BW024 (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.

← BW023 (unaired)

Pokémon the Series: Black & White

BW023 : Battling For The Love of Bug-Types! →

ロケット団ＶＳプラズマ団！（後編）

Rocket-dan VS Plasma-dan! (Part 2)

First broadcast Japan Unaired United States Unaired

English themes Opening N/A 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 浅田裕二 Yūji Asada Assistant director 浅田裕二 Yūji Asada Animation director 岩根雅明 Masaaki Iwane No additional credits are available at this time.

(Japanese: ロケット団ＶＳプラズマ団！（後編） Rocket-dan VS Plasma-dan! (Part 2)) was intended to be the 24th episode of Pokémon the Series: Black & White, and the 681st episode of the Pokémon animated series.

This episode was originally scheduled to air in Japan on March 24, 2011, but was postponed, along with the original BW023, indefinitely because of the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami and the Fukushima nuclear disaster. TV Tokyo said in 2011 that it would someday air, but this statement was never updated or clarified and was ultimately removed late in 2018. As of Team Plasma's Pokémon Power Plot!, this episode's events have been removed from continuity.

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

Plot

The mysterious organization attacks Team Rocket's masquerade party in Castelia City, stealing the Meteonite using their own helicopter in the hopes of using its energy to turn Pokémon against their Trainers. Officer Jenny bursts in to arrest the assembled criminals, but Giovanni escapes with Jessie, James, Meowth, Pierce, and Dr. Zager in the confusion, leaving to pursue their rivals. Meanwhile, Ash escapes from his captivity and reunites with his friends, as Pikachu chases after the Meteonite after being connected to it.

The organization brings the Meteonite to the Desert Resort, but are forced to stop at an abandoned airfield when the Meteonite becomes unstable and decide to contact their leader, Ghetsis, for instruction. They are attacked by the Team Rocket trio, and a battle breaks out between the two teams to claim the Meteonite. Ash, Iris, and Cilan meet up with Looker and Professor Juniper, who are chasing the two teams and saw Pikachu heading for the Desert Resort. En route, Professor Juniper explains the Meteonite's history: it was used as an artificial sun by the ancient people living around the Relic Castle following the eruption of a volcano, but eventually became unstable and destroyed the civilization. As Team Rocket and their rival organization battle over the Meteonite, which has melted the latter's helicopter, ascended into the sky, and begun releasing blasts of intense heat, this disaster threatens to occur again, threatening not only the Desert Resort but Castelia City as well.

Pikachu, Ash's group, Looker, and Juniper arrive at the scene of the battle, and both teams attempt to stop Pikachu from attacking the Meteonite. Looker confronts the organization at the core of his mission, finally identifying them as Team Plasma. As the Meteonite grows more and more unstable, Giovanni decides to abort the mission, realizing with Dr. Zager's advice that Team Rocket cannot control it. Ghetsis, likewise, calls Team Plasma off as well, deciding that "the hero" does not need the Meteonite. This gives Ash the opportunity to have Pikachu destroy the Meteonite with a giant, supercharged Electro Ball, though both Team Rocket and Team Plasma escape in the chaos.

In the aftermath, Giovanni returns to Kanto with Dr. Zager and Pierce, satisfied to have learned Team Plasma's identity so he can continue to monitor their activity. He orders that Jessie, James, and Meowth remain in Unova to operate independently. Professor Juniper recovers the Meteonite fragment Team Rocket stole from the Nacrene City museum and plans to return it to Lenora, while Looker departs to continue his pursuit of Team Plasma. With the crisis solved, Ash prepares to face Burgh at the Castelia Gym for his third Unova League Badge.

