Review SM146: Thank You, Alola! Respective Departures!!

[Johtohfiller]

crying like a motherfucker

I can't bear that it's over!!

Don't you mean you can't BEWEAR that it's over?

Finally got around to watching this episode and the previous one after being busy and out of the loop. My verdict on Sun & Moon - inconsistent, but it ended well. I enjoyed the Alola League and the last two eps, I wouldn't have minded cutting a filler somewhere for another epilogue episode but overall I think it was a good ending, and it improved my opinion of the series considerably.

Ash having an offscreen adventure with Nebby has to be one of the most Ash things ever.

I'm glad they brought up the possibility of TR returning to Alola.

I hope we get to see Mohn reunite with his family.

I wish they'd done a goodbye scene between Ash and his Pokemon.

Ash might be the Alola League champion now but Kukui and Burnet are the biggest winners of this series.

 

[FinnishPokéFan92]

We start off with everyone being back at school and preparing for their big vacation, when, suddenly, Lillie appears with Magearna right besides her. She then reveals to everyone that she and her family have decided to leave to search for Mohn with Magearna's help, revealing in a flashback that it has a pink beam that points towards where Mohn is.... Wait, WHAT?! Wait wait wait wait wait. Rewind a bit. Magearna has the power to find lost loved ones? Since when?! Does she even know who Mohn is (since she was basically unconscious when he bought her)? And how is she even able to tell where Mohn is?! Is her Soul-Heart supposed to be some kind of macguffin that magically solves important plot points? Seriously, we just started the episode, and already I have a bunch of question that are never gonna be explained (and here I was hoping the subs would actually make things clear; now I'm even more confused than before ).

Magearna was seen reacting to Mohn's Z-Ring. I guess that helps explaining it.

Why leave the Alola Pokemon behind for Ash and Team Rocket?

And then, we finally reach Ash's farewell. As Kukui and Burnet drive him to the airport, where he share a heartwarming moment with Burnet (that, personally, I think could've been more impactful if Ash actually had some more meaningful interactions with her; sure, she had a lot of interactions with Kukui, but not that many that I can think of with Ash). But, before that, Ash tells Kukui to take good care of his Pokémon... ... ... I'm sorry, WHAT?! You're leaving your Pokémon behind?! Okay, uhm... why? Is there a reason why you're not taking them with you? I mean, since you're touring the world instead of going for the Galar League, you don't have a reason to leave your party behind and you could actually take them with you and further train and bond with them, right? But you're not gonna do that, are you? And you're not gonna elaborate, not gonna show or explain why you're leaving them behind, you'll just... mention it in a couple of passing lines and leave us guessing as to why you did it? Okaaaay? This is... weird. And sudden. And lackluster. Man... poor Incineroar really got screwed out of getting some potential and much needed screen time in the new series.

Ash and Team Rocket were just being considerate to their Pokémon. They knew that Alola was their home, because, unlike in all the previous series, where Ash and Team Rocket were always traveling around and had no set place to sleep in every night, their Alolan Pokémon felt attachment to this region and had places to call home. This, it would have been inconsiderate to take them somewhere where they didn't feel like home. Also, Rowlet is now free to visit its foster family whenever it feels like it, Incineroar can hang out and spar with Kukui's Incineroar if it feels like it, and so on.

So, in short, they left their Pokémon in Alola because they had more attachment to their home region than most of their previous Pokémon.

 

[LazySpy]

Ash and Team Rocket were just being considerate to their Pokémon. They knew that Alola was their home, because, unlike in all the previous series, where Ash and Team Rocket were always traveling around and had no set place to sleep in every night, their Alolan Pokémon felt attachment to this region and had places to call home. This, it would have been inconsiderate to take them somewhere where they didn't feel like home. Also, Rowlet is now free to visit its foster family whenever it feels like it, Incineroar can hang out and spar with Kukui's Incineroar if it feels like it, and so on.

So, in short, they left their Pokémon in Alola because they had more attachment to their home region than most of their previous Pokémon.

