Review JN105: Eievui and Nymphia! Encounters and Reunions!!

[Rockapheller]

I loved this episode!

This has been a nostalgia-packed episode for me. Serena felt like a somewhat different character to me at first, being more self confident and mentor to Chloe than the times she has been mentored and has worked hard to gain her confidence. She has improved herself quite a lot since her first appearance, and it is heartwarming.

The short scene in the end is even more impactful than spending an entire episode together, to be honest. It could easily turn into a generic reunion episode. But this one stands out on its own in a unique way, just like pretty much anything about Serena herself.

The only thing that was rather "odd" to me is the Eevee flashbacks that we had early in the episode.

The last time we got a flashback without the series adapting the art-style and re-drawing the scene happened back in DP series. Ever since the BW series, all the flashbacks are adapted to the respective series' art-style. That being said, this episode contained two flashbacks, and while one of them was redrawn (May and Dawn alongside Wallace), the other was 1:1 copy of XY series (Serena's memories with Eevee). I don't get that.

 

[nickdt]

While the contest ended in a draw, i personally feel Lisia wins by the technicality of using only one Pokemon against Serena's three, while still getting the same amount of points, which means Lisia's performance outclassed Serena's.

Braixen evolved into Delphox (Surprising to say the least, considering Braixen is more popular, but considering they don't have to market Braixen that heavily anymore, just like Bunnelby, its not so weird it happens). I guess Dawn fell into that pitfall off - needing to market the gen 4 remakes, so we aren't giving her a team change, cuz iconic enough team. I have a feeling however, she might return in the future with a team upgrade.

Pancham knowing Ice Punch. Its kinda funny it hasn't displayed a fourth move at all in XY, so who knows it did have it all along.

Wallace being salty he lost his title to Steven, so saying he is on par with Steven i kinda don't believe either, especially since he isn't participating in the PWC (I think him confirming not participating in it, kinda opens the door for more gym leaders not participating, we also know this is the case with Piers). I am also kinda mad Ash didn't talk about Juan when he got the badge (Him getting the badge foreshadowing Ash is going to the badgequest again in SV?).

All in all, this episode was very enjoyable to watch.

I do think that we get another Eevee and Koharu focused episode in Galar, where Eevees ability to Gigantamax comes to light.

 

[Kurolegacy]

Braixen evolved into Delphox (Surprising to say the least, considering Braixen is more popular, but considering they don't have to market Braixen that heavily anymore, just like Bunnelby, its not so weird it happens). I guess Dawn fell into that pitfall off - needing to market the gen 4 remakes, so we aren't giving her a team change, cuz iconic enough team. I have a feeling however, she might return in the future with a team upgrade.

Actually, in the latest poll, Delphox won out in popularity over Braixen. Of course even without that, it could fall under a similar thing to how May’s Bulbasur had fully evolved by the time we see her in the Wallace Cup.

 

[Nicolas721]

The episode felt like a weird dream...and Serena's return being revealed at the last possible moment certainly helped. But it wasn't bad, it's just that Journeys cramming tons of cool ideas and potential into one episode will always feel wrong to me.

Serena was the best part of the episode. She was given a great design that emphasized her maturity, and it was great to know that she kept doing Contests to the point of being fairly popular in Hoenn and internationally. Her lesson about always trying new things and don't be afraid of the result was relatable and very representative of her journey. Her reunion with Ash was cute, and the "casual dialog nostalgia" reminded me of the Tobey Maguire/Doc Ock reunion from Spiderman No way home.

Chloe was okay. She had good chemistry with Serena and it was cool that there were many references to Sylveon being the last eeveelution she needed to meet. But yeah, the contest...The problem isn't that they forced ORAS' contests into the anime, the problem is that the anime contests had more potential for storytelling and would have made this episode even more stronger continuity-wise. Also. I wish Chloe had referenced that she already knew contests through Dawn and had been practicing with Eevee just in case, because her presentation really came from nowhere. There were two or three months of promotion for her debut and this is all she gets? Of course, she could indeed participate in more contests later but for now I'm not expecting much. Finally, Cerise being proud of her also gives me mixed feelings, it is somewhat heartwarming but as I said earlier the buildup wasn't really strong and Chloe being indecisive wasn't presented as a character flaw (more like the opposite). Now it's more uncertain than ever what her future will be.

Oh yeah, Ash had his own plot, doing a sadly faitful homage to his training scenes in AG when he did the same during contests. It really bugged me that this battle was allowed to be 3vs3 while the real battles are 1vs1 or 2vs2. And Ash acted really childish throughout the whole thing, not caring much about others or barely reacting when he got the badge. Wallace had a nice personality, so the idea could have worked better on its own episode. I did love the Wallace Cup reference.

