#hz097

First two eps, Kanto. Then it kinda moves towards Johto, and now we going back to Paldea.

Now I know I can trust the region Pokémon appearances lol. Because HZ096 addressed it very clearly. I wanted a clear Indicator, it's a me-issue so let me be lol.

Anywaaaayy, HZ096 was veeeeery good, also fully showcased Uruto having issues with ALL girls. So it's not a crush on Liko. He just... struggles around girls.

Aaaalsooo.... he has a dusk ball. And comments about wanting someone to gain his trust as strongest trainer. HMMMMMMMMMMM.

Uruto really feels like a fun character in a sense of "shows himself as almighty and toughie and maybe superiority complex, but deep inside is a sweet kind boy".

Seriously. Rekkuuza is shown in this ep, Uruto has the chance to catch it... but he doesn't. Because I think deep down he respects that Rekkuuza needs to rest. He pretends it to be about strength, but I can tell it's a facade to show up as wanting to be strong and current Rekkuuza is not it.

Man. Really good episodes so far and I'm excited for Dot episode, and seeing Murdock again! And I'm so happy to see Dot is in touch with Murdock. Really sweet.

Gotta say, love how as of late the crew's non-starter Pokémon have been getting their time to shine. First Hattrem and now Tinkatuff. And Liko and Dot actually used Terastal on them and we have their Tera Types now!

Quick summary of the episode.

Thanks to Nanjamo’s information, Dot investigates a series of pranks that have been played on Pokemon in Hakko City. She finds out the culprit, a trainer with a Maggyo, and eventually battles him. At the end of the episode, Dot goes to Circle Town to meet up with Liko and Roy. 

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The episode was mostly battle-heavy so I have limited things to write about compared to usual. There are still a few things I want to highlight that stood out to me, though.

Namely, the fact there is product testing for the Strong Sphere. I thought it was interesting that Spinel organized such a thing as product testing and that the Maggyo guy applied to be a product tester for the Strong Sphere. It really makes it feel like Spinel is someone who knows what he is doing and meticulously plans things? Organizing product testing, spreading it wide scale, making his product popular through promotion (Sango and Onyx), manufacturing a message to spread to the masses, etc. The fact that there is product testing stood out to me too, because usually these kinds of things rely on people’s need to be special or to be the first person to try out something? People like the Maggyo dude or anyone who keeps up with trends would probably be drawn towards this kind of stuff because it’s the new popular thing. It makes me think that Spinel knows people’s nature really well to be doing something like this. Yet another case of Spinel potentially using people’s feelings and nature against them. Good for him <3 

Not only that, but the product testing also allows Spinel to let others do the work for him, something he’s already been doing with the others Explorers (Agate, Sango, Onyx) when he let them handle Rayquaza in HZ044 while he faced Friede. I’m not sure what Spinel’s goal is in spreading the Strong Sphere, but via product testing, he is letting others experiment it further and it also makes me think that if there are any issues that could be reported, he could always say that it’s a product in early development and that potential issues could arise from it so he can use their feedback to improve it further.. He could still defend himself by using this excuse at this stage if he wanted to (but it’s not something that could work forever, though). Either way, I think the way Spinel works is neat. I really like the way he makes others do his bidding. 

Dot’s moments.. Something notable to me was that Dot’s physical condition seems to have really improved? This episode reminded me of HZ015 which also had Dot running around in Hakko City to find someone (back then, she looked for Liko and this time, it was to find Magyoro). Dot used to get exhausted really quickly when she had to run or walk for a long time. Even in Terastal Debut (which was when she joined Liko and Roy to travel with them) and in Rayquaza Rising (which was right after Terastal Debut), she usually got tired more quickly than Liko and Roy and showed signs of exhaustion before them when they were traveling. In this episode, she was fine and had no problems running around and didn’t stop even once to comment on being tired. So it made me think that she is really used to going outside and running and walking now. I wonder if it’ll keep being like that for the rest of the arc, since it’d show that she really changed in this aspect. Either way, it’s really satisfying to see how far Dot’s come in this aspect and how comfortable she is. 

Dot talking about stuff she is passionate about with Nanjamo at the beginning of the episode was also really cute (the mic thing, etc). Liko and Roy don’t really understand this kind of stuff and they aren’t as tech savvy as Dot. It reminded me a bit of HZ039 (Kanuchan’s capture episode) when Dot initially asked Liko and Roy to buy some kind of mic for her, but Liko didn’t understand what she was talking about and didn’t know the specifics of such things so Dot decided to tag along with them to look for it by herself. I really like this kind of thing, because it shows that Dot has different bonds that give her different things and she doesn’t share everything with Liko and Roy? Liko and Roy do not have to understand every single thing about Dot’s hobbies to be her friends. And likewise, Dot’s bonds aren’t limited to Liko and Roy (as much as they are important to her, of course), and she doesn’t have to share her entire world with them either. It’s really good on both sides to me, because it shows that even if Liko, Roy and Dot have different personalities and hobbies (Liko is more of an artist, Roy likes crafting and singing, Dot is a content creator), it doesn’t stop them from being friends. Dot’s world is expanding and there are things she can only share and get passionate about with Nanjamo and Botan, who are tech savvy like her. Dot has her own independent bonds with Nanjamo and Botan which show different sides of her character, and it’s important to me. 

