A Marathon Rivalry! (628)

[SmartD]

It was a fun episode. We get to see the Pokeathlon, although only two of the events were used. It's a bit different from the games because the trainers participated with their Pokemon. Still, it was enjoyable.

[WaterDragon trainer]

This episode was good. The scientist I thought was very annoying. All in all, I thought this was a pointless episode.

[HoennMaster]

Boring episode for a boring event. Pikachu clearly won though.

[Poke Master 7]

It was an alright episode, showing Pokeathlon for the first and, most likely, only time. But I gotta agree with the people who found the COTD kinda boring. One thing that kinda peeved me though is that this episode was that Ash was trying to show the COTD that raising pokemon should be based on connection with the pokemon rather than technology, yet the writers had Ash lose to the very thing that he was trying to disprove. And somehow the COTD learned a lesson about nurturing his pokemon. The problem is this, a moral doesn't work that way. You can't have a pro nurturing lesson when technology was what won with no negative repercussions.

[Orton155]

It was an alright episode, showing Pokeathlon for the first and, most likely, only time. But I gotta agree with the people who found the COTD kinda boring. One thing that kinda peeved me though is that this episode was that Ash was trying to show the COTD that raising pokemon should be based on connection with the pokemon rather than technology, yet the writers had Ash lose to the very thing that he was trying to disprove. And somehow the COTD learned a lesson about nurturing his pokemon. The problem is this, a moral doesn't work that way. You can't have a pro nurturing lesson when technology was what won with no negative repercussions.

Well you can because in this episode it wasn't the pokeathlon which demonstrated the true connection of ash's pokemon. It was before the competition where he truly demonstrates it with Daniel's snorlax and how he could tell how it was feeling without the computer. The pokeathlon was just used for Daniel to convince and confirm that science isnt everything and you can go a long way without it. In a picture you could say that the event before was a seed and the pokeathlon was used to grow it.

With the episode I found it quite enjoyable. A good way to show ash with his pokemon and how far he has came with them. Given, it was inconsistent with the johto saga but that is a minor thing which doesnt bother me in the slightest so im going to move on. I thought it was a breath of fresh air to see Ash contest science with his trainer technique as usually he is trying to teach someone who treats their pokemon badly or incorrectly.

[Swampert_trainer]

The episode was kind of boring. It wasn't a very exciting filler. The cotd was a stereotypical super nerd and didn't have a memorable personality. I noticed that Ash and Brock said they knew about Pokethlon because they traveled through Johto before, and while we all know that they never witnessed a Pokethlon during their journey, it kind of makes sense that they know about them. Pokethlon were suppose to be around for a while in Johto and though they were just created recentlt for HG/SS, to keep up with consistency, it makes sense that Ash and Brock know about it.

I also don't see why the cotd's main Pokemon was a Snorlax. It just seemed sort of random, since it wasn't a Johto Pokemon or anything. If they were just going to pick a random Pokemon they could have used Swampert or something.

[Poke Master 7]

Well you can because in this episode it wasn't the pokeathlon which demonstrated the true connection of ash's pokemon. It was before the competition where he truly demonstrates it with Daniel's snorlax and how he could tell how it was feeling without the computer. The pokeathlon was just used for Daniel to convince and confirm that science isnt everything and you can go a long way without it. In a picture you could say that the event before was a seed and the pokeathlon was used to grow it.

With the episode I found it quite enjoyable. A good way to show ash with his pokemon and how far he has came with them. Given, it was inconsistent with the johto saga but that is a minor thing which doesnt bother me in the slightest so im going to move on. I thought it was a breath of fresh air to see Ash contest science with his trainer technique as usually he is trying to teach someone who treats their pokemon badly or incorrectly.

I'm not really sure that the episode had actually treated it that way because when he checked Snorlax, sure he had wondered how Ash had known, but he then shrugged it off as though it was nothing. He had continued to use science into the pokeathlon when he used his Hitmonlee in it. He had even mentioned after TR were beaten that if he were to beat Ash, he'd have to use science all the way through. For all purposes, the episode didn't really prove his point wrong, yet he suddenly learned a lesson. That's where I'm coming at, it felt kinda forced since nothing aside from Ash seeing Snorlax was tired proved his point.

But this isn't the first time an episode with this theme had been shown. Some people have probably pushed it to the back of their heads due to the unpopularity of Johto, but season 1 of Johto had one which showcased Scizor for the first time in which the COTD believed in data over actual companionship. Difference is that in that episode Ash's point was proven when Heracross beat Scizor in battle.

[_Taidow_]

I'm not really sure that the episode had actually treated it that way because when he checked Snorlax, sure he had wondered how Ash had known, but he then shrugged it off as though it was nothing. He had continued to use science into the pokeathlon when he used his Hitmonlee in it. He had even mentioned after TR were beaten that if he were to beat Ash, he'd have to use science all the way through. For all purposes, the episode didn't really prove his point wrong, yet he suddenly learned a lesson. That's where I'm coming at, it felt kinda forced since nothing aside from Ash seeing Snorlax was tired proved his point.

