SM027

← SM026 : So Long, Sophocles!

Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon

SM028 : Pulling out the Pokémon Base Pepper! →

A Glaring Rivalry!

SM027   EP966 出でよ！紅き眼差しルガルガン！！ Come Forth! Crimson Gaze Lugarugan!!

First broadcast Japan May 18, 2017 United States August 13, 2017* August 19, 2017*

English themes Opening Under The Alolan Sun Ending

Japanese themes Opening アローラ!! Ending ポーズ

Credits Animation Team Kato Screenplay 松井亜弥 Aya Matsui Storyboard 浅田裕二 Yūji Asada Assistant director 浅田裕二 Yūji Asada Animation directors 岩根雅明 Masaaki Iwane 志村泉 Izumi Shimura Additional credits

Screenshots on Filb.de Preview thread on BMGf Closed Original review thread on BMGf Dub review thread on BMGf

A Glaring Rivalry! (Japanese: 出でよ！紅き眼差しルガルガン！！ Come Forth! Crimson Gaze Lugarugan!!) is the 27th episode of Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon, and the 966th episode of the Pokémon animated series. It first aired in Japan on May 18, 2017 and in the United States on August 19, 2017.

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

Blurb

When Lillie’s big brother Gladion arrives on Melemele Island, everyone is excited about the powerful new Trainer in town—particularly Ash, who really wants to battle him! After hearing about Ash’s Z-Ring and his battles against Tapu Koko, Gladion agrees to meet up the next morning.

The battle is just getting started, with Ash’s Rockruff against Gladion’s impressive Lycanroc, when Team Rocket swoops in. Gladion and Lycanroc unleash a new Z-Move to send them blasting off again, and Ash is immediately interested in continuing the island challenge so he can get a Rock-type Z-Crystal!

School is starting, so the battle is postponed—but it seems Ash has a new rival!

Plot

Team Skull Grunts Tupp, Rapp, and Zipp are in an alleyway when Gladion walks past along with his Umbreon. They confront Gladion, but Gladion keeps on walking and demand that he leave his Umbreon with them. They send out their Pokémon to battle as Gladion sends out his Lycanroc. Team Skull orders their Pokémon to attack, but Lycanroc knocks them all out with one move. They recall their Pokémon and retreat as Gladion recalls Lycanroc. Team Rocket witnessed his battle and realizing how powerful his Lycanroc is decide to steal it. Outside Professor Kukui's house, Ash is training with his Pokémon with Rockruff battling against Rowlet. After a battle, Ash tells Rockruff to take a break and has Litten come into battle, only for Rockruff to jump over Litten to hit Rowlet. Seeing that Rockruff is fired up to battle, Ash has Rowlet take a break. Soon, Ash decides to end the battle, and Rockruff rubs Ash affectionately as they head to school.

During their lunch break, Ash and his classmates watch their Pokémon play in the classroom having formed a train. They discuss reports which include the trainer having a Midnight Form Lycanroc and an Umbreon. Ash says he would love to battle that trainer, and hopes it will happen someday. In town, Gladion is battling against a Sailor and his Blastoise, where despite a type disadvantage, Lycanroc is holding its own. Nearby, Ash is doing some shopping before noticing the battle and they go down for a closer look. They arrive and watch as Lycanroc knocks Blastoise out. Rotom tells Ash that as Gladion has Lycanroc and Umbreon, he must be the mysterious trainer. Ash runs over to Gladion as he recalls Lycanroc and introduces himself as someone calls Gladion's name. They both look and see Lillie arrive with Snowy and Hobbes. Lillie runs over to Gladion, revealing him to be her older brother.

