Talkback: "Pokémon Battle Frontier" - October (Spoilers)

[Duke]

http://fridays.toonzone.net/talkbacks/premiere.gifhttp://library.toonzone.net/talkbacks/pkmnbf.jpg
Pokémon Battle Frontier
October, 2006

Ash and May continue their journies in Kanto, as May competes in the Kanto Pokémon Contests, and Ash takes on the Battle Frontier and the Frontier Brains!

Time: 9:00am & 9:30am
(All times in Eastern)
4
October 7th, 2006
Reversing the Charges! http://www.toonzone.net/schedule/new.gif

As Ash marvels at his newest Frontier Symbol, May continues to polish her Pokémon Egg, eager to find out what Pokémon will eventually be hatched (err...evolved, since Pokémon Eggs don't exactly hatch except for Togepi). However, when a wild Elekid arrives and starts causing mischief, it's up to Ash and Phanpy to stop it. Can Elekid be stopped, and what happens when Phanpy and Elekid become friends? And just why is this Elekid causing so much trouble in the first place?
Comments: Elekid is one of the few Johto Pokémon that I still like, and this episode is kinda/sorta advertising for Diamond/Pearl in a way.
4
October 7th, 2006
The Green Guardian http://www.toonzone.net/schedule/new.gif

As our heroes continue their journey, they meet a teenage girl who is searching for the Legendary time-traveling Pokémon known as Celebi. However, this young girl, surprising is neither a Pokémon Trainer, nor a Pokémon Coordinator! Nope, she is, in fact, a Pokémon Ranger! How is being a Pokémon Ranger different than being a Trainer or Coordinator, and how will these skills help in finding Celebi?
Comments: And so, the anime pimpage of Pokémon Ranger begins. While US fans won't get as much of the blitz because the dub isn't using all of "Spurt!"'s footage, it'll still be alot, especially during the second half of the season.
4
October 14th, 2006
From Cradle to Save! http://www.toonzone.net/schedule/new.gif

In preparation for the next Frontier Brain, Ash and Pikachu continue to practice Volt Tackle, in an effort to have this technique be the ultimate finisher that Iron Tail once was. However, while training, our heores come upon a secret school for Pokémon ninjas. But the school is being disrupted by a little baby Bonsly! This Sudowoodo pre-evolution is causing a ruckus, but luckily for the school, Brock is here!
Comments: Jeez, this is only the third Pokémon Brock's captured since coming to Hoenn, and the fourth since the end of Kanto. That's more pathetic than Team Rocket.
4
October 14th, 2006
Time-Warp Heals All Wounds! http://www.toonzone.net/schedule/new.gif

May is super-excited about her Pokémon Egg, and feels it will hatch shortly. However, that will have to wait, as pretty soon May, Squirtle, and Meowth are transported back through time! There, she meets the young version of an elderly woman May met back in the present, and sets out to change history for the better. Evidentally May didn't learn from Richie, who did the same thing and screwed over thousands of people in an instant, but oh well.
Comments: Wouldn't it be funny if, by changing the past, May caused a chain reaction that would lead to, say, the cure for cancer, to have never existed?
4
October 21st, 2006
Queen of the Serpentine! http://www.toonzone.net/schedule/new.gif

Ash has finally arrived at the Battle Pike, where he must face off against Tube Queen Lucy in order to gain his next Frontier Symbol! However, something else seems to be on Lucy's mind, causing her to lose her focus on the battle. Not only that, but whenever she looks at Brock, her face gets all red. One wonders what would happen if Max wasn't a part of the group...
Comments: Bah. Suzie's truly the only one for Brock, not Lucy. But no, everyone has to forget about poor old Suzie and her Vulpix...
4
October 21st, 2006
Off the Unbeaten Path! http://www.toonzone.net/schedule/new.gif

As our heroes continue their journey, they come across a Pokémon Orienteering Contest. Each trainer must use one of their Pokémon and search for a variety of landmarks, and only by working together can they succeed in getting all the marks. Of course, Ash, May, Brock, and Max enter the Contest, but so does Team Rocket! However, while Jessie and Meowth decide to play some tricks to delay our heroes, James has decided to do things the legit way, on his pride as a Pokémon Orienteer!
Comments: This is one of those episodes made just for James fans.
4
October 28th, 2006
Harley Rides Again! http://www.toonzone.net/schedule/new.gif

May prepares for her next Pokémon Contest, and decides to go with Munchlax to debut. After all, Skitty and Squirtle managed to win in their Contest debuts, so Munchlax, with its variety of powerful attacks, should be able to sweep the competition. However, there is a bigger obstacle in May's path: Harley. He's finally given up his good guy smokescreen, but he still has some tricks up his sleeve, and now that he's no longer pretending, May finds out he's tougher than ever. How can May triumph?
Comments: This is seriously one of the best Contests in this show's history right here.
4
October 28th, 2006
Odd Pokémon Out! http://www.toonzone.net/schedule/new.gif

While Ash trains for the Battle Frontier, Grovyle meets a wild Meganium and instantly falls in love with it. However, Meganium already has a suitor in the form of a wild Tropius. Ash's Grass-type decides to fight Tropius in an old-fashioned duel for Meganium's love, but Team Rocket decides to interfere with one of their more powerful mechs. Will Grovyle put aside his feelings and help Tropius? Will Meganium return Grovyle's love?
Comments: This episode introduces a minor subplot for the next couple of episodes that many fans think is one of the stupider plots in the show's history.
4
October 28th, 2006
Pokémon Ranger! Deoxys Crisis!! http://www.toonzone.net/schedule/new.gif