But this isn't the first time an episode with this theme had been shown. Some people have probably pushed it to the back of their heads due to the unpopularity of Johto, but season 1 of Johto had one which showcased Scizor for the first time in which the COTD believed in data over actual companionship. Difference is that in that episode Ash's point was proven when Heracross beat Scizor in battle.

Wasn't it that stupid guy who told his scizor to "FINISH IT OFF WITH FALSE SWIPE!"

[Brumrha]

Buy HG/SS, & you, too, can participate in the Pokeathlon!!!

That's what this episode was screaming at me all this time. Still...

- The gang are heading out to Dawn's next "Gouge-your-eyes" fest, when all of a sudden, they find a trampoline. Yeah... that definitely makes the list of The Top 10 Strangest Things you'd find in the Wilderness, possibly the Top One maybe...
- In spite of this fact, Pikachu & Piplup get on the trampoline, & they're having a ball, when all of a sudden...
- A Snorlax is coming down on them from the sky! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!!!!
- Pikachu & Piplup do exactly that, so that they don't get turned into bloody pancakes. Upon doing so, they find out something strange about this Snorlax in particular: this guy is into athletics??
- Actually, he's been made like this by none other than a geeky person, of all things, & he goes by the name of Yuta.
- Seeing as to the fact that Ash's method is to develop bonds with one's Pokemon, it's no surprise that they would come to blows on how they should be raised. Even so, Yuta's Scientific Methods do work, to a degree...
- Yuta Also mentions about the Pokeathlon, which is an event that tests both Pokemon & trainer alike, & this is what he is training for. As it turns out, there's a Pokeathlon happening here now.
- Ash is planning on making him eat his words, however, the chance already presents itself, as Yuta's Snorlax all of a sudden becomes spent, & Yuta doesn't know why. Ash tells him about his condition, & he's shocked at how Ash knew it without relying on technology.
- So... he takes him along to a massage parlor, which looks way too small to be a real one. I smell a TR disguise...
- Yuta convinces Ash to have his Pikachu get a massage as well; he reluctantly agrees, & he is whisked away by the rather enthusiastic "staff" of the "parlor"
- While they wait, they've actually got another Pokeathlon event that they can attend to: A disc catch.
- Yuta's Hitmonlee managed to get a perfect score on this, but Ash's Monferno matched up to him exactly. That means he's got some really stiff competition...
- The next event on schedule is... a trampoline match, in which the Pokemon has to jump up & hit a specific light, & each one that flashes on is going to be different each time. The reigning champion of this event is... a Spoink... Yeah, they're only good for smoking on a Barbecue. I want my Baby-back Baby-back Baby-back Baby-back Baby-back rrribs!!
- Strangely enough, Yuta isn't participating in this. Where is he?
- He's actually with Ash, retrieving both their Pokemon from that massage parlor, but the get a nasty surprise...
- ...in the form of TR. I knew it!! As they're flying off, they're reciting their motto. *sigh* These guys need to be silenced... "yesterday!"
- Much to their chagrin, however, they find out that they can't fly out of here, since Snorlax is way too heavy. So they swallow their pride & leave him behind.
- Since Pikachu is still on-board, Ash sends Staraptor after them. However... they fight back rather fiercely with their punching machine, which brings him down for the count. That's #&%$ing humiliating...
- Yuta, however, has other plans in store for them. He gets out his trampoline, & gets Snorlax up on it, & before they know it, they're shocked to see a Snorlax at their level of altitude.
- Snorlax proves that the "Death from Below" is a viable concept in the War-zone, by thwacking their balloon from below, & nabbing Pikachu from them.
- Now that everybody has their Pokemon safe & sound, now we can get to the main attraction: The Hurdle Jump! There is a twist, however: The trainers are linked to their Pokemon via the same technology that Yuta has developed which gives them a heads-up on the hurdles before they pop out of nowhere, & they tell them to jump, by jumping themselves.
- Even with this newfangled technology, Ash still gives Yutat a run for his money, as his Pikachu is neck & neck with his Snorlax.
- They both cross the finish line seemingly simultaneously, but thankfully, the judges have High-Speed Cameras on them, & the winner is...
- ...Snorlax... but only by an inch of his blubber-gut... This has got to be on The Top 20 Upsets on this Anime.
- Yuta's awarded with an Olive Branch Wreath, but even though he won, he lightened up with Ash, seeing as to how his method is a little better...

Unfortunately, I've got nothing else to say, seeing as to how I'm still aghast over Snorlax barely winning this...

[ZangooseLord]

Okay, it's official. Yuta is Dr. Insano. I was seriously expecting him to say "In the name of science, I shall use the Pokeathlon to take over the world!" (OF COURSE!)

Yay, Spoink's voice is still annoying. Thank Arceus it can't learn Sing...

My favorite scene is where Team Rocket is getting away with Pikachu, and Snorlax, who is still tied to the balloon, is just standing on the ground, chillin'. Speaking of Snorlax, I was a tad disappointed with its new dub voice. I think the one from the battle against Greta was its best one.

