GS022: The Superhero Secret

is the 22nd episode of of , Season 3 of , and of .
==Synopsis==
The legendary Gligarman grows old and begins to bend under the weighty task of fighting crime. When Ash and friends wander into town, they bring with them a challenge that threatens to be Gligarman's last—Team Rocket.
==Episode plot==
As the heroes walk, they hear a strange noise. Ash thinks it was a Hoothoot, but Brock does not think so. Suddenly, a thing appears and flies away, which Brock identifies as a Gligar. Brock warns Gligar do not like humans much, but Ash thinks it'll like him and yells to get its attention. Suddenly, they fall in a hole, as Team Rocket cover the hole with a net and fill it with water to get Pikachu out. Ash orders Pikachu to shock Team Rocket, but Brock and Misty stop him, as he'll electrocute them as well. Togepi is knocked loose from Misty's grip and falls in the water, flailing helplessly as it can't swim, while the hole continues to be filled. Suddenly, the Gligar comes down and rescues Togepi, then goes on a branch, accompanied by Gligarman, his master. The heroes and Team Rocket never heard of this "Gligarman", so Gligarman tells them he is a superhero. Team Rocket doubt it, but Misty sees he might be, since Togepi was saved.
Misty introduces herself to Gligarman, so Gligar causes trouble for Team Rocket, landing on Jessie's face. James goes to get Gligar away, but is terrified of its poisonous sharp tail. Meowth goes to rescue her, but Gligar flies away, leaving Jessie to be scratched by Fury Swipes. Jessie scratches Meowth back in a retaliatory fury, then runs away with James and Meowth, seeing Gligar chase them. Gligarman praises Gligar and they make a pose. Misty thanks Gligarman for rescuing Togepi, so Gligarman jumps heartily, but falls down. Nevertheless, he hands Togepi to Misty, then goes on his bike. Handing the heroes a whistle to call whenever they are in trouble, Gligarman and Gligar ride away.
The heroes are approached by a woman on a bike, who asks about Gligarman, hoping he did not cause trouble. Misty tells he saved Togepi, then Brock flirts with the woman, Latoya, then gets pulled by Misty, who drags him away. Ash asks Latoya if Gligarman is truly a superhero, so Latoya tells that man sometimes imagines he is a superhero. After asked if she knows Gligarman's identity, Latoya rides the bike away in a hurry. Ash feels the woman is hiding something. Brock tells she is hiding feelings for him, but Ash yells that he is nuts, as he sees that Gligarman is a powerful trainer with a strong Gligar. The heroes come in town and see the promotion of Gligarman and enter a store. Brock sees Latoya and is glad to see her. Ash asks her about Gligarman, so a man comes and tells he knows everything about Gligarman, then shows a movie about it. After the movie, Ash asks how come the Gligarman they saw in the woods does not look like the one in the movie. The man explains the movie was made several years ago and gives Ash some promotional items.
Togepi pulls the man's pants, and imitates Gligarman's pose from earlier, so Misty feels that he must be the Gligarman. The man tells Misty that it is ridiculous. Misty replies the only man in town knowing her name is Gligarman. Ash replaces the man's hat with Gligarman's hood and sees it is him. Brock asks if he could arrange a date with his daughter, Latoya, while Ash asks if he has any superpowers. Gligarman keeps shut Ash's mouth, clarifying they must not know his identity. Team Rocket heard that and Jessie asks of her super villains to unite their powers to unmask Gligarman. James and Meowth ask whom is she talking to, making Jessie mad, as she told them. Jessie wonders how the Gligarman will handle Team Rocket trouble.
At the mansion, the man tells Gligarman existed to protect the weak from evil. Latoya tells them that her father owns a store that did not sell many things when it opened, so he made the Gligarman costume to promote his store. The role grew on him and he got used to being the superhero. She wishes he could sell toys once more, but her father refuses, as Gligarman is a figure. They come to a lab and see many inventions, including Gligarman's motorcycle he used earlier, making the gang amazed. Gligar comes to Latoya's father, making Ash impressed, as he owns a cool Pokémon, a store and is a superhero. Latoya's father believes Ash could become a Gligarman himself, with enough training. With a fantasy of him of becoming a Gligarman, Ash refuses, since he wants to become a Pokémon Master. Latoya's father is disappointed, since the idea of Gligarman cannot continue, not on Latoya. Brock tells he can become Gligarman so that he can go with Latoya, who asks him to be serious. Brock gets depressed by that question. Ash wishes to know more about Gligar. Latoya's father tells him despite its sour behavior, it fights for good and for those in trouble. Suddenly, they hear a whistle, as the man's store is attacked. The man and Ash go to resolve the situation. Team Rocket terrorize the store and take the employees hostage, so Ash and Gligarman appear before them. Jessie tells them they are ready this time, so she sends Metapod Man (who is James), so Gligar comes and lands on his face.
At Jessie's suggestion, Meowth takes off his own Metapod costume and comes back in his Spinarak bot and entangles Gligarman and Ash with String Shot. The bot carries them outside and plants them onto a lamp post. Jessie goes to unmask Gligarman. The store's employees encourage Mr. Parker to be strong, so he knows they know he is Gligarman. Suddenly, another superhero appears, with the name of Gligirl, who asks Gligar's help. Gligar sees Gligirl is Latoya under the mask and obeys her, cutting the strings that bind Ash and Gligarman. Pikachu goes to confuse Meowth by running in circles, crashing the robot in the process. James goes to get Pikachu, though gets chased by Gligar's Poison Sting. The bot releases strings, but Gligar uses Swift to stop it. Pikachu uses Thunderbolt on the bot, shocking Meowth and causing the bot to malfunction and chase Jessie and James. The bot explodes, blasting Team Rocket off. Gligirl and Ash make a pose, so the citizens congratulate them, making Mr. Parker proud.
Ash asks Latoya why did she become Gligirl. Latoya admits she does not know it herself, but saw her father in trouble and went to help him. Latoya tells her father he can hang his cape up and retire, but Mr. Parker refuses, since he does not want to do it yet. Ash advises to them to work together. Latoya thinks it is not a bad idea, as long as she keeps Gligar, so she and her father pull Gligar for themselves. Brock realizes Gligirl is Latoya. Mr. Parker tells Ash whenever in trouble, he needs to blow the whistle. Brock asks how can he summon Gligirl, causing Misty to be annoyed at him. With everything done, the heroes go away to Azalea Town, bidding farewell to Mr. Parker, Latoya, their workers, and Gligar.
==Debuts==
===Character===
*Mr. Parker
*Latoya
===Pokémon===
Gligar
==Trivia==
* Gligarman is the Pokémon version of Batman.
* The surname Parker may be a homage to Peter Parker a.k.a. Spider Man.
* Gligirl is the Pokémon version of Batgirl.
* Gligarman and Gligirl are the first and second superheroes in the Pokémon anime, the third being the Mighty Accelguard.
* The "Who's that Pokémon?" in this episode is Mareep.
* The English dubbing is out of sync the entire episode as it is ahead of the characters speaking.
==Gallery==
==References==
Category:Episodes focusing on Ash