Give It Your All, Crocalor -- For The Sake Of Tomorrow - Pokémon Horizons Episode 119 Review - Dirge Of Crocalor

I get that the Blueberry Academy focus is so short is because we already had an arc focusing on school during the Terastal Debut arc, and it would just be rinse and repeat at this point having the entire arc be about them training in school. Regardless, this week's episode of Pokémon Horizons was a good episode because it gave the group their next objective, and important lessons were taught to them along the way.

First off, the whole stuff with Briar is basically what Diana said, but what Pagogo needs is 18 Tera Types in order to quell the Laquium once and for all. It does make me wonder how they’re going to accumulate Pokémon with one of each Tera Type. I know that many people want the kids to catch more Pokémon, but I think that’s just the fanbase’s obsession with full team rosters which does feel a little ridiculous after a while. Why does it matter that a character has a full team or not?

The main highlight of the episode was the Roy vs Drayton rematch. This battle was definitely handled a lot better than the previous one. Roy and his team are poised and calm, and Drayton dishes out his Tera Orb, showing that he did get serious. To be honest, I think Kilowattrel was the MVP of the battle, as it swooped in to save Crocalor several times. Kilowattrel even got a win by defeating Kingdra alongside Crocalor. Kilowattrel usually gets knocked out first or rather quickly in a battle, so I’m happy that it actually stayed in the field much longer this time. The way it shielding Crocalor from a Metal Burst, getting itself knocked out, got me a little emotional. The reason why Crocalor and Kilowattrel always maneuvered around with flight is because Crocalor wanted to imitate Friede’s Charizard who he admires. Now that he's evolved into Skeledirge thanks to this battle, I do wonder how his love for flying is going to change as he’s too heavy and big for Kilowattrel to carry. Will the little fire bird make up for it? Also, can I talk about how good Skeledirge looks in the anime art style? I always thought the Pokémon looked a little flat in its 3D model in the games, but the anime drew it well in a way that gives it the width and girth of an actual alligator. The only downside is that he didn’t learn Torch Song upon evolution, but that could be for a future episode.

Also, did you see the cameos of Amarys, Kieran, and Crispin in the beginning of Roy and Drayton's battle? I’m happy that they actually showed up, but I’m a bit upset that they got the silent treatment like Arven did at the end of the Terastal Debut arc. My assumption is that the writers wanted to be careful around the most popular characters in the base games, which are Kieran and Arven. I’m also assuming Amarys and Crispin were voiceless because they couldn’t find room to squeeze them into the story. I just hope this cameo isn't it for them!

I honestly liked how the characters said their good-byes to the central characters of the BB academy arc. Liko and the others say good-bye to Briar, Cyrano, Ann, and Carmine, while Ult thanks Lacey for all her help. On top of that, Penny is coming along this time! I think this is the first time someone other than Diana will board the Brave Olivine! For a story that focused a lot on the airship, there are rarely guests—I’m glad that Penny’s the second one nonetheless. Cervantis told Dot about the existence of the Exceed Museum, and that the data they need regarding Laquium is in their database, so Dot needs Penny’s help as she’s a super hacker. Judging from the previews, their disguises look absolutely adorable, and I’m curious if Gimmighoul will be the next to evolve. This would mean Quaxwell will be the last of the team to evolve. Poor guy.

I have to admit that I would have liked the team to stay at the academy for at least two more episodes, just because Dot deserved an actual focus episode and not a joke of a battle with Carmine and her Sinistcha. I think the next episode will make up for it though. Let me know your thoughts on the episode!