• A new LGBTQ+ forum is now being trialed and there have been changes made to the Support and Advice forum. To read more about these updates, click here.
  • Hey Trainers! Be sure to check out Corsola Beach, our newest section on the forums, in partnership with our friends at Corsola Cove! At the Beach, you can discuss the competitive side of the games, post your favorite Pokemon memes, and connect with other Pokemon creators!
  • Due to the recent changes with Twitter's API, it is no longer possible for Bulbagarden forum users to login via their Twitter account. If you signed up to Bulbagarden via Twitter and do not have another way to login, please contact us here with your Twitter username so that we can get you sorted.

Review JN021: Convey the Wave Guidance! Satoshi and the Mysterious Egg!!

I really don't understand where resentment towards continuity's even coming from: what is so terrible about all the series being canon to each other, that you constantly have to come up with insane explanations for why that wouldn't be the case?
It's called pointing out flaws in the show's writing, which we've been doing for the past two decades, so why stop now?
 
I'm mixed on this episode. In the first half I was hoping they would focus on Ash bonding with the egg, but nope, it literally hatches that night. The battle should have been replaced by just Ash training which would have taken less time. And the second half...Scraggy worked with that personality because it was portrayed as comedic, but this time it's a flaw and an important trait and the same time? Riolu rightfully gets its butt kicked for disturbing those Pokémon, but then Ash encourages him to keep doing it? It's not the most relatable character, and in my opinion the role of hatching from an egg should have been given to Sobble and Riolu should have been a wild one, maybe with a tragic past about why it behaves that way.

Well, what did I like? I guess that it's cool that Ash aura powers came back and helped him bond with a Pokémon, and those explanations about how an egg works were interesting.
 
What did you guys think of the Onix's voice in this episode? I wasn't sure if they used archive clips of the late Unsho Ishizuka or a new actor, but I think it worked just fine!
 
It's called pointing out flaws in the show's writing, which we've been doing for the past two decades, so why stop now?

But... But... But you're not doing that! How is saying that Ash's battle with Lt. Surge being openly mentioned and outright referenced in episode 18 means nothing in terms of continuity pointing out a flaw?! How is claiming that the shot of Ash's trophies/badges from the second episode doesn't connect it to what happened in the past criticizing the series?! How is implying that, since Ash never mentions any of the eggs he's seen before, this series is completely secluded from all the other, pointing any flaw?! Yeah, them changing the eggs' designs for the sake of incorporating Pokémon GO mechanics/aesthetics is disappointing and kind of stupid! But, unlike other changes they've made (like the new capture system), this doesn't break or diminish what came before (since characters never even acknowledged the eggs' design and how it shows what Pokémon will hatch from it)! Denying that there is continuity and, instead, believing that the writers are tricking us into believing that there is continuity (which, by the way, what would be the kriffing point of doing that in the first place?! Why would they openly acknowledge the previous series, why show past characters, why reference past events, why tease continuity with what came before, why do any of that if this series is supposed to be set in its own, secluded, alternate universe and if they are not actually trying to connect it to the previous ones?!) is not the same as criticizing the show and pointing out it's flaws! Criticism is based on what happens in the show! Saying that continuity doesn't exist is based on nothing and outright denies what the show is telling and showing us!
 
So beyond the named V Wave any guesses for moves on Riolu.

Sort of swore I saw it use Quick Attack...
 
Didn’t get around to this earlier despite being excited to re-watch right after subs were available. Oh well…

