DP186

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Familiarity Breeds Strategy!

DP186

EP652

ライバル決戦！サトシ対シンジ！！
Rival Decisive Battle! Satoshi VS Shinji!!

First broadcast

Japan	August 5, 2010
United States	December 18, 2010

English themes

Opening	We Will Carry On!
Ending

Japanese themes

Opening	「サイコー・エブリディ！」（ＢＡＮＤ　ＶＥＲＳＩＯＮ）
Ending	君の胸にＬａＬａＬａ

Credits

No additional credits are available at this time.
Animation	Team Kato
Screenplay	冨岡淳広 Atsuhiro Tomioka
Storyboard	金崎貴臣 Takaomi Kanasaki
Assistant director	うえだしげる Shigeru Ueda
Animation director	緒方厚 Atsushi Ogata

Screenshots on Filb.de

Familiarity Breeds Strategy! (Japanese: ライバル決戦！サトシ対シンジ！！ Rival Decisive Battle! Satoshi VS Shinji!!) is the 186th episode of Pokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl, and the 652nd episode of the Pokémon animated series. It first aired in Japan on August 5, 2010 and in the United States on December 18, 2010.

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

Blurb

The first quarterfinal battle of the Sinnoh League at Lily Of The Valley Island has Ash pitted against his rival Paul. This round is a full battle, with each side using a full party of six Pokémon. As Ash switches out his first three Pokémon—Pikachu, Infernape, and Staraptor—there’s something quite familiar about it to Paul. In fact, Ash appears to be using the same Pokémon team he used in their first full battle at Lake Acuity! Paul begins the battle with Aggron, then Gastrodon, and brings his Drapion out after the first two are quickly defeated.

Watching the battle on television, Paul’s brother Reggie notices that Paul is well aware of Ash’s strategies. Reggie is convinced that Paul allowed Ash to take the first two wins as part of his overall plan!

After Ash switches Staraptor out for Buizel, Drapion catches Buizel in its pincer tail! We leave the scene with Ash screaming at Buizel to “get out of there!”—and as the action gets more and more intense, we have no choice but to wonder how this incredible match will ultimately play out!

Plot

Determined to settle their long-standing rivalry once and for all, Ash and Paul are set to face off in the first quarterfinals showdown of the Lily of the Valley Conference. Ash decides to begin with Pikachu, and Paul orders out his first Pokémon, Aggron.

Prior to the match, Ash gets some last-minute training with Gliscor, who recently returned from its training session with Air Battle Master McCann. Gliscor practices Giga Impact in a session against Dawn's Mamoswine while Barry watches on. Reflecting on his Full Battle against Paul at Lake Acuity, Ash remarks that Paul takes everything he has learned in battle and uses it to his advantage. Barry claims Ash does the same thing, but Ash replies that he still needs to look at everything he has been through while on his journey. Barry asks if he figured it out, but Ash says that he will just have to wait until the battle, much to Barry's frustration.

Meanwhile, Paul talks to his older brother Reggie via videophone about his upcoming battle with Ash. Dawn enters the Pokémon Center lobby looking for her friends, but she quickly ducks out of sight. Reggie regrets not being able to be there, but Paul understands that he cannot just drop his work responsibilities. Reggie asks Paul if he wants to reconsider which Pokémon he'll be taking into the match, but Paul confirms he's satisfied with his lineup. Reggie notes how glad he is that Paul met Ash, as he knows that no other trainer has influenced his brother as much. Reggie then advises Paul to not underestimate Ash but to power through the battle and win. Paul thanks Reggie and ends the call, then discovers Dawn eavesdropping. As they walk outside, Paul confesses his main problem with Ash - his talk about bringing out a Pokémon's inner strength and how any Pokémon has the potential to be strong reminds him a lot of Reggie. Dawn points out to Paul that Ash and Reggie are different people. Everyone soon meets outside. Paul then prepares to leave, but abruptly stops when Dawn utters Cynthia's quote back at Amity Square, "When every life meets another life, something will be born". She is left wondering what that "something" might be but hopes the quarterfinals might shed some light. Paul tells Ash that he will see him on the battlefield to which Ash agrees.

