SM015: Difference between revisions

Rocking Clawmark Hill!

SM015   EP954 爪あとの丘、イワンコとルガルガン！！ The Clawed Hill, Iwanko and Lugarugan!!

First broadcast Japan February 23, 2017 United States June 24, 2017

English themes Opening Under The Alolan Sun Ending

Japanese themes Opening アローラ!! Ending ポーズ

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 directors 岩根雅明 Masaaki Iwane 志村泉 Izumi Shimura No additional credits are available at this time.

Screenshots on Filb.de Preview thread on BMGf Closed Original review thread on BMGf Dub review thread on BMGf

Rocking Clawmark Hill! (Japanese: 爪あとの丘、イワンコとルガルガン！！ The Clawed Hill, Iwanko and Lugarugan!!) is the 15th episode of the Sun & Moon series, and the 954th episode of the Pokémon anime. It first aired in Japan on February 23, 2017 and in the United States on June 24, 2017.

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

Blurb

Ash and Professor Kukui find the wild Rockruff who lives with them limping home, covered in scratches and burns, completely exhausted. The next night, they follow it to Clawmark Hill, where two Lycanroc keep watch over the wild Pokémon who come together to battle and train. Rockruff battles a fearsome Magmar but is defeated, and Ash offers to help it learn a new move, Rock Throw.

After some serious training with Ash and Pikachu, Rockruff returns to challenge Magmar to a rematch—and this time, it wins! After seeing how well Ash and Rockruff work together, Professor Kukui encourages him to catch it—and both Pikachu and Rockruff enthusiastically agree!

Plot

Returning home one night, Ash, Pikachu, Rotom and Professor Kukui notice that Rockruff is missing. Rockruff soon returns but is injured After examining its injuries, Professor Kukui heals Rockruff with a potion, Ash wonders if Rockruff had gotten into a fight. The next morning, Ash explains the strange happening to his classmates. Ash reveals to their surprise that Rockruff doesn't belong to Professor Kukui and explains what Professor Kukui told him. Sophocles suggests Rockruff could be close to evolving. Rotom provides information on Rockruff's evolved form Lycanroc and its Midday and Midnight Form and informs Ash when Rockruff is close to evolving, it can become more aggressive and independent.

That night, Ash returns home where Rockruff greets Ash happily. Professor Kukui is already home, having been worried about Rockruff and shows Ash the TV where footage from CCTV cameras are visible. Professor Kukui explains he set the cameras up around the room but he is worried about Rockruff going out the door before returning home hours later injured. Ash wonders what Rockruff was doing outside as outside. Ash and Professor Kukui head out leaving Rockruff to guard the house but don't go far and hide behind a bush. Professor Kukui brings up the footage on his phone which shows Rockruff attacking the stuffed toy that he left Rockruff. Professor Kukui is puzzled as this hasn't happened before, and, at that moment, Rockruff leaves the house and they follow it through the forest.

Up ahead, two Lycanroc, one a Midday Form and the other a Midnight Form call out. Many Pokémon respond to the call by coming up, including Rockruff. Ash and Professor Kukui watch from a distance as Ash notices both of the Lycanroc. Professor Kukui explains that this is Clawmark Hill. All the Pokémon gathered watch as the two Lycanroc face off against each other. After a brief battle between the Lycanroc, all of the Pokémon start to test their strength with each other. Ash watches everything and starts to understand the situation. Professor Kukui stops him from going to Rockruff since they need to know about Rockruff's motivation. A Magmar is seen battled several opponents at once before being challenged by Rockruff. Rockruff and Magmar start to battle as Ash watches in horror. As the first continues, Rockruff prepares to launch an attack but is hit by Flamethrower before it can execute a move. The battle continues but Rockruff is soon knocked out.

Magmar celebrates its victory before being challenged by a Pangoro. All of this makes Ash, Rotom and Professor Kukui why Rockruff is coming here. Later, Rockruff is heading home when it comes across Ash and Professor Kukui and greets them happily. Ash tells Rockruff that it was amazing taking on those strong Pokémon and offers to do some training with it so it can learn a new move which Rockruff agrees to do with Pikachu agreeing to help. The next day, down on the beach, Professor Kukui guesses that Rockruff was attempting to learn Rock Throw. Ash starts telling Rockruff to concentrate its power and starts making a few moves which Pikachu imitates and powers up an Electro Ball. Ash and Pikachu start doing a few exercises on the beach and has Rockruff watch Pikachu's movements. Later, Kiawe has Turtonator use Flamethrower on Pikachu which Pikachu dodges as Ash tells Rockruff that all they have to do with Flamethrower.

