. Perhaps they should interact more.

 

[Eclipsical]

A rather low-key but enjoyable episode nonetheless!

Similar to how Journeys managed to incorporate curry-making into the anime, Horizons incorporates sandwich-making. It was fun to see how Liko, Roy, and Friede differ based on how they make their sandwiches.

Dot had a nice little character journey in this episode. Going from not understanding picnics or eating with others, to getting it, and applying those feelings towards her video.

The most important thing is probably Roy and his encounter with Wattrel. It appears that it cannot fly, so I'm guessing Roy will help it learn, resulting in the two bonding and becoming partners. Hopefully it doesn't remain as much of a jerk post-capture. You're not you when you're hungry!

And finally, Spinel makes his move for the pendant. We'll see how Spinel fares in comparison to Amethio.

 

[VetProf]

Incorporating the obligatory sandwich-making promotion into Liko and Dot's character development was a really nice way of showing it off. Really liked seeing how Liko and Dot's relationship are growing over time, though I do hope the "haha Liko doesn't realize Dot is Nidothing" joke doesn't overstay it's welcome. It's still funny for now, but I can see the joke getting old very quickly. Another small detail I liked was seeing how Dot appears to be comfortable hanging around Ludlow, considering she's usually apprehensive with most of the other crew members.

 

[Kurolegacy]

This series is too slow for its own good. Glad that Roy might be catching a Pokémon at least. I hope they let Liko catch something soon. Another thing I noticed is that Roy does a lot of things without Liko. Perhaps they should interact more.

Definitely agree on the feeling of the pacing. While I like the more storytelling format, I never quite feel satisfied just from viewing a single episode week to week since you tend to be left wanting as things trudge forward slowly. It’s kinda like eating a 4 course meal but each course is divided as they bring you one piece of individual food before starting to cook the next once you’re finished.

And while I’m not against Roy doing things on his own without Liko, I hope that she gets her chance to do more interesting things on her own as so far the only real solo things she’s done was try to interact with Dot when they were resupplying.

 

[ena9219]

As advertised our cast has a picnic, apparently, Brave Asagi used to be an ordinary fishing boat (which explains why it has the occasional issue functioning as an airship) before Orio somehow managed to turn it into an airship (Fride's idea of course)., Liko and Dot continue to bond (a wonderful subplot that I hope continues through the series). A bird stealing Fuecoco's sandwich turns into Roy being concerned about it, Hopefully leading to Roy catching his second Pokémon next episode. Lastly, Spinel seems ready to begin his plan to retrieve the pendant.

 

[vivian20]

I think Liko calling Dot a friend is a little forced. Dot is warming to liko, but she isnt her friend yet.

 

[Kurolegacy]

So while this was a pretty wholesome episode for the most part, one thing I definitely wasn’t a fan of was how they used the first third of the episode to basically refresh us on the prologue which just seemed unnecessary given that the series just started 3 months ago and not much has really happened since the prologue. Although, even as far as clip shows go, they at least did that much better than Journeys given that they had a framing device of the episode around it so it wasn’t totally a waste to watch.

 

[Rockapheller]

The picnic part felt like a boring filler portion of the episode. Not that the picnic is necessarily boring, but something more interesting could have been kept in the loop to make it more engaging. But I am already sold at the Wattrel portion of the episode. I am quite interested in this Pokémon, and I would be a tad sad if Roy won't catch it. I've said it before, Wattrel is my favorite Gen IX Pokémon, so that is an excellent kick off to expanding the teams. It can't fly for some odd reason so I am curious to see why that is the case.

 

[SunGodNika1997]

A bit disappointed in the recaps and such, but it had its moments and is clearly setting up more to come in the next episode. Liko and Dot's dynamic was probably the highlight for me.

 

[Kurolegacy]

So is it just me or does Liko reflecting on the prologue and talking about how far they’ve come ring a little hollow when we’re only 13 episodes in and barely anything has actually happened in the series so far? Hell, even in-series, it can’t have been more than a couple of weeks max since the first episode.

 

[Poke Trey]

Still hoping Roy catches it.

 

[Twilight-Kun]

Makes sense to do a recap filler episode after two weeks of nothing
'course the dub releasing these in batches is going to make it feel even worse

 

[Kurolegacy]

Makes sense to do a recap filler episode after two weeks of nothing
'course the dub releasing these in batches is going to make it feel even worse

A recap this early on in the series really doesn’t make any sense considering not enough has happened for there to need a recap. Literally half of the series thus far was the prologue. Heck, neither has even so much as actually begun to expand their team beyond their starter. If one needs a refresher this soon, they’re gonna have a hard time following this series since it’s more story heavy rather than one-off.