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| Season | Pokémon the Series: XYZ (Season 19) · The Team Flare crisis arc (XY132–XY136) |
| Episode | Season 19, episode 39 · English episode 927 · Japanese episode 932 · Bulbapedia code XY132 |
| English title | A Towering Takeover! |
| Japanese title | 襲撃フレア団！プリズムタワーのジガルデ！！ Shūgeki Furea-dan! Purizumu Tawā no Jigarude!! — “Flare-dan Attacks! The Zygarde at the Prism Tower!!” |
| First aired (Japan) | 25 August 2016 · TV Tokyo |
| First aired (US) | 12 November 2016 · Cartoon Network |
| Screenplay | Atsuhiro Tomioka |
| Opening / ending (Japan) | XY&Z – Satoshi (Rica Matsumoto) · Puni-chan no Uta (Puni-chan’s Song) – Eureka (Mariya Ise) |
| English opening | Stand Tall – Ben Dixon and The Sad Truth |
| Who’s That Pokémon? | Zygarde (10% Forme) (US) |
| Previous episode | Down to the Fiery Finish! (XY131) |
| Next episode | Coming Apart at the Dreams! (XY133) |
Plot episodeTeam Flare arc, part 1Lysandre revealed
A Towering Takeover! is the 39th episode of Pokémon the Series: XYZ, the nineteenth season of the Pokémon anime, and the 927th episode of the English dub overall (Japanese episode 932, Bulbapedia code XY132). It first aired in Japan on 25 August 2016 and in the United States on 12 November 2016. It falls within the season’s The Team Flare crisis stretch (EP132–EP136).
Synopsis
As giant roots overrun Lumiose City, Lysandre reveals himself as the leader of Team Flare and captures Ash, Alain learns the truth about the man he has been working for, and Squishy reveals itself to the group as a Zygarde. Ash and Alain leave the stadium to find Mairin, while Bonnie, Clemont and Serena chase Squishy, which absorbs Cells to become its faster 10% Forme and heads for Prism Tower. Sawyer, Shauna, Tierno and Trevor help evacuate citizens, Diantha and Gardevoir rescue people trapped by the roots, and Jessie, seeing Malva abandon her broadcast, decides to report the crisis herself. Ash and Alain meet Celosia, who calls Alain a colleague following Lysandre’s orders; Alain refuses to answer Ash and walks away. Celosia’s Drapion knocks Ash out with Confuse Ray, and Pikachu collapses after trying to protect him.
Team Flare hijack every broadcast in Kalos with Lysandre’s message: Zygarde is angry at a world without enough for everyone, and only the chosen will live in the new world. A Grunt tries to take Mairin to Lysandre, but Professor Sycamore’s Garchomp rescues her. At the top of Prism Tower, Lysandre thanks Alain for completing his Mega Evolution energy system and tells him that the red Zygarde embodies the world’s anger. Alain argues that destruction cannot bring peace, but Lysandre insists he will protect only the chosen. When Squishy arrives and tries to reason with Z2, the 50% Forme knocks it off the tower with Dragon Pulse, overpowering its own Dragon Pulse, and Squishy falls, losing all its Cells. Ash and his Pokémon, bound in restraining devices, are lifted into the air.
At the base of the tower, Serena, Clemont and Bonnie fight off the roots with Braixen and Luxray until Clembot, Heliolisk and Blaziken Mask’s Blaziken come to their aid, and Blaziken Mask agrees to lead them to the tower. Aliana and Bryony block the entrance with Druddigon’s Dark Pulse. Ash wakes and struggles against his bonds, and Lysandre tells him he might be one of the chosen. Bonnie senses Squishy, which floats up and transforms into its towering 50% Forme, and Bonnie and her friends learn for the first time that their little companion is a Zygarde, just as Lysandre predicted. The red Zygarde leaps down from the tower to confront it, Squishy warns that it will use force if Z2 refuses to listen, and the two Legendary Pokémon roar as they prepare to battle.
Major Events
- Team Flare arc, part 1. Lysandre reveals himself as the leader of Team Flare and captures Ash
- Alain learns the truth
- Squishy shows the group its 50% Forme
Trivia
- The screenplay is by Atsuhiro Tomioka.
- This is a plot episode: it advances the Kalos storyline.
Part of our Pokémon the Series: XYZ guide. Browse every season of the Pokémon anime.