Pros:
  • I know some people dislike Riolu/Lucario, or just overly promoted/shilled Pokemon in general, but you have to admit that Ash was long overdue a member of that evolutionary line and that alone makes this episode worth it to me and many older fans (not to mention the aura point brought up in a bit). Like, most of us had wondered if M08 was promotion for Ash getting a similar Gen 4 Pokemon only to be disappointed with how that Sinnoh two-parter turned out, but I digress. Let's start from the beginning then: an egg is found in the Sinnoh region and passed on from day care to day care and each time, the egg refused to hatch in either of their care (I'd personally prefer a Sinnoh episode but whatever) until it reaches Vermillion's Pokemon Center. It's been waiting till it found someone worthy of it and in this case, the person being an aura user who's none other than our hero. Sounds a lot like Froakie if you ask me. Moving on, it's a major continuity element that Ash's aura is brought up again after ages, which helps it and Riolu sense each other and end up being drawn together after his Aura flared up due to being excited for his battle. Speaking of that last point, it pretty much canonized a headcanon of mine on how he's always leaking aura in naturally undetectable amounts whenever he gets excited. No wonder whenever he shouts at his Pokemon to persevere and push on, they suddenly get boosted in power (let's not forget the recent Pikamehameha). Gou bringing up the entire 'hearing Lugia' from the second episode was a decent callback as well, wonder how different it is from sensing Riolu according to Ash, and how it'll factor into the future especially during Eternatus' appearances.
  • Onto Riolu's egg time with Ash, hatching and subsequent first adventures. I'd personally have preferred if there was more of the 'egg bonding' moments that we saw Ash have in the past, maybe just a 1 on 1 time with the egg in the dark bedroom and no Pikachu or Gou in sight. I get the reason why it ran away from Ash, it was looking around and unable to sense Ash's aura at first and wanted to find the aura that led to its hatching, but I don't understand why it would pick fights randomly though I assume it has something to do with its headstrong and reckless personality (kinda reminds you of a certain Pallet town trainer who triggered its hatching, hmmm...). Riolu's headstrong personality and confident nature, as well as the fact that it doesn't like being babied around, is a very fresh change of pace from previous members of the same evolutionary line who were always portrayed as cool and collected. Gotta admit, for a baby Pokemon, that little fellow is really tough if he can tank so many water attacks, Bites, Stun Spore, a Dragon Tail etc. Or maybe Ash just boosted it with his aura like he mostly does to his Pokemon (albeit inadvertently), that Ash-Riolu aura flare pose was long time coming (and that Vacumn Wave SHOULD become Aura Sphere). Here's hoping that Riolu only joined Ash because of his aura and to get stronger for itself, a selfish trait that becomes character development for it later and learning that there's more to Ash than just his aura. I wonder if that reduction of selfishness will factor in when it becomes a big brother to the crybaby Sobble.
  • Both battles, the one against Tauros and the other against Onix, were quite well animated which is a stark contrast from 19's choppy animation and 20's clipshow (aside from the Meganium battle). Leaving that aside, it seems like Pikachu might be getting replaced as the Riolu if that yeeting is any indication, because :wynaut:. Just hope it doesn't turn out to be an Ash-Greninja situation because I really hope to see reserve rotation down the line instead of overexposure of just a few select Pokemon (if they shill just a few Pokemon then what's point of the concept of World Tour and World Championships?). That soundtrack when Ash sensed and walked to the egg, and the subsequent scenes that followed, was hauntingly beautiful. I wonder if it's even the same composer who till now prioritized recycling of the same badly timed tracks and giving country music a priority.
Cons:
  • The initial PWC battle is easily the worst major point of this episode because of how weakly it was written and executed, and how much it was rushed. Not only does Pikachu get more overexposure in another quick 1 versus 1 battle but it also ends quite cheaply with the battle having Pikachu being tossed around and then suddenly knocking Tauros out with just one Thunderbolt. I really hope Ash's PWC battles are not treated in a shallow manner like most of Gou's captures tend to be, that would be a disastrous nightmare. I prefer fully expanded battles that are well written to make sense and are full of strategizing or improvisations that good ol' Ash is known for. I do get why that particular battle was needed, so that they could show it on-screen that Ash's aura flares up from being in an excited state due to the battle and later have him take Pikachu to the Pokemon Center, I just wish it ended up better (even the Meganium battle in the last episode, despite being rushed, was handled quite well and the way Meganium was knocked out made some sense). There was no ranking update to show Ash's new rank either, that felt like a big bummer.
Additional thoughts:
  • It's very hilarious and ironic that Gou exclaims about Ash's capture of Riolu being super quick. Like boy, at least Riolu willingly joined him, how do you explain your quick 100% capture rates especially of strong Pokemon like Darmanitan?
  • That intro is becoming very repetitive and wasted like 20 seconds of screen time. For a show that runs across the length of 20-25 minutes per episode, those 20 seconds are very precious and could be utilized to showcase something better. Same as the entire segment with Jigglypuff singing to an egg, I thought they were going to reference egg moves instead of a silly anecdote.
  • Professor Elm's cameo and reference was a decent surprise, hopefully Birch gets a cameo in the next one and they both appear in person sometime in the future. The point about Pokemon never seen laying eggs was interesting as well, guess it's one of the unsolvable mysteries even in the games.
  • I failed to mention this in past, but one thing I like about official PWC matches is that both trainers are required to send out their Pokemon at the same time unlike the Leagues where they were chosen to pick first depending on RNG.
  • Dragonite was being the sweet cuddle bear as always. Aside that, it was nice to see Koharu hanging out with the boys willingly on their 'stroll'. Last time she was asked, she flat out declined, so this gives me hope that she'll be relevant soon.
  • Anyone else caught onto Gou's Team Mystic T-shirt? No? Okay.

