I always like to see Dragonite, glad to see it was able to make a comeback during this here Flashback arc. Boy, this has got to be the longest crossover phase in the history of Pokémon!
We open with Dragonite fighting a Hydreigon in the sky. Well, not really fighting, Dragonite's getting beat up. He's not trying to fight, he's actually trying to protect a flock of Pidove that, IMO, seem to be migratory or something. Because Dragonite didn't fight, Dragonite lost, and sustained a back injury from a blast from Hydreigon. And Dragonite went tumbling down onto the small power station of this tiny rich community, snapping off one of the pylons. Ruh roh...
After the theme song, everyone's gettin' ready for breakfast. Cynthia must be flush with cash if she can just let Ash and crew stay rent free in one of her throwaway mansions and also eat the food there and generally just chill. I guess being the Sinnoh Champion makes for plenty of profitable endorsement opportunities, I dunno, where's the money coming from? Anyway, like girls often do, Iris and Dawn ready themselves in the bathroom together. I'll say it again, this has got to be the closest friendship between Ash's gal pals in the history of Pokémon! But nothin' doin' on that breakfast because the power went out. Nothing electric works.
Officer Jenny shows up, calling on the citizenry to solve this problem. Can't the city solve it? Is that what the police in that area do? Go see if anyone strong will help, regardless of whether they can legally? Is there any protocol against it? Then again Gotham City does this all the time with Batman. Who, like Cynthia, is sloppy rich. So yeah, calling on the powerful billionaire is a valid and accepted move. But Cynthia's busy, so no dice. Jenny tells Ash and crew what happened, and Iris jumps to defend it with the belief that "There are no bad Dragon-types". Really? I dunno, I'm gonna look that one up. Seeing as Team Rocket still isn't done with whatever their next srs biz newer, bolder, less Pikachu enthused no-blast-off Gen 5 Team Rocket super plan is, Ash is gonna help the police and power plant workers rein in this Dragonite. The team heads out.
Seeing the Dragonite in combat, it knows both Ice Beam and Electro Punch. And it learned those two moves in the wild? Are those part of its natural learnset? No way can that Dragonite be wild, knowing those two moves. It holes itself up in a room with Ice Beam and no one can get in. Until Ash and team show up. They're all kids, although IMO, the plant workers and Jenny aren't that much bigger than them. Must've been a tight fit for the Twerps. Jenny says okay, they can go in. But Ash should bring a piece. By which she means, a Pokéball. But Ash says nah, he won't need one. He's going in unarmed. Bad move when you're doing negotiations with hostiles, any cop or spy show/movie will tell you that. All of them go in, except Cilan who, like the grownups, is too big. Even though he's so slender he can pull off an Elesa figure. Hey Cilan! Maybe the reason you can't get in is because you're blocking your entrance with your hand?
As they crawl through the duct, Iris is all "I can reach this guy, I'm a Dragon Master in training." And Dawn is all "How you be Dragon Master?" And Iris talks about the sacrifice necessary to become one. Ash tries to use this opportunity to sell being a Pokémon Master as well, saying that the two are similar, but no one's biting, Ash. We've heard the rhetoric before. Yeah yeah, we all know you're devoted to Pokémon and all that. They pop out of the duct, and try to negotiate with Dragonite, who is quite tsundere. Only this is no act, he's a loose cannon. And negotiations go sour when Dawn says "You don't belong here! Get out!" Guess Ash shoulda brought that Pokéball.
But then suddenly, Meloetta shows up! She left earlier in secret. She starts up with the "Rererere..." and Dragonite calms down. At first I felt like this undercut Iris's role as the person who was gonna turn this Dragonite to the right path. Dang, Meloetta! Stop throwing around cheap tricks and let somebody else drive for a turn! This was supposed to be Iris's time! But Iris would, in time, get her turn at the wheel. Ash and Dawn decide they're gonna go get Officer Jenny's Pokéball. Iris says she's gonna stay with Dragonite. So, they part ways for a while, and then BOOM! Debris slide! Now Iris is trapped in there with Piplup and Oshawott, and the rogue Dragonite of course. Thank goodness that Dragonite is a dude, probably, otherwise they'd probably fight over her.
