RS145: A Hurdle for Squirtle

is the 53rd episode of Pokémon: Advanced Battle.
==Synopsis==
Timely intervention by Lillian, the Master of Ceremonies, narrowly allows May to enter her first Kanto Pokémon Contest, granting her the chance to settle the score with her deceitful rival, Harley, on the Contest stage.  When the two pair off in the deciding battle, however, May’s Squirtle seems a poor choice against Harley’s Ariados, which quickly dominates the arena, relying heavily on its signature String Shot attack. Can May use strategy to overcome her Pokémon’s inherent disadvantages, or will victory fall to the coordinator whose lies nearly cost May the chance to even compete?
==Episode plot==
The announcer, Lilian, announces that the Contest is about to begin. May and Squirtle are anticipated to start, though Harley comes to apologize. May refuses to believe him, telling him she will win that ribbon. Harley corrects her, telling she will lose. The announcer starts the Contest - the first one is Harley. Harley sends Cacturne, who uses Cotton Spore, and follows with Needle Arm, with spikes coming out of it and drilling the spores inside out. The judges are impressed, as well as the audience.
After some Contestants, Jessibella (aka Jessie) comes. Cacnea is sent out and hugs Jessie, who is hurt by its needles. The crowd is surprised, even feeling the pain, even if they should not. Next, Cacnea uses Pin Missile, so some missiles merge, making sparkles. The judges let Jessie pass to next round, though Chansey intervenes, as she seems frozen by the pain.
May and Squirtle come - Squirtle is a bit afraid from all the crowd, but May tells it does not need to fear. She sends Combusken - she takes off her bandanna and it is pushed higher by Combusken's Fire Spin. Also, Combusken uses Sky Uppercut, forming the bandanna to its original state and May catches it and puts it on her head. The crowd is amazed, so May also advances to next round. The screen displays the next Contestants - among them are Jessie, Harley and May. The screen displays who will battle who, so May is up against an unknown Coordinator, while Harley needs to fight Jessie. Harley tells May that she was lucky, but will humiliate herself in final battle with him. Jessie comes, so Harley tells she will be her next "victim", but Jessie is not frightened of him.
The second round begins - Jessie sends Wobbuffet and Harley his Ariados. Jessie plans that with Counter she'll defeat Ariados, but Harley knows that she'll redirect the attack, so they both wait. Jessie tells Harley to attack, but he does not want to yet. Because of so much waiting, Lilian gives them yellow cards - both their points fall to half. Jessie and Harley bicker, so Lilian is about to lower their points to zero, so Harley begins - Ariados uses String Shot, so Wobbuffet uses Counter, but the move does not work - the strings cover Wobbuffet. Ariados moves the strings, controlling Wobbuffet like a puppet. To finish, Ariados pulls the strings, so Wobbuffet is launched on Ariados. Jessie is defeated, as she lost all her points. Jessie is depressed and falls.
May's Squirtle uses Bubble, defeating the Crobat. Harley's Ariados uses Spider Web, immobilizing Walrein. Squirtle tackles Weepinbell, defeating it. So, May and Harley have to battle. May sends Squirtle and Harley his Ariados. Ariados uses String Shot, pulling itself to Squirtle, and scares it. Squirtle uses Ice Beam, but falls down and misses. Ariados uses String Shot, pulling Squirtle to itself. Ariados covers the stage, using Spider Web. Ariados releases Squirtle, who lands on the web. Ariados charges with Double Edge, so Squirtle uses Bubble on it, but with no effect.
Squirtle uses Ice Beam, releasing itself from the web and freezing Ariados and the web itself. Next, Squirtle uses Bubble, so Ariados is unfrozen, but has no balance on the frozen web. To end the fight, Squirtle tackles Ariados. Ariados is defeated, so May wins. Harley is angry and goes away, saying "the Contest must have been rigged". May gets her first Kanto ribbon. After the Contest, Brock tells her Squirtle's Ice Beam needs control, so she needs to improve all attacks. So, now the gang goes to the Battle Arena, where Ash will get the second symbol.
==Trivia==
*Featured Pokémon: Groudon, Snorlax, and Wailord.
*This is the only Kanto Pokémon Contest that is dubbed by 4Kids.
*This is the last episode in which Lisa Adams voices Lilian, Andrew Rannels voices Harley, Bella Hudson voices Nurse Joy, and Darren Dunstan voices Mr. Sukizo.
*It is revealed that Jessie still retained her bowl cut from the previous episode, and that it was not only a one-off gag.
===Mistakes===
*When Lilian goes over the rules, she tells that five "badges" are necessary to enter the Grand Festival.
*Jessie is put into a fullbody gauze-suit despite Cacnea only having hugged her torso.
==Gallery==
==References==
pl:AG144
Category:Episodes featuring Pokémon Contests
Category:Episodes focusing on May
Category:Episodes focusing on Harley
Category:Episodes featuring May receiving a Ribbon