Phew....see ya next time, when Goh catches 10 Pokemon at the same time Ash battles 3 trainers and at the same time Chloe gets 3 Princess Keys, with special guests Max, Tobias, Sakura, Arceus and Agumon.

 

[Silktree]

There were two or three months of promotion for her debut and this is all she gets?

What promotion? The opening just foreshadowed this episode, much like the Clemont/Bonnie, Greninja and Paul ones. The only oddity is that they omitted Serena.

I don't know what Chloe's goal will be. Gigantamax ain't it.

 

[Kurolegacy]

What promotion? The opening just foreshadowed this episode, much like the Clemont/Bonnie, Greninja and Paul ones. The only oddity is that they omitted Serena.

I don't know what Chloe's goal will be. Gigantamax ain't it.

With how fast they’re burning through the events of the opening, kinda makes me wonder if they’ll change the scenes out for other ones once they’ve all happened.

 

[Gabo2oo]

The only thing that was rather "odd" to me is the Eevee flashbacks that we had early in the episode.

The last time we got a flashback without the series adapting the art-style and re-drawing the scene happened back in DP series. Ever since the BW series, all the flashbacks are adapted to the respective series' art-style. That being said, this episode contained two flashbacks, and while one of them was redrawn (May and Dawn alongside Wallace), the other was 1:1 copy of XY series (Serena's memories with Eevee). I don't get that.

They were all re-drawn from scratch, in fact the first shot of Serena meeting Eevee didn't actually exist.
Journeys animators keep the background assets from Kalos and Alola in their original style, whereas everything from BW and before is completely overhauled.

Here's a comparison to show the flashbacks are actually different:

Spoiler

Journeys

XY

Spoiler

Spoiler

By the way, last time a flashback was kept as-is in another series was actually in the Clemont & Cilan episode from XYZ, unless you count the group picture from the SM finale which also shows up as-is in Journeys.

 

[Rockapheller]

They were all re-drawn from scratch, in fact the first shot of Serena meeting Eevee didn't actually exist.
Journeys animators keep the background assets from Kalos and Alola in their original style, whereas everything from BW and before is completely overhauled.

Here's a comparison to show the flashbacks are actually different:

Spoiler

Journeys
View attachment 158338

XY
View attachment 158340 View attachment 158339

Spoiler

View attachment 158341 View attachment 158342

Spoiler

View attachment 158343 View attachment 158344

By the way, last time a flashback was kept as-is in another series was actually in the Clemont & Cilan episode from XYZ, unless you count the group picture from the SM finale which also shows up as-is in Journeys.

Oh, thank you for taking your time to make comparison shots. I just rewinded back to see the flashbacks, but they seemed too sharp to be from the current series. But when you put the pictures side by side, it screams they have been redrawn, indeed.

The current series has this simplicity and charm in its own way, but do I miss the sharp-y XY series art style...

 

[Handy Man]

Another detail that made this episode amazing for me was how much Serena was smiling and happy throughout this episode. Not once did we see her look sad in this episode for any reason. When she recites the lines from XY113 and XY138, she says it with a smile, meaning she took Ash’s messages to heart and memorized them when she first heard them. This shows that Serena used Ash’s advice not just to improve herself, but she also is confident and proud enough to use the quotes as a part of her lifestyle and identity. Ash’s mindset rubbed off on Serena in a really positive, role model sort of way, and it inspired her to use Ash’s words and make them her own. She’s so confident in the quotes that she feels like, if Ash made a difference for me, then I can make a difference for others as well. Combined with how she recites the lines word-for-word, with a smile, just shows that she’s much more proud of who she is today than she was during XY. Really great maturity moment all around.

When Ash leaves at the end of the episode, she also retains a smile the entire conversation. Not once does she get sad that her inspiration in life is about to be ripped apart so suddenly cruelly. She decides to make the most of the situation, and is just happy to finally interact with Ash once more. One of the most powerful parts of the entire episode in my opinion is right at the very end. When the boat is almost out of sight, Sylveon looks up to Serena looking concerned about her. However, Serena is still maintaining a healthy smile, and happily runs out of the dock with Sylveon. Considering the very beginning of the episode shows the Rotomdex mentioning Sylveon can sense its trainers feelings, this implies that Serena, deep down, was kinda heartbroken that Ash had to go. However, seeing Ash again was more than enough to make her day, so she doesn’t let it get to her. She’s happy that she saw Ash again in the first place, and she is also happy with who she currently is and her current lifestyle. Another great example of her newfound maturity in this episode.

