The Grass Menagerie! (Japanese: ハクタイジム!VSナタネ!!, Hepburn: Eterna Gym! VS Gardenia!!) is the 37th episode of Pocket Monsters: Diamond and Pearl, and Pokémon: Diamond and Pearl of Pokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl.
Synopsis[]
The time has come for Ash's Eterna Gym Battle with Gym Leader Gardenia, who's a Grass-type Pokémon expert. The battle will be 3-on-3, starting with Ash's Turtwig against Gardenia's Cherubi. The sun is out and that means Cherubi's Chlorophyll ability gives it a speed boost, so before long Ash recalls Turtwig and swaps in Staravia. Meanwhile, Team Rocket is digging into the Eterna Gym in hopes of stealing Pokémon, but they end up hitting a network of underground tunnels instead. There they meet an Underground explorer who convinces them to help him dig for sphere and other buried treasures—too bad he doesn't plan on sharing the loot!
Back on the surface, it's Ash's turn to use the weather to his advantage. He has Staravia dive at Cherubi, using the glare of the sun as a distraction, and Staravia wins this round. Next up is Gardenia's Turtwig: Ash has a strategy to neutralize her Turtwig's speed, but Turtwig still manages to knock Staravia out with Leech Seed.
Now it's Ash's Turtwig against Gardenia's Turtwig! These Pokémon have faced each other before and neither one wants to lose. Ash's Turtwig wins this round, but it's been weakened by a Leech Seed from Gardenia's Turtwig. Gardenia's Roserade is then able to defeat Ash's Turtwig with ease, but that just means Ash's Aipom is ready to go next! More of Ash's quick strategizing wins the final round, and now he's earned his Forest Badge![1]
Episode plot[]
The heroes came to the Eterna City Gym. The Gym's notability is the amount of grass and trees. Gardenia appears and accepts Ash's challenge. Team Rocket already plans to steal the Pokémon by digging. Gardenia sends her first Pokémon, Cherubi and Ash his Turtwig. Turtwig goes to Tackle, but misses and tries with Razor Leaf, though Cherubi evades the attacks, as the sun is really bright. Cherubi fires a Solar Beam, but Turtwig evades and uses Razor Leaf, but Cherubi's speed allows it to fire a Solar Beam and hit Turtwig, negating its attack. Cherubi uses Magical Leaf, but Ash calls Turtwig back. Gardenia tells him it was a wise choice to make.
Team Rocket is digging a tunnel, but they dug into a cave. A miner approaches them, thinking they are also miners. He tells he is digging for treasure - some gems. Ash sends Staravia to battle. Cherubi fires a Solar Beam, though Staravia dodges and retaliates with Wing Attack. Cherubi dodges and goes to fire another Solar Beam, but the clouds cover the sun and it has to wait a while. Cherubi uses Magical Leaf, so Staravia goes up and the leaves dissolve. On Ash's order, Staravia goes slowly down, then charges with Wing Attack. Cherubi goes to dodge, but the sun is too bright to see Staravia and gets hit. With Staravia's Quick Attack and Aerial Ace, Cherubi is defeated.
Gardenia calls Cherubi back, then sends Turtwig. Ash knows Staravia lost to it, but has a different strategy. Staravia uses Wing Attack, but Turtwig swiftly dodges. Staravia uses Wing Attack several times, but misses all. Suddenly, Turtwig got stuck between trees, allowing Staravia to have a perfect hit with Aerial Ace. Staravia uses Wing Attack, but gets stopped by Turtwig's Leech Seed. Staravia gets defeated by getting hit by Turtwig's Tackle. Ash sends his Turtwig. Team Rocket, meanwhile, still digs. They came on a source and dig more, while the miner collects the gems.
Ash's Turtwig starts with Tackle, but misses. Gardenia's Turtwig uses Leaf Storm, but Ash's climbs a tree and jumps away, dodging the attack, then runs around Gardenia's. Ash's Turtwig goes to Bite, but gets stopped by Leech Seed from Gardenia's. Ash's Turtwig uses Synthesis and Gardenia's goes to stop it with Leaf Storm, but Ash's. jumps to dodge and heals itself completely. Ash's Turtwig retaliates with Razor Leaf and hits Gardenia's. The Turtwig hit themselves with Tackle. The Turtwig are pushed away, but in the end, Gardenia's Turtwig is defeated.
Team Rocket gets lunch as a reward for the digging. The miner goes away with the gems, but Team Rocket does not care, as they have got their stomachs full. Gardenia sends her last Pokémon, Roserade. Turtwig charges with Tackle, but trips over a trap made by Roserade, its Grass Knot. Roserade uses Weather Ball and defeats Turtwig. Brock tells Dawn Weather Ball changes by the weather - since it is sunny, it is a Fire-type. Ash sends his last Pokémon, Aipom. After doing a dance, Aipom uses Double Team and charges, but the illusions disappear after they get tripped by Roserade's Grass Knot, though the real Aipom jumps over it and hits Roserade with Focus Punch.
Roserade uses Magical Leaf, but Aipom jumps over the trees to evade. However, Roserade's vines grab Aipom and send her to the ground. With Roserade's Flash, Aipom gets blinded and Roserade moves away to dodge Aipom's Focus Punch. Roserade uses Magical Leaf to hit Aipom. Ash calms her down and tells her to hear the move. Aipom's Focus Punch sends the Weather Ball back to Roserade, making a great counter-attack. Roserade uses Magical Leaf, which gets stopped by Aipom's Swift. The stars spin around Roserade and Aipom's Focus Punch allows the stars to hit Roserade and attack it. With another Focus Punch, Roserade is defeated.
Gardenia is impressed by Ash's team and gives him the Forest Badge. Ash, victorious, is very pleased about that.
Debuts[]
Items[]
Trivia[]
- The title of the episode is a reference to the play, "The Glass Menagerie".
- During the Gym battle between Gardenia and Ash, the referee who serves as the judge of the battle has a striking resemblance to Kumiko "Yankumi" Yamagutchi, the main protagonist of the manga, anime and live-action series, Gokusen. Interestingly, the referee wears the same uniform as Kumiko's but is light purple instead of red.
Mistakes[]
- Ash's Turtwig was affected by Leech Seed, even though it is a Grass-type.
Gallery[]
References[]
- ^ (n.d.) . "The Grass Menagerie! | Pokémon TV (pokemon.com)". From The Official Pokémon Website | Pokemon.com. Archived from the original on January 30, 2024.