While continuing their travels along the Battle Frontier, Ash, May, and the others meet up with Solana, the Pokémon Ranger they met before on the Cycling Road who was searching for Celebi. However, this time she's after a different Psychic-type Legendary Pokémon: Deoxys! Our heroes decide to help out the Ranger, but Deoxys is a lot wilder than they thought, and it's hard to control its movements! Will Ash and Solana be able to trap Deoxys in order to capture it? Or is this Pokémon simply too powerful for our heroes to handle?
Comments: If this episode title holds up, it will be the first time since Episode 21 ("Bye Bye, Butterfree") to keep the same exact episode title. Wow. Though Cartoon Network is airing it about a week early, as it does spoil what happens November 4th. Also, this airs at 5PM on the 28th.
4
October 28th, 2006
The Mastermind of Mirage Pokémon

Ash and friends are invited to challenge the world's strongest Pokémon Trainer, and are surprised to see Misty and Professor Oak already there! Professor Yung, the man who sent out the invitation, shows off his newest creation: The Mirage System. With it, he is able to create realistic projections of any Pokémon he has data on, and is able to give it literally any attack he wants. But suddenly, the Mirage Master appears and kidnaps Professor Yung and Professor Oak! Ash and Misty sneak into the laboratory, but find things to be tougher than normal, as they have to face off against not only Legendary Pokémon like Aritcuno, Zapdos, and Entei, but even the mighty Mewtwo! How can our heroes stop the Mirage Master from controlling the world?
Comments: OK, so it's not new, but since it's airing right after the Ranger special on the 28th, I figured I'd post this up too.
4
NOTES


This is the debut season of Pokémon U.S.A.'s new dub, and the first Pokémon season not to be dubbed by 4Kids.
If the episode's title is a link, then it will lead you to that episode's edit list, courtesy of Dogasu.
Debuts this month: The only true debut this month is cute little Bonsly, though we'll also see some Pokémon that haven't shown up in the anime since Johto!
Double premieres continue all month.
Time for an evolution! Huzzah!
How much advertising can Pokémon Ranger get? Let's find out!
Stop the presses! Brock captures a Pokémon!
Remember that "most-hated Pokémon" bit from last month? Well, that Pokémon makes its debut this month.
Ash attempts to get ANOTHER Frontier Symbol. We're not even 15 episodes into the season and this is the third Frontier Brain Ash has faced this season.
Our heroes become Pokémon Orienteers!
May vs. Harley Round 3: WHO WILL WIN!?
And it's time for another Pokémon evolution!
Time for yet another Pokémon special, but this one wasn't made for the US (for once).
The redub of the Mastermind of Mirage Pokémon special makes its television debut this month! It's a Pokémon Overload on October 28th!
Yes, I know there's more episodes in the schedule, but that airs in November, not October.
Next month: May participates in another Pokémon Contest, one of Ash's Pokémon learns a new technique, Ash competes for his 5th Frontier Symbol, Bonsly and Mime Jr. become movie stars, Ash faces off against a powerful crimson Pokémon, Brock actually enters a Pokémon Contest, the return of Jynx, and Ash competes for his final Frontier Symbol!
If you want to see what Pokémon episodes are airing on Cartoon Network, check out the Miguzi (http://www.toonzone.net/schedule/index.php?browseNetworkID=15), Toonami (http://www.toonzone.net/schedule/index.php?browseNetworkID=13), and Other Premieres on CN (http://www.toonzone.net/schedule/index.php?browseNetworkID=6) schedules.

[CyberCubed]

I really liked the voice acting in both of these episodes. They've all gotten so much nicer to listen to now, especially Ash.

Looks like they were trying to imitate the Jenny voice of Advanced Battle rather than the early and better Jenny voice. Anyone notice Selana sounds a bit like Officer Jenny? She would have been good for the role.

The Elekid episode was great. Loved how May and James just nonchalantly traded Mime Jr. the egg for each other. Phanpy evolving was a smart decision, and it makes Phanpy worthwhile from late Johto.

The Ranger episode was decent enough, despite being a blatant advertisement. Ash's line was wierd, why did he say they'll all see Celebi again?

Haha, was May's "What's time travel?" line foreshadowing to the episode next weekend? :p

[PC!]

I was hoping that Phanphy would evolve by the end of the episode, as I was getting tired of hearing it's voice. What're the odds? :p

You know what would have been entertaining? If, after trading Mime Jr. and the egg, James went back to the mech and proptly tried to steal the egg.

May didn't know what time travel was...? I can understand May having a lot to learn about stuff, but how many people in the world don't know what the concept of time travel is?

Practially every new voice is now perfect in my book. The only voice that still needs work is Ash. And boy, what a lot of work he needs. Change your pitch, Ash!

[Mr. Ralph]

pikachu's volt tackle looks cool no matter how many times i see it

[Hyper Shadow X]

Guess there's two new eppy's next week and not one.

[Duke]

*twitch* Cartoon Network, either play 1 episode a week or two! Stop flip-flopping every week! >.<

Anyway, the two episodes were pretty good, and it's nice to see Elekid again, one of the few Baby Pokémon that's actually good.

Salana, huh? Kind of a weird name for the Ranger. Wonder if it's what the default name will be for the girl Ranger once the games come out, or if it's anime-only like Marina and Kenta were.

