Hassle in the Castle (Japanese: ズバットのやかた！きけんなめいろ！！, Hepburn: Zubat's Mansion! A Dangerous Maze!!) is the 8th episode of Pokémon: Johto League Champions.
Synopsis[]
Caught in a sudden thunderstorm, our heroes quickly seek shelter from the elements at an ominous looking castle on a nearby cliff. Although this seemingly vacant fortress is a little on the spooky side, Ash, Misty and Brock would rather be jumpy than soggy. That is, until they hear moaning coming from a nearby corridor! Follow our heroes through the pitfalls and mazes of this (haunted?) house on the hill![1]
Episode plot[]
As the heroes continue their journey, a storm approaches and begins to rain heavily. The heroes see they need to get indoors and Pikachu points at a mansion. The heroes knock on the door, but nobody answers. Pikachu pushes the door and opens, so they head inside. The heroes wander a bit and suddenly hear a man screaming. They go after him and open the door and see some people and some Pokémon. A woman approaches them and asks if they have an appointment, to which Brock flirts with her, telling she can call him whatever she wants. The woman is Dr. Anna, whom Brock tries to impress. They soon see a patient having a check-up and Brock realizes the Zubat that was floating around the patient was using Supersonic to check the patient via ultrasound.
Dr. Anna clarifies they use Pokémon for procedures; Machoke massages people, Spinarak makes bandages and Mareep relaxes the muscles via electricity. Dr. Anna tells the owner of this castle was her patient and when she moved away, she let Dr. Anna set up a clinic. Dr. Anna is about to get back to work, but Brock yells to her not to go, as they have a thing in common - he sends Zubat to prove they both have one. Brock sees they could work together for the good of the people, as a way to appreciate they stay indoors from the storm. Ash tells they might make a good team, but Misty hopes he meant the Zubat. Ash's stomach growls, as now they need to find some food. Team Rocket sneak into the castle and hear a strange sound. They turn back and see a giant shadow, but they realize it was Wobbuffet, so Jessie immediately calls him back. Meowth smells something. They find food and eat it, while Jessie (again) calls Wobbuffet back. They suddenly encounter the twerps, who enter the kitchen.
Brock admits to Dr. Anna he was going to be a Breeder, but after meeting her, he will use Pokémon for medical assistance. Team Rocket pass by him and Anna asks if they have an appointment, causing them to chant their motto. Pikachu goes to electrocute them, but they run through a hall. Anna, Brock and Zubat follow them, as Anna goes to warn them, but it is too late, as they fall down through the floor as a trap. Ash and Misty try to follow them, but the trap closes. Team Rocket are angry, as they are the ones who set up traps. Brock tells as long as Anna is here, he is fine. Anna turns the lights on. Team Rocket are leaving and Anna tries to warn them, but it is too late, as they bash into a wall. Anna tells this is a maze, but has a solution - her Zubat uses Supersonic, revealing on her computer a path out of the maze. Anna tells it is not the whole scan, so Brock's Zubat uses Supersonic, revealing the other part of the map.
Ash and Misty try to find a way in, so Anna's assistant points a location where there is another way in. Anna sees two ways, which are both dangerous. James is scared they can be trapped here for the rest of their lives. Meowth, however, advises to have a lunch break. Anna's assistant led them to the location, but it is overgrown, so Ash rallies the Pokémon to dig out. Anna analyzes the ways, but both are dangerous. Jessie runs out of patience and goes to pick a path, ignoring Brock's warnings. Wobbuffet comes out, pleasing Jessie as he wants to follow her. Jessie goes in, but triggers a trap, causing a wall to appear and hitting her in the head. Anna sees this caused the other way to become safe, while Jessie is annoyed Wobbuffet did not come first. Ash, Misty, Geodude, Pikachu and Anna's assistant dig out the exit, while Pineco and Togepi transport the rocks away.
Anna detects another obstacle, but does not see anything. Jessie and Wobbuffet run, as Jessie replies she knows no danger. She pushes Wobbuffet away, but nothing happens. Jessie sees there is no danger and runs, but triggers a trap, bashing her to the ground. Anna realizes that after triggering the trap the way becomes safe. Ash and Misty remove the rocks and see they are near to excavate the exit. Anna gasps, as she sees her and Brock's Zubat found a way out. Brock imagines he can prove they are as good team as their Zubat and would get married, with Ash, Misty and their Zubat having dresses and tuxedos and telling them they will have a honey moon. Team Rocket see the Zubat are skilled and Jessie tells this is the exact reason they will steal them. Anna sees the door and thanks the Zubat for leading them here, but Team Rocket steals them and goes to get out, but bash into a door. Misty, Ash and Anna's assistant push, but see they pushed as hard as they can. Pineco uses Self-Destruct and bombs the door, while the Zubat return to Brock and Anna.
Ash and Misty see Anna and Brock are all right. However, Pikachu gets captured by Team Rocket, so Ash yells to give back his Pikachu. Wobbuffet yells out, knocking the heroes down, so Team Rocket escape. James sends Weezing, who uses Smokescreen, but the Zubat gust the smoke away. Jessie sends Arbok, who goes to use Poison Sting. However, after being confused by Zubat's Supersonic, it randomly hits Team Rocket instead. For this, Brock's Zubat evolves into a Golbat. Arbok recovers from its confusion and uses Poison Sting, but Golbat uses Wing Attack to deflect it, then uses Supersonic, confusing both Arbok and Weezing, causing them to fall on Team Rocket, who loses Pikachu. Anna sees Golbat became much stronger, causing her computer to be turned off. After getting free, Pikachu turns around with an evil smile at Team Rocket, as he uses ThunderShock to blast them off.
At the castle, Anna heals Brock and compliments his Golbat's power. Brock hears it is too strong and thinks it is their love, but Anna tells it is Golbat, crushing his fantasy of getting married. Anna sees he trained Golbat well and tells he will make a fine Breeder, causing him to be depressed. The heroes wave goodbye to Anna and her assistant, as Ash and Misty carry a heartbroken Brock on their journey with a rainbow below them.
Debuts[]
Pokémon[]
Trivia[]
- Two of Dr. Anna's male patients were voiced by Eric Stuart and Jimmy Zoppi respectively.
- The "Who's that Pokémon?" is Persian.
- This is the first time a main character's Pokémon evolves during a battle against Team Rocket.
- The narrator's first words in the episode, "It's another bright, sunshine-y day," and last words, "And so, after a dark and stormy night," may be a reference to the Johnny Nash song "I Can See Clearly Now".
- In this episode, Team Rocket uses a variation of their motto. This motto also contains an innuendo of an inappropriate joke, as the replaced word rhymes with "itching" and means "complaining". The word that rhymes with "itching" is "bitching" which is inappropriate for a kid's show.
- This is the first episode to see one of Brock's Pokémon evolve onscreen.
Mistakes[]
- Jessie's hair has a gap in one scene.
- The scene where Misty asked Dr. Anna "Why do you work here instead of in a hospital, doctor?" has an error in the Dutch dub. In Dutch, Misty said "When that big storm came up, we forgot all about eating", a line Misty said in a later scene when Ash is getting hungry.
Gallery[]
References[]
- ^ (n.d.) . "Hassle in the Castle | Pokémon TV (pokemon.com)". From The Official Pokémon Website | Pokemon.com. Archived from the original on January 24, 2024.
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