EP004

← EP003 : Ash Catches a Pokémon

Original series

EP005 : Showdown in Pewter City →

Challenge of the Samurai

EP004   サムライしょうねんのちょうせん！ Challenge of the Samurai Boy!

First broadcast Japan April 22, 1997 United States September 11, 1998

English themes Opening Pokémon Theme Ending

Japanese themes Opening めざせポケモンマスター Ending ひゃくごじゅういち

Credits Animation Team Ota Screenplay 園田英樹 Hideki Sonoda Storyboard 鈴木敏明 Toshiaki Suzuki Assistant director 大原実 Minoru Ōhara Animation director 平岡正幸 Masayuki Hiraoka Additional credits

Screenshots on Filb.de サムライしょうねんのちょうせん！ on the official Japanese Pokémon YouTube channel

Challenge of the Samurai (Japanese: サムライしょうねんのちょうせん！ Challenge of the Samurai Boy!) is the fourth episode of the Pokémon animated series. It first aired in Japan on April 22, 1997, and in the United States on September 11, 1998.

Spoiler warning: this article may contain major plot or ending details.

Blurb

Misty and Ash continue to wander the Viridian Forest when they spot a Weedle. As Ash battles it, he's distracted by a boy dressed as a samurai and calling himself (naturally) Samurai. Samurai challenges Ash to a battle, and Ash gets the advantage when his Metapod defends itself against Samurai's Pinsir. Samurai sends out his own Metapod—and a standoff begins.

A swarm of Beedrill interrupts the battle. Ash flees, but leaves his Metapod behind. The Beedrill grab Metapod and take it back to their hive. As Ash sneaks toward the hive to save Metapod, Jessie, James, and Meowth shows up to cause trouble. Ash is able to duck the angry Beedrill, and they instead focus their wrath on Team Rocket.

Metapod is mad at Ash for being abandoned. Has Ash learned his lesson about leaving his friends behind? Will Metapod evolve again? And will Samurai and Ash ever resume their battle?

Plot

As the group continue their way through Viridian Forest, Misty lets out a shrill scream. Ash turns to find her in a tree because she saw a Bug-type Pokémon, though he makes light of her fear. Then, he spots the Pokémon in question, a Weedle, and decides to catch it. He is forced to send out his Pidgeotto because Pikachu is asleep. Misty walks off, only to encounter a stranger named Samurai and his sharp sword. When he asks if she is from Pallet Town, she states that she's not, causing him to leave to continue his search. Misty is baffled as to what kind of grudge the stranger could have against Pallet Town inhabitants, but then she realizes the stranger is after Ash.

Meanwhile, Pidgeotto swoops and defeats Weedle, but, just as Ash is about to toss a Poké Ball, Samurai arrives and asks him if he is from Pallet Town. When Ash affirms it, Samurai draws his sword at him, with Misty barely yelling out a warning to Ash, and challenges Ash to a Pokémon battle. The wild Weedle escapes and Ash reprimands Samurai for causing him to lose the Weedle. However, Samurai says that Ash allowed it to escape. The two then begin their Pokémon battle.

Ash uses his exhausted Pidgeotto against Samurai's Pinsir. Pidgeotto uses Sand Attack, but it is defeated by Pinsir's Tackle. Ash then sends out his Metapod, who wins after he Hardens his body to the point where Pinsir's pincers break. Samurai sends out his own Metapod, and the two Metapod continue to use Harden in a battle of willpower for many hours, leaving Misty and Pikachu wondering if the match will ever end. After spotting a Beedrill swarm, Samurai recalls his Pokémon and flees, though Ash checks his Pokédex for details. A Beedrill kidnaps Ash's Metapod, despite Ash's attempts to recall his Pokémon. Pikachu shocks a Beedrill and Misty grabs Ash to start running, catching up with Samurai. They hide amongst some shrubs, only to encounter a hive of Kakuna. When the Kakuna evolve into more Beedrill, the group flees to Samurai's log cabin.

Samurai rebukes Ash for putting his Metapod in danger, then admits that he lost against three other Trainers from Pallet Town, including Gary. However, he insists that Ash is a novice. Ash keeps quiet and promises himself that he will find Metapod the next day and look after him better from then on. During the night, he is unable to sleep and can only think about his Metapod.

Early the next morning, Ash begins his search for Metapod. He sees him lying at the base of a tree, surrounded by many Kakuna, and attempts to sneak forward through the grass towards him without alerting the Beedrill swarm. However, he is interrupted by Meowth, who jumps on the back of his head. A moment later, Jessie and James appear on a cliff overhead, and launch loudly into their motto, ignoring Ash's warnings that they will alert the Beedrill. The sound awakens the Beedrill, who prepare to dive-bomb Ash and Team Rocket. Ash rolls underneath their attacks and reaches Metapod. Jessie and James attempt to take cover in their cardboard van, but some Weedle have begun to chew through it, and they run instead.

