Pokémon | Top 5 episodes of series 1 | Indigo League

I've been playing a lot of Pokémon lately. Pokémon yellow, Pokémon Gold, Pokémon Leaf Green, Pokémon Sapphire and so on and so forth...

I have rediscovered my love for the pocket monsters (that's what "Pokémon" stands for, did you know?!). For those of you who may be unfamiliar with the world of Pokémon (have you been living under a rock?), I'll explain a little bit about it...

It's an international, multi-billion dollar/pound/I'm not sure what currency, Japanese invention which began as a video game. It then expanded to playing cards, an anime TV series and more games. Pokémon are similar to animals but each kind of Pokémon has different abilities and can battle one another. Humans can catch Pokémon in a Pokeball and raise them, often to battle other Pokémon. The TV series revolves around Ash Ketchum whose goal is to become the world's greatest Pokémon trainer.

The first series is called Indigo League and most people agree that it's the greatest series. Like I mentioned above, it follows Ash, his first Pokémon, Pikachu and their two friends, Misty and Brock, as they trek around the Kanto region. So, without further ado, here are my top 5 favourite episodes!

WARNING: Although I've tried to be careful with a few episodes, I give away a good portion of the plot in others. If you don't like spoilers, don't read ahead!!

5. Episode 14: Electric Shock Showdown

The reason I love this episode is because we see Pikachu battle Raichu, its evolved state. Pikachu is my favourite Pokémon, as it is a lot of peoples. But the main reason that I chose this episode for my top 5 is because we see Pikachu choose whether to evolve or not. I thought it was sweet that Pikachu showed he wasn't completely controlled by Ash and that Pokémon actually have feelings and their own opinions. We learn that Raichu was forced to evolve way too soon by its trainer, Lt. Surge, the Vermilion City Gym leader. I found the battle pretty exciting!

4. Episode 17: Island of the Giant Pokémon

This episode takes place after the trio and Team Rocket escape the sunken St. Anne and get washed up on the shore of what they think is a deserted island by an army of Gyarados (a water Pokémon). The Pokémon are split up from their trainers and are trying to find their way back whilst the Poké-Gang and Team Rocket try to find them. This episode is in my top five because we actually get to see what the Pokémon are saying to one another and a lot of the time, it can be quite amusing! We get to see how the different Pokémon think and feel about their trainers. But it's not just Pikachu, Bulbasaur, Squirtle and Charmander that get lost. We see Meowth (who can actually talk), Ekans and Koffing try to find their owners, Jessie and James of Team Rocket, and we get to hear them talk a bit too. All characters stumble upon mysterious giant Pokémon. I won't give the plot away or tell you why these Pokémon are so big but this episode is definitely one of my faves!

3. Episode 39: Pikachu's Goodbye

The gang find a pack of wild Pikachu in a forest and who eventually accept Ash's Pikachu as one of their own. Ash can see that his friend is happy in the group and makes the decision to leave him without asking Pikachu what he wants. I love the fact that Ash shows his love and compassion for his Pokémon once again. However, a strange song is played during this episode and I have to say I did cringe. Regardless, it's a heartwarming episode and yes, I got a little emotional at one point! Plus, there's a total overdose of Pikachu! <3 <3
(This episode is technically #39. The YouTube video says it's #37 because there were two episodes prior to this which were only aired in Japan.)

2. Episode 48: Holy Matrimony!

This might be a weird choice to most people but I'm a huge Team Rocket fan. Why? Well, unlike Ash, Misty and Brock, Team Rocket are constantly failing at whatever they set out to do. But this doesn't faze them. Jessie, James and Meowth always get back up and try again. It's this attitude that makes me love them. So why this episode? All the cast end up at a huge mansion which we find out belongs to James' parents. Jessie and Meowth realise he is from a rich family and force him to go inside in an attempt to get a little money but James is then told he must marry some dominatrix-style woman called Jessibelle (watch it and you'll understand the "dominatrix" reference). Jessie and Meowth presume James wants to stay but we get a really touching scene at the end and it really boosted my love for Team Rocket.

1. Episode 21: Bye Bye Butterfree

This episode secures the number one spot on my list for its huge impact on my heart - yes, I did cry! When I play the Pokémon games, I always catch a Caterpie and get it to evolve into a Butterfree (yes, I deal with its inbetween stage of Metapod!). Caterpie is known to many as a bit of a useless Pokémon. It isn't the strongest and it's not quite as cute as some of the others but I have a soft spot for it. The episode sees Ash's Butterfree fall in love with a pink Butterfree who continuously rejects it until he saves her from Team Rocket. The ending breaks my heart as Ash lets Butterfree go. Of course, there is a montage of some of the moments that the pair shared and a cute, emotional chat between them. This episode is definitely my favourite, no doubt about it. It's just too adorable!