EP002: Difference between revisions

Pokémon Emergency!

EP002   たいけつ！ポケモンセンター！ Showdown! Pokémon Center!

First broadcast Japan April 8, 1997 United States September 9, 1998

English themes Opening Pokémon Theme Ending

Japanese themes Opening めざせポケモンマスター Ending ひゃくごじゅういち

Credits Animation Team Ota Screenplay 首藤剛志 Takeshi Shudō Storyboard 鈴木敏明 Toshiaki Suzuki Assistant director 井上修 Osamu Inoue Animation director 藤田宗克 Munekatsu Fujita Additional credits

Screenshots on Bulbagarden Archives

Pokémon Emergency! (Japanese: たいけつ！ポケモンセンター！ Showdown! Pokémon Center!) is the second episode of the Pokémon anime. It was first broadcast in Japan on April 8, 1997 and in the United States on September 9, 1998.

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

Synopsis

After battling with the Spearow, Pikachu was badly injured. Ash was told by Misty about a place where he could take Pikachu to be healed, a Pokémon Center. They go to the Viridian City Pokémon Center to be healed. When he enters the town, Ash is stopped by Officer Jenny, who found him suspicious, due to the fact he was carrying Pikachu in his arms and not a Poké Ball, but Ash confirms his identity with his Pokédex. Jenny rushes Ash to the Pokémon Center. Misty enters in the Pokémon Center with her destroyed bike, angry because it was Ash's Pikachu that destroyed it. Ash explains that Pikachu was injured badly, and Misty forgot about her bike and instead thought of Pikachu. As Pikachu is treated, Ash feels crestfallen and calls home. His mother tries to encourage him, but he still feels downtrodden. He is then called by Professor Oak who is surprised that he reached Viridian so soon. Ash then tells him about the golden colored flying Pokémon he saw earlier (in the last episode). Oak feels that he is lying because many trainers have never seen that Pokémon even after they searched for it during their whole life. They then exchange good wishes and hung up.

Meanwhile, two "wanted" posters are revealed, showing the pictures of two "Most Wanted Criminals", Jessie and James of Team Rocket. The two trouble makers spot the posters and swear vengeance on Viridian for putting up wanted posters of them. Their ally Meowth is then revealed to be their Pokémon.

While Pikachu is being treated, Team Rocket attack the Pokémon Center with the intent of stealing the Pokémon inside. The Center's Nurse Joy tries to transfer all the Pokémon to the safety of the Pewter City Pokémon Center because it is an emergency. Team Rocket use their Ekans and Koffing to wreak havoc in the Center. However, just then Pikachu somehow manages to revive itself and along with the other Pikachu from the Center's back-up power generator, ThunderShock Team Rocket away.

Officer Jenny arrives too late as Team Rocket manage to escape in their Meowth shaped balloon. They agree that Pikachu would make a great gift for their boss and decide to steal it when the chance comes.

Ash leaves Viridian City and heads for the Viridian Forest with a revived relation with Pikachu and Misty in tow. Spotting a Caterpie, he attempts to capture it.

Major events

• Ash visits a Pokémon Center and meets a Nurse Joy and an Officer Jenny for the first time.
• Ash encounters Jessie and James, two members of the villainous Team Rocket and their partner, a talking Meowth.
• Misty introduces herself in this episode and decides to follow Ash until he repays her.
• Team Rocket also decide to follow Ash and steal his Pikachu.

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

Debuts

Humans

• Team Rocket
  • Jessie
  • James
• Officer Jenny
• Nurse Joy

Pokémon debuts

• Meowth (Team Rocket)
• Koffing (James's)
• Ekans (Jessie's)
• Goldeen (Misty's)
• Chansey (Nurse Joy's)
• Caterpie

Characters

Humans

• Ash
• Misty
• Nurse Joy
• Officer Jenny
• Jessie
• James
• Delia (on the phone)
• Professor Oak (on the phone)

