Review JN049: Koharu and the Mysterious, Mysterious Eievui!

[Ghost Diplocaulus]

Eevee obviously having the same charater traits as Chloe. It's clever she got a Pokemon that's just as indecisive as she is. I do hope they can grow and evolve together. And although Eevee isn't exactly what I would call my most favorite Pokemon, I still think it was a very nice aspect.

I think it was made pretty clear that it's not that Eevee's indecisive, it's that she's literally physically unable to evolve at all for some reason, hence the "mysterious" moniker she's given in the episode's title.

 

[MegaGreninga]

Eevee Might not be able tpo evovle possible because of gmax evolution for galar
Evee is female no doubt so lets comfired on Pokemon bulb
Team rocket peplicer will it have it's own page no need to be lazy on it. Since it took responsibility to battle along team rocket and proven to be loyal to battle and quite strong to take on electric pokemon.

 

[Silktree]

Hmm. Eevee is likely to evolve, since the researcher said that it might be hesitant to evolve as there are many possibilities. Considering she also said that it couldn't evolve into any of the current 8...

Either they're overhyping Gigantamax (which is hardly worth being compared to evolution) or we're getting a new Eeveelution next year. Remember that Pikachu and Meowth underwent Gigantamax without any build-up, and it wasn't that big a deal.

But honestly, this is getting too much. You might get the impression that the whole show is revolving exclusively around Go at the moment, while in fact it should be Ash who's the main protagonist !
Now Go and Chloe got their fair share of episodes. So, writers, will you please focus on Ash again and stop doing so many filler episodes? Thanks.

All in all, an entertaining episode with several interesting scenes. But as I said before, it's about time Ash gets back into the center of attention if you ask me.

I am not sure what you mean. In the past 9 episodes, Go and Ash have been treated equally, be it in the Galar arc, Mewtwo battle or fillers. This episode was mostly about Chloe, and was well deserved after 20 episodes of her getting scraps.

 

[Eitarou]

I think it was made pretty clear that it's not that Eevee's indecisive, it's that she's literally physically unable to evolve at all for some reason, hence the "mysterious" moniker she's given in the episode's title.

Except the Glaceon scientist outright suggested that as a possible reason why it can't evolve. Honestly, it's too early to tell when we barely know much about Eevee.

 

[Ghost Diplocaulus]

Except the Glaceon scientist outright suggested that as a possible reason why it can't evolve. Honestly, it's too early to tell when we barely know much about Eevee.

I think if Eevee was indecisive, she would have refused to touch the stones outright or at least shown some hesitation before doing so, but fair enough.

 

[Silktree]

I think if Eevee was indecisive, she would have refused to touch the stones outright or at least shown some hesitation before doing so, but fair enough.

You can interpret that as "I don't mind touching it, but I ain't evolving into that." She didn't seem unhappy about being asked to evolve or failing to do so.

 

[Beatsy Ray]

I think it was made pretty clear that it's not that Eevee's indecisive, it's that she's literally physically unable to evolve at all for some reason, hence the "mysterious" moniker she's given in the episode's title.

This, and also prolonged exposure to an evolutionary stone will make a Pokemon evolve whether they want to or not, hence why Pikachu ran from the Thunder Stone in PM035.

Either they're overhyping Gigantamax (which is hardly worth being compared to evolution) or we're getting a new Eeveelution next year. Remember that Pikachu and Meowth underwent Gigantamax without any build-up, and it wasn't that big a deal.

The scientists comment that "It was incapable of evolving into any of the eight evolutions" does seem to imply this. Alternatively, there are substantial rumors that the Gen 4 remakes will be coming out next year, so if has to be one of the existing eight it would probably be Leafeon, as it's basically had zero main cast representation so far. I wonder if it's just not popular. Ultimately though, I believe it will stay an Eevee, and that it will focus on move diversity (such as it using an electric attack) to make up for it's lack of power.

I'm not going to rule out it being partner Eevee just yet. If Eevee doesn't evolve in this series, that will passively confirm that Pikachu can't evolve either, unless they tie the phenomenon to the "partner" trait rather than Gigamax. It's worth noting that they never specifically refer to the move as Copycat, and Raboot's "Ember" proves that the writers can be pretty loose with move classifications. There was also a distinct visual difference between the electricity effect on Yamper and Eevee's body, and as far as I know Copycat usually makes a move look exactly the same as the move it's copying. It also zoomed into Eevee's tail pattern just as it began using the move, which could be a subtle reference the whole partner Eevee mechanic.