[bigddan11]

*twitch* Cartoon Network, either play 1 episode a week or two! Stop flip-flopping every week! >.<

Anyway, the two episodes were pretty good, and it's nice to see Elekid again, one of the few Baby Pokémon that's actually good.

Salana, huh? Kind of a weird name for the Ranger. Wonder if it's what the default name will be for the girl Ranger once the games come out, or if it's anime-only like Marina and Kenta were.

According to zap2it.com, this is the schedule through the 21:
10/07- Reversing the Charges and The Green Guardian
10/14- From Cradle to Save & Time-Warp heals All Wounds
10/21- Queen of the Serpentine & Off The Unbeaten Path

[Duke]

The problem is, CN's sent us multiple revisions of their October grids, and ALL of them list 1 episode a week starting next week.

Regardless, I ain't updating anything until I get CN's official grids. Zap2It is basically the same as TV Guide and Yahoo!TV in my eyes.

[Mr. Ralph]

but the commercial said 2 new episodes next week

[CyberCubed]

So how many episodes did PUSA dub then? If they're airing two eps a week they must be further along than we thought.

I hope CN doesn't leave us with repeats for about 5 months. Even give us one new ep a week or give us the entire season in one run.

[ChaosMeowth]

Ewww they're using the pokédex theme again. Oh well.

Missed the first episode, second was alright but nothing to write home about. I remember enjoying the May episode the first time I watched it, so I'm looking forward to it.

[bigddan11]

The problem is, CN's sent us multiple revisions of their October grids, and ALL of them list 1 episode a week starting next week.

Regardless, I ain't updating anything until I get CN's official grids. Zap2It is basically the same as TV Guide and Yahoo!TV in my eyes.

The CN schedule ( at cartoonnetwork.com) also lists them the same as zap2it, with 2 new episodes each of those 3 weeks.

[Duke]

Ewww they're using the pokédex theme again. Oh well.
Yea, that sucked. And they were doing so well too.
The CN schedule ( at cartoonnetwork.com) also lists them the same as zap2it, with 2 new episodes each of those 3 weeks.
I've always updated the schedules only via the official grids before (CN's grids =/= schedule.cartoonnetwork.com), and I'm not going to start changing now. So you can just drop it.

[bigddan11]

Yea, that sucked. And they were doing so well too.

I've always updated the schedules only via the official grids before (CN's grids =/= schedule.cartoonnetwork.com), and I'm not going to start changing now. So you can just drop it.

I'm not going to argue, but zap2it and the CN website were updated on October 4, this past Thursday, so they are probably more correct than the advance grid, which always seems to be changing now anyway.

[Mr. Ralph]

I've always updated the schedules only via the official grids before (CN's grids =/= schedule.cartoonnetwork.com), and I'm not going to start changing now. So you can just drop it.

but it's on the commercial!!!

[Duke]

but it's on the commercial!!!
If I changed the schedule based on grids/commercials, the 4KidsTV schedule would actually be updated.

I don't change the Toon Zone schedule until a) I get official grids from CN or b) the episode airs.

[bigddan11]

but it's on the commercial!!!

We all know how accurate the CN commercials are though. Up until Thursday of the second week, they were advertising it would only be one new episode every week, but we knew from the advance schedule that that had been changed.

[simpsonsfan]

Titan tv says one new episode for those three weeks.

[Freedom Fighter]

Darn adverts are screwy! And here with 4KidsTV deciding to repeat the first two episodes of 'Winx Club' Season 3 after debuting them, I was hoping to, for at least two weeks, sleep in another half hours. Natch to that.

First Episode -
- Question... Ash says '3 symbols down, 3 to go' yet there were seven indentations in that case. I wonder if the extra slot (supposing the center) is like a participation badge or something...
- Now that was one wild Elekid. And great job on the writers referring to the 'overcharged Pikachu' incident from the end of the Johto championships/start of Hoenn.
- One of the most awkward moments of the series ever: James and May nonchalantly trade back their misplaced Pokémon (Mime Jr. and the Pokémon egg, respectively) without a battle! I know 'trading' is rare in the series, but that's the oddest trade ever, going by normal show standards.
- Phanpy evolving into Donphan... whoa, didn't see that coming!

Second Episode -
- Ah, a cycling road! Haven't had one since "The Bridge Bike Gang" all the way back in Season 1. Too bad the gang doesn't get to use until the end... (And a good excuse if Misty was still around... poor girl would still be harping on the broken bike. May, on the other hand, either doesn't care or has forgotten about it.)
- Eh, so a Pokémon Ranger is basically 'Rescue Team' for humans? Sigh... disappointment. Then again, I didn't like the concept of 'Rescue' and still bought the game anyway, so maybe 'Ranger' will get the same treatment.
- Speaking of Pokémon Rangers... Solana, the Ranger Action Hero! Seriously, she acts like one of those types that will actually fight in the battle with their Pokémon!
- I've had bad experiences with time-travelling on this show, so I'm really not looking forward to two episodes from now (whether it airs next week or the week after). Celebi itself kinda irks me the same way.

"Reversing the Charges": 7/10.
"The Green Guardian": 6.5/10.

[Duke]

- Question... Ash says '3 symbols down, 3 to go' yet there were seven indentations in that case. I wonder if the extra slot (supposing the center) is like a participation badge or something...
He can only get the location of the 7th Frontier Brain when he gets the other 6 Frontier Symbols.

[PC!]

