IL056: The Ultimate Test

The Ultimate Test is the 56th episode of the Indigo League season.

Episode Plot
Whilst Ash and the others eat with Todd Snap from the previous episode, Misty asks Ash whether he'll be getting a new Gym Badge any time soon. This causes Ash to choke on his food. After he recovers, he proclaims that he uses skill to win his battles. Misty asks him how much skill is required to defeat Team Rocket, to which Ash challenges her to a battle. However Todd interrupts the argument, informing him about the Pokémon League Admission Exam.

At the admission building, the desk clerk informs Ash that all he needs to do is pass a written and practical exam in order to receive a badge qualifying them for the Pokémon League. After Ash receives his testing number "7", Jessie comments from afar that she wanted number 7. Jessie averts her eyes when Ash notices her watching him, but shrugs it off. The attendant informs Ash that he is not permitted to use his own Pokémon during the exam, and reluctantly hands them over. When Brock notices Nurse Joy's presence, she reveals she is attending the exam because she doesn't have the time to go around travelling to the Gyms.

When James enters the building, he quickly avoids Ash and heads to the counter. He encounters Jessie and gets into an argument with her. The two explain their various reasons for attending the examination, as Meowth appears before them. He states that he saw through their ruses to leave him behind, scratching them across the face. When the first part of the exam begins, Ash and Jessie complete it with no trouble at all, whilst James is awed at her prowess. However it is revealed that Jessie is guessing the questions by answering "True" for all of them.

During the second part of the exam, the participants are pitted in a recognition test. Ash guesses the first silhouette to be a Voltorb, whereas James mistakenly puts it down as a Pokéball and Jessie states it to be a Electrode. However, all three are wrong, as it turns out to be a Jigglypuff from above. After a series of misleading questions presented in a similar manner, Jessie speaks out against them. In an outburst, Jessie leaves the exam. Jessie wakes up the sleeping Meowth, telling him that he will assist in her taking revenge.

As the scoreboards are displayed, it is revealed that Nurse Joy got the highest score, whilst Ash got one of the lowest scores alongside James. During the final part of the exam, Nurse Joy faces off against her examiner. Meanwhile, Ash and James choose random sets of three Pokémon, which they are unable to find out beforehand. As both of them choose their belts, James faces off against his examiner. He releases a Pikachu, which is unable to combat the examiner's Graveler due to type differences.

After losing a point, James summons a Charizard and Ivysaur but is expelled after breaking the rules. When it is Ash's turn to face the examiner, he is cheered on by Brock, Snap and Misty. The examiner summons a Flareon, to which Ash releases his first Pokémon, which turns out to be a Weezing. Ash manages to defeat the Flareon by using Smokescreen in conjunction with Tackle. Whilst Team Rocket takes note of Ash's strategies, the examiner releases a Jolteon. Ash in turn releases an Arbok, but is unable to figure out its moveset.

In the nick of time Ash has it use Glare on the Jolteon, stopping it in its tracks. As Ash follows through with Wrap, Arbok is jabbed by the pointy spikes of Jolteon's fur. Before Ash can react Jolteon blasts Arbok with Thunder, incapacitating it. He releases his final Pokémon, which turns out to be a Meowth. The examiner follows suit, releasing a Vaporeon, which manages to freeze Meowth. Team Rocket's Meowth scratches Ash on the face, before freeing the frozen Meowth. As the examiner attempts to capture Team Rocket's Meowth, Jessie and James intervene with their rented Pokémon.

As Team Rocket recite their motto and remove their disguises, they order the rented Pokémon to attack the examiner. However, he tells them to face Team Rocket, which they comply. As Team Rocket are attacked by the rented Pokémon, Ash finishes them off by using the rented Weezing's Explosion. After they blast off, the examiner apologises for the circumstances surrounding the exam and that they will have to start again. Ash refuses, stating that he prefers to get badges the proper way. After Ash and the others say goodbye to the examiner, Snap emerges with Team Rocket's Meowth, who was injured in the explosion.

The examiner then states that he has finally captured his talking Meowth, as Jessie and James are stuck with the rented Meowth.

Debuts

 * Pokémon League Admission Examinator

Major Events

 * Pokémon League Admission Exam

Trivia

 * Although Ash has seen Jessie battle with her Arbok on several occasions, he was unable to remember Arbok's moveset.This is also the case with the Weezing Ash uses.
 * The concept of using two Pokémon at once during a battle was illegal until Generation III in the games and OI027: Pokémon Double Trouble.
 * The "Who's that Pokémon?" in this episode is Vulpix.
 * When looking at the other people who arrived to the exam you see a couch with three people on it. The third person you see along with the girls head that's right next to him have animations that are out of sync with the rest of the clip, this makes half there heads clip a little.

Quotes

 * "Hey get lost you old bat!" ~ James shooing Jessie
 * "OLD BAT?! "~ Jessie grabs James by the collar
 * " Hey what are you?! Unhand me you! Please let me go come on!" ~James being dragged outside the building by Jessie
 * "So an old bat am I?" Jessie to James removing her glasses.
 * "Hah! I can't sense it all! I'm through with it!" Jessie after failing her test
 * "GET OUT!" ~ Pokemon examiner to Jessie
 * "I can't wait to go!" ~Jessie storming out of the room
 * "But Jessie!" ~James after Jessie left
 * "Dear! What a shame!" ~Nurse Joy
 * "That girl's attitude look the same familiar to me." ~Ash referring to Jessie
 * "Can't you ask me one question I know the answer to?" ~Jessie, as she fails her test.
 * "All right, shoot away. I want 8 x 10 glossies, and wallet sizes too." ~Brock, telling Todd to take pictures of Nurse Joy.
 * "I've been destroyed by Pikachu's attacks so many times I know them all by heart!" ~James, using a Pikachu in his battling test.
 * "Don't think of it as failing, think of it as not suceeding!" ~Meowth, comforting Jessie after James fails his battling exam.