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| Season | Pokémon Ultimate Journeys: The Series (Season 25) · To Be a Pokémon Master: old friends arc (JN137–JN141) |
| Episode | Season 25, episode 47 · English episode 1217 · Japanese episode 1227 · Bulbapedia code JN141 |
| English title | A Squad’s Worth of Passion! |
| Japanese title | もえよ！ゼニガメしょうぼうだん！！ Moe yo! Zenigame Shōbōdan!! — “Burn! The Zenigame Fire Brigade!!” |
| First aired (Japan) | 10 February 2023 · TV Tokyo |
| First aired (US) | 8 September 2023 · Netflix |
| Screenplay | Michihiro Tsuchiya |
| Opening / ending (Japan) | Mezase Pokémon Masutā -with my friends- (Aim to Be a Pokémon Master) – Satoshi (Rica Matsumoto) · Hyakugojūichi (One Hundred Fifty-One) – Professor Oak (Unshō Ishizuka) and the Pokémon Kids |
| English opening | Gotta Catch Em All – Ben Dixon and The Sad Truth |
| Who’s That Pokémon? | Squirtle (US) · Squirtle (Japan) |
| Previous episode | Bearing Down Easy! (JN140) |
| Next episode | The Same Moon, Now and Forever! (JN142) |
Plot episodeSquirtle Squad
A Squad’s Worth of Passion! is the 47th episode of Pokémon Ultimate Journeys: The Series, the twenty-fifth season of the Pokémon anime, and the 1217th episode of the English dub overall (Japanese episode 1227, Bulbapedia code JN141). It first aired in Japan on 10 February 2023 and in the United States on 8 September 2023. It falls within the season’s To Be a Pokémon Master: old friends stretch (EP137–EP141).
Released on Netflix in the US on 8 September 2023 with the fourth part, Pokémon: To Be a Pokémon Master (JN137–JN147 and JNS05) — episode 5 of 12 in that listing; Teletoon had premiered it in Canada on 10 June 2023.
Synopsis
In a seaside city, Ash reunites with his Squirtle and the Squirtle Squad, now performing as costumed heroes under Team Rocket’s management, and a misunderstanding between old friends is resolved when the squad fights a real warehouse fire. Ash and Pikachu spot a poster for a Squirtle Squad show led by Ash’s own Squirtle, and Ash calls out Bulbasaur and Charizard, who are just as eager to see their old teammate, unaware that Team Rocket now manage the squad and are selling merchandise. On stage, Jessie and James play fiery villains while Meowth secretly lights controlled fires that the costumed squad puts out. Squirtle spots Ash in the audience and is overjoyed, but during the meet-and-greet it never sees him, and by the time Ash’s group reaches the front, Team Rocket close the session, leaving Squirtle convinced that its friends do not care.
When Ash’s group comes to the squad’s hotel, Team Rocket block the way, and the sulking Squirtle brushes off Bulbasaur and Charizard until Charizard’s Flamethrower starts a brawl in which Ash, trying to calm things down, is caught in the crossfire, and it only ends when an exasperated Pikachu shocks everyone nearby. Bulbasaur and Charizard storm off, and Ash and Squirtle are both upset at parting on bad terms. Team Rocket’s attempt to net the supposedly weakened Pikachu lands on a Hariyama, which flings them onto a Camerupt that launches them again, while Brock flirts with an Officer Jenny investigating a missing Venonat until Croagunk and Misty drag him away together. In the warehouse district, Team Rocket’s net catches an exposed wire and sets a warehouse ablaze, and the Squirtle Squad rushes to fight the fire.
Ash and his friends join in: Brock helps Officer Jenny hold back the crowd, Misty sends out Psyduck, Politoed and Clauncher, and Ash grabs a hose. Encouraged by Ash, the squad swaps its superhero costumes for its old firefighter jackets, and seeing Squirtle work so hard, Bulbasaur and Charizard help keep the flames from the nearby trees. When a group of Pokémon, including the missing Venonat, is spotted trapped on the burning roof, Charizard carries Bulbasaur and Squirtle up; Squirtle douses the flames and Bulbasaur’s Vine Whip lifts the Pokémon to safety, as children in the crowd recognise Ash. With the fire out, Ash hugs Squirtle, their quarrel forgotten, and a second Officer Jenny reveals that Team Rocket took the squad without permission, with the merchandise profits going to rebuild the warehouses. Squirtle hugs Ash once more before leaving with its squad, and a crowd of fans rushes past them to surround Ash, the World Champion.
Major Events
- The Squirtle Squad. Ash is reunited with Squirtle and the Squirtle Squad, managed by Team Rocket
- A warehouse fire
- The Kanto starters are together for the first time in 763 episodes
Trivia
- The screenplay is by Michihiro Tsuchiya.
- This is a plot episode: it advances the Kanto, Galar & beyond storyline.
Changes in the English Dub
- Brock flirts to a modified first line of the Pokémon Theme instead of Aim to Be a Pokémon Master
Part of our Pokémon Ultimate Journeys: The Series guide. Browse every season of the Pokémon anime.