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| A Meteoric Rise to Excellence!
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フカマルとりゅうせいぐん！
Fukamaru and Dragon Meteor Shower!
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First broadcast
| Japan
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December 17, 2009
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| United States
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May 8, 2010
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English themes
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Japanese themes
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Credits
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A Meteoric Rise to Excellence! (Japanese: フカマルとりゅうせいぐん！ Fukamaru and Dragon Meteor Shower!) is the 156th episode of the Diamond & Pearl series, and the 622nd episode of the Pokémon anime. It first aired in Japan on December 17, 2009 and in the United States on May 8, 2010.
Synopsis
While continuing the journey to Daybreak Town, the group witness a display of Draco Meteor, an extremely powerful move only known by Template:Type2 Pokémon. Soon the gang meet Wilma and a powerful Altaria, however it soon emerges that they have been followed by a Gible which is very eager to learn Draco Meteor. Despite some head-biting antics, Ash takes the Land Shark Pokémon under his wing and offers to help him learn the move. Wilma first gives some history about the Gible and the use of the move Draco Meteor. Gible fails to execute the move properly and the meteor crashed down onto Piplup, who is unable to dodge the failed attack. Wilma comments on how much of a failure Guble's attempt was.
Then, out of the blue, Gible decides to bite Ash's head again and Brock comments how it's impossible to tell what Gible's thinking inside due to its unchanging expression. Suddenly, giant boulders begin falling from the sky and send the gan scattering, with Dawn asking, "Is this Draco Meteor?" Wilma responds passively with, "Nope, just plain ol' boulders." In the midst of the confusion, a bubble comes down and traps Altaria, which is suceeded by a claw that picks up the bubble. It is then revealed that team Rocket had come to steal Altaria and had so far suceeded in their attempt. They introduce themselves to Wilma, and then fly off in their balloon while the fallen boulders erupt into colored smoke to seal the getaway after Pikachu's and Piplup's Thunderbolt and Bubblebeam fail to break the bubble trapping Altaria.
Ash and Dawn give pursuit, while Brock is forced to carry Wilma after Team Rocket. Gible, while not invited, follows by way of using Dig. Eventually, Brock gives out from exhaustion and leaves Dawn and Ash to continue the chase, and even they eventually lose the trail. Gible appears and Ash asks Gible to lead them to Team Rocket, since the Land Shark Pokemon knows his way around the forest well. Gible only ends up leading them to a berry bush, so Ash and Dawn continue on without it. Gible seems torn between his snack and his new friends, but the bush wins currently. Coming upon a huge cliff, Ash and Dawn are forced to climb it. Dawn falls off, but sends out her Mamoswine in time to catch herself and Piplup. Ash also falls, but is caught by Gible who is racing up the mountain under the surface. Ash must now go on alone, and thanks Gible for its help. Gible must once again choose whether to continue along or not.
Ash's Staraptor, who had been sent out before reaching the cliff, happens upon Team Rocket's balloon and is captured by a net trap Meowth set up. Nearby, Team Rocket gloats at their success with evading the "twerps" and rolls off in thier new Altaria robot which has Altaris trapped in the stomach area. It continue to use Ice Beam with little success until a use of Flamethrower finally puts a big crack into the prison which knocks the robot down and dazes Team Rocket. Gible, who was somewhere underneath the robot at the time, heard the crash and digs up to find Team Rocket. Meanwhile, Ash finds Staraptor and begins to help it from its trap when Dawn, Brock, and Wilma also appear.
Back with Team Rocket, who continue to berate Altaria for trying to beta its way from the bubble, turn around to find Gible staring at them. Jessie tries to get it to go away by saying, "Hey, if you're bored, go watch TV!" Gible proceeds to bite down on her hair and James, Meowth, and Wobbuffet get into a tussle to help her, but Gible wins and forces them all to the ground. Jessie retaliates by using her Seviper, but Gible proves quick enough to evade and tries Draco Meteor again but fails. Then, a use of Dragon Pulse unnerves Team Rocket, and while Gible seems tired, Seviper goes in for the kill but is stopped by a Thunderbolt. Ash, his friends, and Wilma appear with Pikachu and Piplup leading the group.
James adds Carnivine to the battle to even the odds and Pikachu and Piplup easily tangle Seviper and Carnivine up before Pikachu uses Iron Tail to free Altaria for good. Gible decides to help some more, and it uses Draco Meteor, which finally succeeds and sends Team Rocket blasting off. Everyone is awed by the performance of the first stage Gible, and in celebration, it uses Draco Meteor again, only to have it crash solely into Piplup once more. Back in the forest, Wilma directs Ash and friends towards Daybreak Town, and Ash wonders where Gible had gone. They leave Wilma and Altaria and continue on, but Gible emerges from a nearby bush and sees them going. It appears that Gible is debating whether to follow them or stay in the forest.
Major events
Debuts
Characters
Humans
Pokémon
Trivia
Errors
- When Team Rocket is shown in their mecha, Jessie's earrings appear to be yellow, not their usual green.
Dub edits
