Pikachu's Goodbye

Pikachu's Goodbye is an episode of Liam's Adventures of Pokémon the Series.

Plot[]

Misty, and Brock rest in a forest clearing. Meanwhile, Ash swings on a vine, but he slams into a tree trunk. Pikachu rushes to Ash's side, though he notices a small Pikachu. Pikachu runs after it, as Ash, Misty, and Brock follow him. The pursuit ends at a forest clearing, where they find a whole clan of Pikachu with the small Pikachu. Pikachu, eager to say hello, jumps forward, but the wild Pikachu become scared and run off. Pikachu becomes disheartened, but the small Pikachu comes over and shakes tails to greet him. Soon after, the other Pikachu surround Ash's, and Brock claims they must have accepted him. Ash, also eager to join the Pikachu clan, runs toward them, but they feel scared and flee.

Later, Ash asks Brock and Misty why the Pikachu ran away. Brock tells him that he probably scared the Pikachu because they were not used to human contact. The small Pikachu, watching their conversation from a nearby tree branch, falls into a river and Ash's Pikachu jumps in to save it. Before the pair are about to go down a waterfall, the other Pikachu grab each other's tails to save them, and they succeed. As a reward for his effort, Ash's Pikachu receives an apple and is hoisted up by the other Pikachu, who cheer. Brock keeps Ash back from Pikachu, encouraging him to just observe. Meanwhile, Team Rocket sees the group of Pikachu and decide to capture all of them for their Boss.

Night falls, and all of the Pikachu start singing their Pikachu chant. Ash and his friends watch on and see how happy Ash's Pikachu is. Over dinner, Ash becomes sad and loses his appetite, but when asked what was wrong, he claims it was nothing. He stays up, watching the fire, to reflect on Pikachu's happiness, and concludes that Pikachu should be with his own kind. Suddenly, the Pikachu scream for help, waking Misty and Brock. The trio goes to investigate and finds all of the Pikachu captured by Team Rocket in an electric-proof net. James ensnares Ash and his friends in another net while they make their getaway. Pikachu begins chewing through the net; the others follow suit, and they soon begin their escape. Ash and his friends hold up the net they were captured in and the Pikachu jump into it unharmed. However, Ash's Pikachu, who escaped first, makes its way to Team Rocket and bites a hole in the balloon, sending them blasting off.

Ash catches his friend, though he soon decides to leave him with the other Pikachu. Misty and Brock confront Ash by the campsite, where he announces his plans and claims Pikachu would be happier with its own kind. Ritsu says the same thing to Chupy. Pikachu and Chupy reappears and starts following him and Ritsu, but Ash and Ritsu yells at them to stay behind and runs away. Eventually, Ash and Ritsu stops running, with Misty and Brock catching up to him. As the sun rises, Ash's Pikachu and Chupy shakes tails with the small Pikachu and all of the wild Pikachu started chanting, before Pikachu runs into Ash's arms, and Chupy jumping into Ritsu's, Ash and Ritsu are touched by the gesture, and both him and Ritsu start to cry.

Major Events[]

Ui's Pidgeotto (Skyler) evolves into Pidgeot, and learns Brave Bird.
Ritsu attempts to release Chupy, but Chupy decides to stay with her.
Ash attempts to release Pikachu, but Pikachu returns to him.
One of the wild Pikachu joins Yui's journey, making her catch her very own Pikachu, and names it Pika-chan, and is revealed to be a Shiny Pokemon.

Characters[]

Humans[]

Ash Ketchum
Misty
Brock
Jessie
James
Professor Oak (flashback)
Erika (flashback; Japanese version only)
Liam
Negi Springfield
Yue Ayase
Asuna Kagurazaka
Konoka Konoe
Haruna Saotome
Setsuna Sakurazaki
Makie Sasaki
Nodoka Miyazaki
Ayaka Yukihiro
Kirito
Asuna
Leafa
Silica
Yui-MCHP001
Sinon
Yuuki

Pokémon[]

Pikachu (Ash's)
Meowth (Team Rocket)
Pidgeotto (Ash's; flashback)
Starmie (Misty's; flashback; Japanese version only)
Pikachu (Nurse Joy's; multiple; flashback)
Raichu (Lt. Surge's; flashback; Japanese version only)
Gloom (Erika's; flashback; Japanese version only)
Spearow (multiple; flashback)
Pikachu (multiple)

Trivia[]

This episode was not included in the original schedule before the EP038 incident, so it is possible that the episode was created after the incident.
The episode aired as a one-hour special (放送再開スペシャル（放送再開スペシャルやっとあえるね！）１時間SP) with EP040 to celebrate the anime's return to airwaves.
This was chosen by Asuca Hayashi as the fifth episode of Pocket Monsters Premier 10.
Not counting the flashbacks, Pikachu and Meowth were the only two species of Pokémon seen in this episode. This is the lowest number of Pokémon species appearing in an anime episode.
The episode's plot later became similar to that of A Plethora of Pikachu!, which also revolves around a location where a large number of Pikachu live. In addition, that episode marked the anime's move from its Thursday 6:55 PM time-slot to a Sunday 6:00 PM slot, the first time the show changed its airing day since the aforementioned EP038 incident.
The events of The Kangaskhan Kid are referenced in the beginning of this episode.
In this episode, Ash crashes into a tree. In response, Misty says "Watch out for that tree!", a catchphrase from the George of the Jungle series.
A short version of Goodnight, My Pikachu is used as an insert song in the Japanese version.
This episode was partially adapted into the book I Choose You!.
This episode is featured on Volume 1: Pikachu from Viz Media's Pokémon All-Stars series.
This episode is featured on Pokémon All-Stars: Pikachu from Magna Pacific's Pokémon All-Stars series.
After Team Rocket finishes their motto, James says, "We'd like to thank all of our fans for their loyalty and support. This victory is for them." This obviously breaks the fourth wall, and possibly references how Pokémon fans in Japan helped get the anime back on air after the EP038 incident.
The episode title is spelled Pickachu's Goodbye on the back of the box of the Australian VHS release.

Transcript[]

Main article: Pikachu's Goodbye/(Transcript)