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| Season | Pokémon Horizons: The Series (Horizons Season 1) · Spinel’s heist arc (HZ013–HZ018) |
| Episode | Horizons Season 1, episode 17 · English episode 1241 · Japanese episode 1250 · Bulbapedia code HZ017 |
| English title | Special Training Time! |
| Japanese title | カイデンとホゲータ 秘密の大特訓！ Kaiden to Hogēta Himitsu no Daitokkun! — “Kaiden and Hogator’s Secret Big Training!” |
| First aired (Japan) | 11 August 2023 · TV Tokyo |
| First aired (US) | 10 May 2024 · Netflix |
| Screenplay | Michihiro Tsuchiya |
| Opening / ending (Japan) | Dokimeki Daiārī (Heart-Pounding Diary) – asmi feat. Chinozo · RVR ~Raijingu Borutekkāzu Rappu~ (Rising Volt Tacklers Rap), Orla Ver. – Liko (Minori Suzuki) & Roy (Yuka Terasaki); on the first TV Tokyo airing, a guest version with Abareru-kun (Hiroki Kobari) (Pokédoko collaboration) |
| English opening | Becoming Me – Haven Paschall (version 1, with clips from Heart-Pounding Diary) |
| Previous episode | Quaxly, We Can Do It (HZ016) |
| Next episode | Flying Pikachu, Rising Higher and Higher! (HZ018) |
Filler / stand-alone episodeWattrel learns SparkCap’s hat knocked off
Special Training Time! is the 17th episode of Pokémon Horizons: The Series, the first season of the Pokémon anime, and the 1241st episode of the English dub overall (Japanese episode 1250, Bulbapedia code HZ017). It first aired in Japan on 11 August 2023 and in the United States on 10 May 2024. It falls within the season’s Spinel’s heist stretch (EP13–EP18).
Released on Netflix in the US on Friday 10 May 2024 with the rest of Part 2 (HZ013–HZ023); BBC iPlayer had released it in the UK on 27 February 2024.
Synopsis
Roy’s squabbling Fuecoco and Wattrel learn to work together through a secret training plan that harnesses Wattrel’s Wind Power Ability, and their aerial combination attack finally knocks off Captain Pikachu’s hat. Aboard the Brave Olivine, bound for Galar, Liko paces outside Dot’s room, still absorbing the news that Dot is Nidothing. Out on deck, Wattrel grows annoyed when Fuecoco crowds it while it sunbathes and starts pecking the Fire type, and when Roy tries to calm them with a song, Wattrel feels left out and screeches, prompting Fuecoco to shout back. The bickering continues through lunch, and Orla, seeing Liko laugh as Roy chases his partners, suggests that Liko might enjoy catching another Pokémon herself, an idea that had never occurred to her. The quarrel pauses only when the two Pokémon watch Charizard and Captain Pikachu training, and Friede explains that training relieves stress and deepens bonds.
Roy asks Cap for a match, in which Wattrel uses a new move, Spark, but Cap simply makes Fuecoco and Wattrel ram into each other. As heavy turbulence rocks the ship, everyone heads inside except Roy, who keeps trying to make peace; Liko goes to find him just as a gust blows Wattrel away. Roy catches the struggling Wattrel, its wings glowing, and when a thick branch hurtles towards him, Wattrel shatters it with a tremendous Spark. Inside, Liko explains that Wattrel’s Wind Power Ability turns wind into electricity, which is why the gusts made it so strong. Needing a way to create wind in battle, Roy consults Dot, with a flustered Liko in tow at being in Nidothing’s room, and Dot suggests that a dive from a great height might generate enough wind for a moment.
Roy trains on the wing deck for hours, missing dinner, so Liko brings sandwiches and finds the trio exhausted, though Roy refuses to reveal the plan until it is ready. The next morning he challenges Friede and Cap again in front of the whole crew. Fuecoco and Wattrel stack themselves on Roy’s head, he tosses them skyward, and Fuecoco’s repeated Embers propel them higher until Wattrel takes flight and dives with Spark, powered by the wind of its fall. Cap meets it head-on with Thunder Punch, dodges Fuecoco’s follow-up Tackle, and both of Roy’s Pokémon faint. Roy is briefly crestfallen, but the crew praises his progress, and Fuecoco and Wattrel finally sing together. Liko decides that a second Pokémon friend might be fun after all, and Friede points out two achievements: Cap’s hat was knocked off, and for a moment Cap got serious.
Major Events
- Fuecoco and Wattrel’s training. Wattrel learns Spark with its Wind Power Ability
- Fuecoco and Wattrel’s combination knocks off Captain Pikachu’s hat
Trivia
- The screenplay is by Michihiro Tsuchiya.
- 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
- The Hindi dub leaves some Pokémon cries in English
- On its first TV Tokyo airing, the ending is a guest version with Abareru-kun (Hiroki Kobari) (Pokédoko collaboration)
Part of our Pokémon Horizons: The Series guide. Browse every season of the Pokémon anime.