Primeape Goes Bananas – Pokémon Season 1, Episode 25

Plot episodeAsh catches Primeape

Primeape Goes Bananas is the 25th episode of Pokémon: Indigo League, the first season of the Pokémon anime, and the 25th episode of the English dub overall (Japanese episode 25, Bulbapedia code EP025). It first aired in Japan on 16 September 1997 and in the United States on 9 October 1998. It falls within the season’s Ghosts, Psychics & the Celadon fire stretch (EP20–EP27).

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

Synopsis

While on the route to Celadon City Ash and his friends encounter a rather mischevious Mankey. This Mankey starts chasing Ash and then steals his cap, Ash tries his best to retrieve it but to no avail. Turns out Ash had to send in some serious tokens to win that official Pokémon League cap. Team Rocket catch up to the group and try to steal Pikachu, when they encounter Mankey, James kicks it away and while they are doing their Team Rocket intro a very angry Mankey evolves into Primeape behind them.

The newly evolved Primeape has not forgotten what James did to it and stomps around angrily, Team Rocket choose to ignore it and continue trying to steal Pikachu. At this point Primeape launches Jessie into a distant rock head first, Jessie and James turn their Pokemon on Primeape and a commotion ensues. Ash and the gang use this as an oppurtunity to try and run away when Pikachu spots Ash’s cap and tries to grab it, Primeape beats him there and puts the cap back on. Pikachu hits him with a powerful thundershock which makes him even angrier. Brock theorises that Primeape just wants a bit of attention and thats why he stole the cap, Brock goes over to befriend him and Primeape disproves the theory by beating him up and throwing him into the distance.

Primeape begins it’s thrash attack and chases Ash, Misty and Pikachu relentlessly. Team Rocket also give chase, Misty and Ash split up to try and lose Primeape and it continues after Ash and Pikachu. Ash and Pikachu, along with Team Rocket fall into a ditch dug by TR themselves, after Pikachu electrocutes everyone including Ash, Primeape jumps into the hole with them all. Ash remembers advice Professor Oak gave him about not being able to become a Pokémon master without more Pokémon. Ash challenges Primeape, first hitting him with a water gun attack from Squirtle, then a razor leaf from Bulbasaur followed by a flamethrower from Charmander. Primeape starts attacking Charmander badly and Charmander learns rage, one of it’s most powerful attacks, Charmander then uses rage on Primeape, but not before Pikachu runs in and saves Ash’s cap. Ash then captures a weakened Primeape!

Team Rocket rear their heads from their hole and ask where Primeape is, Ash send Primeape into the hole with them and he gives them a good thrashing, shortly before giving Ash a black eye. Over the ridge Pikachu spots Celadon City in the distance!

Major Events

• — Ash catches Primeape (after Mankey evolves with his hat)
• Charmander learns Rage
• Gary has five badges. Debuts: Primeape, Poliwag, Poliwhirl, Bellsprout
• Charizard (flashback). Oak’s first senryū
• “jelly doughnuts”. First “twerp”.

Pokémon making their anime debut

• Charizard#0006 · EP025
• Primeape#0057 · EP025
• Poliwag#0060 · EP025
• Poliwhirl#0061 · EP025
• Bellsprout#0069 · EP025

Captures and evolutions

• Primeape#0057 · Ash
• Mankey → Primeape#0057 · then caught by Ash

Trivia

• The English title plays on the film *Herbie Goes Bananas* (1980).
• The screenplay is by Atsuhiro Tomioka.
• This is a plot episode: it advances the Kanto storyline.

Changes in the English Dub

• 寿 erased from Oak’s senryū
• Rice balls → jelly doughnuts
• Brock’s rice balls become the famous jelly-filled doughnuts
• Yōkan becomes cake
• Ash is called “twerp” for the first time
• Ash’s cap came from a postcard campaign with one million entries in the dub (1,000 in Japan)
• Dub ending: the Kanto Pokérap (Friday segment)

Part of our Pokémon: Indigo League guide. Browse every season of the Pokémon anime.