Pros and Con Artists – Pokémon Season 7, Episode 10

Plot episodeArrival in FallarborDrew beats Ash’s Taillow

Pros and Con Artists is the 10th episode of Pokémon: Advanced Challenge, the seventh season of the Pokémon anime, and the 323rd episode of the English dub overall (Japanese episode 326, Bulbapedia code AG050). It first aired in Japan on 6 November 2003 and in the United States on 30 October 2004. It falls within the season’s The Fallarbor Contest: May’s first Ribbon stretch (EP50–EP51).

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

Synopsis

Ash and the gang finally make it to Fallarbor Town!

Inside the contest hall, Brock is ogling all the coordinators. May starts getting nervous at all the competition when she sees a Medicham floating in mid-air. The Medicham starts using Psychic to make all kinds of stuff levitate, including Max’s glasses, Ash’s hat, and Pikachu. The Medicham’s trainer apologizes to everyone and Brock starts flirting with her. May compliments the trainer, and the trainer hits her in the face, sending May flying backwards about 10 feet. They all introduce themselves and have lunch. Ash asks the trainer, Grace, if she’s ever won any contests. She says she has and shows off her 3 ribbons. Grace tells May all kinds of stuff about winning contests, making May really nervous about the contest. Grace tells her not to worry about it and she offers to show May Medicham’s attacks.

Medicham starts with Ice Punch, then combines it with Psychic to make a combination. May tries it with her Beautifly by using Silver Wind and a bunch of moves. May tries Tackle, Gust, and String Shot, but Beautifly ends up tangling itself in string. Drew shows up and starts criticizing May about her indecisiveness and she tells him to go away. He remarks about her not winning any ribbons and May asks how many Drew has. Drew has three, making May even more nervous about the contest.

Jessie and James from Team Rocket are hiding behind something and they ask some guy if they want to start winning contests. They tell him about their secret product and all the things this guy could have if they bought it. They lead him to an alley with Meowth running a PokeBlock Shop. Meowth starts telling the trainer about certain qualities the trainer has to have, including one that Meowth claims the judges don’t want him to know about. Meowth then reveals his PokeBlocks to the trainer. While trying to tell the trainer about the PokeBlocks, Jessie and James have new disguises. Meowth says they’re other satisfied customers and he feeds Wobuffet a PokeBlock. Wobuffet has a detective costume to look cool. Meowth sells a box of his PokeBlocks. The PokeBlocks are just regular PokeBlocks painted either Gold or Silver.

Ash asks Max where May is. Max tells him that May’s practicing. Ash says he hasn’t seen Brock either and Max points him out. Brock’s flirting with other trainers. Ash sees Drew and Drew says he’s also competing in the contest. Drew challenges Ash to a battle.

Ash chooses Taillow and leads with Quick Attack to hit Drew’s Roselia. Roselia counters with Magical Leaf. Taillow dodges, and Roselia uses Petal Dance, Taillow manages to dodge and Taillow tries for a Peck attack. Roselia uses Stun Spore and Taillow gets hit. Roselia finishes with Solar Beam. May, watching from some bushes, can’t believe Ash lost. Drew explains why Ash lost, and his explanation ties into what he told May earlier that day. If the trainer is confused, the Pokemon will be too.

Team Rocket has somehow made their scam work and they’re selling dozens of boxes of PokeBlocks. May happens by the stand of PokeBlocks and she checks it out. She wonders if it will help her Beautifly. Grace also happens by the stand and she is not happy about what Team Rocket is doing. Grace asks what berries were used for making the PokeBlocks and they’re not prepared for it. She explains to everyone that not knowing what’s in the PokeBlock isn’t good. Medicham uses Psychic to lift the disguises off Team Rocket, and they take to the skies in their balloon. They do their mantra and take some Pokemon, including Beautifly and Medicham. Then they take off. Medicham uses Psychic to free all the Pokemon. Beautifly uses String Shot and James sends out Cacnea to break the string. Jessie chooses Seviper and uses Poison Tail. Medicham uses High Jump Kick. Beautifly uses Tackle and Medicham sends Team Rocket blasting off again with Ice Punch.

Grace, Drew and May have entered the contest, but she’s looking more confident than she was earlier.

Major Events

• Arrival in Fallarbor Town
• Grace (three Ribbons) teaches May about combinations
• Drew beats Ash’s Taillow
• Team Rocket’s fake gold and silver Pokéblocks are exposed
• Grace and Medicham debut

Pokémon making their anime debut

• Medicham#0308 · AG050

Trivia

• The English title plays on "pros and cons", and Team Rocket’s Pokéblock con.
• The screenplay is by Aya Matsui.
• This is a plot episode: it advances the Hoenn storyline.

Changes in the English Dub

• Wine glasses redrawn as plain cylindrical glasses
• Wobbuffet’s pipe erased (Kids’ WB airings)
• Meowth’s “low-key” and “sexy” Pokéblocks become “coolness” and “charis-magnetism”, with “enlarged lips” as a side effect
• Ash’s line about heading to Lavaridge dropped
• Pokémon Trainer’s Choice (dub only, in place of Who’s That Pokémon?): which Pokémon is best against Magneton? Answer: Geodude
• The Contest Hall theme is never heard in the dub

Part of our Pokémon: Advanced Challenge guide. Browse every season of the Pokémon anime.