But why even leave them behind in the first place? I'm pretty sure the argument isn't that there's no explanation as to why leave them in Alola specifically, it's more like why even do that at all, considering Ash has a perfect opportunity to train and bond with them on his tour around the world.

 

[FinnishPokéFan92]

But why even leave them behind in the first place? I'm pretty sure the argument isn't that there's no explanation as to why leave them in Alola specifically, it's more like why even do that at all, considering Ash has a perfect opportunity to train and bond with them on his tour around the world.

He just doesn't want to take his Alolan team away from Alola for an extended period of time, I suppose.

 

[LazySpy]

He just doesn't want to take his Alolan team away from Alola for an extended period of time, I suppose.

Y?

 

[FinnishPokéFan92]

Y?

Because it's their home.

 

[LazySpy]

Because it's their home.

Do you have any evidence that they are the type of characters that would feel totally uncomfortable in places they don't know of? Also, how were your visits to Greece? To a place that's totally not your home?

 

[KenzeyEevee]

Isn't this the first time the player didn't move from an other region.

 

[FinnishPokéFan92]

Do you have any evidence that they are the type of characters that would feel totally uncomfortable in places they don't know of? Also, how were your visits to Greece? To a place that's totally not your home?

That's just the most logical explanation. Alola has just always felt like a home to them.

I liked those trips, but coming home has always been the best part.

 

[Pulsaro23]

Magearna was seen reacting to Mohn's Z-Ring. I guess that helps explaining it.

Not really. If anything, it creates even more questions than answers. If Magearna is drawing in energy from the Z-crystal... well, that's Lillie's Icium Z, not Mohn's Z-crystal. So how is that helping her locate Mohn, a character that has never interacted with that crystal (or even Lillie (since she was a toddler, that is), for that matter)? If she's drawing in power form the Z-Ring... well, again, he hasn't interacted with that thing for years and it's been used by Lillie for some time now, so how is drawing in energy from it helpful in any way? It really doesn't explain anything and makes the scene even more confusing.

Ash and Team Rocket were just being considerate to their Pokémon. They knew that Alola was their home, because, unlike in all the previous series, where Ash and Team Rocket were always traveling around and had no set place to sleep in every night, their Alolan Pokémon felt attachment to this region and had places to call home. This, it would have been inconsiderate to take them somewhere where they didn't feel like home. Also, Rowlet is now free to visit its foster family whenever it feels like it, Incineroar can hang out and spar with Kukui's Incineroar if it feels like it, and so on.

So, in short, they left their Pokémon in Alola because they had more attachment to their home region than most of their previous Pokémon.

Well, in the case of Team Rocket, said attachment hasn't been established prior to this episode (as I pointed out before). Mareanie was the one-note Pokémon that affectionately hurts James, with said one note being that she's madly in love with him for the entire series (with her crush on him even being the reason why she learned a new move (thus leading to Team Rocket's search for a Z-Ring) and the reason why James got motivated to win his match against Jessie in the league), while Mimikyu has been a one-note murderous maniac with a deep hatred of Pikachu who doesn't care about anything other than the extinction of Pikachu kind for most of the series (with the one time when it was given some development beyond "I'm gonna get you, Pikachu!" being completely ignored for the rest of the series). So this attachment of theirs to Alola came out of the blue, while their actual history and motivations made it seem like it would've made more sense for the TRio to take them with them, rather than dumping them in Alola (especially since the new series is set all over the world, rather than in just one region, thus getting rid of the "you have to blend in so as to not attract attention" excuse that they've been using up 'til now).

As for Ash:

• As a Litten, Incineroar's home was with the old Stoutland, but the poor guy died of old age. Thus, with its only attachment to Alola gone, Litten finally decided to join Ash's team (something that Stoutland's been pushing the little guy to do for some time). The only tie it had to Alola after that was Kukui's Incineroar, since it built a rivalry with it. Besides that, all it did was spend time with Ash, with the only things it did while at Kukui's home being eating and sleeping. Also, as a side note, Litten had more... intimate (for lack of a better term) interactions with Delia than with Burnet;
• Rowlet also left its flock behind once it formed a bond with Ash, after being encouraged to do so by its parents (with the only two times it visited its foster family being when it needed something from them (to learn a new move or to receive support form them)). Since then, Ash's backpack has been its home (since that's where it spent all of its time when not battling or eating);
• Melmetal's only tie to Alola was Rowlet. Other than that, it hasn't live with anyone other than Ash in that region and, since it's not native to the region, the "Alola is it's home" excuse really doesn't work for it;
• Lycanroc, I'd say, was the only instance where it would've made sense for it to be left behind, since it's been living with Kukui long before Ash caught it. But, just like with the previous guys, it eventually chose to be with Ash after bonding with him.

