The Princess and the Togepi (Japanese: カスミ登場！トゲピーとまぼろしの王国!!Enter Kasumi! Togepi and the Mirage Kingdom!!) is the 44th episode of the Advanced Generation series, and the 318th episode of the Pokémon anime. It was first broadcast in Japan on September 25, 2003 and in the United States on September 25, 2004.
Spoiler warning: this article may contain major plot or ending details.
Ash and Brock, along with May and Max are walking when Ash and Brock spot a familiar figure. The figure turns out to be none other than Misty, their old traveling buddy! The old friends exchange greetings, and Misty proceeds to tell May and Max that she already knows their names. Misty shows off her invitation to a convention for Togepi Trainers and approaches the hotel behind them. Then, two mysterious people dressed in outfits with Togepi markings come up to Misty and take her into the building. Inside, the two people, who are actually Team Rocket, tell Meowth to take off. The building then collapses and a blimp starts floating away. Ash and his friends realize that Misty is in trouble and rush toward the rope hanging from the blimp. All of them manage to grab the rope and make their way into it.
The blimp goes through a sandstorm in a desert and reaches its destination, the Mirage Kingdom. Meowth lands the blimp in a landing area, and Jessie and James disguise themselves again. As Misty leaves the blimp, Ash and the others come out, as well as Jessie and James. When asked for their identity, Team Rocket gladly recite their motto. Misty becomes furious at them, thinking that they were trying to steal Pikachu. However, Team Rocket tells them that they were actually after Togepi. As the battle commences, a man steps in with his Ninjask and Shedinja.
He demands Togepi, but Misty refuses to hand it over to him. He says that his name is Colonel Hansen. Hansen then orders Shedinja to use SolarBeam to demonstrate its power. Ash and Brock face Hansen with Pikachu and Mudkip, while Misty, Max, and May run. When Hansen notices that the Togepi is getting away, he commands Shedinja to go after them. Misty, Max, and May keep running until they reach a maze. Shedinja appears, freaking Misty out, but she is determined to protect Togepi. She sends out Corsola and orders it to use Spike Cannon. Unfortunately, the attack did not harm the bug Pokémon a bit. Shedinja attacks with another SolarBeam, hitting Misty so hard that she loses Togepi.
A girl in a blue dress discovers Togepi and notices how hurt it is. She informs the caretaker about her find and brings Togepi to a room for treatment. This girl turns out to be Sara, the princess of the Mirage Kingdom. When Sara brings Togepi to her parents, both are thrilled by it. At this point, Misty barges in and sees Togepi. The queen thinks that Misty is trying to steal Togepi, but Sara quickly realizes that Togepi belonged to her. Misty thanks the princess for taking care of Togepi and proceeds to tell them that Hansen tried to steal it from her.
Meanwhile, Hansen states that he has a plan to steal Togepi and tells Team Rocket that they will be rewarded if they help him.
As Misty and company go outside of the temple, Ash and Brock meet up with them. Brock, as usual, goes gaga for the princess and starts flirting with her. Misty, also as usual, pulls him away from her by the ear, but she also throws him back. Max and May are quite shocked by this but they are impressed nevertheless.
The princess explains the importance of Togepi to the kingdom. However, knowing that Hansen is set on trying to take Togepi, she asks Ash and his friends to leave the Mirage Kingdom immediately for their safety. However, as they are about to leave, they notice a temple in the sky. Togepi seems to be reaching for it and then it suddenly floats away. Hansen and Team Rocket appear. Shedinja fires a SolarBeam at them and Pikachu counters it with its Thunderbolt.
Major events
Misty returns and May & Max meet her for the first time.
This episode has the distinction of being one of three featuring the most leads in a single episode. It features May, Max, Togepi, Misty, Brock, Jessie, James, Meowth, and, of course, Ash and Pikachu.
Errors
Shedinja's missing halo
During the shot when Shedinja is floating towards Misty, May, and Max, the silver halo over Shedinja's head is missing.
Close to the end, the same mistake happens again. When Colonel Hansen and Team Rocket attack and Misty refuses to hand Togepi over, Shedinja can be seen without its halo.
At 17:41 Togetic has a flash of a blue triangle right at its lower stomach, which quickly switches back to red after a second.
Finnish
European French
German
Hebrew
Italian
Brazil
Portugal
Latin America
Spain
