DP061

← DP060 : Journey to the Unown!

Diamond & Pearl series

DP062 : Tanks for the Memories! →

Team Shocker!

DP061   EP529 ポケモンコンテスト！ズイ大会！！ Pokémon Contest! Zui Convention!!

First broadcast Japan December 20, 2007 United States June 14, 2008

English themes Opening We Will Be Heroes Ending

Japanese themes Opening Together (shown in DP060) Ending 君のそばで 〜ヒカリのテーマ〜(Winter Version)

Credits Animation Team Iguchi Screenplay 冨岡淳広 Atsuhiro Tomioka Storyboard 井硲清高 Kiyotaka Itani Assistant director 浅田裕二 Yūji Asada Animation director 岩根雅明 Masaaki Iwane Additional credits

Screenshots on Filb.de

Team Shocker! (Japanese: ポケモンコンテスト！ズイ大会！！ Pokémon Contest! Zui Convention!!) is the 61st episode of Diamond & Pearl series, and the 527th episode of the Pokémon anime. It first aired in Japan on December 20, 2007 along with Journey to the Unown!, and in the United States on June 14, 2008.

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

Synopsis

It is the day before the Solaceon Town Contest, and Ash is attempting to train Turtwig to use Energy Ball, while Kenny and his Breloom watch on. However the training is not going well, and the Energy Ball backfires before taking form, sending Turtwig flying. Kenny comments that while Turtwig is having problems with the forming, it is concentrating hard enough which is half the battle. Ash compliments his Turtwig, knowing they will have to take their time. Meanwhile Dawn is preparing for the contest with her newly-evolved Ambipom, and she is determined to win after failing to pass the appeal rounds in her last contest. Ambipom practices its Swift attack, and creates a dazzling rainbow as a result. After finishing, Dawn gives Ambipom and her other Pokémon some Poffin as her gratitude for their hard work. Brock compliments Ambipom's performance. Dawn tells Brock that after losing the Hearthome Contest, she has decided to ty a different strategy than the one she used during the Double Performance and focus on Ambipom performing its Swift attack over and over. Brock praises Dawn's strategy, and it's clear both she and Ambipom are excited for the contest. Dawn and Ambipom then practice the routine again.

But Dawn isn't the only one preparing, as Jessie (or rather, Jessalina) is also getting ready alongside Dustox. Naturally she has envisioned winning, using James and Meowth's strategy, which worries James and Meowth since they haven't thought actually thought of one. Jessie pulls them up on their obvious nervousness, and they lie and tell her they've thought of one. Jessie and Dustox leave to get ready for the contest, while James and Meowth know their lives won't be worth living if Jessie doesn't win.

The day of the contest has arrived, and the stands are filled with excited people (apart from James and Meowth). Ash tells Pikachu, Piplup, Buneary and Pachirisu to cheer extra loud for Ambipom. Marian shows off the Solaceon Ribbon that the entrants are competing for, with Dawn, Kenny and Jessie all hoping to win it. Contesta, Sukizō and Solaceon's Nurse Joy all give their introductions, and with Johanna and her Glameow watching at home, the contest begins.

Kenny is up first, and has Breloom begin with a Stun Spore. As the stage fills with the Stun Spore, Breloom's coat begins to shine. Kenny then has Breloom use Energy Ball, and after using its tail to send the Energy Ball to the ceiling, Breloom uses Mach Punch on the Energy Ball, making the whole stage and Breloom shine. The crowd is enraptured, and the judges pass their compliments on. Dawn is more determined than ever to do well. In the stands, Ash notices that Piplup is worried for Dawn after seeing how well Kenny has improved.

After a few more performances, it's now Jessie's turn. Jessie sends Dustox out from its Poké Ball and it flies around showing off its shining scales. Jessie tells Dustox to use Whirlwind and when it's does, the audience is astounded to see Jessie lifted off the ground. She floats around for the while, and while the rest of the audience is mesmerized, Ash, Brock, James and Meowth aren't that impressed. Dawn and Kenny are also watching backstage and can't believe what they're seeing. Jessie then finishes the performance by having Dustox use Psybeam, which causes a plume of green smoke. After a few seconds it clears to show Jessie and Dustox having finished their performance in style. The judges are very impressed by Jessie and Dustox being so in sync with each other.

