Ignorance is Blissey – Pokémon Season 3, Episode 13

Filler / stand-alone episodeBlissey debutJessie’s Nurse School past

Ignorance is Blissey is the 13th episode of Pokémon: The Johto Journeys, the third season of the Pokémon anime, and the 129th episode of the English dub overall (Japanese episode 131, Bulbapedia code EP129). It first aired in Japan on 6 January 2000 and in the United States on 9 December 2000. It falls within the season’s The road to Violet City stretch (EP122–EP129).

Synopsis · Major Events · Trivia · Dub Changes · All episodes

Synopsis

On a beautiful moonlit night our heroes arrive at a little place called Happy Town, they are all hungry and tired so get pretty excited to see the Pokemon Center, they rush to it but it appears to be closed until eventually the doors are opened… not by Nurse Joy, but by her Blissey, who notices that they are hungry and makes them a lot of food which it then unfortunately drops all over them. Blissey then offers to help scrub Ash’s back while he showers and it promptly removes lots of his skin in the process.

The Center’s Nurse Joy wakes up and apologises to the group for any harm Blissey may have caused. The group all go to bed, having unfortunately still not eaten. Team Rocket are nearby, they too are starving and decide to break into the Pokemon Center to steal food; it’s here that Jessie encounters Blissey… who appears to know her! It turns out they studied at Pokémon Nurse School (that is a Nursing School for POKEMON to learn at) together many years ago when Blissey was still a Chansey. Jessie reminisces about helping the Chansey pass her Pokémon nursing exams and the two of them becoming friends. Despite being a very promising Nurse, Jessie left the school prior to graduation, her friend Chansey ran after her as she was leaving and tried to give Jessie her Nurse hat, but she wouldn’t take it. Chansey then broke her necklace in half and gave half to Jessie and the two said goodbye.

Blissey enjoys a reunion with Jessie and notices that they are hungry, Blissey takes Team Rocket to the Pokemon Center’s pantry and gives them a ridiculous amount of food which they leave with. The next day Ash and friends are horrified to be served a rather rationed breakfast. Nurse Joy discovers the food pantry completely empty. And her and the group head to check out the security footage which shows Blissey stealing the food, but Team Rocket can’t quite be seen in the video. Team Rocket are in their balloon flying over with all the food in a net beneath. Jessie is watching Nurse Joy questioning Blissey from a distance and feels bad for getting her old friend intro trouble. Jessie wants to help Blissey and James and Meowth agree to help. They drop the food back outside the Pokemon Center and loudly announce it on a megaphone for Joy and the others inside to hear before proceeding to insinuate that they infact TRICKED Blissey into taking it for them. It’s all going quite well until Blissey hears the commotion from inside and comes out, spots Jessie and starts rushing over to greet her. Jessie realises that if it becomes known that she as a Team Rocket member is Blissey’s friend that Blissey might lose her job; so she sends out Lickitung and Arbok to block Blissey’s path; even ordering them to attack her.

Blissey continues to try and get to her old friend Jessie, Jessie orders her Pokémon to attack (gently and nicely) but Blissey continues her approach. Jessie worries that they’ll never let Blissey be a Pokemon Nurse if they find out and starts firing. Nurse Joy apologises to Blissey for ever doubting her. Ash battles Team Rocket with Pikachu, Chikorita and Squirtle defeating Lickitung and Arbok before sending Team Rocket blasting off.

Ash and friends can finally eat, Blissey realises that her old friend Jessie did it all to help her and is happy once more. Team Rocket are all washed up in the wreckage of their balloon at sea, Ash and friends are ready to continue their journey.

Major Events

• Blissey debut
• Jessie’s Pokémon Nurse School past (based on Megumi Hayashibara’s own nursing school)
• Ash bleeds (2nd time in series)
• Lickitung’s Slam

Pokémon making their anime debut

• Blissey#0242 · EP129

Trivia

• The English title plays on "ignorance is bliss".
• The screenplay is by Junki Takegami.
• This is a stand-alone episode: it can be skipped without losing the thread of the Johto story.
• The Who’s That Pokémon? segment features Blissey in Japan, where it almost always matched the episode, but Togepi in the US, where 4Kids picked the Pokémon at random.

Changes in the English Dub

• Generation II chiptune music (“Sing” and battle music) in the Nurse School flashback.
• Pokémon Karaokémon: “Song of Jigglypuff”.

Part of our Pokémon: The Johto Journeys guide. Browse every season of the Pokémon anime.