 

[game3524]

This episode was mostly about Chloe, and was well deserved after 20 episodes of her getting scraps.

Yeah, Chloe is the only one who actually has a gripe about screen time. Her story got sidelined because according to the director, he wanted to focus on Ash/Go's dynamic and that came at the expense of Chloe. If anything, this episode should have happened a couple months ago.

Anyway, this was a good episode. I wish we got to see more of Chloe/Go's school and have some more world building concerning it. But chances are we will revisit the school again in the future. The Eevee storyline has a nice set up and her dilemma is a nice tie in with Chloe's storyline (I have a sneaky feeling that Chloe will eventually take on the Kanto gym challenge at the end of the series.....). Also, it is interesting to note that Go commented on the fact that Eevee is Chloe's "first" capture, so chances are she gets another Pokemon or two in the future.

 

[PkmnTrainerV]

Not really comparable since Goh gave the Poke Ball to Chloe to catch on her own while Goh caught Eternatus himself.

Gou gave half the Pokeball to Ash so Eternatus should be dissected in two and one part given to Ash.

I am not sure what you mean. In the past 9 episodes, Go and Ash have been treated equally, be it in the Galar arc, Mewtwo battle or fillers. This episode was mostly about Chloe, and was well deserved after 20 episodes of her getting scraps.

JN040: Gou being a prodigy against Zapdos
JN041: filler
JN042: [Galar Arc]
JN043: [Galar Arc] But 70% of this episode is Gou being a better battler and research prodigy than Sonia herself.
JN044: [Galar Arc]
JN045: [Galar Arc]
JN046: Ash and Gou focus
JN047: Gou being a "natural" in eating contests
JN048: Lucario and Cinderace

We haven’t had even a single pure Ash focus episode, while Gou has shown how he’s a prodigy in at least 3 things. Hardly proportionate. And even this isn’t reflective of the sheer Gou focus because half of thelast 9 episodes are the Galar arc which don’t have a well defined focus.

The current formula is either Ash and Gou have equal focus, or Ash takes the backseat. When was the last episode when Gou took a backseat? A Chloe episode is welcome here, but that doesn’t mean that the series isn’t skewed in Gou's favour. It was fine for the first 20-25 episodes so we could know him, but now we can’t go five episodes without him being a prodigy at something.

 

[pokepal_123]

JN040: Gou being a prodigy against Zapdos
JN041: filler
JN042: [Galar Arc]
JN043: [Galar Arc] But 70% of this episode is Gou being a better battler and research prodigy than Sonia herself.
JN044: [Galar Arc]
JN045: [Galar Arc]
JN046: Ash and Gou focus
JN047: Gou being a "natural" in eating contests
JN048: Lucario and Cinderace

We haven’t had even a single pure Ash focus episode, while Gou has shown how he’s a prodigy in at least 3 things. Hardly proportionate. And even this isn’t reflective of the sheer Gou focus because half of thelast 9 episodes are the Galar arc which don’t have a well defined focus.

The current formula is either Ash and Gou have equal focus, or Ash takes the backseat. When was the last episode when Gou took a backseat? A Chloe episode is welcome here, but that doesn’t mean that the series isn’t skewed in Gou's favour. It was fine for the first 20-25 episodes so we could know him, but now we can’t go five episodes without him being a prodigy at something.

The whole point of the eating contest was just to showcase agreement, so that was more Greedent's win then Go doing anything special.

Tbh what can Ash really do in this format that isn't battling.

That's the problem with Ash what can you do with him that isn't battling.

 

[Twilight-Kun]

Could always have Ash bond with his pokemon except whoops they're all fully-evolved and don't need to bond anymore

 

[Craiden]

Good episode for the most part, aside from some of the pacing, and Eevee potentially mirroring Koharu in reference to not knowing what they want is a great touch. Think everyone has said this, but this was probably the best "debut" an Eevee has had, it's Copycat mannerism was explored well, and I hope continues to be so. Gou still having to attend school for tests makes sense, and as "weird" as this sounds, I liked the return of the OP Sobble cry. Also, the return of the pitfall was nice.

