A Fashionable Battle! (Japanese:ファッションショーでバトルです！タツベイVSシュシュプ！！Battle at the Fashion Show!Tatsubay VSShushupu!!) is the 73rd episode ofPokémon the Series: XY, and the 872nd episode of thePokémon animated series. It first aired in Japan on May 21, 2015 and in the United States on July 25, 2015.
Spoiler warning: this article may contain major plot or ending details.
When our heroes arrive in Laverre City, Serena tells Ash that Gym Leader Valerie is also a renowned fashion designer. Unfortunately for Ash and another would-be challenger named Sawyer, this means the Gym is closed for a fashion show and there are no battles to be found! Ash and Sawyer decide to have a battle of their own. Meanwhile, Serena and Bonnie admire Valerie's lovely designs...and then get recruited to join the fashion show as substitute models!
Our heroes soon learn that at the end of every fashion show, Valerie chooses a challenger from the audience so she can show off how her creations look in battle. This time, it’s Sawyer’s turn! His Bagon has no chance against Valerie's Spritzee, but he appreciates the experience and takes lots of notes for next time.
Ash is so excited for his Gym battle the next day that he can barely wait to finish dinner before launching right into some special training with Sawyer’s help. Ash isn’t the only eager one—Serena, Clemont, and Bonnie rush through their own meals to cheer them on!
Plot
Ash andhis friends finally arrive inLaverre City, and Ash is barely able to contain his excitement about his Gym match.Serena is excited as well, albeit for a slightly different reason—she wants to meetValerie, a famous fashion designer who happens to be the LaverreGym Leader as well. The group heads over to the Laverre Gym, but when they enter, they see a large number of girls wearing Valerie's costumes running around and getting ready for something. Suddenly, Ash sees a young boy talking to a lady behind a desk and begging for a Gym match, but his request is refused due to an event scheduled for later that day. Ash bursts into the conversation as well, which confirms his fears of not being able to have his Gym match just yet.
AfterBonnie asks the woman to marryClemont, and Clemont pulls her away with much embarrassment, the boy next to Ash, whose name isSawyer, suddenly notices Clemont and recognizes him as theLumiose Gym Leader fromhis previous Gym challenge. Sawyer introduces himself to the group and explains how he knows Clemont. After being asked why he is away from theLumiose Gym, Clemont tells Sawyer how he is traveling with Ash and the others to gain some more experience, just like Sawyer is doing with his Gym challenges. Upon hearing that Ash has fiveBadges already, including theVoltage Badge, Sawyer is amazed and decides to work even harder to catch up. Serena then suggests that they go to the store, to which Ash agrees.
While Serena, Bonnie,Dedenne, andBraixen are busy admiring the many different fashion designs, Ash asks Sawyer for a battle. Sawyer requests aDouble Battle, and Ash agrees, and Clemont follows them to act as the referee. Ash sends outHawlucha andFrogadier, while Sawyer chooses hisTreecko andBagon. Sawyer uses Bagon's hard head to great effect, but Hawlucha counters with repeatedKarate Chops to wear down Bagon's endurance. Although a combination ofLeech Seed andFire Fang nearly makes contact with Hawlucha, Frogadier intervenes at the last minute withWater Pulse, allowing Hawlucha to escape. Sawyer then compliments Ash on the teamwork with his Pokémon. Frogadier then successfully dodges twoBullet Seed attacks and counters the third withCut, taking Treecko out of the match. Meanwhile, Serena and Bonnie are approached by two girls, who ask for their help with something, and as Ash and Sawyer are about to continue their battle, it is interrupted by their noticing the start of a fashion show.
The two girls take Serena and Bonnie to meet Valerie, who looks them over and agrees that they will do nicely, but without explaining anything. Serena is overcome with joy at finally meeting Valerie, but Bonnie quickly asks her to take care of Clemont as well, but Serena chides her for it. Valerie then explains that she needs a favor from the two of them. Outside, Ash, Clemont, and Sawyer are next to the large runway that has been set up, still trying to figure out what is going on. As the fashion show starts, several dresses designed after Pokémon are modeled, including designs of anAzumarill,femaleMeowstic,Gothorita, andChimecho. Suddenly, Serena and Bonnie appear with Braixen and Dedenne, modeling dresses designed afterFlorges andChingling. Once Clemont and Ash get over their shock of seeing the two girls on the stage, Serena explains that the real models could not come and so Valerie needed two substitutes and chose them.
Suddenly, Valerie herself appears, explaining to the crowd how she used Pokémon as the basis for all of her designs. Following the advice of the girl who denied Sawyer and Ash Gym challenges earlier that day, Valerie calls Sawyer onto the stage and challenges him to a battle—with the usual Gym rules in place. With the battle being a one-on-one match, Sawyer calls on his Bagon and Valerie herSpritzee. Bagon starts off with aDragon Breath attack, but it fails due to Spritzee being aFairy-type Pokémon. Sawyer then attempts to use back-to-backHeadbutt attacks, just like Hawlucha did earlier, but his efforts again fail due to Spritzee's ability to move freely in the air. The battle is soon over with a singleDazzling Gleam attack from Spritzee, and Sawyer does not earn theFairy Badge.
Later that evening, the group has a meal at thePokémon Center, with Ash excitedly anticipating his upcoming Gym battle against Valerie. He and Sawyer head outside to train, followed by the other three once they finish eating.
This episode also marks the first appearance of aChimecho in the animated series sinceMaya's appeared inMastering Current Events!, 252 episodes earlier.
Errors
When Serena andBonnie meet Valerie in person, Serena'sbackpack disappears. It then reappears in the next scene.
When Valerie shows up in the fashion show, the hair onBonnie'sChingling hairpin is missing.
WhenLinnea tells Valerie to challengeSawyer, the ribbons on her hairclips are colored black instead of being colored purple. This error repeats again whenKali announced that Valerie wins the battle.
When Ash andhis friends are eating a meal,Fletchinder's upper side is completely colored gray andFrogadier is missing one of its white circles on its nose.
When Serena introduces herself to Sawyer, her bangs are not fully colored in and her eyelashes are missing for a few seconds.
In theSwedish dub, after Frogadier lands from usingWater Pulse, Ash's English voice can be heard.
Serena's missing backpack
Bonnie missing the hair on her Chingling hairpin
Valerie's ribbons error
Fletchinder's upperside and Frogadier's nose errors
Serena's missing backpack
Bonnie missing the hair on her Chingling hairpin
Valerie's ribbons error
Fletchinder's upperside and Frogadier's nose errors
