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Review S16 EP17: Saving Braviary

So TPTB have gotten rid of the Zangoose/Seviper hatred? Either that or their non-animosity is a side effect of Team Plasma's conditioning. (Maybe they're like Cipher, closing off a Pokémon's heart.)

N's back! And he's jumped a level in coolness. His bait-and-switch was clever (albeit a little obvious to everyone except Thing 1 and Thing 2, fortunately). And taking all those attacks without breaking? Badass. (And telling about Plasma, that they have no problem with turning Pokémon on people so mercilessly.) His reaction to the inevitable battle between Plasma and Our Gang is basically that of a pacifist getting his first taste of a war he never wanted but is being forced on him nonetheless.

Actually, N is one reason Plasma's plot should have been developed throughout BW instead of being tacked on after the main adventure. Their speeches in the games (and N's attitude in all media) directly confront the morality of making living creatures fight each other. Wouldn't that have been a great albatross for Ash to wrestle with throughout this journey? It might've even helped him be a little less stupid.

No Uberchu this time. In fact, all the Pokémon were pretty fragile, seeing how little pounding they could take compared to most of the time.

N HAS JOINED YOUR PARTY.

For once, nothing about this ep to complain about, except for the lost storytelling ideas it brings to mind. Would that TPTB could be this competent every week.
 
Hm. I’m indifferent on this episode. It wasn’t boring, but it wasn’t all that interesting either.

It was great to see N again, but he wasn’t very interesting in this episode. All he really did was get beat up by Zangoose and Seviper. And speaking of these two, I find it half odd that Ash didn’t seem surprised to see these 2 natural born enemy Pokemon fighting as a team instead to fighting each other. (The other half of me knows he’s forgetful enough not to even remember these Pokemon). I myself wish they would have explained how they got these 2 to abstain from killing each other, let alone battle as teammates.

N’s plan to save Braviary was kind of dumb in my opinion. Why he went out and made himself bait at the risk of being severely injured is beyond me. He could have just stuck the tracking device on a tree or on a different Pokemon and lead the grunts on a wild goose chase. I also feel that the grunts attacking him with their Pokemon seemed kind of brutal, especially Zangoose with its claws. I mean, they could have killed him if this wasn’t a kid’s show. But anyway I guess it worked out because Ash and the gang went to save him.

The battle was really kind of short. And it didn’t help that Ash and Iris used their most used battlers. It was also weird that Cilan didn’t even help them in the fight. It’s like he’s just taken a backseat recently. And I know they were going for like a tag team battle thing, but I think they should have done anything necessary to protect themselves and Braviary. But anyway I also really disliked the Excadrill/Seviper battle. The type-matchup was terrible and the move choices were worse. Seviper fainting after one Focus Blast and Excadrill becoming immensely weak after a Screech attack? That was lame. Pikachu vs Zangoose I like more because it was more action packed. The only thing I didn’t like was Ash’s little “Come on Pikachu, we need you” speech. Anyway the eventual outcome was expected.

I’m glad N decided to travel with the group. At least now we’ll see more of him. I’ll give this episode a 7/10.
 
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So TPTB have gotten rid of the Zangoose/Seviper hatred? Either that or their non-animosity is a side effect of Team Plasma's conditioning. (Maybe they're like Cipher, closing off a Pokémon's heart.)
This is something I'd have wanted to see some detail on, it's obvious that an evil team would want to harness the power of their rivalry - but it would be great to have seen that actually shown/explained. Indeed in general I'd like to see more episodes about how the villainous teams' (well the competent ones) Pokemon are trained.

I did like how the grunts thought 'goldmine' when seeing all the injured Pokemon Center Pokemon - seriously if Team Rocket can think of that plan before you, you're doomed as an organisation. And why don't more Pokemon Centers have backup Pikachu power (and what would N think of that)?

Nice episode all round though. Though this is an occasion I'd have wanted Oshawott to pop out of it's ball - it would really help Ash's point as a trainer if his Pokemon were showing clear free will in wanting to fight to defend Braviary/N and Ash would basically be organising their strategy not 'making' them fight.
 
So N’s back…with that voice of his…already liking this episode. And he’s saving a Braviary that he’s stalking.

Can I just point out that N is just awesome for taking hits from Pokémon all the time? Like, how strong is this man?

One thing I noticed is that N said his goal was, “To free Pokémon misused by Team Plasma.” Well why the hell in the games is it everyone’s Pokémon? Anime N is way cooler than Game N…he gets cool points.

Skipping around; so they get Braviary to safety and Braviary gets worried about N and tried to go back. And Ash brilliantly says, “You’re really worried about what happens to N aren’t you?” and then “I knew it” …Nothing gets by Ash, you guys. He’s way too sharp.