[Lance The Champ]

I think it was a really good episode!!!

[john A.K.A. young LJ]

even though im a big fan of snorlax i think daniel cheated using that system to win

[Rebeccag]

Yeah I agree Daniel was kinda annoying and that Pikachu won but Ash cant win all the time. Apart from the pokethalon it was kinda of a filler episode but a good filler episode. And it was good as well for Snorlax to save the day as well ^_^

[Hikari Paradise]

Snorlax made a nice catch with its belly. That was funny. Anyways I had a feeling that nerd was gonna win.

[Typhlosion Trainer]

I liked this Pokeathlon episode.

[Painkiller2001]

The episode was actually slightly better than I thought. The events seemed pretty cool. This episode wasn't the greatest, but it wasn't the worst. The writers must like promoting HGSS because the poster near the beginning of the episode only had Johto Pokemon. One thing I thought was weird was that Ash & Brock knew about the Pokeathlon from their Johto Journey, yet they never truly did see one, from our knowledge. It could have been offscreen or something.
7/10

I have a feeling it's going to keep getting promoted until this region is over.

BAH! How could I miss the episode before this one? I really wanted to see my favorite sea weasel learn ice punch.

Anyway...
- Why do so many episodes of this show start with AshnCo. walking in a forest? Every time I see this I think "Well, this is obviously a repeat..."
- And they come across a... OH MY GOD! Tram-a-poline! Tra-bop-poline!
- You know, I'm surprised that Pikachu and Piplup, and AshnCo. for that matter, don't automatically assume that this strange forest trampoline isn't a TR trap to capture Pikachu/Piplup...
- Oh no, Snorlax! From the sky! RUUUUUUUUUUUNNNN!!
- Yay, this means Ash's Snorlax is going to come back soon! <-sarcasm
- Annnnnd, cue nerdy-looking COTD...... now.
- Hmmm. Performance enhancing machinery... Isn't that illegal?
- The Pokethlon. Gee, where have we seen this before? <-sarcasm
- Okay. that has got to be the best voice James has done. EVER.
- Why does Meowth look like some Chinese priest?
- Okay, Ash, if you haven't figured out how to look past that poor-excuse-for-a-disguise that James has, you need glasses, my friend.
- And TR thought they would be able to pick up an extremely heavy Pokemon like Snorlax how...?
- Okay, I will be the first to say this, even though I've never been able to come up with one of these till now, but, Muku.POKING DEVICE!
- Speaking of Muku.HAWK, It didn't really do a good job of "saving" Pikachu, which it was told to do.
- I'm sure these Pokemon have enough intelligence to jump over a simple hurdle.
- Man, Machoke really fails at the Pokethlon. It's the last Pokemon I would expect to fail at something like this.
- BAH! they ruined Abra's voice in this episode. It's not cute like it used to be in Fear Factor Phony.

[Lance The Champ]

Would have been nice to see Ash win but i guess he can't win them all

[G50]

This episode was alright. It was cool to see the Pokeathlon for the 1st time. It was interesting to see that Snorlax was being used for the Pokeathlon. It was bizarre how the prize was a Grass hat which made sense considering what it was known to be used for. Would've been great if Ash won, but no Daniel ended up winning when Snorlax's belly crossed the finish line 1st. Considering what the prize was, not really upsetting to see Ash lose. The Enhancers looked really cool.

59/100

[seth656]

I just watched this for the first time and I was pretty dissapointed..... any1 notice the TR bot from banned episode dratini? lol

[TurtwigFan1]

Enjoyed the episode a lot, it was fun! The Team Rocket stealing Pikachu and Snorlax thing in the middle was a bit of a time-waster, as we could have had another event but hey. I knew Daniel would win from the start, but I kept holding on to the hope that Ash would! A very good filler episode !

[Littlemyuu]

Nice episode, cool to see the Pokeathlon, and that Ash joined it, Snorlax racing and even won the race was suprising xD

[TheEpicGoomba]

This episode was cool. Seeing that Snorlax being so fit was very surprising. Daniel was incredibly annoying. It was wrong to train you Pokemon with Machines. It was very cool to see The Pokeathlon in the Anime for the first time. It was very surprisin to see Snorlax win since Pikachu is so fast. It was good that Daniel realised that he had to train his Pokemon properly.

[Caseydia]

Daniel looked like Bill Gates and Melvin from the Exeggutor Squad episode had a love child.

But I liked the triathelon thing though. It was cool. It would have been nice if Brock had taken an interest in it instead of doing nothing throughout the whole of DP.

[wobbanut]

It's funny how the marathon thing seemed like the usual Team Rocket setup at first at the beginning of the episode. At least it didn't turn out to be. This episode was interesting, though not the most memorable. At least Johto got a mention.

6/10

[Bulba the Great!]

I hate the disguised voice James uses for the first half of the episode.

Also, clever retconning of Johto, writers - claiming Brock and Ash were actually familiar with it.