The Pokemon Anime Just Went Harder Than EVER.

Pokemon Horizons episode 66 aired a few days ago, but unfortunately I was on a vacation with my family so couldn't make a video about it. Well not really unfortunately because I had an amazing time, but unfortunately for you guys if you were looking forward to my review you know. But I still really want to talk about the episode now because I really really really loved it a whole lot dude. Since everyone has probably watched the episode themselves by now I won't do like a big plot summary kind of thing like normal, let's just talk about the things that really stood out to me, and trust me there's a lot of them. And then at the end we'll talk about the craziness of the next episode too. So first of all I really love how the episode used a battle tournament as the backdrop for the episode. It's really really really underrated how the writers set that up, let me explain okay. The battle tournament in the courtyard means that all the students and all the teachers are distracted outside the school, which gives the perfect opportunity for the explorers to strike inside the school without anyone knowing. It makes a lot of sense from the writer's perspective, it makes a lot of sense from the explorers, and it also means that the teachers don't look weak or stupid you know. It makes sense that they weren't there to protect the school. And then it also gives us the chance to have a big final celebration of the end of the arc, with some battles that we never expected like Anne versus that Lico doppelganger from a few episodes ago. That's so random but I love it, and hey I guess if Anne can't beat the real Lico in a battle then the fake Lico will have to do. In general I really love that the doppelganger characters have become recurring in Horizons. It makes the world feel a little bit more connected man. I love that Penny trusted Dot enough after their previous meeting to call her for help when she realised the school's system was being hacked. It feels really in character and right for Penny and Dot to be like the protectors of the school using their tech skills you know. And talking about tech skills, I really appreciated that Agate's plan is to steal the school's data on Terapagos. It shows that not battles are won with brawn you know, sometimes they're won with brains. Because if Agate gets that data, that information, then that gives the explorers huge advantages that we don't even know of yet. And on the topic of the explorers, I really love how well thought out their plan was in this episode. Agate does the hacking, Coral patrols the school and stops intruders, Sidion handles security and secures an escape route. It shows how much thought the writers put into the roles as well. I really love that man, it really makes them feel like a proper organisation with planning and everything. Lico and Roy diving into action so immediately, so fast after Dot told them what was happening was really great. I love seeing these two being mature enough and skilled enough now to handle themselves and jump in head first. That's something that I really hoped they'd achieve you know. And that leads us right into the main meat of the episode, the three battles. Lico vs Sidion, Dot vs Agate, Roy vs Coral. I'm going to talk about all three of these separately, but before I do I just want to say how much I love the concept of these battles. They really chose the perfect opponents for the trio. Roy and Coral are both the fiery over the top ones, plus they've battled each other before. Lico and Sidion and their Pokemon are perfect contrasts to each other, with Lico being all about brains and Sidion being all about brawn, and Florigato being all about speed and acrobatics, and Garganacle being all about tankiness and defence. They really are perfect contrasts you know. And then Dot and Agate previously had a showdown centred around technology in the previous arc, so they get a rematch here also centred around technology. Really awesome writing man. So Lico vs Sidion. First of all it was really great that Sidion expected Lico to fail miserably against him. He hasn't seen her battling since she was much weaker before this arc even began you know. So Lico standing up and proudly declaring that she can fight, that was such a satisfying and well earned moment after all of her training. I loved the focus on Florigato's dodging and speed and acrobatics in this battle. She even used strategies from her battle against Groucha too, and all of that was what gave her the edge over Sidion and Garganacle. But Sidion using recover to heal Garganacle and then showing that he took the terrestrial training course seriously. That made Lico realise that Florigato just wouldn't be strong enough to win without terrestrialising herself. But Lico was being pulled apart because she knew that she failed her course and so she wasn't allowed to terrestrialise. But to Lico defending Terapagos and defending the school was all that mattered. That was her entire focus. So she terrestrialised anyway and managed to defeat Sidion with it. I love how Groucha didn't intervene despite seeing the whole battle. He allowed Lico to handle it herself as a test of her skill as a trainer. And Sidion respecting Lico enough to tell her his name as a sign of him respecting her for the first ever time. That was the icing on the cake dude, so satisfying. And what I really love is that despite Sidion losing the battle, he did not look weak at all you know. The fact that he can terrestrialise and is so good at it, it shows how skilled he is and that he really took his training course seriously despite being a villain. This episode made me appreciate Sidion more than ever dude. He's a great villain himself even if he doesn't have the crazy personality like Sango does. Sorry I mean Coral. I'm trying to get used to using their English dub names now you know. I'm really not doing a good job at it though. And now let's talk about Dot versus Agate. What I loved about this battle is that it shows how strong Agate is, that her metacham could stop Dot and Quaxwell without Agate even commanding it. Agate really does feel like the second Spinel sometimes with her brains and her skill. But it also makes sense that Dot didn't put up the greatest fight ever, cause her focus was on trying to break into the office and stop Agate from stealing the data. She wasn't fully focused on battling Metacham, that was just getting in the way you know. What I loved a lot was how Tinker Tink