- One of the most awkward moments of the series ever: James and May nonchalantly trade back their misplaced Pokémon (Mime Jr. and the Pokémon egg, respectively) without a battle! I know 'trading' is rare in the series, but that's the oddest trade ever, going by normal show standards.

That's why it's so humorous. :D

[Freedom Fighter]

He can only get the location of the 7th Frontier Brain when he gets the other 6 Frontier Symbols.See, I thought there was seven! Sigh... see this is what I get for skipping out on the 3rd Generation/Hoenn games. And why I've had to learn the good new Pokémon from the bad new ones through the show. :sweat:

[Duke]

- Ash continues to go up and down. His VA's "Yea" at the beginning of the first episode was perfect, but the rest was muddled.

- Hmm. Not only did Bonsly get a voice change, but a pronounciation change as well. In the Lucario dub it was pronounced "Bons-LEE," whereas here it's "Bons-LYE." OK...

- I still don't get why Meowth traveled back in time with May, he just seemed useless.

- Katrina's (Heh, nice name to give to a kid who appears in an episode where it always rains) voice irritated the hell out of me. The acting was just HORRIBLE.

- WHA!? They dubbed over Eevee!? WHY? They've always used Eevee's Japanese voice since Kanto!

[yoshirider13]

awesome episodes!!!

The first episode makes me think pokemon meets naruto

the 2nd one was very good and shows off how pokemon can be serious and not all fun and games.

[CyberCubed]

I love how they avoided the word "pregnant" in the second episode.

Edna says, "Your mother was a little baby in my tummy." and so forth.

I think Meowth kinda broke the 4th wall by saying how random the time warp was.

May: Edna's wishes must have created the time warp.
Meowth: Sure, I'll buy that.

Meowth: You know what this means? We broke the space time continum!


So were all the last couple of BF episodes in continuity? It seems like since the egg episode, the same themes traveled across the next couple of episodes. Time travel, Brock and May getting new infant Pokemon, and so forth.

I laughed everytime May almost got hit by the train. :sweat:

[Mr. Ralph]

awwww eevee and bonslie are soooooo cute!

[PC!]

I could have sworn it was pronounced Bons-LEE. At least, that's how I want to pronounce it... In any event, I hope it doesn't become a constant annoyance like Togepi was...

Aww, I loved Eevee's Japanese voice...:(

[CyberCubed]

I could have sworn it was pronounced Bons-LEE. At least, that's how I want to pronounce it... In any event, I hope it doesn't become a constant annoyance like Togepi was...

Thankfully Brock keeps it in its Pokeball I believe. God forbid we have Togepi 2.0 on this show.

[Duke]

Bonsly has a bunch of appearences in the next dozen or so episodes (after all, it IS a Diamond/Pearl Pokémon), but only a couple in this entire saga dedicated to it. Most of its scenes are Brock playing with or feeding Bonsly.

[sdp]

well, i woke up late and kept falling asleep but from what i watched the episodes seemed ok, i also realized Ash is the only voice that is still kind of 'off' at times, everyone else feels fine for me now.

[CyberCubed]

Here's hoping they don't have Zoppi play Drew.

I'm starting to get a strange feeling they're going to make Drew sound like Gary. Here's hoping they don't.

Nurse Joy sounded really dull in this episode, yikes.

[Jacob T. Paschal]

Holy crap!! What's that pink and red thing??? It's....so...differant!!


Sorry, couldn't resist. :sweat: :D

[bigddan11]

If I changed the schedule based on grids/commercials, the 4KidsTV schedule would actually be updated.

I don't change the Toon Zone schedule until a) I get official grids from CN or b) the episode airs.

I guess you can change it now, since the episode has aired, but it will cause some confusion for the rest of the month, since different schedules do say different things. If CN is correct, here's the rest of this month:

10/21- Queen of the Serpentine & Off The Unbeaten Path
10/28- Harley Rides Again & Odd Poke'Mon Out

From the little bit I saw, it seems the voice actors have improved drammatically (or maybe I'm getting used to the new ones), and the episodes did have lots of humor, which is good for everyone. I'll be watching the episodes in their entirety a little later today, so I'll come back and give additional comments after then.

[Neo Ultra Mike]

I still don't get why Meowth traveled back in time with May, he just seemed useless.


I guess to show that he can care too and to have a reason why TR didn't battle "the twerps" in this ep. More later on why I felt that was the only redeeming thing about that ep...

"From Cradle To Save" - Sadly Ash and Co won't use they're new "Ninja" skills anytime soon but this was a pretty good ep. I liked the "subsitution jutsu" used when Brock was trying to hook up with the ninja training girl (she and May looked good in those outfits, but I have a feeling I don't need to tell you that) and even the Team Rocket battle was more interesting then usual. Plus I also liked Brock capturing Bonsile (who appears to be the new version of "pulling Brock away from a girl". Instead of Max pulling on his ears, Bonsile will get jealous and tackle him or something as seen in the next ep), though haven't there been enough "baby" Pokemon our heroes have had? Oh well this was still a good ep...

