Prepare for trouble...make it double!
It seems to be a theme weekend today--which translates as "we don't have a lot of original programs to show the little b*st*rds--hey, let's package a load of reruns with one thing in common together and slap a title on 'em! That'll keep 'em happy!"
The theme is dichotomy, and it's a pity KWB no longer has the rights to Bizarro or Two-Face, as they would have made perfect hosts.

POK JJ #341: "Tricks of the Trade"
Ash and company are heading through the ubiquitous woods when they come upon a kid trying to whip his Wobbafett into shape. Wobbafett looks very similar to the Pokemon from "Once in a Blue Moon", except it walks on land, stands upright, has a sour expression on its face, and holds its hands perpetually in front of it. It looks like a guy who just got kicked in the cojones.
Junior wants to trade his Wobbafett at the big Pokemon swap meet in town and is trying to spiff it up so he can get a good deal on it...though it seems Wobbafett is such a lame, attackless Pokemon that no one wants to bother with it.
Jessy and James and Meowth figure this is a plum opportunity to nick a few Pokemon, so they set up a dummy exchanging machine (recall the gadget from "Battle Aboard the St. Anne"?) A Pokemon trainer pops in a full Pokeball and gets back an empty one, while Meowth, inside the machine, pockets the Pokemon. Actually, quite ingenious for these three, right up until the point folks start realizing its a scam and gang up on them. Hence their biggest character flaw: greed. They should have known when to cut and run, maybe work the scam in another town, and never net over a certain limit.
Anyway, James meets up with the shifty Cheech Marin-looking shyster from the Queen Anne and is almost suckered in again by the exact same spiel about Magikarp! One would think the moment he saw that fish he would flip out and rip Cheech a new one--but no, our favorite fairy is utterly duped.
About then, though, Jimmy-boy's three active brain cells sputter to life, and he remembers the guy from the QA--then goes psycho, chasing him throught he crowd!
Now here is where it gets funny. Jessy, realizing the jig is up, is about to sic Lickitung on Team Twerp when James and Cheech nearly run her over. Lickitung'sPokeball falls into the real swap machine and gets exchanged for Junior's Wobbafett--though she doesn't notice it yet. When later she pulls out what she thinks is Licktung, she is surprised to see that instead she has a Pokemon even lamer than the little tounge-slurper. "I didn't know Team Rocket had a Wobbafett!" exclaims Ash, not seeming to notice that Jessy, lovely Jessy, is just as ignorant of the fact herself.
Wobbafett is the Ghandi of Pokemon, meaning it likes to fight using passive resistance. That may work against a little hothead like Chikorita, but against a more cognizant Pokemon like Pikachu it doesn't stand a chance. Team Rocket blasts off again, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.
Junior pops up with his new pet Lickitung and goes on and on about a long-haired woman wearing glasses who traded him for his Wobbafett...which perfectly describes Jessy's disguise, but it seems Team Twerp is one of the densest trios in anime and doesn't put two and two together. Then Junior decides to shout his thank yous into the air, as if by magic they will reach the ears of his mysterious fiery-headed benefactoress.
Also in this episode--Snubull! Uncommented on, and never quite making contact with her pussycat paramour, the persistant little pooch pops up several times in this episode. Admittedly, she's fast becoming one of my favorite Pokemon, right up there with Chikorita and Jigglypuff.

Let your opinion be known! Reply to this post!

-Register as a New User for the WBC Bulletin Board!
-Already Registered? Reply to this post!
- View the original post and all replies!