It's finally Dawn's turn, and with her friends cheering in the stands, she starts with having Ambipom use Double Hit, sending shockwaves throughout the contest hall. She then has Ambipom begin its Swift routine. Ambipom, standing on one its arms, starts to spin and release the Swift from its tail. As the stars from Swift hit each other, the rainbow effect is produced even better than before. Zoey is watching from a Pokémon Center but it's clear she's not impressed. Dawn has Ambipom spin faster and faster, and the stars completely consume the stage creating more of the rainbow effect and blocking Ambipom from view. Kenny and Jessie watch from backstage, and neither of them are enjoying the performance. While Ash thinks Dawn is giving an exceptional performance, Brock is worried about Dawn's overuse of Swift. With the judges watching on, Dawn ends the performance to cheers from the crowd.

Backstage, Ash and Brock congratulate Dawn on her performance. It's time to announce who has made it past the appeal rounds into the battle stages. Ambipom is very nervous, but Dawn tells it not to worry but to get ready for the second round. Eventually the faces start popping up, and both Kenny and Jessie (much to James and Meowth's relief) have made it through. The final faces appear on screen, and Dawn is nowhere to be seen. Finally, as the last face is about to appear, Dawn faces an agonizing wait. The final entry is revealed, and it isn't Dawn, meaning that she hasn't made it past the appeal round for the second contest in a row! Ambipom is left terribly sad, and Johanna feels very disappointed for her daughter. No-one is sure what to say to Dawn, but she surprised everyone by putting on a brave face and encourages Kenny to get ready for the battles. After noticing how upset Ambipom is, Dawn gently pats her on the head. Jessie, on the other hand, cannot help but rub Dawn's face in her loss and tries to force her out of the backstage but Dawn, all smiles, tells Jessie she's staying. Ash notices that despite her smile, Dawn is far more disappointed than she's letting on.

Both Kenny and Jessie make it through to the final, and it's Dustox versus Prinplup. Dustox avoids a Drill Peck and hits Prinplup with a Psybeam. Everyone backstage is rooting for Kenny apart from Dawn, who is now feeling very sorry for herself. The battle is hard fought, leading to the time running out and as Dustox is left with the most points, Jessie is declared the winner! Having finally won her first Ribbon, Jessie is delighted and the judges note how relaxed she was in this Contest compared to others. James and Meowth also note how confident Jessie was this time around and with that, the Solaceon Contest draws to a close.

Later that afternoon, Kenny is preparing to leave and tells Dawn he'll see her in the next contest. However, Dawn's confidence has taken a serious blow and she doesn't think she'll attend the next contest. Kenny tells Dawn that he won't let her quit contests, and then after telling Ash to keep working on Turtwig's Energy Ball, bids the gang farewell. Dawn then runs to her room, unsure of what to do now. Dawn returns to her bed in the Pokémon Center, feeling very sorry for herself. Having lost two contests in the row without even making it past the Appeal Rounds despite trying her best, Dawn is no longer sure if she's cut out for contests and after looking at the Ribbon Johanna gave her at the beginning of her journey, cries herself to sleep...

The next day, Ash and Brock are ready to leave Solaceon Town, but Dawn hasn't turned up as she's still fast asleep in bed. Suddenly, the two get a huge surprise, as Zoey turns up to see Dawn. Zoey tells Dawn to get out of bed and asks her for a battle, and to partner with Ambipom based on the previous day's appeal.

On the battlefield, with Zoey using her Glameow, Dawn has Ambipom use Swift in the same way it did before. As Ambipom is covered with the stars, Zoey then points out where Dawn is going wrong... while the move is pretty and impressive the flaw is that Ambipom can no longer be seen. The point of an Appeal is to show off the Pokémon, like Kenny and Jessie did with theirs. Zoey then has Glameow use Iron Tail to smash through the stars, then hits Ambipom with a Shock Wave knocking it back to Dawn.