So back with N, I’m just saying, Team Plasma is pretty ruthless to attack a human with Pokémon. And N is still badass for “fighting” them. I wasn't too concerned about Zangoose and Seviper being on the same team. I mean, they're Grunt Pokemon on a team that conditions Pokemon to fight for them; I doubt they were worrying about their rivalry. They were just taking their orders from their trainers.

I love how when N was talking about freeing Team Plasma’s Pokémon, that Grunt was like, “What are you talking about?” That was so funny to me. N just had a little, “They know not what they do,” moment here.

So the battle; wasn’t too bad, but not really the pinnacle of excitement either. I was glad Iris chose Excadrill to fight with since these guys don’t often make the best type match ups. But, then she decided to use Focus Blast on Seviper, soooo...

So then Braviary is freed and N hugs him. That was really sweet~ And they just keep saying “Best Wishes!!!” It’s just awesome, I love references!

“N, you’re hurt!” Seriously, Ash’s keen vision is just too good. (But seriously, it’s just a scratch on the face. After getting hit with exploding attacks, a scratch should be the least of his external damages).

And then N said: “I experienced a new emotion I’ve never experienced in my life”……called?!?! Seriously, what did you feel? N’s being creepy again.

I pretty good episode, overall. I didn’t find it super interesting, but it wasn’t terrible or anything. I’d give it an 8/10.
 
So N’s back…with that voice of his…already liking this episode. And he’s saving a Braviary that he’s stalking.

Can I just point out that N is just awesome for taking hits from Pokémon all the time? Like, how strong is this man?

One thing I noticed is that N said his goal was, “To free Pokémon misused by Team Plasma.” Well why the hell in the games is it everyone’s Pokémon? Anime N is way cooler than Game N…he gets cool points.

His motives were totally different in Pokemon Black and White; these episodes are based more closely on Black 2 and White 2, so N would already know that Team Plasma were evil, whereas he didn't in Black and White.

Overall, I really liked this episode! I was so excited to (finally) see an episode with N in it after two consecutive weeks of tuning in and not seeing him in anything. I dunno, maybe I was being too hopeful for expecting N to appear in every or almost every episode in the arc...even though it is called "Episode N").

I liked seeing Zangoose and Seviper work together, and I think this is one of the few times in the anime where a Trainer has ordered a Pokemon to directly attack another human. There probably were more, but not in recent memory. And they left in N's scratches.

I love N's voice. It's a bit deeper than I was expecting, but otherwise he talks exactly like I imagined him to in the games.
 
This was Ok this was not the best but it did not suck I will say that 8/10 I think.
 
Really, such a forgettable episode. Not a bad one, especially considering Nicholas DiMichele is playing N, and I think he does a superb job playing the character. I'm most curious that the whole Zangoose and Seviper hatred seems to have left for the time being.

I don't know what to say...it wasn't a BAD episode...but it wasn't exactly GOOD either. Nothing really stood out about it. Slightly better than the average episode, and having no TRio means I have absolutely no complaints about the English dub this go round. A fairly average dub episode, a fairly average plot for the series and resolution, but having N in the episode makes it more interesting than usual.

This episode gets a 7.5/10 from me.
 
N’s plan to save Braviary was kind of dumb in my opinion. Why he went out and made himself bait at the risk of being severely injured is beyond me. He could have just stuck the tracking device on a tree or on a different Pokemon and lead the grunts on a wild goose chase.

I think you need to re-look at N's character; why would he put a different Pokémon at risk over Braviary when all Pokémon are his friends? He has no idea what Plasma might do to that Pokémon when they realise what's happened and they could very well believe that Pokémon was intentionally covering for Braviary.
 
N’s plan to save Braviary was kind of dumb in my opinion. Why he went out and made himself bait at the risk of being severely injured is beyond me. He could have just stuck the tracking device on a tree

The thing is, if he had done that, Team Plasma would probably easily have been able to catch up with them somehow, as they weren't that far behind. N didn't want to take such a risk, as he wanted to guarantee Braviary's safety. Thus he figured that if he acted as decoy and kept them busy, the gang would gain much more time to make their escape.


The battle was really kind of short. And it didn’t help that Ash and Iris used their most used battlers.

This wasn't just any battle. If they were to lose this battle, they'd lose Braviary and probably their own Pokémon too. In order to prevent that both Iris and Ash naturally wanted to go all out with strong Pokémon as they wouldn't want to take any risks. It wasn't a matter of letting their other Pokémon gain experience, it was just that losing wasn't an option here.
 
Aww. no nightmare inducing Zangoose face??? but a meh episode. i was hoping for Braviary to be more like Brav from Pokemon adventures but oh well. 6/10
 
Awesome! This episode had exactly that certain level of maturity I expect the show to have after so many years. We had the lone wolf- motif (or I'd better say lone eagle ^^), brave fights, and cool and heroic lines. So, please writers, keep that up!

