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| Season | Pokémon Journeys: The Series (Season 23) · Rivals & setbacks arc (JN031–JN041) |
| Episode | Season 23, episode 37 · English episode 1117 · Japanese episode 1123 · Bulbapedia code JN037 |
| English title | That New Old Gang of Mine! |
| Japanese title | ただいま、はじめましてアローラ！ Tadaima, Hajimemashite Arōra! — “I’m Back, Nice to Meet You, Alola!” |
| First aired (Japan) | 13 September 2020 · TV Tokyo |
| First aired (US) | 5 March 2021 · Netflix |
| Screenplay | Aya Matsui |
| Opening / ending (Japan) | Wan, Tsū, Surī (One, Two, Three) – Nishikawa-kun and Kirishō · Pokémon Shiritori (Mew → Zamazenta Ver.) – Pokémon Music Club |
| English opening | The Journey Starts Today – Walk off the Earth |
| Who’s That Pokémon? | Alolan Dugtrio (US) · Alolan Dugtrio (Japan) |
| Previous episode | Making Battles in the Sand! (JN036) |
| Next episode | Restore and Renew! (JN038) |
Plot episodeAlola reunionLei
That New Old Gang of Mine! is the 37th episode of Pokémon Journeys: The Series, the twenty-third season of the Pokémon anime, and the 1117th episode of the English dub overall (Japanese episode 1123, Bulbapedia code JN037). It first aired in Japan on 13 September 2020 and in the United States on 5 March 2021. It falls within the season’s Rivals & setbacks stretch (EP31–EP41).
The first episode of Netflix’s fourth and final batch, JN037–JN048, released on Friday 5 March 2021; POP had premiered it in the UK on 1 March and Teletoon in Canada on 2 March 2021.
Synopsis
Ash takes Goh to Alola for a reunion with his “Alola family,” where Goh meets Ash’s former classmates and Pokémon, holds his own in a test battle against Kiawe and catches a Pyukumuku and an Alolan Exeggutor. Yamper brings Goh a Leaf Stone, and Goh uses it to evolve his Exeggcute into Exeggutor; Ash remarks that the Alolan form grows many times taller. Professor Cerise then sends the boys to Alola to catch as many Pokémon as they can. Professor Kukui meets them at the Melemele Island airport, and at his home Professor Burnet introduces her newborn son, Lei. Ash’s Rowlet, Lycanroc, Incineroar and Melmetal smother him and Pikachu in a group hug before excitedly greeting Goh’s Pokémon, and Burnet reveals that the classmates have prepared a welcome party at the Pokémon School.
On the way, Goh catches a Pyukumuku that punches Raboot for stepping on it, then the boys chase a Grubbin into the forest and get separated; Goh and Raboot, distracted by an Alolan Dugtrio, tumble off a cliff into the sea. Lana fishes Goh out with her rod while Sandy rescues Raboot, and she sets him on her Lapras. Meanwhile Ash meets Rotom Pokédex, which takes offence when Ash’s Rotom Phone dismisses it as “only a Pokédex” and then escorts him to the school. There Goh is overwhelmed by Sophocles, who wants to take apart his Rotom Phone, and by Mallow and Lana’s enthusiasm, until Kiawe arrives, introduces himself as Ash’s rival and challenges Goh to prove his strength. At the party, Sophocles reveals that he is returning to the Mossdeep Space Center, and Lana reads a letter from Lillie, who is travelling by train with her family, using Magearna’s Soul-Heart to track her missing father, Mohn. Kiawe explains that whoever is closest to Ash must be strong enough to help him reach his goals, and Goh accepts his challenge.
Raboot dodges Turtonator’s Dragon Tail and knocks it off balance with Double Kick, and the impressed Kiawe activates his Z-Ring. When he calls Goh one of Ash’s rivals, Goh corrects him—he is Ash’s friend, not his rival, and everyone has to chase their own dream—and Kiawe unleashes Inferno Overdrive. Raboot’s Ember is overwhelmed, but when the smoke clears Goh and Raboot are unharmed: Kiawe’s Marowak stepped in to block the blast, as Kiawe had planned all along. Goh grabs Kiawe’s wrist instead of his hand and says that while he is not a rival, he will look after Ash, earning Kiawe’s trust, and he declares his dream of catching every Pokémon, Mew included. The classmates then help him challenge an Alolan Exeggutor, which Raboot’s Ember leaves wobbling, and Goh catches it. Back at the Cerise Laboratory, his Kantonian and Alolan Exeggutor admire each other, and Ash promises that they will visit Alola again.
Major Events
- The Alola reunion. Goh’s Exeggcute evolves into Exeggutor with a Leaf Stone
- Ash and Goh visit Alola, where Professors Kukui and Burnet introduce their newborn son Lei, the first human birth in the anime
- Ash reunites with his classmates, Rotom Pokédex and his Alolan Pokémon
- Lillie writes that she is searching for her father
- Goh catches a Pyukumuku and an Alolan Exeggutor and now owns a Pokémon from all eight generations
- Kiawe tests Goh in a battle
- Emily Cramer becomes Mallow’s English voice
Captures and evolutions
Pyukumuku#0771 · Goh · with an Alolan Exeggutor, on Melemele Island
Exeggcute → Exeggutor#0103 · Goh · with a Leaf Stone that Yamper brings him
Trivia
- The English title plays on the song “That Old Gang of Mine”, for Ash’s Alola reunion.
- The screenplay is by Aya Matsui.
- This is a plot episode: it advances the Kanto, Galar & beyond storyline.
Changes in the English Dub
- Goh’s eyes are open when he falls into the sea (closed in Japanese)
- Dub error: Raboot’s cry is missing from the intro clip
- Emily Cramer replaces Jessica Paquet as Mallow
- Sun & Moon music returns
- The dub’s Who’s That Pokémon? uses the Sun & Moon theme
Part of our Pokémon Journeys: The Series guide. Browse every season of the Pokémon anime.