Major events

• Team Plasma steals the Meteonite from Team Rocket.
• Iris meets Looker for the first time.
• Team Rocket and Team Plasma fight over the Meteonite, threatening to destroy Castelia City in the process.
• Ash and Pikachu destroy the Meteonite.
• Giovanni returns to Kanto with Pierce and Dr. Zager, leaving the Team Rocket trio to operate independently in Unova.
• Professor Juniper recovers the small Meteonite Team Rocket stole from the Nacrene City museum and plans to return it.
• Ash prepares to challenge Burgh.

Debuts

Humans

• Ghetsis

Characters

Humans

• Ash
• Iris
• Cilan
• Jessie
• James
• Giovanni
• Nurse Joy
• Officer Jenny
• Looker
• Professor Juniper
• Pierce
• Dr. Zager
• Burgh
• Ghetsis
• Team Plasma Grunts

Pokémon

• Pikachu (Ash's)
• Meowth (Team Rocket)
• Axew (Iris's)
• Tepig (Ash's)
• Woobat (Jessie's)
• Liepard (Team Plasma Grunt's)
• Yamask (anime)
• Venipede (multiple)
• Reshiram (image)
• Zekrom (image)

Trivia

• This and the previous episode are the only Pokémon the Series: Black & White 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.
• Had this episode aired, it would have marked the debut of Ghetsis (albeit in the shadows), indicating he was planned to appear in the anime with his original design rather than one that appeared in Pokémon Black 2 and White 2. Due to this episode never airing, Ghetsis's original design would not make a proper animated appearance until Pokémon Evolutions a decade later.
• Coincidentally, the 24th episode of Pokémon the Series: XY was also skipped. However, unlike this, it eventually aired.
• The depiction of Team Plasma in these episodes differs significantly from how they would be depicted from their official debut in Team Plasma's Pokémon Power Plot! and onward. While they still want to put Pokémon under mind control, the Team Plasma Grunts in these episodes state their desire is to liberate Pokémon from their Trainers and that they're doing this in service of "the hero." This suggests a different story arc based on the first games of Generation V was planned for the first incarnations of Team Plasma to feature in, but it got scrapped as of the release of the sequels, the anime ending up using the second incarnation of Team Plasma instead.
• The scene with Liepard attacking a skyscraper with Hyper Beam with two Team Plasma Grunts alongside it on a helicopter is reused for the Best Wishes! Season 2: Episode N opening, Be an Arrow! 2013, although it is newly animated rather than taken directly from the episode. The differences are that Aldith and Barret are in the scene (who have their uniforms designs from Pokémon Black 2 and White 2) instead of one Team Plasma Grunt with the original Pokémon Black and White uniform, and the perspective of the shot is different between the two versions.
  • In addition, the shot of Liepard firing Hyper Beam is later recycled for use in Strong Strategy Steals the Show! when Stephan's Liepard uses the move during his Vertress Conference battle against Ash.
• Pikachu becoming supercharged from an external source and using a giant Electro Ball to destroy the Meteonite was recycled as a plot element in Unova's Survival Crisis!, where he absorbed electricity from Thundurus and used it to overwhelm Giovanni and the Reveal Glass.
  • The Relic Castle's backstory as the seat of an ancient civilization that was destroyed with the use of the artifact at its center was also reused for the Abyssal Ruins and the Reveal Glass.
  • Giovanni deciding to abort Team Rocket's mission after being advised by Dr. Zager that they could no longer control the artifact the mission hinged on was also recycled for the Reveal Glass and Meloetta.
• The script of these two unaired episodes surfaced in May 2023, detailing their contents. Notably, the early script for this episode revealed that its original title was Rocket-dan VS. Plasma-dan (Japanese: ロケット団ＶＳプラズマ団) with no exclamation mark or part number designation.

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  Original

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  Be an Arrow! 2013

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  Original

• 

  Strong Strategy Steals the Show!

Dub edits

• According to Tom Wayland, this episode and the previous one were sent to The Pokémon Company International, but they were never dubbed.

References

← BW023 (unaired)

Pokémon the Series: Black & White

BW023 : Battling For The Love of Bug-Types! →

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