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| Season | Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon – Ultra Legends (Season 22) · Meltan & the Alola League arc (SM110–SM118) |
| Episode | Season 22, episode 26 · English episode 1052 · Japanese episode 1058 · Bulbapedia code SM118 |
| English title | Aiming for the Top Floor! |
| Japanese title | 最上階を目指せ！爆音のドラゴンジム！！ Saijōkai o Mezase! Bakuon no Doragon Jimu!! — “Aim for the Top Floor! The Explosive Dragon Gym!!” |
| First aired (Japan) | 21 April 2019 · TV Tokyo |
| First aired (US) | 24 August 2019 · Disney XD |
| Screenplay | Akemi Omode |
| Opening / ending (Japan) | Kimi no Bōken (Your Adventure) – Taiiku Okazaki · Kokoro no Nōto (Notebook of the Heart) – Hino City Nanaomidori Elementary School Choir |
| English opening | The Challenge of Life – Dani Marcus and The Sad Truth |
| Who’s That Pokémon? | Froslass (US) |
| Previous episode | Drawn with the Wind! (SM117) |
| Next episode | A High-Speed Awakening! (SM119) |
Plot episodeKantonian GymRowlet learns Brave Bird
Aiming for the Top Floor! is the 26th episode of Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon – Ultra Legends, the twenty-second season of the Pokémon anime, and the 1052nd episode of the English dub overall (Japanese episode 1058, Bulbapedia code SM118). It first aired in Japan on 21 April 2019 and in the United States on 24 August 2019. It falls within the season’s Meltan & the Alola League stretch (EP110–EP118).
Synopsis
At Malie City’s Kantonian Gym, the class clears four floors of ninja-themed tests before Ash and Kiawe face the rock-star Gym Leader Ryuki and his Dragon types, and Rowlet learns Brave Bird. On the group’s second day in the city, Charlie Charma pops out of a disguise and leads them to the pagoda-style Gym, a tourist attraction modelled on the Gyms of Kanto. When Charlie mentions that Ash comes from Pallet Town, three ninjas, Shirataki, Darley and Farley, surround him with questions about the real Kanto, and Shirataki explains that challengers must finish a game on each of the first four floors before facing the Gym Leader. On the first floor, Farley challenges the group to cross a pond without swimming, and Ash and Kiawe nearly sink in water shoes until Snowy freezes a path with Powder Snow. On the second floor, a banquet of local food, including Goldeen jelly, keeps Mallow and Sophocles behind.
On the third floor, Shirataki’s shuriken test requires three hits on each target: Pikachu knocks shuriken in with Iron Tail, Marowak swings its bone like a bat and Lana lands six throws dead centre, while Lillie’s wild throws keep her behind for practice. On the fourth floor, Kiawe completes an obstacle course, and when Ash calls out Meltan to help, it chews through the chain of a swinging ball that demolishes the course and stops Lana. On the top floor, Ryuki appears through white smoke and declares himself a star who will never change his spiky red style. His Zweilous’s two heads fight each other until he screams into his microphone and plays air guitar, calming it into swaying to the music. Kiawe’s Marowak becomes so absorbed in the rhythm that it is knocked out by Dark Pulse.
Ash sends out Rowlet, which wakes up and holds its own until Zweilous bites it and shakes it to the beat. Meltan angrily chews through the metal studs of Ryuki’s outfit, halting the match, and Ash, seeing its determination, asks for a Double Battle, which Ryuki allows because the Leader makes the rules. Meltan’s Headbutt bounces off Druddigon’s hard head and Druddigon’s Dragon Claws wear Meltan down, though Meltan holds on with Harden. Then Rowlet’s Peck transforms into Brave Bird, and a combined Brave Bird and Flash Cannon knock out both Zweilous and Druddigon. Ryuki presents Ash with a novelty Badge bearing his own face, and Ash and his Pokémon pose with it. On the ferry back to Melemele Island, Kiawe vows to return for a rematch, but Ash discovers that Meltan has already eaten half of his new Badge.
Major Events
- The Kantonian Gym. The class clears four floors of ninja games
- The Gym Leader Ryuki’s Zweilous beats Kiawe’s Marowak
- Ash wins a Double Battle and a novelty Badge, which Meltan half eats
- Rowlet learns Brave Bird
- Meltan knows Harden
- The dub softens every shuriken
- Debut of Ryuki
Trivia
- The screenplay is by Akemi Omode.
- This is a plot episode: it advances the Alola storyline.
Changes in the English Dub
- The ninja Gym’s shuriken are painted pink with suction-cup rings and softened sounds; the shuriken that cuts Kiawe’s hair no longer cuts, though a later shot still shows the damage
- The shot of Rotom being hit is shortened
- The obstacle course’s wrecking ball is recoloured pink, with rubbery sound effects
- The dub replaces the insert “Ash-Greninja Appears!” with an electric-guitar version of The Challenge of Life
Part of our Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon – Ultra Legends guide. Browse every season of the Pokémon anime.