The Guardian's Challenge! – Pokémon Sun & Moon Episode 2


Season	Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon (Season 20) · Welcome to Alola arc (SM001–SM004)
Episode	Season 20, episode 2 · English episode 937 · Japanese episode 942 · Bulbapedia code SM002
English title	The Guardian’s Challenge!
Japanese title	守り神カプ・コケコ登場！挑戦、オレたちのZワザ！！ Mamorigami Kapu-Kokeko Tōjō! Chōsen, Ore-tachi no Z-Waza!! — “The Guardian Deity Kapu-Kokeko Appears! Challenge, Our Z-Move!!”
First aired (Japan)	17 November 2016 · TV Tokyo
First aired (US)	12 May 2017 · Disney XD
Screenplay	Aya Matsui
Opening / ending (Japan)	Alola!! – Satoshi (Rica Matsumoto) with Pikachu (Ikue Ōtani) · Pōzu (Pose) – Taiiku Okazaki
English opening	Under the Alolan Sun – Jannel Candrice and The Sad Truth (featuring Ben Dixon and the Vestigial Horns)
Who’s That Pokémon?	Rockruff (US)
Previous episode	Alola to New Adventure! (SM001)
Next episode	Loading the Dex! (SM003)

Plot episodeFirst Z-Move: Gigavolt HavocIsland challenge

The Guardian’s Challenge! is the 2nd episode of Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon, the twentieth season of the Pokémon anime, and the 937th episode of the English dub overall (Japanese episode 942, Bulbapedia code SM002). It first aired in Japan on 17 November 2016 and in the United States on 12 May 2017. It falls within the season’s Welcome to Alola stretch (EP1–EP4).

Shown with SM001 in its preview version on 5 December 2016, without its “To Be Continued” caption; the finished version premiered at 9:30 p.m. on Friday 12 May 2017.

Synopsis

On his first day at the Pokémon School, Ash makes friends with his new classmates, performs his first Z-Move in a battle with Tapu Koko and decides to take on the island challenge. In the classroom Lana’s Popplio blows balloons, Sophocles charges his computer with Togedemaru running in a wheel, and Mallow’s Bounsweet startles the nervous Lillie. Kiawe arrives tired from his morning deliveries just as Professor Kukui introduces Ash, who announces that he will become a Pokémon Master. Kiawe recognises the crystal on Ash’s Z-Ring as an Electrium Z, and Lillie explains that Tapu Koko helps travellers but also loves to play tricks. Kiawe warns that Z-Moves are not a toy. Then Samson Oak bursts in wearing an Exeggutor costume to teach the class about regional variants, introducing the tall Alolan Exeggutor, a Grass and Dragon type. When Ash touches the real Exeggutor’s tail, it flings him onto a ladder. That evening at Kukui’s house, Kukui’s Rockruff takes an instant liking to Ash.

The next morning Ash arrives late to find that Mallow has organised a surprise welcome party in his honour. Sophocles challenges him to a balloon-popping contest, but Togedemaru’s Lightning Rod Ability draws in Pikachu’s Thunderbolt and its powered-up Zing Zap pops everything in sight. Lana’s Popplio then beats Pikachu in a race across land and water, and Kiawe edges out Ash in a Tauros race in a photo finish. The fun is interrupted at lunchtime when Tapu Koko swoops down, snatches Ash’s cap and flies off into the forest, with Ash in hot pursuit and his classmates following. Deep in the woods the guardian gives back the cap and sets up Electric Terrain with Electric Surge. It strikes with Dazzling Gleam, and Pikachu’s Thunderbolt barely seems to bother it.

Tapu Koko signals to Ash that it wants to see a Z-Move. Remembering Kiawe’s poses, Ash and Pikachu perform one together, and Pikachu unleashes Gigavolt Havoc, Ash’s first Z-Move, which collides with the guardian in a huge explosion. When the smoke clears, Ash’s Electrium Z has shattered, and Tapu Koko flies off. Kiawe tells him that he is not yet ready to use Z-Moves; a Trainer earns that right by completing the island challenge. Ash immediately decides to take the challenge and collect Z-Crystals of his own, and his classmates promise to cheer him on. That night at dinner, Professor Kukui hands Ash a gift to help him on his way: a brand-new Alola Pokédex, which has a surprise in store for him in the next episode.

Major Events

Ash’s first Z-Move. Ash joins the class
Samson Oak’s lesson on regional variants
Mallow’s welcome party with balloon-popping, sea and Tauros races
Ash and Pikachu’s first Z-Move, Gigavolt Havoc, against Tapu Koko shatters the Electrium Z
Ash decides to take the island challenge
Professor Kukui gives him a Pokédex
Anime debuts of Rockruff and Komala