As Zoey tends to Ambipom, Zoey tells Dawn that the reason she passed on the Solaceon Contest after losing at Hearthome City was because after a loss, she took the chance to recharge, start focusing on what was important and get ready for the next challenge. Zoey also tells Dawn that at the end of the day, Ribbons aren't really that important, and Zoey is also certain she'll see Dawn at the Grand Festival. Dawn is left feeling a lot better after the talk, and now knows she needs to take her time instead of rushing into every contest. With her confidence restored, Dawn then decides to turn this defeat into a chance to learn and the gang set off for Veilstone City, where Ash hopes to compete for his next Gym Badge.

Major events

• Dawn fails to pass the Appeals round for the second consecutive Contest.
• Jessie defeats Kenny in the finals and wins the Solaceon Contest, earning her first ribbon.
• Ash's Turtwig continues to learn Energy Ball.
• Zoey returns to correct Dawn's appeal errors.

Characters

Humans

• Ash
• Brock
• Dawn
• Jessie
• James
• Nurse Joy (from Solaceon Town)
• Zoey
• Kenny
• Johanna
• Marian
• Contesta
• Mr. Sukizo
• Pokémon Coordinators
• Audience

Pokémon

• Pikachu (Ash's)
• Meowth (Team Rocket)
• Piplup (Dawn's)
• Wobbuffet (Jessie's)
• Turtwig (Ash's
• Buneary (Dawn's)
• Pachirisu (Dawn's)
• Ambipom (Dawn's)
• Dustox (Jessie's)
• Glameow (Zoey's)
• Prinplup (Kenny's)
• Breloom (Kenny's)
• Glameow (Johanna's)
• Rattata
• Dunsparce
• Steelix
• Exploud
• Dusclops

Trivia

• Professor Oak's lecture: Bibarel
  • Pokémon senryū: たいぼくを　かじれビーダル　はがいのち Taiboku o, kajire Bīdaru, hagai no chi.
• This is the first official contest that Jessie has ever won. However, she uses another name in her entry, Jessalina.
• This marks the second time that Dawn hasn't made it through the appeals round of a contest.
• This episode marks the third time Dawn has lost a contest (or fourth, if the Alamos Town Contest from The Rise of Darkrai is counted). As a result, she has already equalled the amount of contests lost by May throughout her entire run on the show (not counting Grand Festivals).
• This is the last episode to use By Your Side ~Hikari's Theme~ (Winter Version) as an ending theme well as By Your Side ~Hikari's Theme~ in general.
• An instrumental version of By Your Side ~Hikari's Theme~ is played during Dawn's appeal round. It is present in both the original and the dub.
• Ambipom's performance was similar to May's Skitty's performance in the Hoenn Grand Festival where they kept using the same move over and over again.
• In every contest shown since those in the Kanto region, contestants have been shown to be able to use a different Pokémon for the Appeal and Battle rounds. Despite this, Jessie used Dustox in both rounds.
• Dustox participates in what turns out to be its final contest.
• When James and Meowth were pretending to make a plan for a Contest, the Background Music is from Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team.

Errors

Coloring error

• The black portion of Ash's hat exceeds out of its normal boundaries in one scene.
• The credits started in the middle in the initial dub airing for no apparent reason.

In other languages

• German: Fehler machen klüger!
• Latin American Spanish: ¡Un buen equipo!
• Iberian Spanish: ¡Un equipo de impacto!
• Brazilian Portuguese: Choque de Rivais!
• Dutch: Team Tegenslag!
• Finnish: Yllätyskisa
• Italian: Strategia vincente!
• Polish: Wielkie zaskoczenie
• Czech: Týmový šok!
• Swedish: Lagrysare!
• French: Un numéro trop parfait !

← DP060 : Journey to the Unown!

Diamond & Pearl series

DP062 : Tanks for the Memories! →

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