sneaking into the office alone really really really shows just how much the rising Voltacklers take the Explorers seriously. Even Tinker Tink, the Pokemon who's usually crying and causing chaos like a baby, even she jumps into action alone to try and stop them. The Explorers are a real severe threat you know, all the rising Voltacklers, all their Pokemon, they're all on the same page. And bro, when Agate stole the data and then suddenly sent out a Xatu and teleported away just like that, that went so hard dude. The amount of aura points that Agate got in that moment, unfathomable man. Overall I really enjoyed Dot versus Agate. Dot tried her best, but Agate was just too good you know. She stole the data and dipped. Finally, the Roy versus Coral segment. So unfortunately this battle was given the least focus out of all three. All we really saw was Fuecoco and Glalie clashing their attacks, and Fuecoco unleashing his full power to defeat Glalie. If I'm honest though I'm okay with it, because while there wasn't really any focus on the battle, there was a lot of great focus on before the battle. You see, Roy versus Coral started inside the art room in the school, but Roy quickly realised that if the battle continued here they'd accidentally destroy all of the student's artwork on the walls. So Roy showed his brainpower, and also his heart and his respect for art, by so effortlessly manoeuvring the battle to outside the school. Because there he could go all out with his attacks without worrying about the damage to the school you know. Seeing Roy's IQ here, seeing him use his brainpower, that really made up for the battle being so short. It was a real testament to who Roy is as a person. And I also found Coral's reaction to Glalie being knocked out by Fuecoco to be absolutely hilarious. The way she shaked Glalie and screamed of him to wake up and battle more. So funny dude. And of course, Cidian had to be like her big brother again and save her. I really love their bond, I really do. So after all the chaos is over and the explorers have fled, Grusher tells Zeliko that he totally misjudged her. He sees now that she's the kind of trainer whose true strength shines through when she fights to protect other people, like how she fought to protect Terapagos and the school today. So he tells her that now she's passed her terrestrial training course. And Zeliko is absolutely shocked. I've seen a lot of people criticising this and saying it's a bit of a cop out with Zeliko being given a pity pass or whatever, and I could not disagree more dude. It actually makes me kinda sad that people feel that way. To me, Grusher passing Zeliko in this way feels so perfect. If you think back to Zeliko and Grusher's previous battle, the whole episode was about Grusher's character being fully focused on results, being fully focused on winning, being what matters. And that's why he failed Zeliko originally, because she didn't get results. She didn't win. But here Zeliko showed Grusher the kind of trainer that she truly is. The kind who's fully focused on protecting other people, and she showed him that she does get results in battling in the way that's true to her. She protected Terapagos. She protected the school. She won. She got the results that she wanted by battling in the way that's true to her. So Grusher being fully focused on results, he realised that Zeliko does get the results that she wants. And he used that to pass her on her terrestrial training course. That's so well written man. It shows how much the writers have really thought deep into Grusher and Zeliko's character traits. It doesn't diminish either of them. It's completely true to their characters, you know? So for me, I really loved this. I really, really, really did. Finally, it healed my heart seeing Penny thanking Dot for her help in protecting the school despite Agate succeeding in stealing the data. Dot even blushed a little. Don't know what that means, dude. And Roy and Dot celebrating Zeliko passing her terrestrial training course was really sweet, man. The episode ended with the next battle of the Liko vs Roy. The battle we've waited 60 episodes for, baby. So hype, dude. The preview trailer for the next episode showed everyone will be watching the battle. All the gym leaders, the Elite Four, their friends, the whole school. Like really, everyone is here. And it's a 2v2 battle too, including Florigato, Fuekoko, Killawatt, Ruhatram. I'm so excited, man. The last time Liko and Roy battled, they were both newbies and weaklings, so seeing how far they've developed since then will be really hype, you know? It's pretty obvious that Roy's Fuekoko is going to evolve into Crocolord during this battle, and I can't think of a better time for that to happen. Fuekoko deserves it after all of his wins and all of his training. He deserves to evolve in front of everyone that matters to him. He's going to be so happy, man, and I'm going to be even happier. Personally, I really hope that Roy wins the battle, and that's because Zeliko won the previous time I think it'd be pretty sweet if Liko won their first battle, Roy wins their second battle now, and then in a potential final battle at the end of the series, that could end up in a draw with Liko and Roy being equals. That'd be perfect, man. In the preview trailer, we also saw that Arvin is finally making his debut, and that has me so hyped, dude. Arvin was my favourite character and my favourite storyline from the Scarlet and Violet games, so I'm really glad he's not being forgotten about. Personally, I don't think he'll have too much focus in the episode, I think he'll just briefly be introduced and watch the battle, but I think this is set up for Arvin having a way bigger appearance later in the series, maybe when Horizons handles Moridon and Coridon. Let me know your thoughts on Pokemon Horizons episode 66 below, did you love it as much as I did? To me it felt perfect and I'm really proud of our heroes for how far they've come. I also can't wait for Liko vs Roy in the next episode too, who do you want to win between them? Be sure to join our Discord server if you haven't already, the link is in the description. We're currently hosting a Rising Vault Tacklers vs the Explorers event in there, and you get to choose your team and take a side in everything, man it's a lot of fun. Finally, be sure to like and subscribe if you enjoyed, that helps me out a lot, and on that note, thank you all so much for watching, and best wishes, until we meet again!