Returning to the present, Paul begins by having Aggron use Metal Claw, and Ash has Pikachu counter with Iron Tail. Though the two Steel-type moves cancel each other out. Paul then tells Aggron to use Metal Sound, a high-frequency that lowers Pikachu’s special defense. Ash instructs Pikachu to use Thunderbolt to stop Aggron's attack, and Pikachu manages to pull it off, stopping Aggron as well as causing a little damage. Pikachu then uses Volt Tackle, speeding towards Aggron. Paul counters with Aggron's Flash Cannon, hitting Pikachu and sending him flying, rolling back onto his feet. Ash knows Pikachu is struggling and decides to substitute him with Infernape. Cynthia recognizes Infernape as the Chimchar she once battled, while Team Rocket is excited to see Infernape battle, having had a soft spot for him since the Hearthome City Tag Battle Competition. Paul tells Aggron to use Double-Edge while Ash tells Infernape to counter with Flare Blitz. The two powerful and dangerous attacks collide, and Infernape suffers from the recoil. However, Aggron has the Rock Head Ability, which cancels out recoil damage. Luckily for Ash, Aggron ends up with a burn from Infernape's Flare Blitz. Ash then instructs Infernape to use Mach Punch, and Paul orders Aggron to use Flash Cannon, but Infernape lands the fast Mach Punch before Aggron can fire, sending it flying into the wall behind Paul and crushing the surface on impact. The dust clears to reveal Aggron unable to battle, giving Ash the lead.

Paul recalls Aggron and sends out Gastrodon. Ash, knowing a Water and Ground-type like Gastrodon has a huge advantage over a Fire-type, calls Infernape back and sends out Staraptor. Gastrodon begins with Muddy Water and Staraptor uses Quick Attack and connects. Surprisingly, Gastrodon continues using Muddy Water, circling its head above its body to create a Counter Shield, a technique adapted from Ash, and clips Staraptor. Ash instructs Staraptor to dive down and use Aerial Ace, though Gastrodon counterattacks with Body Slam, pinning Staraptor to the field with its soft body. Gastrodon uses Water Pulse aimed at the sky, and the move picks up speed as it descends. Ash realizes that Gastrodon will jump away at the last second, giving no time for Staraptor to dodge it. Just when all seems lost, Ash has Staraptor use Close Combat on the battlefield, lifting the Predator Pokémon up, which knocks Gastrodon off and it escapes the Water Pulse. Paul orders Gastrodon to use Ice Beam, bringing the in-flight Staraptor to a screeching halt and crashing onto the field. Ash decides that he will have to recall Staraptor for later and change his strategy.

Ash sends out Buizel. At this point, Paul points out that what Ash is doing is too predictable now. He knows Ash is just trying to get rid of all the frustration his Pokémon felt from that loss back at Lake Acuity into his advantage here which is why he brought them all back for this battle. Ash states he is correct and that this is what all of his Pokémon want. Gastrodon uses Ice Beam again and Buizel approaches with Aqua Jet, turning it into Ice Aqua Jet. The combination narrowly misses its mark as Gastrodon launches into the air and then goes for a Body Slam. Ash thinks quickly and instructs Buizel to meet the attack with Ice Punch, causing Gastrodon to faint.

Ash settles himself, adjusting his cap, and knows that the hard part of the battle has only just begun. At his home in Veilstone City, Reggie watches the broadcast, wondering if Ash has figured out that Paul had planned to sacrifice Aggron and Gastrodon in the beginning all along, and knows that, if not, he will be in trouble. Meanwhile, Paul sends out Drapion and has it use Pin Missile, but Buizel cancels the attack out with a Water Gun Counter Shield. Drapion then uses Cross Poison, which Buizel dodges by sliding behind Drapion. Buizel then launches a Sonic Boom, but Drapion blocks the attack with its tail, before using said tail to reach out and grab Buizel. Drapion then 180s its torso to face the trapped Buizel and prepares to attack. Ash realizes that Drapion has no blind spots, and calls for Buizel to escape Drapion's grasp.