So, since all of them chose to be with Ash of their own accord, it would've made sense for them to be willing to leave (especially since most of them don't actually have an attachment to the palce, as you put it). Adapting to a new place could've been hard and taken some time for some of them, sure. But, speaking from personal experience, over time you get used to it and actually start to enjoy a new home. And that's assuming that that's the reason he left them behind, since neither Ash or the Kukuis, nor the episode itself go into further detail other than "Take good care of my Pokémon".

 

[FinnishPokéFan92]

Not really. If anything, it creates even more questions than answers. If Magearna is drawing in energy from the Z-crystal... well, that's Lillie's Icium Z, not Mohn's Z-crystal. So how is that helping her locate Mohn, a character that has never interacted with that crystal (or even Lillie (since she was a toddler, that is), for that matter)? If she's drawing in power form the Z-Ring... well, again, he hasn't interacted with that thing for years and it's been used by Lillie for some time now, so how is drawing in energy from it helpful in any way? It really doesn't explain anything and makes the scene even more confusing.

It still has been used by him at some point.

 

[Pulsaro23]

It still has been used by him at some point.

That still doesn't help to explain that scene. What is she drawing from the Z-crystal/Z-ring? How is that helping her locate Mohn? How is she able to do any of this? What exactly even is all of this? Just questions over questions and none of them have any real answers (unless you try to answer these questions using your own headcanon or made-up theories and speculation)

 

[BigDocFan]

Watching Ash and Team Rocket leave their Pokemon behind in Alola, I'm glad looking back that they foreshadowed Team Rocket back in SM122, just wish Ash had given some warning about leaving his behind

 

[LazySpy]

I liked those trips, but coming home has always been the best part.

Oh, okay. Was just checking whether or not it was your 'comfort zone personallity' involved.

That's just the most logical explanation. Alola has just always felt like a home to them.

Like Pulsaro has pointed out, it's not what the show itself has offered. It's what you came up with to make sense of it. Furthermore, it isn't nessecarilly true with what we know about Ash's Pokemon.

Let your imagination run wild for a moment: Imagine that instead of that, when Ash marvels at Alola's sunset, instead of this moment serving to give Mimikyu a rushed and stupid clousure, Ash lets out all of his Pokemon and has a heart to heart talk with them about whether they want to stay with him or not. A simple, emotionall talk, where SM could yet again, enter into Pokemon's internall thoughts and feelings with pictures, like they so cleverly did in They Might Not be Giants!. (SM16)

I ask everyone who cried over this ep to imagine this scene, actually. Wouldn't it be much more considerate for Ash to do that rather than just arbitrally consider it's better to leave them behind because 'that's their home'? And much better than you having to come up with an explanation for why Ash choose to left them behind?

That still doesn't help to explain that scene. What is she drawing from the Z-crystal/Z-ring? How is that helping her locate Mohn? How is she able to do any of this? What exactly even is all of this? Just questions over questions and none of them have any real answers (unless you try to answer these questions using your own headcanon or made-up theories and speculation)

"Oh, Pulsro, ma boi, you just don't get it. It's emutiunall. How dare you qwestion it, you killshoy! Dat's a biutifull moment, it doesn't have to make sense! U r ruining those people's fan, you tokszik heiter!"

Spoiler

View: https://youtu.be/_AZP9_0BcaA

 

[marshiyanmisuta]

To be fair, whole Magearna plot was a mess from the beginning. So I wasn't disappointed that much with its DEM laser. Shaymin was a bigger disappoint to me.

Spoiler