BW023 (unaired)

This article is about an episode of the Pokémon animated series that has not yet aired anywhere in the world. As such, it is a reflection of what is currently known about the episode, rather than coverage of the episode as a whole.

← BW022 : A Venipede Stampede!

Best Wishes series

BW024 (unaired) →

ロケット団ＶＳプラズマ団！（前編）

Rocket-dan VS Plasma-dan! (Part 1)

First broadcast Japan Skipped United States Skipped

English themes Opening Black and White Ending

Japanese themes Opening ベストウイッシュ！ Ending 心のファンファーレ

Credits Animation Team Kato Screenplay 冨岡淳広 Atsuhiro Tomioka Storyboard 古賀一臣 Kazuomi Koga Assistant director 古賀一臣 Kazuomi Koga Animation director 夏目久仁彦 Kunihiko Natsume No additional credits are available at this time.

(Japanese: ロケット団ＶＳプラズマ団！（前編） Rocket-dan VS Plasma-dan! (Part 1)) was intended to be the 23rd episode of the Best Wishes series, and the 680th episode of the Pokémon anime.

This episode was originally scheduled to air in Japan on March 17, 2011, but was postponed, along with the original BW024, indefinitely due to similarities to the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami and the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster. As of Team Plasma's Pokémon Power Plot!, its events have been removed from continuity. Despite this, TV Tokyo said in 2011 that it will someday air, but the statement has not ever changed since then.

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

Plot

Giovanni arrives in Unova to oversee the collection of the Meteonite from the Relic Castle in the Desert Resort. Meanwhile, Ash, Iris and Cilan travel to the Desert Resort with Professor Juniper and Officer Jenny to investigate why a swarm of Venipede attacked Castelia City in the previous episode. However, their helicopter is shot down by a Liepard owned by three members of a mysterious organization, who also express interest in the Meteonite and want to obtain it for their own mysterious purposes. Sensing danger, Officer Jenny tells Ash's group to make their way back to Castelia City, but they get sidetracked by a persistent nemesis looking to settle things with Pikachu, the battle leaving Pikachu in a bad state.

After collecting the Meteonite, Giovanni and the rest of Team Rocket return to Castelia City and crash a masquerade party held for the most elite people of Unova. Looker appears, picks up Ash's group along with Juniper and Jenny and helps them infiltrate the party, at which Giovanni is set to demonstrate the Meteonite's power to the guests and ransom total control of the Unova region. However, the Meteonite's active energy causes Pikachu to fall ill and lose control of its own electric power.

Major events

Debuts

• Team Plasma

Pokémon debuts

• Liepard

Characters

Humans

• Ash
• Iris
• Cilan
• Jessie
• James
• Giovanni
• Officer Jenny
• Looker
• Professor Juniper
• Pierce
• Dr. Zager

Pokémon

• Pikachu (Ash's)
• Meowth (Team Rocket)
• Axew (Iris's)
• Krokorok (sunglasses)

Trivia

• This and the next episode are the only Best Wishes series episodes that were skipped.
• Unlike the only other skipped episode in Japan, this two-parter was supposed to be important to the overall storyline instead of being a stand-alone episode.
• Despite the episode being pulled from the air, the preview for it remains attached to the previous episode during reruns in Japan.
  • Aditionally, while the first edition of the Japanese rental DVD with this episode on it replaced the preview for one of the episode that actually followed, the original preview for the skipped episode was reinstated in subsequent printings.
• Had this episode aired in time, it would have marked the anime debuts of Team Plasma and Liepard and the return of Looker.
  • Due to Team Plasma's debut being delayed, the Plasma Grunts were never actually shown in their original outfits in the anime, which they were supposed to wear in this episode. When they eventually debuted in Team Plasma's Pokémon Power Plot!, they were seen using their new outfits.
• In BW030, Professor Oak's Pokémon Live Caster showed a brief scene from this episode which revealed the Sunglasses Krokorok was to have appeared.
• Scenes highly resembling the scenes seen in this two-parted episode's previews were later used in Meloetta and the Undersea Temple! during Team Rocket's Operation Tempest.
  • In addition, an updated design of the Meteonite's chamber in the Relic Castle is used as the Golden Dark Stone's chamber in Explorers of the Hero's Ruin! and as the Light Stone's chamber in Ash and N: A Clash of Ideals!.

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  Original

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  Original

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  Original

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  Operation Tempest

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  Operation Tempest

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  Operation Tempest

Dub edits

• According to Tom Wayland, this episode and the next one were sent to The Pokémon Company International, but the dubbing was not completed before the episodes were delayed.

References

← BW022 : A Venipede Stampede!

Best Wishes series

BW024 (unaired) →

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