First of all, I must say that N is growing on me more and more. Although his pacifist attitude seems to be almost too militant ( a "millitant pacifist"... sounds kind of strange...), I love to see his kindness and care for his beloved Pokemon friends. In our world that is full of hatred and strife, it kind of warms your heart to see that, doesn't it?

Also, I was totally excited when N was fighting so bravely for his convictions and giving that short but epic speech to the two Team Plasma grunts. Wow, I couldn't help being impressed!

And although I already said it, I'll repeat it again: B/W hasn't really "produced" many note-worthy characters but I kind of feel that the writers now wanted to make up for that fact by introducing N who puts all the other new B/W characters in the shade. A great person who is sure to be on my list of all-time favorites if he continues to amaze me the way he's doing right now.

Unfortunately, Ash and his friends kind of destroyed an important part of the episode which could have been really good otherwise. Their battle against Team Plasma was so bad and illogical, you could have thought that they had just started their journey as trainers. Pikachu and Excadrill being exhausted in such a way after basically taking only one hit was anything but believable. Sadly, this proves once again that the writers don't seem to care about consistency when it comes to a Pokemon's power level, especially Pikachu's. I would have expected a much more intense battle here.

But still, the episode as a whole was outstanding, thanks to N and his great lines. I also hope that the question whether Pokemon battles can be justified will be solved in a satisfying way in the end.
 
The thing is, if he had done that, Team Plasma would probably easily have been able to catch up with them somehow, as they weren't that far behind. N didn't want to take such a risk, as he wanted to guarantee Braviary's safety. Thus he figured that if he acted as decoy and kept them busy, the gang would gain much more time to make their escape.

Well, them sticking the tracking device to a tree was just one option I had; they could have put it anywhere. I don't see how they could have easily caught up with them if he'd just left the tracking device in one place and then ran off. The grunts would have had a lot of different options to look for them which I think would have taken a long time unless the grunts decided to split up, but even then it still would have taken a long time.

This wasn't just any battle. If they were to lose this battle, they'd lose Braviary and probably their own Pokémon too. In order to prevent that both Iris and Ash naturally wanted to go all out with strong Pokémon as they wouldn't want to take any risks. It wasn't a matter of letting their other Pokémon gain experience, it was just that losing wasn't an option here.

I never said anything about them wanting to gain experience. I was saying that I was personally annoyed at seeing such common Pokemon battling instead of those that get less screentime.
 
Well, them sticking the tracking device to a tree was just one option I had; they could have put it anywhere. I don't see how they could have easily caught up with them if he'd just left the tracking device in one place and then ran off. The grunts would have had a lot of different options to look for them which I think would have taken a long time unless the grunts decided to split up, but even then it still would have taken a long time.

Weren't you paying attention to the fact that Braviary was hurt? Team Plasma obviously weren't that far away behind them if they noticed N as soon as they got out of the Pokémon center. In other words, if they weren't that far behind, with the fact that the gang also were slowed down due to Braviary being hurt, Team Plasma would surely be able to catch up with them with ease if N hadn't act like a bait.

I never said anything about them wanting to gain experience. I was saying that I was personally annoyed at seeing such common Pokemon battling instead of those that get less screentime.

To which I was trying imply the reason to why they were chosen. If anything, choosing Excadrill against Seviper and Zangoose was the perfect choice when it comes to type.
 
How did nurse Joy while looking after Braviary not notice the huge flashing tracker on the middle of its back. Not very good nursing tbh.

Solid episode used to bring N into the gang. A 7/10 from me.
 
Weren't you paying attention to the fact that Braviary was hurt? Team Plasma obviously weren't that far away behind them if they noticed N as soon as they got out of the Pokémon center. In other words, if they weren't that far behind, with the fact that the gang also were slowed down due to Braviary being hurt, Team Plasma would surely be able to catch up with them with ease if N hadn't act like a bait.

Obviously I knew Braviary was hurt. That happened to be the main point of the episode. And I know the grunts most likely would have caught up to them no matter what they did with the tracking device. All I was saying was that it wouldn't have been that easy to find them even if they had just put it in some random location. The grunts would still have had to go to that location and discover the chip, when at that point N and the gang could have gotten some distance away from the Pokemon Center. Then the grunts would have still had to pick a direction to go to start looking for them. Now, could/would they have been found? Most likely, yes. But it wouldn't have been that quick or easy, nor would it cause N to get attacked by the Pokemon.

All I'm saying is that I believed they could have had better options.

To which I was trying imply the reason to why they were chosen. If anything, choosing Excadrill against Seviper and Zangoose was the perfect choice when it comes to type.

