The First Snow! Fue Fue Co!! - Pokémon Horizons Episode 60 Review - Horizons On Ice

Pokémon Horizons ended up having another one week break after the previous episode, which I suppose gave us a a nice breather before Roy takes his Implementation Test. This week's episode is mainly showing Roy and Fuecoco’s bond, and how singing their Fuecoco song will be the key to their victory, hopefully.

I really find the kids’ relationship with each other to be super wholesome. They go shopping together, play in the snow together, search for firewood, and genuinely worry about each other. Given that I grew up watching Ash argue with his female companions a lot, seeing these three kids interacting with each other without the need for argument or mean-spirited behavior feels like a nice breath of fresh air. For example, Roy was planning on traversing across Glaseado Mountain with just gloves and boots, but Liko and Dot questioned him on why he’d not wear more layers; the next shot then has him wearing proper gear for the mountains, meaning he listened to Liko and Dot without arguing or talking back. The girls also don’t blame or scold Roy for running into a Beartic either. People might think that arguing is a good way for them to develop, but there are times where mean remarks can be unnecessary. Hence why I do like seeing these three be so wholesome and have fun even in rough situations like getting through the snow and cold without the need to be a total jerk about it.

Fun fact, all of the kids’ Pokémon showed up in this episode, all at different intervals. Floragato is also seen being in her ball for the first time since her evolution, I believe. Hattrem shows up to stop a scuffle between a Frigibax and a Bergmite before healing them with Heal Pulse. She sure is a violent healer. Kilowattrel shows up helping Roy with firewood. I felt so happy for Kilowattrel, who’s now a big help to Roy compared to how insecure it felt back in Episode 52 when it still couldn’t fly well. Tinkatink also shows up in the cabin using her hammer to soften up firewood. It’s nice that they allowed all of the kids’ second Pokémon to show up since they usually make their partners show up all the time.

It’s not only the kids and their Pokémon being cute, but also the featured Pokémon too! Frigibax makes its anime debut, and it’s part of an ongoing gag of how it avoids Bergmite’s wrath by being mistaken for a snow-covered Fuecoco. I liked that the conflict between Bergmite and Frigibax is presented in the anime as it’s mentioned in-game in Bergmite's Pokédex entry in Scarlet. There’s also Cubchoo and Beatrice being a source of conflict to show off how dangerous bears can be. Fortunately, nothing too bad happens and Roy manages to befriend all of them, making more memories. I think it’s cute how Roy keeps pictures as mementos of his journey. He has a picture of the beach episode, of their first day at Naranja Academy, and now pictures of snow. My only gripe is the use of the “looking for each other but just missed each other” cliche. Roy and Fuecoco were looking for each other and they just missed each other in one scene, but they did manage to reunite at the end. I know that it’s used for suspense, but still…

I honestly can’t wait to see what will happen next episode as Roy and Fuecoco’s bond strengthened here. There should be no break next week, so I can’t wait! I honestly want to see a rap battle just to see how it’ll turn out! What are your thoughts on this episode?