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DP071

Revision as of 18:10, 12 June 2017 by MH (talk | contribs) (→‎Major events)
← DP070 : The Bells Are Singing!
Diamond & Pearl series
DP072 : Pokémon Ranger and the Kidnapped Riolu! (Part 2) →
Pokémon Ranger and the Kidnapped Riolu!

Part 1

DP071.png
DP071   EP537
ポケモンレンジャー！波導のリオル！！(前編)
Pokémon Ranger! The Wave-Guiding Riolu!! (Part 1)
First broadcast
Japan March 20, 2008
United States November 1, 2008
English themes
Opening We Will Be Heroes
Ending
Japanese themes
Opening Together
Ending 風のメッセージ
Credits
Animation Team Iguchi
Screenplay 藤田伸三 Shinzō Fujita
Storyboard 浅田裕二 Yūji Asada
Assistant director 古賀一臣 Kazuomi Koga
Animation director 玉川明洋 Akihiro Tamagawa
Additional credits

Pokémon Ranger and the Kidnapped Riolu! (Part 1) (Japanese: ポケモンレンジャー！波導のリオル！！(前編) Pokémon Ranger! The Wave-Guiding Riolu!! (Part 1)) is the 71st episode of the Diamond & Pearl series, and the 537th episode of the Pokémon anime. It aired in Japan in a one-hour special on March 20, 2008, the day that Pokémon Ranger: Shadows of Almia was released. It and DP072 were released on DVD in Japan on June 20, 2008. It aired in the United States on November 1, 2008.

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Blurb

In the middle of the night, chaos breaks loose in an isolated research center as research subject RX-1, a Riolu, escapes with the help of several men and a getaway truck. But the men want to steal Riolu, not help it, so Riolu breaks out again and flees into the forest. The next day, nursing an injury, it encounters Ash and the gang, but mistakes them for more false friends and blasts Ash with Aura Sphere when he tries to help. Fortunately Kellyn, a Top Ranger from the Pokémon Rangers, catches up with Riolu. Kellyn is just in time to stop Pokémon Hunter J's minions from grabbing Riolu themselves; he uses his Vatonage Styler to recruit nearby Bug Pokémon to halt the thugs' kidnap attempt.

Now that everyone can relax, he explains that Riolu hails from the Paradise Kingdom, where it uses its special Aura powers to serve as the kingdom's guardian. Those powers strike a chord with Ash, who's able to sense mental images of Riolu's past. Riolu was kidnapped from its kingdom and is now on Pokémon Hunter J's target list, so Kellyn, together with Pokémon Ranger Solana and Officer Jenny, is here to save Riolu and get it back home. As proof of his good intentions, he brings Riolu a wooden carving made by the old man who raised it.

Hoping to evade Pokémon Hunter J, Kellyn teams up with our heroes to escort Riolu downriver toward a waiting recovery team. It's all for naught, though, as Pokémon Hunter J and her Salamence attack, forcing everyone to scatter. Ash manages to rescue Riolu and its prized carving from the water, but they wind up lost on a riverbank and cut off from the others, with Pokémon Hunter J's goons already searching the forest around them.

Ash and Riolu make a break for it, only to be spotted. Pokémon Hunter J coolly decides to flush them out into the open by burning down the forest around them, and Ash and Riolu escape the flames only to find themselves cornered by J and her Salamence. Are Ash and Riolu ever going to get out of this in one piece...?

Plot

As the episode begins, an explosion is seen at a research facility. Several men are seen fleeing the premises with a Riolu. Building workers come out, saying the Riolu is a priceless research tool, and must be recovered. The kidnappers' Golem fires a blast at the building, and they escape on a passing truck with their boss inside. Riolu is put in the back. As the truck is moving, Riolu uses its Aura abilities to hear the words spoken by the henchmen and a man with sunglasses, their boss. They say that they tricked Riolu into thinking they would bring it home. Upon hearing it, Riolu uses Aura Sphere on the truck's back door.

The truck skids to a halt and Riolu escapes. The henchmen are ordered to find Riolu and bring it back. The man with sunglasses sees the might of Riolu's power, having broken through reinforced metal on the door, and says he wants its power for himself. Ash, Brock and Dawn encounter Riolu as they are passing through a forest, and find out it is hurt. When Ash is trying to help it, it mistakes him for an enemy and blasts him with Aura Sphere. Then, Ash tries to help it again but Riolu proceeds in using Aura Sphere on him once again before being deflected by an unknown person who just showed up. Then he proceeds to follow Riolu with Ash and the group in close pursuit.

