IL009: The School of Hard Knocks

The School of Hard Knocks is the ninth episode of the Pokémon anime series, except in the United States, after Battle Aboard the St. Anne was broadcast as the first episode. The episode was first broadcast in Japan on May 27, 1997 and in the United States on September 18, 1998. The episode follows Ash Ketchum, Misty, Brock and Pikachu lost in a foggy forest and Ash finds a student being tortured by his fellow classmates, and he soons battles the top student to teach her a lesson.

Episode plot
At the start of the episode, Ash and Misty were fighting about her bike again. In an attempt to get them to stop fighting, Brock pulled out of his backpack a table, some chairs, and everything you need to make a cup of tea. Brock sent Ash to collect some firewood.

When Ash and Pikachu were looking for firewood in a forest, they come across a group of boys wearing suits. One boy was running on a treadmill while the others quizzed him about various Pokemon. The boy misses a question and the other boys make fun of him. Ash interrupts and defends the boy. The boys say that they are students at the Pokemon Technical Institute, which is a boarding school that teaches Pokemon trainers. The group leaves, saying that they don't want to fight Ash. While Brock started reading the school's brochure, Pikachu started the treadmill and began to run on it. Brock reads that the school trains students, that they don't have to collect badges, and graduates are automatically entered into the Pokemon League. The school has very high fees, allowing only rich children go there. Brock inadvertently leans on the treadmill, making it speed up and causing Pikachu to go flying off. Ash wanted to know where the school was and the boy pointed right in front of them. The fog cleared and revealed they were right near Pokemon Tech all along.

The boy that was running on the treadmill, Joe, defended his "friends" stating they were trying to help him, he said he sometimes pretends to not know the question so he does not have to do the tougher questions. When Misty asked what the teachers said Joe replied "They don't even know about it, or if they do they pretend not to." Ash became upset at this "tutoring" system and demanded to speak to the student in charge. The head of the class was an attractive girl, causing Brock and Ash drool over her picture infuriating Misty. Ash then called Misty " someone who treats you bad and looks even worse" making Misty even more angry.

Jessie and James, who are following Ash, reveal that they were students at Pokemon Tech, but flunked out. Being led there by Ash was bringing back bad memories for the both of them. Meowth was trying to cheer them up.

Mean while, Joe led Ash, Misty, and Brock to the head student's, Giselle, study area. Joe says that its a person's overall skill as trainer, not just one battle that determines a person's success at Pokemon Tech. He also says that even though he is the weakest student in his class, he is still better than someone with two badges. Misty got mad and Joe said that he's familiar with her gym and always beats the pokemon she uses most on the battle simulator. Misty challenged Joe to a real battle and Joe told her, "You'll be sorry."

Misty brought out her Starmie and Joe brought out his Weepinbell, a pokemon that has a type advantage over Misty's pokemon. Still, Starmie beat Weepinbell. Giselle walked in and made fun of Joe for losing and called him an embrassment to the school. Brock and Ash swooned over Giselle, who was very pretty. Even James, who was hiding in a tree with Jessie, liked her. Giselle continued to torment Joe and threatned to make sure that the other students couldn't help him anymore.

Misty challgened her saying that a true friend wouldn't let down a friend in need and that Giselle's beauty is only skin deep. Giselle laughs and calls Misty jealous. She summons her Graveler to battle Misty. Misty sends out her Starmie to battle Graveler. Despite having the type advantage, Misty lost.

Giselle said that a pokemon is only as good as its trainer and its level is high. Ash interupts her saying that trainers need to be friends with their pokemon. Ash says that he has two badges and Giselle laughs and calls him a beginner. When he says that he has been on his journey for two months, Giselle is suprised that he hasn't trained his Pikachu to go into its Pokeball yet.

Ash says that his three pokemon are his friends and Giselle is suprised that he only has three, beginners usually have six. She says that him winning two badges was only luck. She is also surprised that Ash chose Pikachu as his first pokemon because they are known to be hard to train. Pikachu and Ash are furious and demand to battle her. Giselle summoned her Cubone to battle Ash and Ash sent out Pikachu. Ash told Pikachu to use Thunder Bolt, but Cubone deflected it. Giselle told Cubone to use Leer but, Pikachu kept on making funny faces at Cubone. Cubone and Pikachu got into a staring contest until Giselle said to use Bone Club which hit Pikachu in the head. She then said to use Bonemerang and that knocked Pikachu out cold. When Cubone uses Bonemerang again, Pikachu gets up and jumps up and twisits the skull on Cubone's head backwards so Cubone couldn't see anymore. The Bonemerang attack came back and hit Cubone, defeating him. Giselle was stunned that she had lost and Pikachu won without using electricity.

