Meowth and Pikachu also find the cabin, but so does Swellow, who returns to Ash. Meowth whispers to Jessie and James what's happened to Pikachu, who "explain" to Pikachu that they're best friends. Of course, right at that moment, the heroes show up. Pikachu doesn't recognize Ash and runs to Meowth. James (why James?) orders Pikachu to use thunderbolt, and this somehows makes Brock realize Pikachu has amnesia, because nothing else would make it attack him. Because the heroes have never, at any point, encountered mind control effects. Team Rocket tells Pikachu that the heroes are trying to trick it into thinking it has amnesia even though they, moments before, told it it had amnesia. This entire sequence is so bizarre.
They attempt to escape in their balloon, but Pikachu blows it up accidentally, blasting Team Rocket off and falling to the ground with Ash-- did I say ground? Apparently they were over a fast moving river. Of course they clearly weren't over a river, but nevermind that, we have to watch Ash grab Pikachu in midair and tumble into the river with it to protect it, which somehow restores its memories.
This episode could have been a lot better. With just a few tweaks, it could have been a 9/10 or something, but it falls significantly short of that. First, its strengths: Team Rocket characters are usually more interesting than the heroes, and this episode features Meowth more heavily than anyone else. It also has a solid moral that it doesn't shove in your face, the standard "to thine own self be true." But it undermines itself with Meowth's unnecessary and pointless monologues that do shove in your face what Pikachu is: brave and kindhearted, and the ending isn't as good as it could have been. Pikachu just kind of regains its memories when Ash does something heroic and stupid. It should have been like Pikachu shocking Ash over and over while Team Rocket orders it, and thinking it feels familiar except something is flipped around, or something other than what happens.
It's still a good episode, though.
--
Not changing this sig until I decide to change this sig.
Started: July 6, 2005