"Time Warp Heals All Wounds" - Though I can't say the same for this one. Maybe it's just all the time travel but does anyone else have a sense of Deja Vu from this one? Time Traveling severals decades in the past, seeing old versions of a guy and girl (the trainer having met the girl as an old woman in the present), stopping the guy from going away and ending up "passing on" and changing the future so that the guy and girl are together, alive and happy, have grandkids, and the town is just better as a whole. Some pokemon episodes are repeitive but just put May in place of Richie and Meowth/squirtle in place of Pikachu and you'd have the exact same Pokemon Chronicles episode that involved time travel (except that one made sense. I guess they didn't want to reuse Celebi so soon but I have a hard time beleiving it was the old woman's wishes and dreams that allowed them to travel back in time. I mean Pokemon has screwy logic sometimes but come on!). The only thing acceptable about this episode were May's egg hatching and Meowth actually tagging along. It showed he can care about others plights and help sometimes and will even not go into battle if he's feel all "sappy", making this one of the few non Team Rocket battles ep which is something I guess. Still not something that good though.

[Hyper Shadow X]

The second one was better than the first.

[Duke]

I think I may have a theory on Bonsly's new pronounciation. The way it's pronounced now "Bons-lye" makes the pun on its name (from "Bonzai" trees) even more apparent. I guess "Bons-lee" was too subtle.

Plus I also liked Brock capturing Bonsile (who appears to be the new version of "pulling Brock away from a girl". Instead of Max pulling on his ears, Bonsile will get jealous and tackle him or something as seen in the next ep),
Actually, I'd say Bonsly has the opposite effect after the next few episodes.

Time Traveling severals decades in the past, seeing old versions of a guy and girl (the trainer having met the girl as an old woman in the present), stopping the guy from going away and ending up "passing on" and changing the future so that the guy and girl are together, alive and happy, have grandkids, and the town is just better as a whole.
Technically, they already had the grandkids anyway, the grandfather just never came back for some stupid reason.

Whaddya wanna bet the grandpa met some other girl during the original timeline, and the child they had eventually grew up to become some super-important doctor who created the cure to cancer or something, only to have all that erased by little old May...

[Freedom Fighter]

First episode:
- So this is basically an homage/poke at 'Naruto,' only with the gang wearing slightly more uniform-like ninja outfits, like the ones in 'Ninja Nonsense.' (Speaking of which, I gotta find a retailer that actually carries that show.)
- While we're on the subject of ninjas, I guess I shouldn't be surprised there's no mention of Koga or his (anime-only) sister Aya. Even though Angela did kinda look like Aya...
- Speaking of which, loved it when Angela pulled the 'substitution log' jutsu on Brock.
- And keeping on jutsu, it got annoying to hear every single person say "Ninja Arts [Insert name of attack here]." If being a ninja were as easy as starting every sentence with 'Ninja Arts,' I probably would look as good as Naruto. Ninja Arts Driving to Work! Ninja Arts Let's Eat a Ton of Ramen! Ninja Arts I'm Going Potty!
- If Jessie truly was a ninja, she'd actually be trying to kick the twerps butts instead of sending her Pokémon to do the job. Keeping on the ninja track... yeah for May actually calling a shuriken by its actual name!
- Bonslei = Teddiursa? Not a good thing, IMO, and they actually keep this one. Well, what better thing to do than give a useless Pokémon to a useless trainer.
"From Cradle to Save": 7/10.

Second episode:
- Sigh. Sorry, Pokémon writers. Just because it's May and Meowth instead of Richie and Sparky does not make this 'go back in time and change the past of one pair of sad in-love souls without being sensitive to everyone else's lives you're affecting' any easier to swallow.
- I agree with Cybercubed... seeing May, Meowth, and Squirtle almost get run over a train twice was funny.
- And in the 'tack it on because we need to make this episode feel like it's not a waste of time'... May's egg hatches, and now we've got Eevee!
"Time Warp Heals All Wounds": 6.5/10.

[yoshirider13]

when jessie threw that starmie, I thought I was watching a scene where sakura from naruto was throwing a shuriken :p

[PC!]

when jessie threw that starmie, I thought I was watching a scene where sakura from naruto was throwing a shuriken

That was pretty funny. :D Note to Jessie: Starmie. Is not. A shuriken!

[Dogasu]

I think I may have a theory on Bonsly's new pronounciation. The way it's pronounced now "Bons-lye" makes the pun on its name (from "Bonzai" trees) even more apparent. I guess "Bons-lee" was too subtle.

It was always meant to be pronounced Bon-sly. 4Kids just goofed up when they dubbed the Lucario movie.

[Terminate421]

ash sounds like hes 20 in PBF

before he sounded young and more intrested!

now he sounds old and dull

i mean get 1 episode before PBF and then watch a PBF and test the voices

what do you get?
a weirder ash!!!:eek: :confused:
the show is just fine but ashes voice is well........

[Taylor Karras]

This is just Pokemon with better writing and better voices, They didn't even loosen up man.

[Duke]

The first post has been updated with all the new stuff airing this month. Of note, two Pokémon specials will air October 28th: Pokémon Ranger! Deoxys Crisis!! airs at 5PM and The Mastermind of Mirage Pokémon airs at 6PM.

Also, Dogasu has an episode comparison up for Sweet Baby James (http://dogasu.bulbagarden.net/comparisons/battle_frontier/ep148.html).

[yoshirider13]

The first post has been updated with all the new stuff airing this month. Of note, two Pokémon specials will air October 28th: Pokémon Ranger! Deoxys Crisis!! airs at 5PM and The Mastermind of Mirage Pokémon airs at 6PM.

Also, Dogasu has an episode comparison up for Sweet Baby James (http://dogasu.bulbagarden.net/comparisons/battle_frontier/ep148.html).Lets just hope its the redub version....

edit: nvm I just read, its the redub!!!!!!!!!! But I already have it on dvd :)

[Terminate421]

if the egg may has didnt hatch yet i think it may be a teddyursa!
maybe even a trapinch!

