Mega Evolution – Bonds – Pokémon Horizons Season 3, Episode 25

Plot episodeEpisode: Mega Evolution, part 3Roy catches Lucario

Mega Evolution – Bonds is the 25th episode of Pokémon Horizons: Rising Hope, the third season of the Pokémon anime, and the 1338th episode of the English dub overall (Japanese episode 1347, Bulbapedia code HZ114). It first aired in Japan on 24 October 2025 and in the United States on 26 June 2026. It falls within the season’s Episode: Mega Evolution — the lost year stretch (EP112–EP114).

Released on Netflix in the US on Friday 26 June 2026 with the rest of Part 3; BBC iPlayer had premiered it in the UK on 27 February 2026, CBBC broadcast it on 23 March 2026 and ABC iview added it in Australia on 2 April 2026.

Synopsis · Major Events · Trivia · Dub Changes · All episodes

Synopsis

In the final part of the flashback, Roy and Ult win a Multi Battle against Count Hoisin and Shoyu, Mega Evolve for the first time in a rematch with the Yellow Flash, and Roy catches the Shiny Lucario, which joins him with its Lucarionite. Deep in the Lost Mayo Maze, Count Hoisin and Shoyu say the boys must beat them before facing the Yellow Flash again. Sableye’s Throat Chop is blocked by Escavalier’s Iron Defense, Accelgor strikes from behind with Skitter Smack, Escavalier’s Protect stops Crocalor’s Flamethrower, and Accelgor lands a super effective Water Shuriken on Crocalor. Roy suggests teamwork, but an agitated Ult orders Shadow Sneak, Accelgor’s Double Team throws Sableye off, and Escavalier hits with Fell Stinger; only Crocalor’s Disarming Voice stops Accelgor’s finishing blow. Ult is baffled when Roy starts laughing — Roy and Crocalor simply get excited facing strong opponents — and, watching them, Ult understands why he has been struggling and regains his drive.

Crocalor traps Escavalier against a wall and defeats it with Flamethrower, and when Accelgor sneaks up behind Crocalor, Sableye’s Shadow Sneak from the same direction defeats it. Count Hoisin and Shoyu bring down the maze’s walls and leave, and Master Mayonnaise referees the rematch. This time Sableye and Crocalor dodge the Yellow Flash’s high-speed attacks but cannot strike back, and Crocalor is knocked down. Roy devises a plan for Ult, and trusting Sableye completely, Ult Mega Evolves it for the first time. Mega Sableye survives a powerful Flash Cannon, uses Confuse Ray because its heavy gem is too unwieldy for Power Gem, and follows with Throat Chop, but the Yellow Flash breaks free of confusion through sheer will and defeats it. As the Yellow Flash turns away, Crocalor gets up again, and Roy and Crocalor synchronise by singing together; Roy can read the Yellow Flash’s moves and feelings, and in his excitement his Mega Ring responds — the Yellow Flash Mega Evolves in sync with Roy, stunning everyone.

Roy has Crocalor’s Flamethrower meet Mega Lucario’s Flash Cannon, and Crocalor overpowers and defeats it. Master Mayonnaise congratulates both boys on mastering Mega Evolution, revealing that Count Hoisin and Shoyu are his allies and that the maze was built to help Trainers strengthen their bonds; even though Crocalor did not Mega Evolve, Lucario’s Mega Evolution through its bond with Roy proves that he has mastered it. Lucario, which came to the maze seeking strong opponents, bows respectfully to Crocalor and asks to join Roy’s team, and Roy catches it, gaining its Lucarionite. As Roy prepares to leave Kalos, Emma tells him that Ult has already set off to find his own way, and suggests that Cap follows Roy because he looks at the road ahead as Friede does. Admiring Friede, Roy changes his outfit to resemble him at a shop secretly run by Master Mayonnaise and leaves his cap with Emma. Further down the road, Roy and Ult meet again facing wild Pangoro and Pyroar, and both Mega Evolve. This is the first Horizons episode without Liko.

Major Events

• Episode: Mega Evolution, part 3. Roy and Ult beat Count Hoisin and Shoyu in a Multi Battle
• Ult Mega Evolves Sableye for the first time
• The Yellow Flash Mega Evolves in sync with Roy, the first Trainer to Mega Evolve a Pokémon he did not own, and Crocalor beats it
• Roy catches Lucario and gains its Lucarionite
• Roy changes into a Friede-style outfit
• Accelgor’s Water Shuriken is the move’s first use by a Pokémon other than Greninja
• The first Horizons episode without Liko

Captures and evolutions

• Lucario#0448 · Roy · the Shiny “Yellow Flash” of the Lost Mayo Maze, caught with its Lucarionite in the Kalos flashback

Trivia

• The screenplay is by Kureha Matsuzawa.
• This is a plot episode: it advances the Rising Volt Tacklers storyline.

Changes in the English Dub

• The third version of YUU shows Roy in his new jacket with Lucario

Part of our Pokémon Horizons: Rising Hope guide. Browse every season of the Pokémon anime.