Verdict: A capture of a species bound to Ash by destiny (a different type of destiny from that of Pikachu, but important nonetheless), taking place in a decent overall episode, it’s a 8/10 from me. Feels strange to write a review that’s not lengthy after the last few but then again, there weren’t many points to expand upon (or maybe it did turn out to be long... the long man now flows through me, @Pulsaro23).
 
Last edited:
I give this episode 100 out of 10 for this shot alone.
Poli.jpg

I'm very intrigued by the Riolu, just the theme of the series so far is constantly dropping really good Pokemon and characters in, but not spending enough time developing them. The short scene with Dragonite was nice, but I feel like Ash is getting way too many Pokemon with personalities and there just won't be a time to expand on all those - especially as Pikachu continues to get so many of the on screen battles.

I'd say that's worse in the case of Koharu - again she pops in to this episode and shows exactly why I'd want to see far more episodes about her.

Still, I'm a lot more positive on this series than I was the last time I posted, which is good.
 
I'm actually excited to see where things go now with Riolu added in. I especially hope they do more with Ash and his aura it seems like they didn't do much with that after Lucario And The Mystery Of Mew outside of what maybe a few times, right? Outside of the PWC battle being kind of a joke I greatly enjoyed this episode. Oh and Koharu... I keep forgetting she even exists so far in this series she's so freaking under utilized. You could literally edit her few brief moments out and you wouldn't even notice her being gone.
 
That intro is becoming very repetitive and wasted like 20 seconds of screen time. For a show that runs across the length of 20-25 minutes per episode, those 20 seconds are very precious and could be utilized to showcase something better.
I've probably already said this in another thread, but... get used to it. It's something that many other long-running shows do, and I fully expect the intro to stay for the rest of the series. There's a much higher chance for the writers to tone down Gou's effortless captures than for the production team to completely drop the intro, as unnecessary as it is.
 
I've probably already said this in another thread, but... get used to it. It's something that many other long-running shows do, and I fully expect the intro to stay for the rest of the series. There's a much higher chance for the writers to tone down Gou's effortless captures than for the production team to completely drop the intro, as unnecessary as it is.

That 20 seconds of filler at the start is nothing compared to what I'm seeing so far watching One Piece. The amount of filler (and recycled material) on some episodes is absolutely crazy! And to think I'm only 10 episodes in on that series.
 
That intro is becoming very repetitive and wasted like 20 seconds of screen time. For a show that runs across the length of 20-25 minutes per episode, those 20 seconds are very precious and could be utilized to showcase something better.
Any episode could be someone's first, so they're using that to get any new viewers up to speed.
Same as the entire segment with Jigglypuff singing to an egg, I thought they were going to reference egg moves instead of a silly anecdote.
I think it still was a reference to those.
 
That 20 seconds of filler at the start is nothing compared to what I'm seeing so far watching One Piece. The amount of filler (and recycled material) on some episodes is absolutely crazy! And to think I'm only 10 episodes in on that series.
One Piece is precisely why I'm used to it. I'm no longer watching the anime, but years of watching it have made me used to unnecessary intros, recaps and flashbacks. That's why I mostly stick to the manga now.

Speaking of One Piece, hearing Chopper's VA at the start of this episode was a neat little surprise. Their voice is so adorably iconic that hearing it outside of One Piece really caught me off guard, even when I rewatched this episode with subs.
 
To me, it sounded kinda like Sawyer.
Yup, he shares the same VA with One Piece's Chopper. It's been a long while since XY ended, and I haven't watched the One Piece anime in a long time, so hearing that VA voice a random kid in this episode really caught me off guard.
 
Please note: The thread is from 2 years ago.
Please take the age of this thread into consideration in writing your reply. Depending on what exactly you wanted to say, you may want to consider if it would be better to post a new thread instead.
Back
Top Bottom