(by the way duke what rescue team are you on and what members do you have?

[Duke]

if the egg may has didnt hatch yet i think it may be a teddyursa!
maybe even a trapinch!
It just hatched last Saturday into an Eevee, who has been in the intro since the season premiered (right after the close-ups of May & Combusken, Drew & Squirtle, and Harley & Munchlax, Eevee appears).

[yoshirider13]

if the egg may has didnt hatch yet i think it may be a teddyursa!
maybe even a trapinch!

(by the way duke what rescue team are you on and what members do you have?It already hached. It was an eevee. I dont consider that a spoiler cause its been in the intro since this season started...

[AnimatedSnow47]

Just like Mr. Mime (Mimeme) was always in the Advanced Battle intro. But, honestly, I never noticed until last week! :eek:

[Duke]

Just like Mr. Mime (Mimeme) was always in the Advanced Battle intro. But, honestly, I never noticed until last week! :eek:
You mean Mime Jr. (Manene). It was only in the first 10 episodes or so, then 4Kids painted it away along with Weavile.

[Terminate421]

battle frontier was inspired and put because:
they were running out of ideas
and in the game if you beat it you got to go the BF

[Terminate421]

It just hatched last Saturday into an Eevee, who has been in the intro since the season premiered (right after the close-ups of May & Combusken, Drew & Squirtle, and Harley & Munchlax, Eevee appears).

thanks duke i havent seen it yet!

thanks for lettin me know

[BCVM22]

battle frontier was inspired and put because:
they were running out of ideas
and in the game if you beat it you got to go the BF

...what?

They did a Battle Frontier season because there was time to kill before they could start the Shinou (Diamond/Pearl) saga and to give Pokémon Emerald a little extra push. They changed it from the games; in Emerald, the Battle Frontier is in the Hoenn region. Obviously, it's in Kanto in the show.

[Ultra8]

Well I finally got caught up in the series. The new voices are very well though the V.A. for Ash needs to put a bit more emotion into the lines.
-The Battle Dome battle was an interesting battle, but they forgot to mention the Whirl Cup on Ash's list of tournaments
-Elekid and Donphan was a good sight to see.
-The Pokemon Ranger eps. was interesting as well as how their capturing works, mainly it's like catching any normal pokemon just minus the ball and the taming is temporary,though you can catch multiple targets in one go.
- The ninja eps. was okay, gotta love that substitution art on Brock.:D and yet another occupation to add to Jessies' already long list of prior jobs.
- The Time travel eps. was a little like the Chronicles eps. but still good. A sweet story plus I liked the music they played in the background during one scene.

An A for effort so far for the season.

[CyberCubed]

Heh, I love the Lucy episode. It's a real shame she didn't get more than one episode, she was the hottest Frontier Brain and/or Gym leader ever!

Donphan is a real powerhouse, I'm so glad that Phanpy that Ash caught in Johto wasn't forgotten, and actually became a strong fighter. Good battle too.

The second episode was not as good as the first, but still decent. Bonsly knocking Brock through the air is hilarious. James wins, yay.

Good voice acting too, Ash and Meowth sound much better.

[veemonjosh]

battle frontier was inspired and put because:
they were running out of ideas
and in the game if you beat it you got to go the BF

I think we kinda knew that already... :sweat:

[Duke]

I'm glad they kept it "Pokémon Orienteering." I was worried after the promo called it a more generic name.

I wish PUSA had left the music alone. The original Japanese version gave off a nice, calm feeling, which made the episode more fun.

[Hyper Shadow X]

pretty nice battle in the first one.

[Freedom Fighter]

Heh, I love the Lucy episode. It's a real shame she didn't get more than one episode, she was the hottest Frontier Brain and/or Gym leader ever!

Donphan is a real powerhouse, I'm so glad that Phanpy that Ash caught in Johto wasn't forgotten, and actually became a strong fighter. Good battle too.

The second episode was not as good as the first, but still decent. Bonsly knocking Brock through the air is hilarious. James wins, yay.

Good voice acting too, Ash and Meowth sound much better.I'm actually going to go the complete opposite way. I didn't find Lucy's episode all that likeable, but the second was the best of the season so far.

First episode, "Queen of the Serpentine!":
- You know, when May was down by the ocean with Eevee, I thought she was going to pull a 'mid-Hoenn Ash' and do training while Ash was competing.
- Ah, the requisite 'gym' run completely by women. With a gym leader pulling a shy act on the always love-forward Brock? Hmmm... you know, that could've been interesting... only Lucy didn't do anything on her part to help move things along. (Funny note - Luck Symbol = Brock getting lucky?)
- Frontier badge battles: I'm liking how every Brain so far is not only a competent challenge, but a nerve-pushing one to boot. What I'm not liking... once Ash figures out the strategy, he ends the match with the next attack. :sad:
- I will give it up for some more interesting combinations (glad that May isn't hogging that department anymore)... Donphan using Rollout and Flamethrower together, and later on, Pikachu's Thunderbolt on himself plus using Milotic's Twister against it.