Ash attempts to recall Metapod to his Poké Ball, but he shakes in disagreement. With a Beedrill fast approaching, Ash runs with Metapod in his arms. Seeing a look of sorrow in Metapod's eyes, Ash realizes that he has lost Metapod's trust. Ash attempts to explain what happened, saying that losing Metapod was all Samurai's fault. However, Ash suddenly realizes that he is lying to himself and to Metapod, and admits that losing Metapod was his fault and his alone. Ash is upset upon realizing that it was his carelessness that put his Pokémon's life in danger, and, amid tearful apologies to Metapod, he sincerely promises to stop making excuses and take better care of his Pokémon. As Samurai, Misty, and Pikachu arrive in a protective bug net, Metapod leaps into the path of a Beedrill's Twineedle, sparing Ash. Ash cradles Metapod, thinking he has been badly injured, but he instead begins to glow. The hole in his shell has triggered Metapod's evolution into Butterfree. Ash gazes happily at his first fully evolved Pokémon, and even Misty isn't fearful, going so far as to call Ash's Butterfree beautiful.

Another swarm of Beedrill appears, but this time, Ash orders his Butterfree to use Sleep Powder, which puts the bee-like Pokémon, and also Team Rocket, to sleep and allows the group to escape. Samurai applauds Ash for his control over Butterfree so soon after his evolution. He then shows Ash and Misty the path out of Viridian Forest to Pewter City. He also tells Ash that he takes back his criticism and refers to himself as a novice. Ash, Pikachu, and Misty continue towards Pewter City to earn Ash's first Gym Badge. Team Rocket, meanwhile, is left wrapped up like Kakuna amongst a hive of angry Beedrill.

Major events

• Ash tries and fails to catch a Weedle.
• Ash's Pidgeotto is revealed to know Sand Attack.
• Ash's Metapod is revealed to have learned Harden.
• Ash has his first fair Trainer battle, with no official winner.
• Meowth is revealed to know Scratch.
• Ash's Metapod evolves into Butterfree and learns Sleep Powder.

For a list of all major events in the animated series, please see the history page.

Debuts

Pokémon debuts

• Weedle
• Pinsir
• Kakuna
• Ash's Butterfree

Characters

Humans

Dare da?

• Ash
• Misty
• Jessie
• James
• Samurai

Pokémon

Who's That Pokémon?

Who's That Pokémon?: Metapod

• Pikachu (Ash's)
• Meowth (Team Rocket)
• Metapod (Ash's; evolves)
• Butterfree (Ash's; newly evolved)
• Pidgeotto (Ash's)
• Squirtle (Gary's*; flashback)
• Pinsir (Samurai's; debut)
• Metapod (Samurai's)
• Bulbasaur (Trainer's; flashback)
• Charmander (Trainer's; flashback)
• Weedle (multiple; debut)
• Kakuna (multiple; evolve; debut)
• Beedrill (multiple; some newly evolved)

Trivia

Kakuna's original evolution method

Metapod's original evolution method

• This is the first time the lines "Prepare for trouble! / And make it double!" are included in Team Rocket's motto.
• In this episode, Metapod and Kakuna's evolution processes are depicted as their shells cracking and their evolved forms emerging, leaving behind an empty carapace, similar to real-life insects' emergence from pupation. In later episodes, however, Metapod and Kakuna are shown to evolve like any other Pokémon.
• Ash tries and fails to catch a Weedle; however, he would later succeed in catching its final form, only to give it away shortly thereafter.
  • In that episode Ash once again tries and fails to capture a Weedle.
• This episode features the first anime move error, as Pinsir cannot legally learn Tackle in the games.
• This episode features the first character of the day, namely Samurai.
• During the Metapod vs. Metapod battle, each side uses Harden in a futile attempt to defeat the other. However, Ash's Metapod should know Tackle as well, since it evolved from a Caterpie.
• When Ash, Misty, and Samurai are settled down for the night and Ash is shown to be awake and worrying about Metapod, "Satoshi", Ash's Japanese name, is written on his sleeping bag.
• Samurai blames Ash for letting the Weedle escape, even though he only failed to catch it due to Samurai himself interrupting his capture attempt.
• This episode was banned in South Korea due to featuring a samurai.
• In the Dutch and Polish dubs of the episode, Ash refers to Gary as "Bailey" while talking with Samurai. The same error appears in Pokémon Stickers series 1 by Artbox, possibly indicating a preliminary name for Gary in the anime's dubbing production.
• This episode marks one of the few times a body part of a Pokémon gets clearly broken, being Samurai's Pinsir's pincers.
• Ash imagining Samurai's Pinsir splitting his Metapod in half is the first of very few instances of a Pokémon dying on-screen.
• This is the only time when the English dub title card contains dialogue unrelated to the episode title, with Ash following the narrator's opening recap by saying, "And now", before reciting the title.