An interesting thing I will now note, as I think this is the end to the first stage of Koharu, is with Gou and Koharu, we have two different types of development. With Gou, we have a constant presence, with the development episodes being fairly frequent (and sometimes weird). And with Koharu (who I will not the fanbase wasn't sure on, or just didn't like for whatever reason) we have spread out, slow development, and with time, she has turned into the more "well-received" character (which I thought could happen, but then again, I liked her almost from jump). Just an interesting note.

 

[PkmnTrainerV]

The whole point of the eating contest was just to showcase agreement, so that was more Greedent's win then Go doing anything special.

Tbh what can Ash really do in this format that isn't battling.

That's the problem with Ash what can you do with him that isn't battling.

They literally wrote Ash just fine for 20 years before Gou came along?
From that episode's review thread I’m pretty sure there’s a dialogue about Gou being a "natural" in the Greedunt episode.

 

[LuxrayOfTheWild]

This was a great episode for Chloe, though I'm like...Why is it that this Eevee can't seem to evolve? If they're trying to go for partner Eevee from Let's Go, we already got that essentially with Sandy staying an Eevee, which I'm guessing will be a Vaporeon next time we see Lana. This was a very cute episode though and Chloe getting more focus is always great.

 

[FinnishPokéFan92]

Yes, it's true that another female (main?) character has got yet another Eevee and it's pretty obvious it's the writers' preferred choice for Ash's female companions. Maybe Eevee is still very popular with many fans and the writers alike. I think they could finally come up with a different Pokemon to fulfill the role of "the typical Pokemon for girls". But that's not the point here.

Eevee is basically a Pikachu for girls these days, as in a mascot aimed at the female players and viewers of Pokémon.

 

[nickdt]

So if Koharu caught Eevee in Go's Pokeball does that technically make it his?...

Yes, just like Mimikyu is technically owned by James.

And Naganadel is technically owned by the Aether Foundation and not by Ash.

Pikachu is technically owned by Professor Oak (Meaning every single one of Ash's wins Ash got with Pikachu is illegal).

Nah, the only one who technically owns a Pokemon caught by another trainer is James, with Mimikyu, since he never gave his Luxury Ball to her, she stole it, whereas with the others the Balls were given to them.

 

[pokepal_123]

They literally wrote Ash just fine for 20 years before Gou came along?

Oh no, I meant in the context of the format of this series. They seem to want to make it as episodic as possible featuring a different POTD each time. Unfortunately this favours Go because of his goal while we can't really get any individual development episodes for Ash's other Pokemon because of this.

 

[ehh123]

When the Professor gave Chloe a Rotom Phone, was I the only one getting a Pokemon Adventures vibe from that scene?

 

[Twilight-Kun]

I mean it is only confirmed that Eevee apparently can't evolve through evolutionary stones. Her evolution method could not possibly have been tried into Sylveon since she doesn't know any fairy-type moves, as well as Umbreon or Espeon, given that her happiness is potentially not at its maximum. Leafeon and Glaceon depend on if the writers take it from Sword and Shield to justify her evolution method, or stick to what it has always been like for years. So I see why not Eevee wouldn't evolve into an Espeon or Umbreon under Chloe's care.

It can't evolve since it's a Partner Pokemon, as seen by it using Buzzy Buzz alongside Yamper's Spark

I wonder when she'll Gigantamax it

 

[R1ke]

Between Chloe catching her first pokemon, having a rotom phone and appearing in more episodes+promotion it seems like we're finally getting the trio together. Even TR has been improving in their appearances as of late (with 3 good ones back to back) as they're more charismatic and goofy. It's also great to see the gatcha failing for once - that whole battle was definitely the highlight of the episode for me. To me it feels like the show has found its footing now and has become more enjoyable altogether.

The plot was fairly generic but the execution was done surprisingly well. It was entertaining and had good character moments across the board. Goh and Chloe interactions were well done, especially the part where she referenced the events of episode 11. She and Eevee suit each other in terms of personality and their uncertainty of their futures. I'm pretty surprised that Goh can just rock up to school for an exam one day, after skipping all his classes, and his teacher is just all good with it though. Man if only my school did that.

I'll give it a 7.5/10. Journeys season 1 has been a wild one and here's hoping the next one delivers.