Second episode, "Off the Unbeaten Path":
- May's "They're so cute, I can't take it!" upon seeing the Pokémon Nursery... can be construed in so, so many different ways. :p
- Okay, the Teamwork Medal looks like a piece of junk, but I bet anyone would go for that massive amount of fruit.
- Speaking of fruit... that Team Rocket sequence with James thinking about the medal (and different ways of referring it) and Jessie with nothing but fruit on the brain (not counting the one next to her)... funny stuff!
- Where this episode wins me over is that every one of the six pairings does something endearing and none of them sound like they're throwaways. Yes, that includes Max and Munchlax, who earn points just for being themselves.
- Interesting 'competition' we've got between the siblings...
- Once again, Jessie & Meowth play the 'bad guys' while James goes all goodie-goodie, ending up winning honestly. Oh, and I'm loving how much James and Mime Jr. fit together, so much that it makes me forget whom the little guy replaced.

"Queen of the Serpentine": 6.5/10.
"Off the Unbeaten Path": 8.5/10.

Next week should be interesting, with the return of May's hated, misleading rival. The promo insinuates they got a new VA for him, though... :(

[Duke]

Next week should be interesting, with the return of May's hated, misleading rival. The promo insinuates they got a new VA for him, though... :(
If the rumor's true, though, Harley would've been replaced anyway.

[Dirty Dawg]

I love the new episodes!The voices have really improved since Fear Factor Phony.Here is how I rate the new VAs:(with 10 sounding the most like the original and 1 sounding the least like the original)

Jessie:10
James:9
Brock:9
Ash:6
Meowth:8
May:9
Max:4(but he sounds good)

[LordTerminal]

If the rumor's true, though, Harley would've been replaced anyway.

As long as it fits without him sounding too gay. Seriously that was the problem I had with Harley's voice. It was basically the voice Andy Rannels used for his "villain roles" only at times it sounded a bit homosexual and hard for me to bear. I know he's flamboyant and all and trains his own Wigglytuff later on but I seriously doubt that Harley is completely gay and whatnot.

[yoshirider13]

Harley sounds really close to 4kids' harley.

[sdp]

Well i've pretty much missed the past two weeks by either not waking up or waking up and falling asleep during the episode, 8 am is too early, oh well

I kind of slept through the first episode but from what I saw Harleys new voice is not bad,,

I always thought of tropious as a very similar pokemon to Meganium so it was nice to see this episode with both together.

[Mr. Ralph]

well i thought sceptyle was gonna be cool but he's a wimp! a grade A wimp!

[Duke]

Are we sure Al Khan isn't at least influencing the script? I mean, wow, Harley was more flamboyant than ever. Calling May a gingerbread cookie, going to powder his nose, and calling his Octillery "hun"? Wow.

And this just confuses me. Donphan keeps its Japanese voice. Meganium keeps its Japanese voice. Tropius keeps its Japanese voice. Freaking NIDORAN keeps its Japanese voice. So why can't Eevee!?

Also, in case you weren't blinded by CN's bottom-screen ads, don't forget that the Pokémon Ranger 2-parter and the Mirage Special air later this afternoon before Toonami.

[CyberCubed]

Harley's VA was wonderful, thanks, PUSA!

He's just as deliciously gay as before. :D The lines in this episode were hilarious.

Harley calls Brock, "Big boy."

Harley says Ash/Max/Brock are May's, "boy-toys." :D

This exchange was hilarious:

Harley: I'm going to crush you, you squirt!
May: Hee hee!
Harley: It wasn't THAT funny.
May: I know, but I'm going to be the one to crush you! Now excuse me as I go powder my nose!
Harley: Aaaargh! Nobody steals my lines and gets away with it!

After the Contest is over and May receives the letter, as Harley is leaning against the tree he says, "Hmph. Nice girls finish last."

:D

Aha, PUSA you're awesome. Harley called Ariados, "Darling" and "Hon (short for honey) a number of times, and even May calls Harley, "Hon," when she's in battle with him.

Haha, PUSA got Harley nailed and gave him wonderful lines to boot, and his interaction with May was great.

James actually called May, "Your girl," when talking to Ash. :o

This is why Harley is one of the best rivals in the show, and he's one of the contributing factors that makes May's story so great.

[LordTerminal]

well i thought sceptyle was gonna be cool but he's a wimp! a grade A wimp!

He gets better over time. Oh boy does he get better. He's like the Grass-type equivalent of Charizard.

EDIT: After reading Cybercubed's list, I just wanna say CRAP! Why did I have to oversleep today?! Then again, if I didn't, I would've been watching the Throw Kirby episode on 4Kids instead and miss it anyway.

[Jacob T. Paschal]

Wow, Battle Frontier is making the series look rather...good. May looses, an Sceptile gets a sub-plot.

[Hyper Shadow X]

Liked them both today.

[yoshirider13]

Meouwth looks so cool when Deoxys controls him :evil:

[PC!]

Who can deny that Deoxys is an awesome-looking Pokemon?

Ash's voice continues to improve. I'm guessing this was dubbed rather recently.

[ChibiGoku]

My only real complaint of the dub at this point is music. Everything else seems spot on. (For the most part, anyways.) I just wish they went the Mastermind route, using the original bgm with the regular series.

[Hyper Shadow X]

dexoys does look cool and it was nice to see him again.

[veemonjosh]

I'm curious, exactly how much Japanese music was used in the Pokemon Rangers episodes today?

Because some of the music sounded AWESOME.

[MacGyver]

I'm curious, exactly how much Japanese music was used in the Pokemon Rangers episodes today?

Because some of the music sounded AWESOME.

The only thing I'm sure of was the music that played as Ash and co. battled Deoxys at the end, so Salana can capture it. That was from Destiny Deoxys.