Pokémon

Who's That Pokémon?: Koffing

• Pikachu (Ash's)
• Meowth (Team Rocket; debut)
• Goldeen (Misty's; debut)
• Ekans (Jessie's; debut)
• Koffing (James's; debut)
• Chansey (Nurse Joy's; debut)
• Caterpie (debut)
• Pidgey (at the Pokémon Center) (Voice actor: Yuji Ueda)
• Rattata (at the Pokémon Center)
• Spearow (flashback)
• Ho-Oh (anime; flashback)
• Articuno (engraving)
• Zapdos (engraving)
• Moltres (engraving)
• Arcanine (engraving)

Trivia

• This is the first appearance of Team Rocket.
• This is the only episode in which any of Ash's male relatives are mentioned. Delia mentions that it took his father four days to reach Viridian City from Pallet Town and that Ash is the 'apple' of his eye. Ash's grandfather is also mentioned by her in the Japanese version.
• On the wall at the Pokémon Center, the engravings are of Arcanine, Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres. Ash misidentifies the Ho-Oh he saw in the previous episode as Articuno.
• The Pidgey in the clock is green, instead of its normal color. Though some may consider this to be alternate coloration, this is not how the "shiny" Pidgey appears in the games. This could just be a coloring error, considering this, after all, was only the second episode of the series just like how there was a green Poké Ball at the very first episode.
  • This is the second appearance of a clock with a Pidgey Cuckoo. The first was inside a Voltorb clock Ash had in the previous episode.
  • Instead of Pidgey it says "Partridge."
• The events of this episode are referenced in Two Degrees of Separation! by Team Rocket, who tell Dawn that they have been chasing Pikachu for as long as she'd been alive. Coincidentally, that episode aired in late September in Japan and late April in the US, while this episode aired in early September in the US and early April in Japan.
• Ash's Caterpie officially debuts in this episode, but is not captured until the next one.

Errors

• Just before Team Rocket throws their Poké Balls at the Center from their balloon, Jessie has no lipstick for a split second. Jessie also has no lipstick when their wanted poster is first shown.
• The first two times James is shown in the doorway of the Poké Ball room he isn't wearing a left glove.
• Arcanine is not a legendary Pokémon; however, it was shown on the wall with the legendary bird trio. This is likely due to Arcanine's species, which classifies it as a "Legendary Pokémon" (like Pikachu is a "Mouse Pokémon").

Dub edits

• While the recap uses the same dialog in the Japanese version, for some reason the dub changes Ash's introductory line:
  • Original: "And I hereby declare to the Pokémon of the world...I will be a Pokémon master...Pokémon Master! That is what I'll..."
  • Flashback: "That's right. I declare to the Pokémon of the world...I will be the greatest Pokémon trainer...the greatest Pokémon master...of all time."
• In the Japanese version, Delia says that Ash's grandfather would be proud of him as well as his father.
• Professor Oak abruptly ending his telephone conversation with Ash is different in both versions: in the English version, Oak says that his pizza just arrived, while in the Japanese version, Oak realizes that he is in the middle of cooking ramen.
  • On that same note, the English version included a doorbell sound-effect that wasn't present in the original version.
• Misty introduces herself to Ash, Team Rocket, and the audience during the Pokémon Center battle in the Japanese version, while Nurse Joy reveals Misty's name to the audience at the end of the English version.

In other languages

• Czech: Nemocnice pro Pokémony
• Dutch: Pokémon Noodgeval!
• Finnish: Pokémon hädässä!
• French: Pokémon aux urgences
• German: In letzter Minute
• Hebrew: אש מגיע לורידיאן Ash megia leViridian
• Italian: Emergenza!
• Korean: 대결! 포켓몬스터
• Mandarin: 神奇宝贝中心大决斗
• Polish: Ostry dyżur Pokémon
• Portuguese:
  • Brazilian Portuguese: Emergência Pokémon!
  • European Portuguese: Emergência Pokémon
• Spanish:
  • Iberian Spanish: Emergencia Pokémon
  • Latin American Spanish: ¡Emergencia Pokémon!
• Swedish: Pokémon Nödläge!

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