Honestly, I’m still in shock on how good this episode is. This episode simply feels too good to be true, but it actually happened. I was always worried that maybe the writters were too scared to brimg Serena back because she’s such a complicated, layered character. If they messed up her characterization in any way, the fan base would never forget it. While I liked how she was portrayed throughout XY, if she wore the same outfit from XY060 in this episode and still acted similar to her time during XY, this episode would have lost a lot of its impact. And I think the writters knew that. What we got was a brand new Serena who took everything she learned from XY, and used those experiences to improve herself and find inner piece. This was honestly the best way they could have brought Serena back, and there were so many ways this episode could have gone wrong. However, what we ended up getting might be the strongest character return episode in the entire anime. Having Serena smile throughout the episode was very important for a part in that, and they did a fantastic job. I’m still crying at this episode by the way. I don’t know what we fans did to deserve this episode.

 

[FinnishPokéFan92]

There's a comparison I saw on Twitter: when Ash runs past Serena, she doesn't hesitate to call out to him. Meanwhile, in XY, when Ash first ran past Serena at the Santalune Gym, she was too shy to make her presence known to him. Yet another sign of character growth.

Spoiler: Also, a short interview with Serena's VA

 

[Lightning Flame Blast]

There's a comparison I saw on Twitter: when Ash runs past Serena, she doesn't hesitate to call out to him. Meanwhile, in XY, when Ash first ran past Serena at the Santalune Gym, she was too shy to make her presence known to him. Yet another sign of character growth.

Spoiler: Also, a short interview with Serena's VA

To be fair, they were basically strangers the first time around, of course she wouldn’t be so sure.

Not rebutting your point though, you can see a difference in her demeanor either way.

 

[PokeFan2005]

Spoiler: Full interview with VA of Serena

 

[LuxrayOfTheWild]

I kinda missed this detail, but I've heard that Serena is becoming popular in the Hoenn contest scene. It just really makes me happy and it tells us she is learning how to win over crowds, putting her a step closer to being Kalos Queen someday.

 

[Handy Man]

Spoiler: Full interview with VA of Serena

View attachment 158374View attachment 158375

That’s pretty wild that she uses the exact terms “proud and confident” that I used in my last post. It’s also great to see that she agrees that Serena took Ash’s words and made it her own, which I also said in my last post. Mayuki Makiguchi seems to really understand and care for Serena as much as we do, I’m glad that the people who work on this show are so passionate about it. I love the idea of Serena, Dawn, and Chloe all participating in a contest, hopefully it happens!

 

[VetProf]

And Ash acted really childish throughout the whole thing, not caring much about others or barely reacting when he got the badge.

Because Wallace pestering Ash to battle him despite Ash initially rushing to watch the contest featuring Wallace's own niece was any better.

 

[Kurolegacy]

Here’s a cute thing Anipoke posted

 

[JinksChow]

Here’s a cute thing Anipoke posted

...so with this, we finally have official acknowledgement of Serena's appearance in the episode.

And what do you know, this is also the JN105-related tweet with the most amount of likes, despite coming out the latest of the bunch.

 

[Sai]

I think all the interest of this ep and fanart online especially in mainstream places like Twitter really do prove how popular Serena still is even 6 years after XY ended. I actually thought for awhile the interest in her died down over time or people were exaggerating it a bit, but no she really is incredibly popular still. Winning Japanese polls with Dawn in second usually too

I guess it does prove the writers know what they were doing and found an audience with her.

 

[FelipePR]

I think all the interest of this ep and fanart online especially in mainstream places like Twitter really do prove how popular Serena still is even 6 years after XY ended. I actually thought for awhile the interest in her died down over time or people were exaggerating it a bit, but no she really is incredibly popular still. Winning Japanese polls with Dawn in second usually too

I guess it does prove the writers know what they were doing and found an audience with her.

Since XY, Serena has always been number one in the Japanese Pokégirls preference pool. In a recent poll, Serena almost got half of the total votes, which demonstrates the strength of the character who, until then, had no reappearance and even neglected mention.

Honestly, I don't believe that the producers were aware of the success the character would have and that neither generational changes nor the predilection given to other characters would change that fact.

In short, I wouldn't be surprised if this episode were just the first in a series of future appearances starring the Kalos Girl.

 

[ilteren]

They were all re-drawn from scratch, in fact the first shot of Serena meeting Eevee didn't actually exist.
Journeys animators keep the background assets from Kalos and Alola in their original style, whereas everything from BW and before is completely overhauled.

Here's a comparison to show the flashbacks are actually different:

Spoiler

Journeys
View attachment 158338

XY
View attachment 158340 View attachment 158339

Spoiler

View attachment 158341 View attachment 158342

Spoiler

View attachment 158343 View attachment 158344

By the way, last time a flashback was kept as-is in another series was actually in the Clemont & Cilan episode from XYZ, unless you count the group picture from the SM finale which also shows up as-is in Journeys.

There was no gender differences in Gen6 for eevee and I was sure Serena's Eevee was female. Now, female eevee tails must have heart-shaped white fur. It seems they forgot fixing Eevee's tail in flashback scenes.