That New Old Gang of Mine! (Japanese:ただいま、はじめましてアローラ！I'm Back, Nice to Meet You, Alola!) is the 37th episode ofPokémon Journeys: The Series, and the 1,122nd episode of thePokémon animated series. It first aired in Japan on September 13, 2020, in the United Kingdom on March 1, 2021, and in the United States on March 5, 2021.
Spoiler warning: this article may contain major plot or ending details.
When Goh evolves his Exeggcute into Exeggutor, Ash tells him about the incredibly tall Exeggutor who live in Alola. Professor Cerise suggests the two pay a visit to the region, so they’re off! Goh is nervous about meeting Professor Kukui and Ash’s friends, and tensions rise when Kiawe challenges him to a battle. Things look bad when Kiawe uses a Z-Move, but he has Marowak whisk Goh and Raboot out of danger just in time! With Goh demonstrating his determination, he and Kiawe become friends, and our heroes enjoy the rest of their visit. Before they head home, though, Goh accomplishes what he wanted to do—catch an Alolan Exeggutor!
Plot
Yamper approaches with aLeaf Stone in his mouth, offering it toGoh. Considering what to do with the Stone,Goh notices hisExeggcute pass by and uses the Leaf Stone toevolve it into anExeggutor. He scans Exeggutor with hisRotom Phone, learning that its three heads all think independently, but get along.Ash adds thatAlolanExeggutor are completely different to the Kantonian variant, measuring many times taller.
Ash reuniting with his Alolan Pokémon
Soon,Professor Cerise informs the boys that they are heading to theAlolaregion and orders them to catch many Pokémon on their visit. Ash and Goh take a plane and arrive onMelemele Island, whereProfessor Kukui is waiting outside the airport to pick them up. Ash formally introduces Goh to his close friend Professor Kukui, a teacher from thePokémon School and part of his "Alola family". Kukui turns his attention toGoh's Raboot and the ever-nervousSobble, adding that it's the first time he has seen them in-person. Kukui then drives the boys to his home, whereProfessor Burnet, with her newborn babyLei in her arms, welcomes them inside. Ash greets Lei, meeting him for the first time. Stepping inside, Ash's Alola team ofIncineroar,Rowlet,Lycanroc, andMelmetal enthusiastically welcome their Trainer andPikachu back with a group hug. Ash introduces them to Goh, and the Pokémon rush over in an equally excited manner. Before Ash and Goh can settle in, Burnet adds thatMallow and Ash's other friends have prepared a welcome party over at the School.
With that, Ash and Goh set off for the School at a running pace. Reaching the sand, they stop for a moment to admire the glistening blue sea around Melemele Island. Goh then spots something on the shore – aPyukumuku. As Goh reads up on itsPokédex entry, Raboot steps on Pyukumuku and receives a punch in response. Goh tosses aPoké Ball and lands thecatch. Next, the boys are chasing after aGrubbin through the forest. Ash informs Goh that Grubbin will escape underground if he doesn't pay attention. Ash and Pikachu decide to run ahead after the Grubbin escapes underground, only to lose track of Grubbin and Goh as well. Goh and Raboot, meanwhile, get side-tracked by something else burrowing, which soon reveals itself to be an AlolanDugtrio. Unable to stop their running momentum, Goh and Raboot step off a cliff and fall into the water below. Goh is pulled ashore byLana'sfishing rod, whileSandy rescues Raboot. Lana greets Goh with an "Alola!", to which Goh remarks that he'd like to be put down. Lana rests Goh on herRideLapras. As Goh introduces himself, Lana realizes that the boy’s name is exactly the same as Ash's friend. Ash and Pikachu, meanwhile, are spotted by a familiar friend,Rotom. Ash's Rotom Phone then scans Rotom with its Pokédex app, declaring that Rotom in its Pokédex Forme has no other functions outside of being a Pokédex. Rotom is insulted by the remark, rebutting that it has voice changing and recording capabilities as well. Rotom then returns its attention, adding that it has come to escort Ash and Pikachu to the School for the welcome party. Ash replies that they still need to find Goh, to which Rotom adds that Goh is already waiting at the School with the others.
At the School, Goh and his Pokémon are speechless and feeling nervous around all of Ash's friends.Sophocles is keen to dissect Goh's Rotom Phone to examine its technology, while Mallow and Lana's enthusiasm is proving overwhelming.Kiawe arrives at the School in a tense manner, introducing himself as Ash's Alolanrival. He wonders whether Goh is a strong battler and challenges him to a match to test his strengths, much to Goh's concern. A tense stare down between Kiawe and Goh ends when Rotom with Ash and Pikachu arrive.