Major events

Ash and Paul begin their Full Battle in the quarterfinals.
Paul is revealed to have obtained a Gastrodon and a Drapion, while his Lairon is revealed to have evolved into an Aggron.

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

Debuts

Pokémon debuts

Gastrodon (East Sea)

Characters

Humans

Pokémon

Trivia

Barry's pose

Oración and music from Pokémon Ranger and the Temple of the Sea and Giratina and the Sky Warrior are used as the background music in this episode.
After seeing Ash's Gliscor fight Dawn's Mamoswine, Barry does a pose similar to the pose of Gligarman from The Superhero Secret.
The episode's English dub title is a reference to the idiom "familiarity breeds contempt".

Errors

In the original Japanese version, when Aggron uses Metal Sound on Pikachu, Brock says that Metal Sound lowers an opponent's Defense, although it actually lowers Special Defense. This is corrected in the English dub.
When Buizel is preparing his Ice Aqua Jet, his mouth is orange instead of tan.
When Buizel is in his Ice Aqua Jet, the two stripes on his back are missing.
When Buizel hits Gastrodon with Ice Punch, the lower part of Gastrodon's mouth is green instead of blue.
After Gastrodon is knocked out, the middle part of its head is colored the same as the lower half of its body.

Buizel's mouth error
Buizel's missing stripes
Gastrodon's mouth error
Gastrodon's head error

Dub edits

In the English dub, Ash says his upcoming battle with Paul reminds him of the battle at Lake Acuity, and confidently claims to have the whole thing figured out. In the original Japanese version, his reaction is considerably different, noting that he is nervous about the battle, and that his nervousness reminds him of how he felt during the battle at Lake Acuity.
In the English dub, Dawn says Piplup looks handsome in his cheerleading outfit. In the original Japanese version, she says that he looks cool.
In the English dub, Paul tells Dawn that he doesn't like Ash, as he always talks about friendship and trust like his brother Reggie always does. In the original Japanese version, Paul says that he used to dislike Ash, indicating that he has grown to respect Ash.
In the original Japanese version, Ash can be heard calling out Infernape to battle. Due to there being no eyecatches, this line is absent from the English dub.
In the original Japanese version, Paul is unsurprised when Ash has Staraptor use Close Combat on the ground to free itself, calmly remarking that this is the move Ash came up with. In the English dub, Paul seems to be caught off guard by Ash's command. This creates an inconsistency with the following scene, in which Reggie notes that Paul had prepared Gastrodon's Ice Beam just in case Staraptor escaped.
In the original Japanese version, Paul scoffs at Ash for his decision to use the same team he used at Lake Acuity, calling him unbelievable. In the English dub, Paul insults Ash by calling him "pathetic and predictable".
In the original Japanese version, when Ash is telling Buizel to get quickly out of Drapion's grasp, there is an echo effect, which is removed in the English dub.

In other languages

Language		Title
Mandarin Chinese		宿敵決戰！小智對真司！！
Danish		Deja-vu!
Dutch		Vertrouwdheid brengt strategie voort!
Finnish		Tuttuus tietää tappiota!
European French		Stratégie à six !
German		Ash gegen Paul
Indonesian		Pertarungan Antar Saingan! Satoshi Melawan Paul!!
Italian		Scontro tra vecchie conoscenze!
Korean		사상 최강의 라이벌 대결! 지우 VS 진철
Norwegian		Fortrolighet avler strategi!
Polish		Rozpracujmy przeciwnika!
Portuguese	Brazil	Uma Estratégia Conhecida!
Portuguese	Portugal	O Início do Fim!
Russian		Стратегия строится на знании!
Spanish	Latin America	¡La estrategia del conocimiento de razas!
Spanish	Spain	¡El conocimiento genera estrategia!
Swedish		Förtrolighet förädlar strategi!