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| Season | Pokémon: Johto League Champions (Season 4) · A new look in Japan: Wobbuffet, sumo & Crobat arc (EP192–EP196) |
| Episode | Season 4, episode 37 · English episode 194 · Japanese episode 196 · Bulbapedia code EP194 |
| English title | Ring Masters |
| Japanese title | オーダイルVSカメックス! すもうバトル!! Ōdairu Tai Kamekkusu! Sumō Batoru!! — “Ordile vs. Kamex! Sumo Battle!!” |
| First aired (Japan) | 19 April 2001 · TV Tokyo |
| First aired (US) | 16 March 2002 · Kids’ WB |
| Screenplay | Atsuhiro Tomioka |
| Opening / ending (Japan) | Mezase Pokémon Master (Whiteberry version) – Whiteberry · Maemuki Rocket-dan! (Face Forward Team Rocket!) – Team Rocket |
| English opening | Born to Be a Winner – David Rolfe |
| Who’s That Pokémon? | Ledyba (US) · Feraligatr (Japan) |
| Previous episode | Sick Daze (EP193) |
| Next episode | The Poké-Spokesman (EP195) |
Plot episodePokémon Sumo ConferenceAsh wins the King’s Rock
Ring Masters is the 37th episode of Pokémon: Johto League Champions, the fourth season of the Pokémon anime, and the 194th episode of the English dub overall (Japanese episode 196, Bulbapedia code EP194). It first aired in Japan on 19 April 2001 and in the United States on 16 March 2002. It falls within the season’s A new look in Japan: Wobbuffet, sumo & Crobat stretch (EP192–EP196).
Synopsis
Ash borrows Snorlax from Professor Oak to enter a Pokémon sumo tournament and wins a King’s Rock. In Rikishii Town the gang watch Raiden’s Feraligatr flatten opponent after opponent, and society director Shonosuke explains the rules: pure physical strength, no moves, and entrants must weigh at least 80 kilograms. Ash swaps Noctowl for Snorlax, whose weight breaks the registration scale, while Jessie enters Wobbuffet disguised as a Miltank called “Milky”.
“Milky” wins its opener against an Ursaring but is disqualified for using Counter; the trio’s protest ends under Feraligatr’s Hydro Pump. Raiden’s Feraligatr outwits a Golem, and Snorlax’s belly bounces a Poliwrath’s blows straight back for a first-round win. In the semi-finals Feraligatr edges out a Blastoise and Snorlax rebounds a Machamp, making Ash the first rookie ever to reach the final.
Feraligatr dodges Snorlax’s opening charge and shoves it to the ring’s edge, but Ash tells Snorlax to breathe deep and push back with its belly. Thrown into the air, Snorlax lands with a stadium-shaking thud that unbalances Feraligatr, then bundles it out of the ring. Snorlax devours the year’s supply of Pokémon food in moments and falls asleep, so Ash sends it back to Oak and recalls Noctowl. Team Rocket arrive with sacks of fake paw prints to sell, a year too late.
Major Events
- Ash wins the Pokémon Sumo Conference with Snorlax and earns the King’s Rock
- Noctowl temporarily swapped for Snorlax
- Feraligatr TV debut (Raiden’s)
- Banned in South Korea
Pokémon making their anime debut
Feraligatr#0160 · EP194
Trivia
- The English title plays on a ringmaster, in an episode set in a sumo ring.
- The screenplay is by Atsuhiro Tomioka.
- This is a plot episode: it advances the Johto storyline.
- The Who’s That Pokémon? segment features Feraligatr in Japan, where it almost always matched the episode, but Ledyba in the US, where 4Kids picked the Pokémon at random.
Changes in the English Dub
- A small red Japanese mark is painted out of the souvenir paw prints.
- Two seconds of footage replayed after the Japanese commercial break are cut.
- Most sumo references are dropped, including Rikishii Town’s name and Team Rocket’s wrestler aliases Musashiyama and Kojirōga.
- “Try not to have a cow, Jessie” is added, a nod to The Simpsons.
Part of our Pokémon: Johto League Champions guide. Browse every season of the Pokémon anime.