Bewitch, Battle, and Bewilder! (Japanese:セミファイナルⅡ 「幻惑」The Semifinals II: "Dazzle") is the 123rd episode ofPokémon Journeys: The Series, and the 1,208th episode of thePokémon animated series. It first aired in Japan on September 2, 2022, in Canada on February 4, 2023, in South Africa on February 28, 2023, in the United Kingdom on April 5, 2023, in Australia on April 27, 2023, and in the United States on June 23, 2023.
Spoiler warning: this article may contain major plot or ending details.
The second match of the Masters Eight Tournament semifinals is here, and it’s Ash versus Cynthia! Our hero wants to battle Leon in the finals, but Cynthia’s determined to keep that from happening. It’s a six-on-six battle, and first is Ash’s Dragonite versus Cynthia’s Spiritomb, who eliminates Dragonite. Then Cynthia switches out Spiritomb, and the next matchup is Roserade versus Gengar. But Roserade is switched out for Spiritomb again, and Gengar goes down. Ash calls out Pikachu, and Cynthia rotates through several of her Pokémon until she reaches Spiritomb again. Pikachu almost lands a win, but Spiritomb has the last laugh with Destiny Bond. Can Ash make a comeback?
Plot
The second match of thePokémon World Coronation SeriesMasters Eight Tournament semifinals is about to commence, where the winner will earn the right to face MonarchLeon in the finals. At one end ofWyndon Stadium,Goh is givingAsh and histeam words of encouragement, while at the other end,Diantha is doing the same withCynthia, believing she could be the one to end Leon's unbroken winning streak. To the surprise of the famous actress, Cynthia reveals that she intends to retire frombattling once the tournament has ended.
The firstChampion ofAlola and theworld-famousSinnoh Champion both enter the battlefield. As per usual,Dan explains the rules: the match is a six-on-sixFull Battle, with no limits to how many times eachTrainer is allowed tochange their Pokémon and each of them may only use one of eitherDynamax,Mega Evolution, orZ-Moves per battle. While theannouncer wonders if they will use the same cards they did in the quarterfinals, the two Champions send out their first Pokémon. Ash's choice is hisDragonite, while Cynthia unexpectedly leads with theForbidden PokémonSpiritomb. Backstage, Diantha notes that Cynthia has instantly seized control by leading with a Pokémon that no one anticipated. As the signal to start the match is given, Ash orders aDraco Meteor shower as his firstmove, only for Dragonite to be struck back by Spiritomb'sSucker Punch. After getting back on its feet, the Dragon Pokémon completes the use of Draco Meteor, scoring a direct hit, but Spiritomb merely shrugs it off and laughs mockingly. Ash's next attack is aDragon Claw, but Spiritomb stops Dragonite in its tracks by usingHypnosis, causing Dragonite to fallasleep. With Dragonite left vulnerable, Spiritomb proceeds to useDream Eater consecutively, gradually draining away Dragonite's energy. Ash's pleas for his Pokémon to wake up prove fruitless, with the end result of Dragonite beingdefeated in its sleep without managing to deal any realdamage to Cynthia.
While Ashrecalls Dragonite and prepares to send out his next Pokémon, Cynthia abruptly recalls Spiritomb as well. Both Trainers' second Pokémon,Gengar andRoserade, enter the field simultaneously. Roserade'sBullet Seed barrage fails to do much damage due to beingnot very effective, while Gengar scores a direct hit withShadow Ball. The next exchange of moves comes in the form of aWill-O-Wisp and aLeaf Storm, with both attacks striking their mark. With Roserade now suffering from aburn, Cynthia recalls it and returns Spiritomb to the battlefield. Yet again, another exchange of attacks is made, this time between aDazzling Gleam and a Sucker Punch. While the twoGhost types suffer supereffective damage and get back up, unlike Spiritomb, Gengar ends up falling back down and fainting, increasing Cynthia's lead.
Pikachu using Counter Shield to block Hypnosis
Once more, Ash recalling his fainted partner is accompanied by Cynthia withdrawing Spiritomb, this time in favor ofTogekiss. Knowing that Cynthia is setting the pace, Ash responds by sending inPikachu in the hopes of stopping her momentum, not realizing Cynthia had expected Ash to send in his strongest partner. Pikachu's series ofThunderbolts fails to make contact with the swiftly movingFlying type, who strikes back withAir Slash. When Togekiss follows up withZen Headbutt, Ash finds Pikachuflinching and unable to execute the commandedElectroweb, leaving him to suffer a direct hit. Diantha and Leon realize that Togekiss'sAbility,Serene Grace, helped to make this happen. Making yet another switch, Cynthia sends out herGastrodon to take the type advantage over Pikachu. Aiming to take out Pikachu here and now, she orders anEarth Power attack. Pikachu evades the attack by jumping high into the air using the slabs of earth flung up by it, once again following Cynthia's prediction. When Pikachu starts usingIron Tail next, Cynthia has Gastrodon useStone Edge. This time, though, things are going according to Ash's plan, as, instead of directly attacking Gastrodon, the Iron Tail slices off the tops of some of the stone pillars created by Stone Edge and sends them flying at Gastrodon. While Gastrodon manages to catch the rocks and absorb the impact, this leaves it immobilized and defenseless, allowing Pikachu to useQuick Attack to smash through the rocks and into Gastrodon, finally giving Ash a knockout of his own.
Cynthia admires Ash's skill to find an opportunity in the midst of a crisis and Pikachu's ability to exploit it as she recalls her fainted Pokémon. Replacing her fainted Gastrodon, Spiritomb rejoins the battle yet again; however, Ash is now ready for it and subsequently tells Pikachu to spin around while using Thunderbolt. The resulting vortex of electricity not only successfully repels Spiritomb's Hypnosis, but also strikes it at the same time. Ash identifies the strategy asCounter Shield, a tactic that he came up with whilehe was traveling through Sinnoh and which Cynthia recognizes from theSinnoh League. Ash assures Cynthia that he's grown much stronger since then and has Pikachu ensnare Spiritomb in an Electroweb, successfully avoiding a Sucker Punch in the process. As Pikachu goes for a finishing swing of his Iron Tail, Cynthia orders Spiritomb to do something unspecified. Moments later, Pikachu's move connects, causing the Forbidden Pokémon to retreat into itsOdd Keystone and the audience to cheer. However, as Dan inspects Spiritomb, dark energy suddenly emerges from the keystone and envelops Pikachu, causing him to seize up. The announcer recognizes Spiritomb's last-second move asDestiny Bond, whose effect has now been activated. As a result, Pikachu is instantly drained of all his remaining strength and faints alongside Spiritomb. With this double-knockout, Ash's ace has been taken out, and his ability to use10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt has been eliminated, giving him a severe handicap as Cynthia continues to stay in control of the battle.
Although the two first met inTop-Down Training!, which aired almost fifteen years prior to this episode, this episode marks the first timeAsh has battledCynthia.
Despite Togekiss being classified as aFairy/Flying type sincePokémon X and Y, released almost nine years earlier, this is the first time that its Fairy type is explicitly recognized in theanimated series.
As of this episode,Lance is the only regionalChampion introduced up to this point, current or former, whomAsh hasn’t battled.