Gladion sees that Lillie can touch Pokémon, which he is glad to see. Lillie introduces him to Snowy, and Hobbes tells Gladion that she has been raising Snowy since it was an egg. Gladion tells Lillie to take care of Snowy and goes to leave but Hobbes asks him to come with them to the mansion. Gladion declines as Ash tries to get Gladion to have a battle. Gladion notices Ash's Z-Ring and learns that he got it from Tapu Koko. Gladion tells Ash that he'll consider having a battle and leaves as Ash tells him that he is staying at Professor Kukui's house. Later at Lillie's mansion, Lillie tells Ash that Gladion left home having wanted to train by himself and Hobbes says that Gladion wanted to improve on his battling skills. Lillie notes that Gladion has changed. Hobbes remembers when Gladion had brought an injured Eevee home, he helped take it to Nurse Joy.

That night, Ash has told Professor Kukui about his encounter with Gladion. Rockruff is becoming more active and Professor Kukui guesses that Rockruff has become a fan of the Lycanroc. Later, everyone has fallen asleep but Pikachu is awoken by knocking and looks up to see Umbreon on top of the roof. Pikachu wakes Ash up and points to the window where Umbreon drops a note which Ash reads and becomes excited as Rotom asks what it is about. Jessie leads her teammates along the beach and notice Gladion and Umbreon and recognize him from before. They watch as Ash arrives and meets up with Gladion who informs him that he asked him here to test his battling skills. Team Rocket looks on as Gladion has a battle with Ash who chooses Rockruff as Gladion sends out Lycanroc. Jessie gets an idea to use this opportunity to catch Lycanroc and Pikachu. The battle begins with Rockruff using Bite. Rockruff hits Lycanroc before being thrown away. Rock Throw is countered by Lycanroc's Stone Edge which hits Rockruff.

As Rockruff gets up, ready to battle, Team Rocket fire two nets that capture Lycanroc and Pikachu. As Gladion asks who they are, they recite their motto as Ash demands they give them back their Pokémon. Team Rocket drives off in a truck as Ash, Gladion, and Rockruff chase after them. Gladion has Umbreon use Dark Pulse which flattens a tire, sending the truck out of control as Rockruff frees Pikachu and Lycanroc. Jessie isn't happy at them getting away and is confronted by Pikachu and Lycanroc. Gladion decides to deal with Team Rocket and they power up to use Continental Crush. Lycanroc hits them with Continental Crush which sends them blasting off only for Bewear to push itself into the air using the trees and catches them and takes them back to its den. Amazed, Ash tells Gladion that he wants to try a Rock-type Z-Move.

After learning that Ash doesn't have the Rock-type Z-Crystal, Gladion tells him to go to Akala Island and pass its grand trial. As they go to finish their battle, Lillie arrives and Rotom reminds Ash that it is nearly time for School as Ash realizes how late it is as Gladion tells them they'll have to finish it later and he finds it difficult with Lillie watching. Ash agrees. Gladion leaves as Lillie comes over to Ash, asking where Gladion is, only to learn that he has left and she was hoping to force him to come home for one day.

Major events

• Ash meets Gladion, Lillie's older brother, for the first time.
• Ash has a battle with Gladion, but it is interrupted by Team Rocket.
• Team Rocket meets Gladion for the first time.
• Ash learns that he can get a Rockium Z from the island kahuna of Akala Island.

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

Debuts

Humans

• Gladion (in person)

Pokémon debuts

• Gladion's Umbreon
• Gladion's Lycanroc

Characters

Humans

Dare da?

• Ash
• Lana
• Kiawe
• Lillie
• Sophocles
• Mallow
• Jessie
• James
• Professor Kukui
• Gladion
• Lusamine (picture)
• Hobbes
• Team Skull Grunts
  • Tupp
  • Rapp
  • Zipp
• Sailor
• Citizens

Pokémon

Who's That Pokémon?