Ash and Dawn head out to see Officer Jenny. The two of them standing alongside each other, if you were just now tuning in after years of not watching, you maybe might think this was Diamond & Pearl just by looking at the screen. They relay the information, while Iris tends to Dragonite and Piplup and Oshawott try to escape. Oshawott uses his Scalchop, which fails. So he bank shots it around for a while then holsters it like some kind of Scalchop ninja cowboy. Piplup is impressed and will probably try to get a Scalchop or something. Then Ash and Dawn return saying that Officer Jenny decided she would take matters into her own hands anc call some road bandits in to take this Dragonite down. They could not dissuade her. Hearkening back to the Trubbish Squad skirmish from a while ago, only a little more hardcore this time, Iris says she's gonna stanground. She knows that Dragonite is innocent, probably defending some Pidove flock or something. Iris says they should go find proof.
Proof? How would they do that? Prove how a fight went down? What are they supposed to find, witnesses? Even if they could, who would be reliable enough? First the impossible prosecution of finding the Cubchoo napper, now the impossible defense of proving something that no one saw and no physical evidence could really prove? The Twerps get into some jams, don't they? But look! Surveillance cameras! Of course! They probably have Dragonite on tape!
Officer Jenny's freelance landscapers show up with their 5 fully evolved Pokémon. You'd expect no less from needing to take down a rogue Dragonite, of all Pokémon. They fight Dragonite, who deflects ALL FIVE of their attacks at once, and manages to stand! And he lost to one lonely Hydreigon? That Hydreigon must've been hacked or something if this Dragonite can take on Gurdurr, Garbodor, Darmanitan, Magmortar, and... all the rest, but gets grounded after one blast from a Hydreigon. Maybe more stuff happened in the Hydreigon fight prior to when we came in, I dunno. As this fight goes on, Iris stresses again that there are NO bad Dragon-types. But I'm pretty sure a Dragon-type was some kind of antagonist in the past, maybe even a major antagonist. Again, I'm gonna look it up.
But Ash and the gang return with the proof in the 11th hour! Somehow Cilan was able to gank the footage from where ever the cameras save video data, and put it on his computer. But I have a question, why didn't the power plant crew just do that in the first place? No power? Then how did Cilan do it? You'd think that if the power was out, and there was damage to the power plant, and it was possible to get the footage, that the power plant crew would wanna first confirm what was going on, right? I'm guessing they saw the Dragonite and freaked like it was a possum in the walls or something, and forgot about checking to see what happened last night. Anyway, Dragonite is a free Pokémon! But he collapses from exhaustion. He's unable to battle.
They take Dragonite to a Pokémon Center where Nurse Joy and Audino tend to his wings and back. Now that he's all patched up, the team wishes Dragonite well, and sends him off. Dragonite scoffs like a contrarian. He's too good for this stuff. He flies away. But then, he hesitates. Why can't he leave that girl with the big hair? It's not like he likes her or anything. Or maybe, he... he could stand to, maybe, pal around with her, she showed him kindness and compassion. So he returns saying in words unspoken that he would like Iris to catch him. And she does. Huzzah! Now Iris has a Dragonite! Congratulations Iris, a Dragonite AND what may become a Haxorus in due time? Being a Dragon Master is gonna be a cakewalk. That Dragon Buster friend of yours better watch her lines. No one stands a chance against Iris now. Dawn, noticing Iris's excitement, imitates her in an attempt to approximate what it means to be a Dragon Master. She believes it means being loud and boisterous when you're happy. The group laughs at this funny turn of events, then heads to a Pokémon Center or camp for the night.
MEANWHILE...
The Team Rocket TRio is busy at work with their plan some more. Meowth remarks it will be so boss that the Boss will do "the happy dance" upon realization of this plan. Now that I gotta see, right? Maybe we will, next time.