I'm sorry but I'm not getting your point. I never said anything about type and I know perfectly well why Pikachu and Excadrill were chosen to battle. I just would have prefered seeing other Pokemon that don't battle as much as these two.
 
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All I was saying was that it wouldn't have been that easy to find them even if they had just put it in some random location. The grunts would still have had to go to that location and discover the chip, when at that point N and the gang could have gotten some distance away from the Pokemon Center.

You're acting as if they had all the time in the world, something they clearly didn't have. As I said, if Team Plasma noticed N as soon as they got out of the Pokémon center, then do you really think that they all were that far away from them? They clearly couldn't have been, so even if they had decided to put the tracking device on some random spot, they surely wouldn't have been able to get that away as they couldn't run with Braviary being hurt. They were obivously running out of time.

Then the grunts would have still had to pick a direction to go to start looking for them. Now, could/would they have been found? Most likely, yes. But it wouldn't have been that quick or easy, nor would it cause N to get attacked by the Pokemon.

Exactly, you just said it yourself. If you yourself say that they most likely would've find the gang if they decided to go with your plans, then isn't it obvious that N's plan of playing a decoy was the better choice? If it all continued the way it did, Braviary would've been able to escape as the gang managed to bring it to a safe place, however, since Braviary got concerned for N it decided to go back. Having N distract them was obviously the only plan that would've worked if they were hoping for any chance of escape.

All I'm saying is that I believed they could have had better options.

What better options? You have yet mentioned any as we already came to the conclusion that those ideas that you've already mentioned wouldn't secure Braviary's escape.

I'm sorry but I'm not getting your point. I never said anything about type and I know perfectly well why Pikachu and Excadrill were chosen to battle. I just would have prefered seeing other Pokemon that don't battle as much as these two.

What's to get, really? I was merely mentioning more reasons as to why their choices of Pokémon were understandable.
 
You're acting as if they had all the time in the world, something they clearly didn't have. As I said, if Team Plasma noticed N as soon as they got out of the Pokémon center, then do you really think that they all were that far away from them? They clearly couldn't have been, so even if they had decided to put the tracking device on some random spot, they surely wouldn't have been able to get that away as they couldn't run with Braviary being hurt. They were obivously running out of time.

I never said anything about them having a that much time. Your post said they could have easily found them, and all I was trying to say that it wouldn't have been easy. They surely would have found them eventually, but I don't think it wouldn't have been that easy, no matter how close to the Pokemon Center they were.

Exactly, you just said it yourself. If you yourself say that they most likely would've find the gang if they decided to go with your plans, then isn't it obvious that N's plan of playing a decoy was the better choice? If it all continued the way it did, Braviary would've been able to escape as the gang managed to bring it to a safe place, however, since Braviary got concerned for N it decided to go back. Having N distract them was obviously the only plan that would've worked if they were hoping for any chance of escape.
What better options? You have yet mentioned any as we already came to the conclusion that those ideas that you've already mentioned wouldn't secure Braviary's escape.

I was never talking about Braviary escaping. I was saying that they could have done something else so that N wouldn't have gotten hurt.
 
I never said anything about them having a that much time. Your post said they could have easily found them, and all I was trying to say that it wouldn't have been easy. They surely would have found them eventually, but I don't think it wouldn't have been that easy, no matter how close to the Pokemon Center they were.

Not directly, no, but the plans that you're proposing would require more time than what they had. What you first said was that N's plan was a dumb idea, to which I was explaining why I thought it wasn't. That's all. And if you don't think they would've find them easily, then how come that they spotted N as soon as they got out of the Pokémon center? He'd have to put the tracker device on a rock or tree close by, right? Then he could go to the rest of the gang. However, if he had put the tracker device close by to the Pokémon center, then what in the world would hinder Team Plasma from not having a easy time catching up to them after that they had found the tracker device just outside the Pokémon center? As I mentioned, the gang couldn't run due to Braviary.

I was never talking about Braviary escaping. I was saying that they could have done something else so that N wouldn't have gotten hurt.

Which would eventually have lead up to them actually catching up to Braviary, which N was trying to prevent. They could've done something else, sure, but regardless of what they surely would've caught up to the gang eventually. N was fully prepared to face those attacks if it guaranteed Braviary's safety.
 
This episode was alright. N is more and more becoming one of my favorite character. He has a more deeper character development than most characters on the show. And his bait-and-switch tactic with Braviary was pretty cool.

I was really confused to as to how Serviper and Zangoose were able to get along and work for Team Plasma without getting into a fight. I thought they were supposed to be bitter enemies. Though maybe Team Plasma trained them to get along to use them as their partners.

N's lines in the episode is what makes the episode for me. If It weren't for them, i probably wouldn't fine this episode as interesting. It's good to know he will be joining Ash and gang for a while.
 
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