Errors

• During the recap when Caterpie evolves, Ash's eyes are red in color.
• When Samurai first points his sword at Ash, Ash's gloves disappear.
• After Samurai challenges Ash to a match, Pikachu says "Pika?" and his mouth is white instead of the usual pink.
• Right before Ash and Samurai battle, Pikachu says his name but his mouth doesn't move.
• As mentioned above, Samurai's Pinsir uses Tackle in this episode, a move it is normally incapable of learning.
• When the two Metapod are battling, the day progresses from morning to evening as shown by their shadows. In the next shot, the sun is still overhead at 90 degrees, which is possible only in afternoon. This is an example of animation physics.
• The hole a Beedrill makes in the door of the cabin disappears in the next shot.
• When Beedrill removes itself the cabin door, some Beedrill's limbs are colored yellow.
• When Ash sets out the next morning to look for Metapod, Meowth kicks Ash in the head and scratches him. Then, Jessie and James are shown on top of the cliff above him. Ash runs off after they finish reciting their motto, during in which Meowth is still next to him. However, when the camera cuts to Jessie and James jumping off the cliff and running after him, Meowth is shown jumping off with them.
• When Ash's Metapod takes the hit from Beedrill's Twineedle, the center part on Ash's hat is colored white instead of red.
• At the end of the episode, Samurai's sword appears smaller than normal.
  • Also at the end, in one shot Samurai is standing under trees, but the trees disappear in his close-up.
• In the English dub:
  • Many times in this episode, when referring to multiple of a Pokémon, characters add "s" on the end of the name when the plural of a Pokémon is the same as the singular.
  • When Ash, Misty, and Samurai are running away from the Beedrill, Misty's Japanese voice can be heard.
• In the Brazilian dub, when talking with Samurai, Ash refers to Gary as "Scary".

• 

  Ash's eyes

• 

  Ash's missing gloves

• 

  The Beedrill's miscolored limbs

Changes

Dub edits

• Kanto Pokérap: Day 4
• In the original Japanese version, Ash makes an untranslatable pun. Misty says "虫!虫!虫! ...虫!" which means "Bug! Bug! Bug! ...Bug!", and Ash dons a cow costume and says "牛?", meaning "Cow?". In the English dub, Ash just suggests that the bug Misty is cowering over might just be a "Cowterpie".
• The word "Mika" on Jessie's Kakuna disguise is painted out in the dub.
• The narrator talking at the beginning of the episode after the recap was removed in the dub.
• Misty's bikini scene was removed from the Hindi Cartoon Network dub and the HungamaTV re-dub.

Differences between the episode and the comic adaptation

• The Cowterpie joke was cut.
• The scene where Misty first encounters Samurai is cut, leaving Samurai's first appearance to be when he encounters Ash. Similarly, Misty rushing and screaming out for Ash in an attempt to warn him is cut out.
• During the scene where the Metapod are hardening during their battle, only the picture of Pikachu sunbathing is retained, whereas the episode shows both Misty and Pikachu sunbathing.
  • On a related note, the comic has Pikachu briefly saying "Chu..." while lounging, while in the episode, he was completely silent.
• The panel where Misty scolds Samurai and Ash for being "more hardheaded than their Metapods" reuses the panel where Jessie and James knock Meowth off their Beedrill-protection device.
• Meowth scratching Ash (as well as Ash's reaction) is cut from the comic.
• The final scene where Jessie and James end up wearing Kakuna disguises in the comic cuts out the part where they end up being stung as a result of the Kakuna deducing their real identities.

In other languages

Language		Title
Arabic		مغامرة تحدي الساموراي
Bulgarian		Предизвикателството на Самурая
Valencian		El repte del samurai
Chinese	Cantonese	少年武士的挑戰 * 武士少年的挑戰 * 武士少年的挑戰！ *
	Mandarin	武士少年的挑戰！/ 武士少年的挑战！
Czech		Zápas se samurajem
Danish		Samuraiens Udfordring
Dutch		De samoerai-uitdaging
Finnish		Samurain haaste
French	Canada	Le défi du Samouraï
	Europe	Le défi du Samouraï
German		Die Herausforderung
Greek		Η Δοκιμασία του Σαμουράι!
Hebrew		אתגר הסמוראי Etgar ha'Samurai
Hindi		समुराई की चुनौती! Samurai ki Chunauti! * समुराई का चॅलेंज! Samurai ka Challenge! *
Hungarian		A szamuráj
Italian		La sfida del samurai
Norwegian		En samurai utfordrer til kamp
Polish		Wyzwanie samuraja
Portuguese	Brazil	O Desafio do Samurai* Desafio do Samurai*
	Portugal	O Desafio do Samurai
Romanian		Provocarea Samuraiului
Russian		Самурай бросает вызов
Serbian		Самурајски изазов
Spanish	Latin America	¡El desafío del Samurai!
	Spain	El reto del Samurái
Swedish		Samurais utmaning * Samurajens utmaning *
Thai		รับคำท้าจากหนุ่มน้อยซามูไร
Turkish		Samuray'ın Mücadelesi * Samuray'ın Meydan Okuması *
Ukrainian		Виклик Самурая
Vietnamese		Trận đấu của võ sĩ

← EP003 : Ash Catches a Pokémon

Original series

EP005 : Showdown in Pewter City →

This episode article is part of Project Anime, a Bulbapedia project that covers all aspects of Pokémon animation.