The training continues as Ash has Rockruff power up to use Rock Throw. Rockruff fires Rock Throw which hits Ash as planned and Ash compliments Rockruff on doing great his classmates comment on it must have hurt. The training continues with Pikachu and Rockruff having a battle where Rockruff is able to hit Pikachu with Rock Throw. That night, Rockruff becomes more active and Professor Kukui realizes that it is time and they make their way back to Clawmark Hill. Ash, Professor Kukui, Rotom and Pikachu watch from a distance as Rockruff goes over to Magmar to indicate it wants to battle which Magmar accepts. The battle starts with Rockruff managing to dodge Flamethrower. Rockruff manages to attack Magmar but Magmar attacks back and sends Rockruff flying. Rockruff dodges another Flamethrower and gets ready to use Rock Throw, only to be hit by Flamethrower. Rockruff doesn't give up and runs towards Magmar who runs towards Rockruff and after a few more hits, Magmar is defeated.

Down on the beach, Professor Kukui suggests to Ash that this could be a good time for him to catch Rockruff. Professor Kukui says Rockruff has more trust in Ash than anyone else as thanks to Ash, Rockruff was able to master Rock Throw which makes him the perfect choice. With Pikachu and Rockruff both agreeing, Ash gets out a Poké Ball and catches Rockruff. Ash calls Rockruff back out and continue with their training calling it part 2 which confuses Rotom as it is the same as part 1 which Professor Kukui says is just Ash's style and they both join them.

Major events

• Rockruff is revealed to not be Professor Kukui's Pokémon, but a wild Pokémon that he takes care of.
• Rockruff is revealed to know Tackle and Bite and learns Rock Throw.
• Ash catches Rockruff.

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

Debuts

Pokémon debuts

• Lycanroc (Midday and Midnight Form)

Characters

Humans

Dare da?

• Ash
• Lana
• Kiawe
• Lillie
• Sophocles
• Mallow
• Professor Kukui

Pokémon

Who's That Pokémon?

Who's That Pokémon?: Lycanroc (Midday Form)

• Pikachu (Ash's)
• Rotom (Rotom Pokédex)
• Rowlet (Ash's)
• Rockruff (Ash's; new)
• Popplio (Lana's)
• Turtonator (Kiawe's)
• Togedemaru (Sophocles's)
• Bounsweet (Mallow's)
• Komala (Samson Oak's)
• Shellder
• Magikarp (×3)
• Lycanroc (×2; Midday and Midnight Form; debut)
• Sudowoodo (×2)
• Boldore (×2)
• Mankey (×2)
• Primeape (×2)
• Hariyama (×2)
• Machoke (×2)
• Golduck (×2)
• Raticate (Alola Form; ×2)
• Fearow (×2)
• Braviary (×2)
• Machop (×2)
• Sableye (×2)
• Spinda
• Pangoro (×2)
• Magmar (×2)
• Vullaby (×2)

Trivia

• Pokémon QR Code: Rockruff
• Poké Problem: Which new Pokémon will Ash catch in today's episode?
  • Host: Professor Kukui
  • Choices: Pikipek, Litten, Grubbin, Rockruff
  • Answer: Rockruff
• Jessie, James, Meowth, and Ash's Pikachu narrate the preview for the next episode.
• Alola!! is used as an insert song during this episode.
• When the English dub was released on the iTunes Store on June 25, 2017, the episode was erroneously mislabeled using the title and description of the following episode, They Might Not Be Giants!.
• Ash, Professor Kukui and Rotom do the Who's That Pokémon? in the dub.

Errors

• After Midnight Lycanroc uses Counter on Midday Lycanroc, in the next shot, Midnight Lycanroc's front rocky mane was painted red instead of brown.
• In the Swedish Who's That Pokémon segment it's stated that it's a Midnight Form Lycanroc instead of a Midday Form Lycanroc.

Dub edits

• The Dutch dub did not specify which form Lycanroc is in the Who's That Pokémon segment.
• In the Swedish dub, when Ash holds his Poké Ball towards Rockruff before Rockruff jumps into it, Ash can be heard whispering kom igen.

In other languages

Language		Title
Mandarin Chinese		爪印之丘，岩狗狗與鬃岩狼人！！
Danish		Det rocker på Clawmark Hill!
Dutch		Rocken op de Clawmarkberg!
Finnish		Clawmark-kukkulan kuhinat!
European French		Sur le plateau des griffes!
German		Aufruhr am Klauenhügel!
Italian		Volontà di pietra!
Norwegian		Kongen på Clawmark Hill!
Polish		Co się wydarzyło na Wzgórzu Szponu?
Portuguese	Brazil	Agitos na Colina da Marca de Garra!
	Portugal	Agitar a Colina das Garras!
Russian		Встряска в Кломарк-Хилле!
Spanish	Latin America	¡Rockeando en la Colina Clawmark!
	Spain	¡Combatiendo en la Colina Huellazarpas!
Swedish		En Stenhård Utmaning!
Thai		เนินเขาแห่งกรงเล็บ อิวังโคกับลูกาลูกัน!!

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