Team Rocket then appeared and recited their motto. The students recognized them as the people that flunked out and attacked them as a mob. Team Rocket then ran off.

Joe decides to go home and start his jouney over again and he asks Giselle for her picture she says that she has one of him because they are friends now. Maybe they will meet one day in the Pokemon League.

Ash asks Misty why they aren't friends like that. Misty says its because Joe doesn't owe Giselle a bike!

Debuts
Human Characters Pokemon Characters
 * Joe
 * Various Pokemon Tech Students
 * Giselle
 * Pidgeot (Fantasy)
 * Weepinbell (Joe's)
 * Graveler (Giselle's)
 * Cubone (Giselle's)

Trivia

 * This is the first episode where Eric Stuart voices James until season 9.
 * This is also the first and last episode where Rachael Lillis is the voice of Pikachu.
 * When Joe shows the gang a simulation battle, its design is similar to that of a Generation I battle.
 * Joe explains about Pidgey's moveset and evolutionary stages of generation I.
 * Roxanne Beck (Giselle) worked with Rachael Lillis in the anime "Revolutionary Girl Utena" as Utena's BFF Wakaba Shinohara.

Quotes

 * Misty: "I'm not letting you out of my sight Ash Ketchum until you pay for my broken bike."

Ash: "My bike, my bike, that's all I ever hear from you!"

Misty: "Right. And my name may be Misty, but I'm perfectly clear about what you owe me and youre not gonna get away without paying."

Brock: "Maybe if you two had spent less time arguing and paid more attention to where we're going we'd already be in Vermilion City by now. Come on, we're already late. We gotta start the show."

Pikachu: "Chu."
 * "I think we all need a little break. Why don't I just throw a little something together. Aha. There's nothing as satisfying as a cup of 100% Cerulean Coffee. You kids are too young for this stuff, but it's really quite good. How 'bout some prune juice?"

~Brock setting up the table.
 * "I love french things, they're so romantic aren't they?"

~Misty about Brock's French Crepes.
 * "Listen, just because its foggy out here dosen't mean your brain has to be in a fog."

~Green-haired Pokemon Tech Student ~Ash about Pokemon Tech.
 * "A Pokemon School in the middle of nowhere?"
 * "Oh well. I guess tomorrow they'll make me into a snowman again."

~Joe about Snow Competition Secrets class.
 * "But they help me learn that Pidgey evolves to Pidgeotto at level 18. It learns Whirlwind at level 21, Wing Attack at level 31 and that as its level rises it learns various tricks. After evolving to Pidgeot it can fly at 1200 metres at speeds of up to Mach 2."

~Joe about Pidgey ~Joe about Pokemon Tech Qualifications.
 * "Beginners have the same qualifications as someone with two badges. The Intermediate class has the qualifications of four and advanced students have the same as six. If you graduate you can enter the pokemon league without traveling around to collect the badges."
 * Misty: "Hey! If she's making your lives so miserable how come you carrying her picture around?"

Joe: "I hate the way she treats us, but I like the way she looks."

Ash: "Yeah and not like some other girls who treat you bad and look even worse."

Misty: "WHILE YOU TWO ARE SLOBBERING OVER THAT DOPEY PICTURE I'M GONNA FIND THIS LITTLE WITCH AND STRAIGHTEN HER OUT!" Jessie: "That place brings back memories James."

James: "It certainly does Jessie, and all of them are awful."

Meowth: "Tell me your tale of failure again."

Jesse: "We studied for the big test."

James: "So sure we would beat all the rest."

Meowth: "And here's the part I like the best."

Jessie: "We frolliced that night, for our future seemed bright."

James: "But things weren't right."

Jessie and James: "We got the lowest scores in the history of the school."
 * "These two are worse off than I thought. I liked it better when they were nasty."

~Meowth about Jesse and James.
 * Ash (About Giselle): "She's real pretty isn't she?"

Brock: "Yeah, she looks just like a movie star."

Misty: "They like stars do they, I'll show them lots of stars."

Links
Watch this and other episodes: Pokemon Episode 9: The School of Hard Knocks