The March of the Exeggutor Squad – Pokémon Season 1, Episode 43

Plot episodeCharmander evolves into Charmeleon

The March of the Exeggutor Squad is the 43rd episode of Pokémon: Indigo League, the first season of the Pokémon anime, and the 43rd episode of the English dub overall (Japanese episode 45, Bulbapedia code EP043). It first aired in Japan on 7 May 1998 and in the United States on 30 October 1998. It falls within the season’s The comeback, Charizard & the Egg stretch (EP39–EP51).

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

Synopsis

After a difficult journey with many challenges along the way our heroes are in luck, they’ve arrived in town just in time for the Carnival. Ash and Brock party on down and start dancing, Misty isn’t so forthcoming and goes off to have some fun with Pikachu, she overhears a magicians assistant giving the magician (who is begging her not to go) some abuse. She goes over to check if he’s ok and ends up getting hired by Melvin the Magician Magnificent to be his new assistant. Misty agrees to help him for one day, gets changed and heads to the stage… there aren’t many people watching but the ones that are get impatient quickly. Melvin’s performance goes rather wrong and the audience give him a final bout of abuse before throwing things at him and leaving, the Carnival owner then sacks Melvin. Melvin and Exeggcute look beaten and say that their dreams will never come true, before Ash gives him a peptalk and tells him to learn some new, better stuff, the gang promises to help Melvin but meanwhile Team Rocket are watching and plotting in the background.

Ash does his own Pokemon Magic show which is going well until Charmander, Bulbasaur and Squirtle start having a fight in his box of tricks. Shortly after Ash is trying to work out what Melvin can do with the Exeggcute, when they hypnotise him, giving Melvin an idea. Under hypnosis Melvin commands Ash into the middle of the forest and tells him to attack a group of Exeggutor. Melvin catches all of the Exeggutor that Ash’s Pokemon weaken. Brock and Misty work out that Ash is hypnotised and set out to look for him. Jessie and James appear and attempt to steal all the Exeggutor that Melvin just caught, distracting him with a few magic tricks of their own before actually attacking Melvin. With their master in danger Melvin’s Exeggcute evolves into Exeggutor and they along with all the other Exeggutor hynotise Team Rocket. With Ash and Team Rocket under hypnosis and Melvin tied up, the Exeggutor get out of control and start stampeding toward the carnival. Misty and Brock arrive shortly after and with Ash and Brock they head back to the carnival to try and stop the stampede before it’s too late. Unfortunately it is too late, the carnival is completely destroyed and the carnival owner tells everyone to move because he’s planted a time bomb in the wreckage of the carnival which will explode on the exeggutor when they come back. Ash attacks the Exeggutor with Charmanders fire, snapping some of them out of their confusion but Charmander can’t get all of them, so it’s up to Melvin to use his fire trick to stop the Exeggutor, Melvin manages a powerful raging fire magic attack despite being plagued by self doubt and earns newfound self belief. His own Exeggutor returns to him if a little chargrilled and the timebomb blows up in the background, with no Exeggutor hurt in the process. Just then Charmander evolves into Charmeleon!

Ash and friends bid farewell to Melvin who is now intent on following his dreams of performing in Las Vegas. The Exeggutor stampede continues, in a safer direction, except for Team Rocket who are stuck in the middle of it.

Major Events

• — Ash’s Charmander → Charmeleon (Melvin the magician). Debuts: Charmeleon, Exeggutor. First real-world city reference (Las Vegas/Broadway). All-Stars Vol. 9.

Pokémon making their anime debut

• Charmeleon#0005 · EP043

Captures and evolutions

• Charmander → Charmeleon#0005 · Ash
• Exeggcute → Exeggutor#0103 · Melvin

Trivia

• The screenplay is by Hideki Sonoda.
• This is a plot episode: it advances the Kanto storyline.

Changes in the English Dub

• Carnival signs → “World Carnival”, Miracle Mirror, Maggy’s Magic Show banners, Leaf Forest sign → English
• The Awa-odori dance becomes a party
• Dub ending: the Kanto Pokérap (Wednesday segment)

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