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| Season | Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon – Ultra Adventures (Season 21) · Families & friends arc (SM070–SM072) |
| Episode | Season 21, episode 26 · English episode 1004 · Japanese episode 1010 · Bulbapedia code SM070 |
| English title | The Young Flame Strikes Back! |
| Japanese title | 牧場を守れ！逆襲の蒼き炎！！ Bokujō o Mamore! Gyakushū no Aoki Honō!! — “Protect the Ranch! The Blue Flame’s Counterattack!!” |
| First aired (Japan) | 19 April 2018 · TV Tokyo |
| First aired (US) | 15 September 2018 · Disney XD |
| Screenplay | Akemi Omode |
| Opening / ending (Japan) | Mirai Konekushon (Future Connection) – ЯeaL · Jarī Bōi Jarī Gāru (Twerp, Twerpette) – Taiiku Okazaki |
| English opening | Under the Alolan Moon – Haven Paschall and Ben Dixon |
| Who’s That Pokémon? | Electivire (US) |
| Previous episode | Rise and Shine, Starship! (SM069) |
| Next episode | Dewpider Ascending! (SM071) |
Filler / stand-alone episodeMarowak’s Inferno OverdriveViren
The Young Flame Strikes Back! is the 26th episode of Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon – Ultra Adventures, the twenty-first season of the Pokémon anime, and the 1004th episode of the English dub overall (Japanese episode 1010, Bulbapedia code SM070). It first aired in Japan on 19 April 2018 and in the United States on 15 September 2018. It falls within the season’s Families & friends stretch (EP70–EP72).
Synopsis
When the resort developer Viren tries to force Kiawe’s family off Paniola Ranch, Kiawe’s Marowak finally masters Inferno Overdrive to defeat Viren’s Electivire and save the farm. During a break from chores, Kiawe’s sister Mimo reports that Marowak is causing trouble again: it gets bowled over by Tauros and ends up stuck in Turtonator’s shell. Then a gold car speeds down the road, nearly hitting some Mudbray, and Viren, president of Rainbow Happy Resorts, steps out with his Electivire. He offers to buy the family’s land for a resort, but Kiawe’s parents, Sima and Rango, refuse, and Viren leaves after the Mudbray splatter his car with mud. Soon afterwards, Kiawe finds the Miltank frantic beside a dry riverbed: Viren’s company has bought the upstream water rights and built a dam. At school the next day, Kiawe sulks until Ash gets him to explain.
Sophocles finds that Viren’s company has grown quickly through ruthless methods, and Ash, Sophocles, Mallow, Lana and Lillie sail to the ranch to help. A neighbour is lending water, so the crisis has eased, and the friends pitch in with chores in exchange for homemade ice cream. Then Kiawe catches two of Viren’s men using a Boldore and a Roggenrola to scare the Miltank through a broken fence, and Viren himself arrives. In the battle, Marowak’s overeager Bonemerang throws off Turtonator’s Flamethrower, and Marowak charges straight into Electivire’s Thunder Punch. When Viren orders a Thunder at Ash and Mimo, Turtonator takes the hit and faints, Kiawe’s Inferno Overdrive fails to charge, and a second Thunder Punch knocks Marowak out. Ash and the others step in, and Viren leaves, saying the contract will be signed soon.
That night, while Rango delivers a defiant speech, Kiawe finds Marowak training alone. He admits that he doubted Marowak during the battle and promises, facing Wela Volcano, to train with it; Rango asks Ash to let them work together alone. When Viren returns, Kiawe sets the terms—if Viren loses, he drops his claim—and battles him again. Electivire’s Thunder Punch briefly paralyses Marowak’s leg and Rain Dance weakens its fire, but Marowak answers with Iron Head, Flare Blitz and Shadow Bone, and when Kiawe strikes his pose, Marowak’s green-flamed Inferno Overdrive blasts Electivire away. Viren breaks his word and sends in digger trucks, but Rotom has recorded everything, and Officer Jenny, the Melemele Jenny’s older sister, arrests him for forgery, trespassing and destruction. The river flows again, and the celebration ends with Marowak sent flying by a Tauros herd.
Major Events
- Paniola Ranch. Viren of Rainbow Happy Resorts dams Paniola Ranch’s river
- Kiawe’s Marowak performs Inferno Overdrive and beats Electivire
- Akala’s Officer Jenny arrests Viren
- Kiawe’s sister Mimo and parents appear
- The first Granbull and Electivire since the Diamond and Pearl series
- Debuts of Viren and his henchmen
Trivia
- The English title plays on “<em>The Empire Strikes Back</em> and <em>Mewtwo Strikes Back</em>, for Kiawe’s Marowak”.
- The screenplay is by Akemi Omode.
- This is a stand-alone episode: it can be skipped without losing the thread of the Alola story.
Changes in the English Dub
- The Japanese caption naming Inferno Overdrive is erased
- The X & Y wild battle theme
Part of our Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon – Ultra Adventures guide. Browse every season of the Pokémon anime.