Ash and the others finally arrive in Saffron City, eager to begin May's Pokemon Contest. As she mulls over which of her team to use, a few surprises come their way as they not only encounter Lilian, the identical-looking twin of Vivian, but also May's old rival, Harley.
- Aesop Amnesia: May should really know by this point not to trust Harley, no matter how nice he acts.
- Always Identical Twins: Almost. Lilian is a dead ringer for Vivian, but she has a mole on the right side of her cheeks instead of the left side.
- Bait-and-Switch: When May and the others arrive in the contest arena, they spot a woman who looks almost exactly like Vivian commanding an Espeon on the stage. However, something's off about "Vivian", who's dressed in a casual, blue midriff-bearing outfit, and has the mole on the right side of her face instead of the left. All of this sets up that she's actually Lilian, Vivian's sister.
- Dramatic Irony: When Harley tells May her Hoenn pass will be good to use in Kanto, the audience already knows this isn't true, since Jessie had to get a Kanto pass in order to get in.
- Even Evil Has Standards: Harley is a textbook example of Evil Is Petty, but even he can't stomach the idea of Team Rocket stealing all of the other trainers' Pokemon.
- Falsely Reformed Villain: Once again, Harley manages to fool May into thinking he's changed his ways, but he's just getting her to lower her guard so he can get his petty revenge on her.
- Foreshadowing: When May rescues the other trainer's Pokemon from Team Rocket, Lilian takes notice of how good-hearted May is. This is rewarded when May is almost denied entry into the contest due to arriving late for registration and not having a Kanto ID card, and Lilian speaks on her behalf to get her in.
- Gag Haircut: Because James's Cacnea gets stuck inside Jessie's hair, Nurse Joy is forced to use a Scizor to cut it, leaving her hair unnaturally short.
- Remember the New Guy?: Harley is shown to have caught an Ariados offscreen.
- Took a Level in Badass: May's Squirtle learns Ice Beam out of gratitude for May rescuing it.
