Summary
A Pokémon episode saw Pikachu join Team Rocket and battle Ash, representing a heartbreaking and unexpected turn in their iconic friendship. Ash risks his life against Pikachu’s attacks to restore his friend’s memory, showing unwavering dedication and love. Meowth’s internal conflict is highlighted as he questions his actions and shows moments of kindness towards Pikachu, adding depth to his character.
In one Pokémonthe most heartbreaking episodes, Pikachu actually joined Team Rocket and fought Tro himself. The friendship between Pikachu and Ash Ketchum has been at the forefront of Pokémon’s overarching narrative for decades. In fact, it was only recently that the series went in a completely new direction after Ash retired following his victory as Pokémon World Champion. However, this doesn’t mean the two always get along, as evidenced in one episode that almost saw the couple break up for good.
In episode 7 “A Scare to Remember”, Pikachu, his friends and Team Rocket are launched into the air after the latter’s kidnapping plot fails. After the dust settled, Meowth realized that he was alone with Pikachu. However, to his surprise, Pikachu lost his memory after a hit to his head upon landing. Meowth then comes up with a sinister plot to trick Pikachu into believing he is a member of Team Rocketand he actually succeeded when Ash and his friends found them.
Due to Meowth’s miscommunication, Pikachu actually attacks Ash twice with Thunderbolt in one of the most heartbreaking moments of the movie. The bond between these two has become iconic to fans, so seeing them fight when Pikachu joins Team Rocket’s side is hard to watch.
Ash almost died trying to save Pikachu
Pokémon: Advanced Challenge episode #49, “A Fear to Remember”
What’s really notable about this episode is Ash’s dedication to restoring Pikachu’s memories. Not only did he take two powerful Thunderbolt blows from his friend but also also risked his life by grabbing Team Rocket’s balloon to make sure he didn’t lose Pikachu. This resulted in the two flying into the river, nearly killing Ash and Pikachu, after James’s unintentional attempt to scare Ash away with another Thunderbolt attack. It’s touching to see Ash never let go of Pikachu, even after everything that happened throughout the episode, knowing that his friend is in there somewhere. It makes the final moments of the story even better when Pikachu’s memories finally return and he licks Ash’s cheek to make sure he’s okay.
Meowth’s internal conflict shows interesting progression for the character
One of the other highlights of “A Scare to Remember” is how Pikachu’s amnesia actually affected Meowth as well as Ash. Throughout the story, Meowth is confident that he is doing the right thing for Team Rocket by bringing Pikachu to their base. However, because Pikachu’s kind nature has saved him countless times, there are times when Meowth really begins to question his actions. He becomes more hesitant about whether or not he is a good person when guiding the forgetful Pikachu. He even shared an apple, giving him the largest piece, after realizing Pikachu had given up his only source of food to help. Meowth ultimately stays with Team Rocket, but it’s interesting to see how he could have become a hero instead of a villain at any given time.
Related
Pokémon’s Meowth once abandoned Team Rocket to join Ash
Part of the Black and White era saw Meowth leave Team Rocket and travel with Ash and Pikachu, and together they made a surprisingly good team.
While Pikachu luckily regains his memory and becomes friends with Ash again by the end of the episode, “A Scare to Remember” remains one of the most heartbreaking stories in Pokémon history. It provides a fascinating “What If” scenario that shows how the chapter might play out if Pikachu were part of Team Rocket and not by Ash’s side. While it delivers Pokémon fans have plenty of moments showing Ash and Pikachu will never let their friendship falter, their brief collaboration with Team Rocket will forever be one of the show’s saddest moments.
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Pokemon
Summary: Spanning over 25 years, Pokemon, also known as Pocket Monsters in Japan, is a multimedia franchise co-created by Nintendo, Game Freak and Creatures. Conceptualized by Satoshi Tajiri in conjunction with Ken Sugimori and Junichi Masuda, Pokemon is set in a fictional world where humans live alongside tameable creatures called Pokemon. People who catch, raise, and battle these creatures are called Pokemon Trainers. They embark on cross-continental journeys to raise their Pokemon with the ultimate goal of competing in tournaments to become champions. Pokemon spans a massive range of properties, from a long-running animated series to a successful card game to the medium that started it all, the video game. Additionally, Pokemon started the “two games” trend, where two versions of a game would release and include different Pokemon/features between versions, encouraging players to meet others and trade so they can “catch them all.”
Created by: Satoshi Taijiri, Ken Sugimori, Junichi Masuda
First movie: Pokemon: The First Movie
Latest movie: Movie Pokémon: Secrets of the Jungle
First TV show chapter: Pokemon
Date of first episode airing: 1997-04-01
Current line: Pokemon
Video games): Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, Pokemon Legends: Arceus, Pokemon Snap, Pokemon GO
TV program): Pokemon
