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| Season | Pokémon Horizons: The Series (Horizons Season 1) · Roy and the Ancient Poké Ball arc (HZ004–HZ008) |
| Episode | Horizons Season 1, episode 8 · English episode 1232 · Japanese episode 1241 · Bulbapedia code HZ008 |
| English title | The Door That Never Opens |
| Japanese title | あかずの扉のひみつ Akazu no Tobira no Himitsu — “The Secret of the Unopened Door” |
| First aired (Japan) | 26 May 2023 · TV Tokyo |
| First aired (US) | 7 March 2024 · Netflix |
| Screenplay | Naruki Nagakawa |
| Opening / ending (Japan) | Dokimeki Daiārī (Heart-Pounding Diary) – asmi feat. Chinozo · RVR ~Raijingu Borutekkāzu Rappu~ (Rising Volt Tacklers Rap), Dot Ver. – Liko (Minori Suzuki) & Roy (Yuka Terasaki) |
| English opening | Becoming Me – Haven Paschall (version 1, with clips from Heart-Pounding Diary) |
| Previous episode | Special Training with Cap! (HZ007) |
| Next episode | Welcome to Paldea! (HZ009) |
Filler / stand-alone episodeLiko and DotNidothing’s livestream
The Door That Never Opens is the 8th episode of Pokémon Horizons: The Series, the first season of the Pokémon anime, and the 1232nd episode of the English dub overall (Japanese episode 1241, Bulbapedia code HZ008). It first aired in Japan on 26 May 2023 and in the United States on 7 March 2024. It falls within the season’s Roy and the Ancient Poké Ball stretch (EP4–EP8).
Released on Netflix in the US on Thursday 7 March 2024 with the rest of Part 1 (HZ001–HZ012); BBC iPlayer had released it in the UK on 15 January 2024.
Synopsis
While the Rising Volt Tacklers stop in a port town to restock their mysteriously vanishing supplies, Liko keeps reaching out to the reclusive Dot, unaware that the girl behind the door is Nidothing herself. Late at night, Friede and Murdock share leftover doughnuts from a hidden kitchen cupboard, overheard by Dot’s Quaxly. At breakfast Dot’s seat is empty again; Friede explains that she rarely eats with the team and lives on nutrient gummies, and Murdock vows to cook something to tempt her. Mollie reports that sugar, Moomoo Milk, butter and dried fruit are disappearing, and suspicion falls on Murdock. The ship diverts to a town to restock, and Friede tells Roy, who is searching the sky for Rayquaza, that it lives far higher, in the stratosphere. A game of rock-paper-scissors leaves Roy guarding the ship, but he talks Liko into covering for him so that he can explore the town.
Liko feeds the Pokémon, hangs laundry, feeds Muk and scrubs the deck, then peeks into the secret cupboard and gets a face full of cream from Murdock’s Alcremie. Bringing Dot her lunchbox, she hears the Nidothing theme inside and, assuming Dot is a fellow fan, chats excitedly about the upcoming livestream. Dot, flustered and late, shouts at her to go away, and Liko apologises and leaves the lunch by the door; Quaxly frowns at its Trainer as Dot pushes back her hair and puts on the Nidothing suit. In town, a vendor polishing his Spoink’s pearl mentions that a young man with two companions recently asked about a Shiny black Rayquaza, and Friede buys the cloth in exchange for the information. During the late-starting stream, Nidothing reads out Liko’s question about making friends, and Liko’s embarrassed scream echoes through the ship.
Nidothing advises that making friends is like battling: change the conditions and try different approaches until one works, and Liko resolves to keep trying with Dot. Roy, meanwhile, uses his training to have Fuecoco dodge a wild Spearow’s Peck and win with Ember. At sunset Roy thanks Dot for her Rayquaza tip, and when he proposes a battle with Liko, Liko, remembering Nidothing’s advice, agrees to battle right outside Dot’s door, which makes Dot shout again. Thrilled to hear her voice, Roy chatters about his day, and when Liko asks what Dot likes, she admits that she loves mysterious things nobody has seen, like an ancient Poké Ball said to hold a black Rayquaza; Liko quietly notes that such mysteries may be closer than Dot thinks. That night Murdock is delighted to learn that Dot has finally eaten his doughnuts, and the next morning Friede and Captain Pikachu sight the coast of Paldea.
Major Events
- The door that never opens. Liko keeps trying to befriend Dot
- Supplies keep vanishing from the kitchen
- Nidothing answers Liko’s question about making friends on a livestream
- Fuecoco beats a wild Spearow
- Paldea is sighted
Trivia
- The screenplay is by Naruki Nagakawa.
- This is a stand-alone episode: it can be skipped without losing the thread of the Kanto, Galar and Paldea story.
Changes in the English Dub
- Netflix’s Turkish dub has Mollie speaking German
- The dub changes Nidothing’s theme, but Liko still hums the original melody while cleaning, in both versions
Part of our Pokémon Horizons: The Series guide. Browse every season of the Pokémon anime.