Poké Ball Peril (Japanese:なんごくポケモンとＧＳボールSouthern Pokémon and the GS Ball) is the 83rd episode of thePokémon animated series. It was first broadcast in Japan on February 11, 1999, and in the United States on January 15, 2000.
Spoiler warning: this article may contain major plot or ending details.
After making a crash landing onto Valencia Island, our heroes get directions to Professor Ivy's laboratory where the mysterious Pokéball[sic] is being held. Once at the laboratory, Brock realizes that Professor Ivy and her group of scientists are Pokémon breeders just like him! Suddenly Brock begins to feel at home and thinks about staying for awhile to continue his studies on Pokémon breeding.
Plot
After the events ofthe previous episode,Ash andhis friends manage to crash-land Team Rocket'sblimp onValencia Island. They get to an outlook and realize that they cannot findProfessor Ivy's lab.Pikachu points to what appears to be aPokémon Center. They go inside and findNurse Joy, and she gives them the directions to Ivy's lab. They get to the lab and go inside, where they are met bythree girls who lead the group down to the beach. There, aGyarados comes out of the sea as a woman pets it, shocking everyone with her skill. Gyarados takes her to the shore as one of the girls tosses her a lab coat. She introduces herself as Professor Ivy.
Back at the lab, Ivy shows them the goldPoké Ball. She reveals the inscribed letters on the top of the ball, giving it the name theGS Ball. One of the assistants demonstrates how the ball could not be transported. Ivy also points out how multiple attempts to open it have all failed. Ivy hands the Ball over to Ash to deliver toProfessor Oak. Meanwhile, at the airfield,James andMeowth are dismayed by the ruined blimp, butJessie reminds them that Ash and his friends have a return trip booked. Knowing that it means another shot at catchingPikachu,Team Rocket starts repairing the blimp.
Ivy leads Ash and the others through the outdoor environment, which serves as an extension of her lab.Misty smells the flowers, but is startled after aVileplume steps out of the bushes. Ash checks hisPokédex and notices the Vileplume hasdifferently colored petals. The assistants rush out a crate of Pokémon food as otherPokémon come out, all possessing an unusual orange coloring. Ivy explains that she has bred and raised all of Valencia Island's Pokémon, and they form an invaluable part of her research into the effect of the tropical climate's effects on Pokémon. Just then, an assistant points out that theButterfree has not eaten in days despite them offering it different food combinations.Brock samples the food before running off. He returns to smashBerries, pointing out that the taste is important. He sprinkles the solution onto the food, and the Butterfree flies down immediately to eat, amazing Ivy.
Back at the living quarters, everyone is shocked at the amount of disorder there. Brock promptly puts on his gear and goes into a cleaning frenzy, making the place spotless and preparing dinner, much to the pleasure of Ivy and the assistants. Later that night, while everyone sleeps, Ivy and the assistants watch a group of Vileplume marking the area with their pollen. Brock offers them somerice balls as he watches. An assistant notices aRaticate entering the pollen cloud. Ivy rushes in to pull Raticate to safety, in the process exposing herself to the pollen, which weakens her. She orders the assistants to contact the Pokémon Center. At the Center, Joy treats both Raticate and Ivy. Due to her actions, Raticate was not severely hurt and will recover. The assistants show their concerns for Ivy as Brock watches with admiration.
The next day, Ash and Misty prepare to leave, but they notice Brock is not with them. They find him fixing the roof withhis Pokémon, and Ivy notes that Brock wants to stay. Brock explains that he can learn about Pokémon at the lab and that they need him more than Ash does. Ash agrees, and he and Misty bid farewell to Brock, Ivy, and her assistants. Later on, Misty notes how different it will be without Brock before bringing up the dilemma about getting back toPallet Town. Ash brings out the blimp tickets, but Misty quickly reminds him that the blimp was a sham. When they arrive at the airfield, they find a brand-new blimp on standby, and a disguised Team Rocket whisks them aboard. The ship takes to the skies asJigglypuff manages to get onboard.
When Ash and Misty request food, Team Rocket steps out and drops a steel cage to imprison them before revealing themselves. They notice Brock is not with them and tease them about being a couple. Ash orders Pikachu to attack, but Jessie warns that the attack will destroy the entire blimp. Just then, Jigglypuff jumps in andsings, putting Ash and Misty to sleep. Team Rocket quickly grabsparachutes and opens the hatch to escape, with Jigglypuff flying out with them. However, Ash and Misty remain caged and asleep on the blimp without a pilot.
Pokémon senryū summary: Beware of Electabuzz, thunder, fires, and fathers.
ThoughProfessor Ivy said thatPokémon have slightly different coloration in theOrange Islands, only Butterfree's coloration remained consistent in future episodes. All of the other Pokémon seen have had their regular colors in the Orange Islands. Even when aParas and aNidorina fromValencia Island appeared inThe Power of One, they were normal-colored.
Near the end of the episode, right beforePikachu usesThunderbolt onTeam Rocket, they warnAsh that the blimp is filled with flammable gas, and if Pikachu used anElectric attack, they would explode. This is most likely a reference to theHindenburg disaster of 1937, when a German zeppelin filled with flammable hydrogen gas exploded and crash-landed while attempting to land in New Jersey, killing 36 people. The cause of the explosion was most likely due to a static electricity build-up that had sparked and ignited the gas.
The concept of Pokémon having different characteristics based on their habitats was later implemented into thegames starting inGeneration VII in the form ofregional forms.
Coincidentally, theregion this concept was introduced in is a tropical archipelago, like the Orange Islands.
Errors
The title card
Thetitle card displays the name for this episode asPokéball Peril instead ofPoké Ball Peril (incorrectly formatting "Poké Ball"). The titlePokéball Peril is also usedon Pokémon.com, as well asPokémon TV.
This episode's title is formatted asPokéBall Peril on the DVD menu ofAustralian DVDs.
When saying goodbye,Brock has on his apron, but then is shown with his usual green vest seconds later.
When Ash andMisty are walking by themselves after waving goodbye to everybody, Misty's ponytail is on the right side instead of the left. When the camera changes to the close up, the ponytail is back on the left.
While on the video phone, Professor Ivy has the receiver and so doesProfessor Oak, but Ash speaks without it. Ash can obviously hear Professor Oak talking too.
In the dub, James calls Ash and Misty a pair of "very romantic creatures" when Team Rocket captures them. In the Japanese version, he teases them that they had decided to "dump that guy" (Brock) and elope.