Who's That Pokémon?: Lycanroc (Midnight Form)

• Pikachu (Ash's)
• Meowth (Team Rocket)
• Wobbuffet (Jessie's)
• Rotom (Rotom Pokédex)
• Rowlet (Ash's)
• Rockruff (Ash's)
• Litten (Ash's)
• Popplio (Lana's)
• Turtonator (Kiawe's)
• Vulpix (Lillie's; Alolan form; Snowy)
• Togedemaru (Sophocles's)
• Charjabug (Sophocles's)
• Steenee (Mallow's)
• Eevee (Gladion's; flashback)
• Umbreon (Gladion's)
• Lycanroc (Gladion's; Midnight Form)
• Cleffa (Lusamine's; picture)
• Lillipup (Lusamine's; picture)
• Lilligant (Lusamine's; picture)
• Salandit (Tupp's)
• Zubat (Rapp's)
• Garbodor (Zipp's)
• Blastoise (Sailor's)
• Abra (Trainer's; ×3)
• Eevee (Trainer's; ×2)
• Elekid (Trainer's)
• Electabuzz (Trainer's; ×2)
• Growlithe (Trainer's; ×2)
• Happiny (Trainer's)
• Herdier (Trainer's)
• Machop (Trainer's; ×3)
• Makuhita (Trainer's; ×5)
• Psyduck (Trainer's)
• Riolu (Trainer's; ×2)
• Sableye (Trainer's)
• Smeargle (Trainer's)
• Lillipup (Trainer's)
• Bewear (anime)
• Butterfree
• Wimpod

Trivia

• Poké Problem: Whose older brother appears in this episode?
  • Host: Rotom
  • Choices: Lillie, Kiawe, Mallow, Sophocles
  • Answer: Lillie
• The English dub was released on the iTunes Store on August 13, 2017, six days before the episode aired in the United States, due to an all-day marathon of DuckTales on August 12, 2017.
• Kiawe, Ash, Rotom, and a Scyther narrate the preview for the next episode.
• This is the first time an Umbreon uses a Dark-type move in the anime.
• This is the first time in the anime a Pokémon is seen being kept in an Ultra Ball.
• At one point in the dub, James says "Riddle me this", a common catchphrase associated with The Riddler from the Batman franchise. A previous episode had its English dub title based on this catchphrase.

Errors

Ash's blue shirt

• Briefly after the Sailor's Blastoise stands up in the fountain, its jaw is miscolored blue.
• When Ash hugs his Rockruff at night, his shirt is miscolored blue.
• While Gladion is performing his Z-Move pose, his shirt is briefly drawn without a sleeve.
• In the Brazilian Portuguese dub:
  • During the training scene, Ash orders Rowlet to dodge instead of Rockruff. This also occurs in the Polish dub.
  • When Ash is talking with his classmates about Gladion's Lycanroc, his Latin American Spanish voice can be heard.

Dub edits

• When Lillie first calls out to Gladion, she calls him by name in the dub, but in the original, she calls him "brother".
• The Japanese text depicting Continental Crush's name is edited out in the English dub.

In other languages

Language		Title
Mandarin Chinese		出來吧！目光火紅的鬃岩狼人！！
Danish		En skarp konkurrence!
Dutch		Een scherpe concurrentie!
Finnish		Kilpahenkeä ensisilmäyksellä!* Kilpailuhenkeä ensisilmäyksellä!*
European French		Un regard qui défie !
German		Eine funkelnde Rivalität!
Hebrew		!מבט של יריבות
Hindi		एक ज़बरदस्त मुक़ाबला! Ek Zabardast Muqabla!
Italian		Una rivalità lampante!
Korean		나와라! 붉은 눈빛 루가루암!!
Norwegian		En skarp konkurranse!
Polish		Oko w oko z rywalem!
Portuguese	Brazil	Uma rivalidade de olhares!
	Portugal	Uma rivalidade fulgurante!
Russian		Свирепое cоперничество!
Spanish	Latin America	¡Una deslumbrante rivalidad!
	Spain	¡Un rival de mirada penetrante!
Swedish		En Ny Rival
Thai		จงออกมา! ลูกาลูกัน ผู้มีดวงตาสีชาด!!
Turkish		Göz Alıcı Rekabet!

← SM026 : So Long, Sophocles!

Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon

SM028 : Pulling out the Pokémon Base Pepper! →

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