Mallow declares that they can now get the party started. Everyone sits down to enjoy the delicious food andPinap Berry-Honey drinks prepared by Mallow while they update Ash on the latest news. Sophocles reveals that he plans to return to theMossdeep Space Center to researchextraterrestrial Pokémon in his bid to become an astronaut. Lana then reveals that she just received a letter fromLillie. Goh wonders who Lillie is, to which Ash explains that she is one his former classmates and is currently on a journey to findher missing father. Lana reads the letter out aloud, which reveals that Lillie and her family are on board a train usingMagearna'sSoul-Heart to track down Mohn. Lillie promises to return to Alola once she has found her father, promising to write again in the meantime. Hearing how everyone is making progress on their dreams, Ash decides to challenge Kiawe to a battle. Kiawe, however, replies that he has already challenged Goh and is determined to evaluate his capacity as a rival. Goh is confused by the concept of being a rival, to which Kiawe shouts that the person closest to Ash must be strong to help him achieve his dreams. The others warn Kiawe that he is getting too fired up, but Kiawe ignores them and orders Goh to the battlefield. As Ash interjects, Goh immediately accepts the challenge after hearing Kiawe's sentiments.
On the battlefield, the match of Goh and Raboot versus Kiawe andTurtonator gets underway. Turtonator approaches with aDragon Tail, but Raboot evades and strikes back aDouble Kick, temporarily knocking Turtonator off-balance. Kiawe is impressed and decides to turn up the heat, activating theZ-Power of hisZ-Ring. He warns Goh first that he is about to face one of the most powerfulmoves in Alola, but Goh refuses to back down. As Kiawe remarks that he wouldn't expect anything less from one of Ash's rivals, Goh rebukes the comment, declaring that he is Ash's friend, not his rival, and that everyone must strive to achieve their dreams on their own. Even so, Kiawe appreciates his courage before summoning hisZ-Move,Inferno Overdrive. Goh orders Raboot useEmber to counter; however, the effort is overwhelmed by the Inferno Overdrive. The attack steamrolls ahead, leaving Goh and Raboot to brace for impact.
As the explosive force of Inferno Overdrive hits, everyone on the sidelines is stunned to see Goh and Raboot emerge unscathed, withKiawe's Marowak having intervened just in time. Ash remarks that this must have been Kiawe's plan from the beginning. Now smiling, Kiawe walks over to Goh and offers him a hand up. Goh instead grabs Kiawe's wrist and declares that while he is no rival, he can certainly look after Ash. Kiawe praises Goh’s stubbornness, having earned his trust. Raboot also receives a cheer from Kiawe’s Pokémon. Kiawe asks Goh what his dream is, and Goh confidently declares that he wants to catch every Pokémon, including theMythical PokémonMew.
Hearing this, Ash and his former classmates take Goh to challenge an Alolan Exeggutor. Raboot uses Ember which strikes the gargantuan in the head and makes it unsteady on its feet. With that, Goh tosses a Poké Ball and catches the Alolan Exeggutor. Ash and Goh return to theCerise Laboratory, where Goh calls out his Alolan and Kantonian Exeggutor to admire their variant features. Goh tells Ash that they should visit Alola again sometime, and Ash promises that they will.
The scene where Goh is trying to catch aGrubbin is similar toAlola to New Adventure!, where Ash tried to catch one in the forest, but it fled by burrowing away.
The scene where Lana first meets Goh by accidentallyfishing him out is also similar toAlola to New Adventure!, where Lana meets Ash while fishing.
This episode marks the first time sinceThe Semi-Final Frontier!, 467 episodes earlier, that Pokémon which Ash caught in the most recent completedseries have physically appeared.
In the English dub, theWho's That Pokémon? segment uses the theme fromPokémon the Series: Sun & Moon rather than the one forPokémon Journeys: The Series.
When Goh throws aPoké Ball to catchPyukumuku, the Poké Ball stands upside-down. However, in the next shot, it is standing straight.
The group photo in the classroom is almost identical to the same one taken in thefinal episode ofPokémon the Series: Sun & Moon, including Ash's old character design. However, the wooden floor and the ship in the background are visibly displaced.
In the English dub, when Pikachu and Raboot appear at the end of the introductory clip at the start of the episode, Raboot'scry is omitted.
Dub edits
The Japanese text depictingMelemele Island's name is edited out.
In the original version, when Goh falls into the ocean, his eyes are closed, whereas in the dub, his eyes are open.
Eyes closed in the original version
Eyes open in the dub