Other things.. Dot’s line to Nakanuchan “put your trust in me, and we’ll fight together”! Dot being reassuring towards Nakanuchan and remaining composed during the battle was very good, especially since Dot got overwhelmed in battles sometimes before. It also reminded me of Liko’s moment with Tebrim in HZ094 when Tebrim was worried and Liko reassured her and told her to believe in herself. The difference between Dot’s “believe in me” to Nakanuchan and Liko’s “believe in yourself” to Tebrim, too. I think both these lines highlight different sides of their respective characters and the ways their encouragement is expressed. It makes me wonder if Liko ever told her Pokemon “believe in me” because she usually tells them “you can do it” or “believe in yourself” and doesn’t really put herself “out there” (or at the center, I’m not sure how to express this specific idea) when she encourages them. 

The focus on Welcamo and Nakanuchan was fun. Welcamo stopping her from being reckless when she was about to break Nanjamo’s stuff was cute. It shows his responsible side, too. Nakanuchan being the one who finished the battle also made me think that she was trying to live up to Welcamo too, or finish what he had started. As a note, I really enjoy the way Dot constantly hangs out with both her Pokemon since this arc started. We always see Nakanuchan out of her Pokeball. Even at the end of this episode, they all took the Ikirinko taxi together. It’s cute that they always spend time together. 

Dot and Nanjamo’s relationship. Dot’s admiration for Nanjamo shone through in this episode, which I thought was nice, because it showed another side of Dot’s character? She doesn’t usually openly compliment others, but she was impressed by Nanjamo and pointed it out when she said she was open minded. Nanjamo relying on her and telling Dot about the Maggyo was cool, because it shows that Nanjamo keeps up with Dot’s videos too. Dot started off as a fan of Nanjamo, and now Nanjamo is watching Dot as well. Nanjamo acknowledging her and complimenting Dot on her skills was also touching. She really is watching over Dot’s growth and encourages her in her own way. She didn’t intervene in the confrontation until after it was over because she knew Dot would be able to handle herself and she believes in her. She went out of her way to help Dot without even being asked when she brought a taxi to her and even found her own unique way of dealing with Magyoro without really putting him down and knew what to say to him and was willing to be the new target of his “pranks”.. Nanjamo is just really lovable and cool in general. 

Also, Uruto was really cute at the end of the episode when he was feeling seasick, but he was still trying to act tough and like it was nothing.. Uruto’s motion sickness is a trait that makes him endearing and human to me (it reminds me a bit of how Friede can’t stand the cold, it’s a fun and cute trait that makes the character feel well-rounded?). The way Yamirami was trying to help him feel better was good, too. I like these small moments highlighting the Pokemon’s personalities and their relationships with their trainers, and I think they are doing a good job at it with Yamirami since he is a recent addition to the cast. Yamirami teases Uruto and can act on his own too, but he still has Uruto’s back and takes care of him in small ways and pays attention to him? It makes the relationship between them feel equal and real.  

As an aside, I thought Nanjamo was doing an advertisement for Exceed since she was promoting food during her stream and the ad for Exceed that Dot saw early in the episode mentioned “Pokemon food”.. For a moment, I wondered if popular streamers like her would have gotten an offer from Exceed to promote all aspects of their work and products. It wasn’t the case, but it’s still an interesting thought to entertain.

I looked up Magyoro’s VA and apparently he is voiced by Kenta Miyake, who is Murdock’s VA (among many other roles in Pokemon). Fun thing to note, I never really heard him voicing younger characters before. Also, this episode reminded me a bit of HZ093 because of the focus on fans and streamers.. Though, it was a bit different because in this case, the fan was inspired enough to become a content creator himself (and an obnoxious one at that). Nyabiko was content enough just being a fan. 

Overall, that’s pretty much it for now. This episode felt special to me because it was the first solo Dot-centric episode? Liko and Roy didn’t appear until the end, and they only appeared for one minute. Masquernya and Achigator weren’t even credited in this episode because they didn’t make any sound, and they are usually always in the credits. It’s neat though, it speaks of how carefully they handle Dot to give her a solo episode like that. I think this ep also had the goal of putting Dot on the same level as the others in terms of experience and knowledge. She witnessed the effects of the Strong Sphere firsthand (even though she was the one who told the others about the Rakurium signs, she wasn’t physically there in the Strong Sphere episode). Her secondary Pokemon, Nakanuchan, learned a new move (just like how Taikaiden was revealed to know a new move after the timeskip, and Tebrim who recently learned Healing Wish) and Terastalized (similarly to Tebrim in her recent focus episode). Taikaiden is the only secondary Pokemon left who hasn't been Terastalized, but I guess it’ll happen soon? Either way, Dot is fully Liko and Roy’s equal and I think it shows here because this episode made a point to have her catch up to them before she reunites with them. This way, she won’t be “late” or a step behind them when they do reunite.