Japanese Title: The Strike Soldier's Pride
Original Airdate: May 20th, 1999
US Airdate: April 1st, 2000
Has Tracey's instinct as a trainer gotten the best of him?
The one where... Tracy catches one Badass Grandpa of a Mon.
Ash and Tracey are thrilled when they reach Murcott Island, an island famous for having tons of bug-type Pokémon. Misty must try and overcome her fear of bugs when the trio finds an injured Scyther in need of treatment. Meanwhile, Team Rocket gets into their own battle with a swarm of Scyther, and they come out of it with a whole new look!
Tropes
- Berserk Button: The twerps snicker at Jessie's "new hairdo". She takes it badly.Jessie: You insult my hair? Prepare for trouble!
James: It used to be there but now it's stubble!
Jessie: To protect my head from humiliation! *summons Arbok*
James: Too bad her hair went on vacation! *summons Weezing*
Jessie: My gorgeous hair was my one true love! *summons Lickitung*
James: They went together like a hand and glove! *gets eaten by Victreebel*
Jessie: Jessie!
James: James!
Jessie: Now my hair is short but it won't be for long!
James: And it won't stop our Jessie from doing what's wrong!
Meowth: Hairy! - Call-Back: Upon seeing a bunch of Caterpie, Ash remembers that his first catch was a Caterpie. Unfortunately, Misty doesn't allow him to catch another.Ash: Just one little Caterpie?
- Challenging the Chief: The old leader of a tribe of Scyther is beaten and thrown out. It is taken in by Tracey.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: A literal example in Scyther's case as it manages to effortlessly take on Arbok, Lickitung, Weezing, Victreebel and even Meowth in battle at the same time.
- Graceful Loser: Not at first. For most of the episode Scyther remains embittered both at losing its tribe to a younger Scyther, and being so easily caught by Tracey. After rescuing its old tribe from Team Rocket with the help of the new Scyther leader, it leaves its old tribe on a positive note and happily accepts Tracey as its trainer.
- Identical Twin ID Tag: The new Scyther leader has a yellow cross on its forehead.
- Inconsistent Dub: The English dub has Misty say, in response to Ash saying Venonat and Marill are good to have around, that at least they're not Bug-types.note
- My God, What Have I Done?: Tracey feels bad that he caught Scyther in order to get it to a Pokémon Center for treatment. Catching it in such a condition seriously damaged its pride, especially since it was caught after Venonat put it to sleep rather than actually fighting it.
- Nobody Calls Me "Chicken"!: Tracey makes the mistake of calling Misty "chicken" for being afraid of bug Pokémon.
- Nobody Touches the Hair: One of the Scyther tribe cuts off Jessie's long ponytail, setting her off for the rest of the episode.
- This Is Something He's Got to Do Himself: Ash is all ready to help the Scyther fight off Team Rocket, but Tracey stops him to point out that Scyther needs to prove to itself it can defend its tribe. Ash backs off and only sends Pikachu in for a final thunderbolt when Team Rocket start cheating.
- Victory Pose: Tracey tries to do the victory pose the way Ash usually does when he catches a Pokemon. Ash actually then gives him a tutorial on how to do it properly as the episode closes.
- Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: Misty makes it clear she's not happy about being on an island populated mostly by Bug-types.
