[11] Stray Pokemon Hitokage

[marchionessofmustache]

So, it's THE HITOKAGE EPISODE. I think most people who watched back in the day remember this one especially because of one fact, it's said that Hitokage will die if the flame on its tail goes out. I'm pretty sure they literally said "die" in the English version as well, despite Game Freak and Nintendo's branding policy saying "Pokemon can't die; they only faint." (... and even though death is a topic well-covered in the games.)

Satoshi tries to catch the Hitokage, again by just chucking a Monster Ball at it, and this is before they realize that it's already weakened. When will he ever learn??? Then when they notice the weak flame he just... tosses another ball lol.

Basically the story of this episode is that this dude named Daisuke kept trying to abanadon his Hitokage, but it was "dumb" and kept coming back, so he told it to wait for him on this rock, and then left with no intention to return.

Daisuke and his friends even mention that the thing will probably wait there until it literally dies and then laugh about it. Pretty morbid!

When a storm comes and Onisuzume attack, it's up to Takeshi and Satoshi to save Hitokage. They're then shown in the Pokemon Center waiting for Doctor Joy to take care of it -- there's a long suspenseful time where they're shown pacing outside the operating room to suspenseful music. Of course they're not going to let a Pokemon die in the show, right? He ends up being fine.

But he goes back to wait for Daisuke again! And then Satoshi and friends get trapped by Rocket Co., but Hitokage shows up to save the day. Seeing that his old Pokemon is now powered up, Daisuke says that he came back to retrieve, but even outright admits to Hitokage that he had no intention of coming back for him at first, and only wants him now because he's stronger.



Hitokage ends up attacking Daisuke directly (so I guess there's more Pokemon-on-human violence in this show than I remember XD) and Pikachu joins in for... whatever reason, leaving him to run away. Even though Takeshi was the one most concerned about Hitokage, he lets Satoshi keep him because he's the show's protagonist because he's the one who kept the flame alit during their run to the hospital.

Oh, also, Hitokage only makes like little whimpering grunts through the whole episode, then does say "ka" when jumping into Satoshi's Monster Ball at the end. Kinda weird after hearing Charmander chant its name in the English version so much.

Much improved over the last episode with good pacing and a lot of suspense, this episode manages to keep your attention while covering the heavy topics of death and abandonment, while still being lighthearted enough for kids to enjoy. Very good episode. And this is from the perspective of a Fushigidane fan!

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Comments

[thenicochan]

I love the Charmander episode! Prob the most memorable in the entire series, and my favorite. There's a lot of drama, and Daisuke is so easy to hate. The only issue I really have with it is that Takeshi really earned Charmander's loyalty over Satoshi. I agree that Protagonist Power is pretty much why Satoshi gets the bb and not Takeshi.

I also just love Charmander in general. I think he's one of my absolute fav 'mons. So cute.

[marchionessofmustache]

I have such a hard time choosing a favorite of the Kanto starters. When I first saw them as a kid, Squirtle was my favorite. Then when I got the game (I chose Blue because Blastoise was on the cover) I was like "Hmmm I think I'll pick Bulbasaur" and then got attached to it and it became my favorite. Then over time I really grow to love the Char line and now I JUST CAN'T CHOOSE.

I really loved Charizard in my Pokemon Red Revenge run.