"NO DATA! NO DATA! It's not the Midday Forme or the Midnight Forme! It's evolved into an unknown Forme of Lycanroc!"
—RotomDex
Japanese Title: Iwanko and the Guardian Deity of the Ruins of Life!!!
Original Airdate: August 10, 2017
US Airdate: October 28, 2017
The night after the Grand Trial, Rockruff is drawn to the Ruins of Life, the domain of Tapu Lele. There, it is put through a trial of its own. How will it emerge from the Ruins? Will it emerge?
This episode contains examples of the following tropes:
- Adaptation Displacement: Gladion's Type: Null is in a Premier Ball. In the games, it's in a regular Poké Ball.
- Attention Deficit... Ooh, Shiny!: Pikachu and Ash have just found Rockruff. Tapu Lele flies away, sprinkling shiny dust over them. Pikachu is immediately distracted by the shiny dust, waving his arms and squealing happily.
- Big Brother Instinct: Gladion's and Olivia's Lycanroc work together to help Rockruff when it's hurt.
- Pikachu - who is asleep, by the way - immediately hears that Rockruff is running away, puts 2 and 2 together and wakes Ash, all within seconds and then goes with him to find Rockruff.
- The Cameo: Gladion appears only long enough to permit Lycanroc to go off to be part of the plot, but we get rewarded by the premier of Type: Null.
- The Climax: This marks the end of the Akala Story Arc, as the episode ends with the class being boated back to Melemele Island.
- Color-Coded Eyes: There's a good shot of Dusk Lycanroc's new green eyes, to emphasize that original kind, friendly personality has returned. And before that, Rockruff's eyes glowed green during the "green flash" at sunset, right before its evolution.
- Comedic Sociopathy: Tapu Lele beats the stuffing out of Rockruff. And it looks and sounds so cheerful while doing so.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: Tapu Lele beating the crap out of Rockruff.
- When the two Lycanroc bring Rockruff to Tapu Lele to heal it, Tapu Lele responds by using Kiai to shove Midnight Lycanroc into a wall.
- Go Through Me: When Ash, Olivia's Lycanroc, and Gladion's Lycanroc, all try to protect Rockruff, Tapu Lele uses Draining Kiss on all three to knock them out.
- Inelegant Blubbering: Olivia, par for the course by now, is moved to tears by the circumstances of Lycanroc's evolution.
- Single Specimen Species: RotomDex has zero data on Lycanroc's form after its evolution, suggesting that its evolution is of such extraordinary circumstances that it is currently the only one of its kind.
- Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: When they both come across Rockruff, the two Lycanroc initially growl at each other.
- Took a Level in Badass: Rockruff evolves into Dusk Lycanroc.
- What Have I Become?: At one point, Ash finds Rockruff. It struggles and bites Ash, but immediately flashes back to hurting Rowlet in the previous episode, and runs off horrified.
- The World Is Just Awesome: After finally reviving Rockruff using the energy it drained from Ash and the two Lycanroc, Tapu Lele directed Rockruff's attention to the sunset. And this sunset resulted in the "green flash" phenomenon, triggering Rockruff's evolution.
