Review HZ114: Mega Evolution—Bonds

[Eitarou]

The latest episode of Pokemon Horizons has aired. Discuss.

HZ114

 

[Singaporean]

What a conclusion of this mini flashback arc. Also, discovering how Roy's cap going to keep at Emma as a memory gift.

Following Master Mayonnaise putting up the secret training for both Roy and Uruto to achieve Mega Evolve. Wish to see them again in future if the writer want to make them reappearance in future Arc or not.

Overall rating: B +

 

[RetroPokeFan]

Definitely the best animated episode with some great moments but unfortunately this mini-arc failed to impress me much. They can try and suddenly turn that frown upside down but as far as I'm concerned this yellow Lucario was just as bland and boring as when we first saw it.

This Blueberry Academy visit's gonna have to work double time to get that fun-filled spirit back. But I have my fingers crossed it will, it definitely looks like it'll be pretty big.

Lol at Lucario acting like a puppy-dog begging to join his team before Roy catches it. Where was the personality when we first saw you man?

 

[Singaporean]

Can't resisting the admiration from Lucario to Roy and his Crocalor:

Spoiler

 

[da man/man]

This episode was way better than I thought it would be, and I've been one of the main defenders of this mini-arc. Lot's of good animation in this one, and Lucario was kinda adorable at the end I can't lie. I do wonder if Roy'll get his hat back by the series end.

 

[Le Lapin de Nelvana]

This episode was way better than I thought it would be, and I've been one of the main defenders of this mini-arc. Lot's of good animation in this one, and Lucario was kinda adorable at the end I can't lie. I do wonder if Roy'll get his hat back by the series end.

His Hat is a gift to Emma so i'll take that as a no

 

[Dr. Gro 3001]

I can appreciate the puppy dog eyes that Yellow Blast was giving to Roy, but would it have been so hard to give it some more of this characterization following its debut? The battle looked pretty neat, and I actually enjoyed Yellow Blast Mega Evolving seemingly without a trainer. Maybe as a nod to the Rogue Mega Evolutions in Legends Z-A. I really have to ask what was Master Mayonnaise's reason for setting all of this up for the boys. Was he looking for a trainer for the Shiny Lucario? Finally, it was a nice gesture to see Roy leave something for Emma.

 

[Doubl - Echo]

Roy mega-evolving his opponent was not on my bingo card. Nor was Lucario doing puppy eyes. But I liked both things! It's great Lucario finally did something to break out of the lone wolf/aura farmer personality! I agree that episode was better than expected, though expectations were lowered after the other two. In the end, Mayonnaise and his friends built the maze, and Lucario was a wild Pokemon who settled inside while looking for a worthy trainer. It wasn't anything too crazy.

I still think it would be cool if Skeledirge eventually got a mega-evolution. For that though, Crocalor needs to evolve again. To the upcoming arc!

 

[Le Lapin de Nelvana]

I can appreciate the puppy dog eyes that Yellow Blast was giving to Roy, but would it have been so hard to give it some more of this characterization following its debut? The battle looked pretty neat, and I actually enjoyed Yellow Blast Mega Evolving seemingly without a trainer. Maybe as a nod to the Rogue Mega Evolutions in Legends Z-A. I really have to ask what was Master Mayonnaise's reason for setting all of this up for the boys. Was he looking for a trainer for the Shiny Lucario? Finally, it was a nice gesture to see Roy leave something for Emma.

and this concludes the Inter-Timeskip Arc, next week, we will head back to the present day in Volume 3: Chapter 2: Part 115: Welcome to Blueberry Academy Dudes!

 

[Poke Trey]

Least we know how Mega Voltage vame to be cuz of this episode. Let's see how Rising Again shapes up for Roy and Ult now.

 

[Le Lapin de Nelvana]

those 47 episodes are classified as Rising Hope 90-111 is part 1 and 112-114 is Part 1 1/2 with Part 2 being 115-136

 

[NumberOneSpinelApologist]

What is that heat proof and water resistant paint on those Shoji screens in this building, I want it for my kitchen.

The ninja's soy sauce puns had me laughing so hard (and his jutsu hand techniques too) , I love cringy humor like this. The fact that this is Amethiocs voice actor only adds to this.

Uruto was quite relatable in this episode tbh, with the struggle to overcome his weaknesses, with a huge success of managing to mega evolve, but losing in the end. A good reminder that progress is not linear and is not always an easy path.

Both Roy and Uruto glowing and aura reading and stuff makes my reinterpretation of them as magical girls 100% canon lol.

 

[LegendsCelebi]

this leaves the Roy/Lucario relationship unexplained unless we see some magical handwaving about Roy being a "chosen one".

Ehhhhhh. Though technically not a "chosen one", just the first time the Golden Retriever met someone this strong and attuned with their Pokemon as I interpret it. Circumventing the mega evolution bond requirement with "a deep bond with any pokemon will do" feels like... circumventing. Especially after we saw how much work Uruto and Sableye had to do to mega-evolve despite being lifelong friends.

