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| Season | Pokémon: Battle Frontier (Season 9) · Mulberry, Pewter & the Battle Pyramid arc (AG173–AG179) |
| Episode | Season 9, episode 32 · English episode 449 · Japanese episode 453 · Bulbapedia code AG177 |
| English title | Grating Spaces! |
| Japanese title | タケシ＆サトシ！タッグバトルでニビジムを守れ！！ Takeshi ando Satoshi! Taggu Batoru de Nibi Jimu o Mamore!! — “Takeshi & Satoshi! Defend Nibi Gym in a Tag Battle!!” |
| First aired (Japan) | 18 May 2006 · TV Tokyo |
| First aired (US) | 5 December 2006 · Cartoon Network |
| Screenplay | Aya Matsui |
| Opening / ending (Japan) | Supāto! (Spurt!) – Satoshi (Rica Matsumoto) · Watashi, Makenai! ~Haruka no Tēma~ (I Won’t Lose! ~Haruka’s Theme~) – Haruka (KAORI.) |
| English opening | Battle Frontier – Jason Appleton |
| Previous episode | The Ole’ Berate and Switch! (AG176) |
| Next episode | Battling the Enemy Within! (AG178) |
Plot episodeOnix revealed as SteelixPewter City
Grating Spaces! is the 32nd episode of Pokémon: Battle Frontier, the ninth season of the Pokémon anime, and the 449th episode of the English dub overall (Japanese episode 453, Bulbapedia code AG177). It first aired in Japan on 18 May 2006 and in the United States on 5 December 2006. It falls within the season’s Mulberry, Pewter & the Battle Pyramid stretch (EP173–EP179).
Synopsis
On the way to the Battle Pyramid the group reach Pewter City, and Brock is horrified to find his Gym redecorated in garish style. His brothers and sisters welcome him home and explain that their parents have gone on a trip. When Brock video-calls his mother, Lola, at the airport, she brushes off his anger and says goodbye, and she and his father Flint set off with Brock’s Ludicolo; the honeymoon tickets, it turns out, were handed to Flint by Team Rocket disguised as airport staff. With the Gym left without a Leader, the trio plan to take its Pokémon, and Meowth daydreams about Giovanni being pampered. Inside the Gym, Brock learns that his Onix evolved into Steelix while in Forrest’s care, and Geodude, Crobat and Golem rush in to greet him. He thanks Forrest for running the Gym so well and cooks lunch for the whole family.
A Delibird delivers two Poké Balls to Jessie from headquarters, and Team Rocket try out their new Charizard and Aggron before returning to the Gym in disguise. They challenge the Gym to a Tag Battle: if they win, they can decorate it however they please, and the children suspect these visitors are behind the makeover. Brock chooses Steelix and Ash Donphan. Donphan’s Take Down bursts through Charizard’s Flamethrower, Aggron’s Mega Punch and Hyper Beam strike back and Fire Spin shoves Steelix aside, but after regrouping, Donphan’s Rollout unbalances Charizard, Steelix catches it with Iron Tail and Bind, and when Aggron’s Hyper Beam forces it free, Steelix shields itself with a rock and slams Charizard into a wall with Dragon Breath. As Aggron fires two Water Pulses, Steelix flings Donphan over the second wave to strike.
While everyone watches the battle, Max follows Meowth into the Gym’s storage room and catches it stealing Poké Balls. When Charizard’s Fire Spin accidentally hits Aggron, the two start fighting each other, and their Flamethrower and Hyper Beam burn away Team Rocket’s disguises. Forrest’s Geodude tackles the fleeing Meowth, spilling the stolen Poké Balls, then whips up a Sandstorm and lands Mega Punch while Steelix uses Iron Tail, and a combined attack blasts Team Rocket away. When Flint, Lola and Ludicolo return, Brock calls a family meeting and reveals Team Rocket’s part in the remodel, and at his friends’ urging he forgives his parents, though Lola’s souvenir, a wand, does not help his mood. The trio, dangling from a tree, are humiliated when Delibird reclaims the Poké Balls, which were actually meant for Butch and Cassidy. The next day the friends set off for the Battle Pyramid.
Major Events
- Brock’s Onix is revealed to have evolved into Steelix. Pewter City and its redecorated Gym
- Flint, Lola (her main-series debut) and Forrest
- Steelix and Donphan beat Team Rocket’s Charizard and Aggron in a tag battle
- Delibird’s only Ruby and Sapphire appearance
- The first time a main character’s Pokémon is revealed to have evolved off screen
Captures and evolutions
Onix → Steelix#0208 · Brock · evolved off screen in Forrest’s care
Trivia
- The English title plays on the makeover show Trading Spaces.
- The screenplay is by Aya Matsui.
- This is a plot episode: it advances the Kanto storyline.
Changes in the English Dub
- Pokémon roars removed
- Brock’s order to dodge and use Dragon Breath becomes an Iron Tail rock shield
- A gag about Butch’s name
- The Pokémon Symphonic Medley
Part of our Pokémon: Battle Frontier guide. Browse every season of the Pokémon anime.