Behind a nearby bush, Team Rocket who witnessed the whole scene, plan on stealing Riolu. The scene turns to Ash who is searching for Riolu and then dragged into a bush by the same person who saved him. He tells the group that Riolu only wants to go back home. Pokémon hunter J's thugs show up and find Riolu which is standing on a branch, and attempt to steal it. One of her henchman sends out Crobat which attacks Riolu with a Wing Attack making it fall off the branch. Then Ash comes out and orders Pikachu to use Thunderbolt. Crobat dodges every attack before being hit by Riolu which sends Aura Sphere to the henchmen.

The henchmen being impressed with the Aura Sphere send out their Pokémon when the unknown person shows up and reveals to be a Pokémon Ranger who uses his Vatonage Styler to control a nearby Ariados. Then Ariados wraps the henchmen's Pokémon in its String Shot. Then he captures a Nincada and orders it to Dig. It digs underground and makes a hole for the henchmen who fall in it.

Next, after dealing with the thugs, he releases the Pokémon he captured. Then he walks toward Riolu with a small bag in his hand and takes out a small wooden figurine in the form of a Riolu. Then he explains to Riolu there is nothing to fear about while putting the bag around Riolu's neck. He picks up Riolu and tells the group to follow him introducing himself to them as Kellyn, a Pokémon ranger whose mission is to bring Riolu home.

Again, from a nearby bush, Team Rocket witnessed the whole scene and Jessie plans to take her revenge on J. The scene turns to the group where Kellyn uses a Potion to heal Riolu's wound. Then Riolu approaches the water taking out the wooden figurine. Kellyn informs the group that the figurine is a gift from the man who raised him. Then, Ash experiences a sudden vision of a house where an old man gives the same wooden figurine to the same Riolu. Then he approaches Riolu and reveals that the man used Riolu's Aura to create the vision.

Upon hearing this, all react surprised and Kellyn explains the Aura is similar to a feeling and Ash's Aura is perfectly matched with that of Riolu's. Then his Styler starts ringing, the caller being Solana who immediately recognizes Ash and Brock. She is shown with Officer Jenny driving on her motorcycle. She informs them of finding the location of J's hideout and is heading there with Jenny.

Next, J's ship shows up and the scene turns to her being informed by her henchman of their encounter with Kellyn and the group. The scene reverts to the group who are crossing a lake by boat being towed by Piplup and Buizel. As they cross the lake Kellyn explains that Riolu comes from the Paradise Kingdom, where it will use its special Aura powers to serve as the kingdom's new guardian. Their boat is then smashed by J's henchmen's Sharpedo who show up. A Floatzel jumps out of the water and Kellyn captures it.

He orders Floatzel to take them to the shore but are attacked by Sharpedo's Aqua Jet. In order to escape them, Pikachu shocks them with Thunderbolt. Then J and her Salamence show up. They proceed to attack her but Salamence deflects their attacks with Hyper Beam. Hunter J uses her bracelet attempting to freeze Riolu but Floatzel uses Water Gun to hit Salamence in its wing. After that, she fires a shot but Riolu manages to evade it dropping the figurine in the water.

Riolu chases after it, with the group following it. Salamence uses Hyper Beam on a nearby rock which breaks apart falling in water and stopping Kellyn, Dawn and Brock in their tracks. Ash, Pikachu and Buizel continue following Riolu who in turn chases the wooden figurine. The figurine falls into a waterfall and Riolu is caught in the currents, and is dragged underwater. Then, a flashback of the moment he was captured by the scientists is shown. It quickly wakes up to find itself lying down on the grass after being rescued by Ash, who gives him the wooden figurine. Pikachu hears Hunter J nearby, and runs away along with Ash, Buizel and Riolu but are spotted by her and her henchmen. The henchmen prepare to go after them but are stopped by J.

The scene turns to Team Rocket who have set up a pitfall trap when a fire starts on the nearby trees. They manage to escape by using the hole they dug up. The scene turns to J's Salamence firing Flamethrower everywhere in the forest surrounding Ash, Buizel, Pikachu and Riolu. J shows up and orders Salamence to use Flamethrower.

Part 1 concludes with them evading the attack and with the narrator's conclusion.

Major events

For a list of all major events in Pokémon the Series, please see the timeline page.

Debuts

Humans

Pokémon debuts

Characters

Humans

Pokémon

Japanese DVD art

Trivia

Errors

  • In the English dub when Ash chases after Kellyn and Riolu, Brock and Dawn tell Ash to wait, but only Brock's voice is heard.
  • When Ash is confronting J, J's left sleeve is colored the same as her jacket.

Dub edits

In other languages



← DP070 : The Bells are Singing!
Diamond & Pearl series
DP072 : Pokémon Ranger and the Kidnapped Riolu! (Part 2) →
Project Anime logo.png This episode article is part of Project Anime, a Bulbapedia project that covers all aspects of Pokémon animation.
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