Overall cool episode, nice to see Uruto's growth. Confirms that this was his story arc, not Lucarios.

I'd also love auras explored more in the series, games and lore. A good reminder that Pokemon is high fantasy just with modern-world aesthetics.

 

[SarahSango]

Great end to this arc! I really enjoyed Ult's arc with him finally understanding Sableye.
Admittedly, the animation was fairly wonky for a bit in the episode but it picked up once Sableye mega evolved.
It was still quite exciting when Roy's theme played against Count Oyster and Shoyu though!
Overall the battle with Yellow Blast was great, I loved when Roy sang to motivate Crocolor to win just like the old days. Tbh I kinda assumed that he'd never do that again after battling Ryme, because IIRC Ryme did say that he was using it as a crutch and he did take a break from it for an entire arc, but I'm glad he did it again.
I've always loved this quirk from Roy and I hope it shows up a bit in the next arc, doesn't have to be every battle, but just on occasion would be fine.
Yellow Blast enjoying the battle so much that it Mega Evolved was absolutely awesome!
It's puppy dog eyes after the battle were adorable too.

These two shots go crazy.
I find it kinda funny that before the subs came out, some people assumed that Roy gave his hat to Emma as a gift when he just forgot it lol.
Don't have much else to say on this episode, I just really liked it.
I will say that as an arc promoting Legends Z-A, it doesn't do a great job because it doesn't feature that much from the game (I feel the same way about the Legends Arceus arc in Journeys), but on it's own I found it quite enjoyable.
I do wish it came out before Mega Voltage though, it coming out now adds a cool reveal for how Roy got his jacket but overall I think it'd work better as an introduction to Ult if we got this first. I understand that it had to have came out afterwards for Z-A promotion though, it's unfortunate.

Last two things. The guy at the end who Roy buys the jacket from, is it just me or does he look like Master Mayonaise lol?

Is this Master Mayonaise in disguise or something? I might be missing something lol.

Final note, I do wish Master Mayonaise got more screentime since he's a cool character. Hope he returns in the future because it'd be great to see more from him

 

[ecargmura]

What is with Horizons and making their dogs extra cute? First we had chonky Lycanroc and now puppy-dog eyed Lucario! Give us more, TPCI!

Last two things. The guy at the end who Roy buys the jacket from, is it just me or does he look like Master Mayonaise lol?

Is this Master Mayonaise in disguise or something? I might be missing something lol.

Final note, I do wish Master Mayonaise got more screentime since he's a cool character. Hope he returns in the future because it'd be great to see more from him

Yes, that is Mayonnaise! I think this is his day job.

 

[ena9219]

The episode starts off with Roy and Ult battling Oyster and Shoyu (Crocalor and Sableye vs Escavalier and Accelgor). They initially struggle, and Ult stops battling, but Roy continues the battle by himself, excited to face such strong opponents. Roy defeats Oyster's Escavalier while Ult decides to make his Sableye the strongest instead of focusing on his own strength. Then Sableye finishes the battle, defeating Accelgor. Roy praises Ult's performance in the battle, leading to Ult blushing and accidentally dropping Sableye. The rather odd duo of a count and a ninja then disappears, and Lucario shows up, ready to battle.

Mayonnaise also shows up to act as the referee. This time, Roy and Ult are able to keep up with Lucario's movements just well enough to dodge its attacks for a while. Eventually, Crocalor is hit hard enough that he struggles to get up. After more contemplation of his bond with Sableye, Ult successfully Mega Evolves it. Unfortunately, Sableye struggles with the weight of its, now giant, gem. Lucario defeats Mega Sableye. Crocalor then gets up and rejoins the battle. Roy and Crocalor then start singing, to Ult's confusion. Roy and Crocalor are then able to sense Lucario's feelings and easily dodge its attacks. Roy somehow Mega Evolves his opponent mid-battle. Crocalor then manages to defeat Mega Lucario.

It then turns out that Mayonaise and the other two are a rather odd trio. After they congratulate Roy and Ult for achieving Mega Evolution, Lucario begs to join Roy's team with puppy dog eyes. Later, Roy is at Matière's place, where he thanks her for her help and says he wants to say goodbye to Ult. It turns out Ult left on an adventure without telling Roy. The ensuing flashback shows Ult shyly thanking Matière (Even Ult's shyness around girls gets an origin story this arc), who tells him that he is free to come back anytime and that they are family. The flashback within a flashback arc over with Matière thanks Roy for Ult finding what he wants to do and says that Cap chose to follow Roy because he is always looking forward (she can sense this thanks to Moko's powers). She also speculates that this might make Roy similar to Friede. Even later, Roy is shopping for his post-timeskip outfit, and the shopkeeper seems to be Mayonaise dressed in normal clothes, but Roy doesn't notice. It also turns out that he forgot his hat at Matière's (Moko wearing it is super adorable).