Anyway, the special was good. Nice to see the referecne to the seventh movie, no matter what kind of a dud it was. Gotta wonder why Ash and co. never mentioned actually being in Larousse City during the events with Deoxys. Or was that a dub only thing? Boy that thing ended early. 6 minutes before the hour. Mastermind ended 10 before, and now it's Squirrel Boy, or whatever it's called.

Today's episodes were decent enough. Though Harley was just FLAMING today. Honestly, I didn't think it was possible, but some of what he said was even worse than the gay lines 4Kids put into James' mouth. Heck, I think James may have gotten better since PUSA took over. Still, the voice was good. Nice job there.

[Jacob T. Paschal]

Golly Batman, Deoxsy's a bloody wimp...:sweat:

[Freedom Fighter]

A Pokémon overload today, and boy, did it run the gambit from bad to great!

First Episode:
- Wow. Just wow. Words cannot escape me. The Japanese artists and animators give us some of the liveliest and wildest scenes in a long, long time. Meanwhile, the English dub writers go to town and just run with the script. Awesome, with so many quotable lines in this episode!
- Though the new VA for Harley is manageable with some work, his lines and delivery make up for it. I can't believe they got away with Harley calling May 'my little gingerbread cookie' (even in jest), referring to her travelmates as her 'boy-toys,' and May jabbing back with that 'powder my nose' line. Points for Harley not doing any beating after the bush trickery and going straight after May, heads-up!
- Speaking of great lines, I also cracked up at Jessie asking James who was prettier, her or Harley... and James responds by asking "Do I have to?"
- An impressive preliminary round for May and Squirtle, finishing with the highest score! So... too bad she ends up losing to Harley and Octillery in the end. Oh, and the final battle was probably the only thing I didn't enjoy... surprisingly enough.
- Ending with a note from Drew? Wow, talk about milking the wheels for Drew/May shippers...

Second Episode:
- Well, here's a NOT first... a love triangle. Also not a first, but certainly a more rare occurence... Grovyle getting the crap beat out of him!
- At that point, maybe we should be glad Grovyle evolved into Sceptile. But apparently, he's been made emotionally weak by the whole deal with Meganium and Tropius.
- To borrow a line from a certain Pokémon website... Ash STILL doesn't get it. :p (i.e. regarding how Grovyle won and lost the battle)

Pokémon Ranger Special:
- The way it was shaping up at the start of the episode, it felt that Solana would have the show all to herself. Apparently, Max wouldn't let her. (Later, James suggests too little, too late, that she should have her own show.)
- Speaking of Solana and the whole Pokémon Ranger deal... it still looks weird to capture Pokémon in that sort of way. That, and I still swear it's like Pokémon Rescue Team, though for humans. (If you remember, I didn't like the Mystery Dungeon special, but still ended up buying the game. So maybe there's hope for Ranger?)
- I just got a nostaglic crack out of Ash running into Deoxys' Safeguard.
- Better than the Celebi episode we got recently, but the adventure with Deoxys wasn't that much better...

"Harley Rides Again": 9/10.
"Odd Pokémon Out!": 6/10.
"Pokémon Ranger - Deoxys Crisis!": 7/10.

I also stuck around for the first five minutes or so afterwards, just to hear the redubbed voices for the 'Mastermind of Mirage Pokémon' special. Pretty good and much easier on the ears... but that must be because I'm used to them by now.

[Hyper Shadow X]

Another thing I liked was Pikachu in a kimono.

[Jacob T. Paschal]

Another thing I liked was Pikachu in a kimono.

Yeah, now that was a Blast From the Past...

[Lutochris]

So I guess we're just supposed to assume that Ash & co completely forgot about their trip to Larousse City, or that it never happened in the series timeline, or what? Either way I'm still unimpressed with both, Deoxys is very cool and seems like it could make for much better movies/specials than, "I'm lonely, will you be my friend?"

[Duke]

Actually, while the gang never mentioned they went to Larousse City, they never mentioned that they didn't either. Remember, just after Solana mentioned the city, the alarm came on and everybody became focused on Deoxys. I think the mere fact that they all knew what a Deoxys was is proof enough that they remember Movie 7.

[RomanMack]

I think the only time they ever recall what happened to them on a movie, is during that Lugia three-parter. They mention that they've met a Lugia before. But other than that...

[veemonjosh]

I think the only time they ever recall what happened to them on a movie, is during that Lugia three-parter. They mention that they've met a Lugia before. But other than that...

And, if we throw in Mastermind, Pikachu remembers what happened in all the movies (well, post 1, but he does remember the Mewtwo TV special).

[Duke]

I think the only time they ever recall what happened to them on a movie, is during that Lugia three-parter. They mention that they've met a Lugia before. But other than that...
Movie 9 is also tied in. Jackie appears in the Japanese intro "Spurt!" and Ash & the gang reference Solana in the movie.

[MacGyver]

I think the only time they ever recall what happened to them on a movie, is during that Lugia three-parter. They mention that they've met a Lugia before. But other than that...

I still think that reference was debatable at best. Let's not forget that in the story arc where Ash and co. are traveling with Todd (or Snap) as he tries to photograph an Articuno, that someone comments on how cool it would be if it really existed. Or something to that effect. If the group had never seen an Articuno, how could they have seen a Lugia?

[RomanMack]

I donno. Call it a plot-hole. XD

But they did state that they saw a Lugia before...