The episode and therefore the arc ends on Roy and Ult arguing about who is following who while they head in the same direction, they run into a Pangoro and a male Pyroar, and Mega Evolve their Pokémon to battle them. Roll credits and thank Arceus that we get to see Liko and Dot again next week. This wasn't a bad arc, but I am looking forward to getting back to the present day. This really was mostly an Ult arc. That aside, it's good to know the writers remembered that Roy likes to sing, and hopefully, this isn't the last time we see this particular personality trait.

 

[Le Lapin de Nelvana]

The episode starts off with Roy and Ult battling Oyster and Shoyu (Crocalor and Sableye vs Escavalier and Accelgor). They initially struggle, and Ult stops battling, but Roy continues the battle by himself, excited to face such strong opponents. Roy defeats Oyster's Escavalier while Ult decides to make his Sableye the strongest instead of focusing on his own strength. Then Sableye finishes the battle, defeating Accelgor. Roy praises Ult's performance in the battle, leading to Ult blushing and accidentally dropping Sableye. The rather odd duo of a count and a ninja then disappears, and Lucario shows up, ready to battle.

Mayonnaise also shows up to act as the referee. This time, Roy and Ult are able to keep up with Lucario's movements just well enough to dodge its attacks for a while. Eventually, Crocalor is hit hard enough that he struggles to get up. After more contemplation of his bond with Sableye, Ult successfully Mega Evolves it. Unfortunately, Sableye struggles with the weight of its, now giant, gem. Lucario defeats Mega Sableye. Crocalor then gets up and rejoins the battle. Roy and Crocalor then start singing, to Ult's confusion. Roy and Crocalor are then able to sense Lucario's feelings and easily dodge its attacks. Roy somehow Mega Evolves his opponent mid-battle. Crocalor then manages to defeat Mega Lucario.

It then turns out that Mayonaise and the other two are a rather odd trio. After they congratulate Roy and Ult for achieving Mega Evolution, Lucario begs to join Roy's team with puppy dog eyes. Later, Roy is at Matière's place, where he thanks her for her help and says he wants to say goodbye to Ult. It turns out Ult left on an adventure without telling Roy. The ensuing flashback shows Ult shyly thanking Matière (Even Ult's shyness around girls gets an origin story this arc), who tells him that he is free to come back anytime and that they are family. The flashback within a flashback arc over with Matière thanks Roy for Ult finding what he wants to do and says that Cap chose to follow Roy because he is always looking forward (she can sense this thanks to Moko's powers). She also speculates that this might make Roy similar to Friede. Even later, Roy is shopping for his post-timeskip outfit, and the shopkeeper seems to be Mayonaise dressed in normal clothes, but Roy doesn't notice. It also turns out that he forgot his hat at Matière's (Moko wearing it is super adorable).

The episode and therefore the arc ends on Roy and Ult arguing about who is following who while they head in the same direction, they run into a Pangoro and a male Pyroar, and Mega Evolve their Pokémon to battle them. Roll credits and thank Arceus that we get to see Liko and Dot again next week. This wasn't a bad arc, but I am looking forward to getting back to the present day. This really was mostly an Ult arc. That aside, it's good to know the writers remembered that Roy likes to sing, and hopefully, this isn't the last time we see this particular personality trait.

that was a great story of the Inter Timeskip era, now we head back to the present day next week

 

[Eclipsical]

Definitely the best episode of the mini-arc and actually had some really good moments and development for both Roy and Ult.

I liked how Ult came to the conclusion that he should not be trying to make himself the strongest, but trying to make Sableye the strongest. In turn, Sableye would make him the strongest as a result. It was really good to see how Ult and Sableye grew closer over the span of the arc. But Ult also learned to better work as a team alongside Roy during their Double Battle. Ult finally Mega Evolving Sableye for the first time ended up being a satisfying moment. I thought Ult's VA also did a really good job.

Roy also had some good moments throughout the episode. It is always good to see him and Crocalor sing together in battle, and seeing him Mega Evolve his opponent, which has never been done before anywhere, was fun. Lucario finally showed some personality, although I'm not sure it is enough to redeem him assuming he'll be back to stoicism in the present.

 

[Le Lapin de Nelvana]

Definitely the best episode of the mini-arc and actually had some really good moments and development for both Roy and Ult.

I liked how Ult came to the conclusion that he should not be trying to make himself the strongest, but trying to make Sableye the strongest. In turn, Sableye would make him the strongest as a result. It was really good to see how Ult and Sableye grew closer over the span of the arc. But Ult also learned to better work as a team alongside Roy during their Double Battle. Ult finally Mega Evolving Sableye for the first time ended up being a satisfying moment. I thought Ult's VA also did a really good job.

Roy also had some good moments throughout the episode. It is always good to see him and Crocalor sing together in battle, and seeing him Mega Evolve his opponent, which has never been done before anywhere, was fun. Lucario finally showed some personality, although I'm not sure it is enough to redeem him assuming he'll be back to stoicism in the present.

and they did a double battle in the end and in the present day