GS066: From Ghost to Ghost

is the 25th episode of Pokémon: Johto League Champions.
==Synopsis==
Anxious to acquire the next Johto League badge, Ash challenges Ecruteak City's Gym Leader, Morty. However, Ash has seen Morty's Ghost-type Pokémon in action and is a little worried about battle strategies. In a discussion with Nurse Joy, Ash realizes his secret weapon against Morty's Pokémon is his Noctowl. Find out what special strategies Ash and his Noctowl employ in a head-to-head battle against the skilled Gym Leader and his fear-provoking Pokémon!
==Episode plot==
At the Center, Brock tells Ash he can plan his strategy, since Morty uses Pokémon. Joy comes and reports to Ash his Pokémon are in excellent shape. Ash tells he will have the battle with Morty, but has never fought against Ghost Pokémon in a Gym match. Joy tells he has Noctowl as a secret weapon and Brock confirms she is right, as it is the key to win this match. Morty has Gengar use Confuse Ray on the Gastly to teach his students, though Ash appears. The heroes see they interrupted something and Morty explains he was teaching his students, but that can wait. He introduces Ash to the students, who want to see his match. Ash allows them that, since it does not bother him.
As Team Rocket travels in their balloon, James has the Treasure Detector activated. He is proud to have collected the caps, though Jessie and Meowth do not see what the point is. James clarifies he has that detector to find these bottle caps for his collection. The Treasure Detector vibrates, so Team Rocket sees they are above the towers they were yesterday at. James thinks there might be some old treasure lying there and Jessie thinks he might be correct, so go to land. They see their foe and Pikachu having the battle with the Gym Leader, so they hope to get two treasures at once. After being told the rules, Morty sends Gastly and Ash sends Noctowl, surprising Brock and Misty for starting early with it. Ash responds he knows what he is doing. Noctowl uses Hypnosis, but Gastly evades and shifts with a great speed. Noctowl uses Foresight, causing Gastly to appear. Noctowl goes to Tackle it, but misses and gets hit by Gastly's Lick, instead. Ash calls it back, as it did what he needed.
Jessie and Meowth are interested to watch the battle. James comes and reports he found some treasure, so they go to a house to find it. Ash sends Pikachu to battle Gastly. He uses Quick Attack on it, followed by a Thunderbolt. Gastly evades the last attack and defeats Pikachu with Night Shade. Ash places Pikachu to rest, sending Cyndaquil to battle instead. Team Rocket search through the items and find valuable stuff. Meowth thinks they need to catch Pikachu, but stops that thought after seeing a valuable charm. Suddenly, Gastly appear and use a move on Team Rocket. Cyndaquil starts with Flamethrower, though Gastly evades and uses Night Shade. Cyndaquil dodges, so Gastly goes to lick it. Cyndaquil runs on its tongue and tackles it, defeating it. Morty calls it back and sends Haunter, who evades Cyndaquil's Flamethrower. Haunter uses Mean Look, affecting Cyndaquil. Brock clarifies that Ash cannot switch Cyndaquil for another Pokémon, and that move is official, which shows what Ash will do about it.
thumb|left|Noctowl vs. Haunter!
Cyndaquil uses Swift, hitting Haunter. Haunter goes to hypnotize Cyndaquil, who interrupts the move using Smokescreen. Haunter pulls Cyndaquil out and licks it. Ash goes to call Cyndaquil back, but is reminded it cannot be recalled due to Mean Look, so Cyndaquil falls down, defeated. Ash calls Cyndaquil back and sends Noctowl again. Morty reminds Ash that if Noctowl is out, Ash will lose. Team Rocket, however, enjoy the food they are offered. They see a table and go to it, but the table moves away, so they go after it. In reality, they are being pranked by Gastly, who use Hypnosis. Noctowl uses Foresight to detect Haunter. Haunter uses its hands to attack Noctowl, who dodges, including its Lick attack. Noctowl uses Hypnosis, while Haunter uses Confuse Ray. The attacks connect, however, Haunter's Confuse Ray breaks through making Noctowl confused. Haunter goes to finish the battle using Night Shade, but Noctowl Tackles it at close range, eliminating its confused effect. Noctowl's eyebrows shine and learned how to use Confusion and Ash orders it to use that move, causing Haunter to be defeated by that attack.
Morty thinks Noctowl is building respect for Ash, but is confident that will not get him a badge. He sends Gengar as his last choice. Noctowl uses Confusion and Gengar uses Shadow Ball, which collides and explodes. Brock seeing Gengar is stronger than Haunter and Gastly. Gengar disappears, so Noctowl goes to use Foresight, but Morty has Gengar use Night Shade to keep Noctowl from using the attack. Brock tells Ash that Gengar must be out there, so Ash orders Noctowl to use Confusion and spread it in the whole Gym. Due to this, Gengar is hit and appears. Noctowl uses Foresight to stop it from becoming invisible. Gengar goes to use Shadow Ball, but gets canceled by Noctowl's Tackle and is defeated. Ash wins the match, as Morty acknowledges they put a better fight. Later, Morty gives Ash the Fog Badge, so Ash is glad he received it. Team Rocket, meanwhile, are still in the building, as they had a fantasy about going after the food table from earlier. Unknown to them, the Gastly are creating the illusion.
==Debuts==
===Pokémon===
*Morty's Haunter
*Morty's Gastly
===Move===
Mean Look
===Item===
Fog Badge
==Quotes==
:"Cyndaquil Return!" - Ash
:"That won't work! Mean Look won't let you call it back till it's over." - Brock
:"You can let go now, Haunter." Morty
==Trivia==
*The Gastly in the treasure room break the fourth wall.
*The "Who's that Pokémon?" is Ditto.
===Mistakes===
*Cyndaquil used Swift on Haunter, who was not affected by Foresight and shouldn't have been hit by it.
*Gastly's Lick should have no effect on Noctowl due to its typing. Likewise, Noctowl's Tackle should have no effect on Gengar due to its typing.
===Dub Differences===
* In the Japanese dub, no command is given for Gastly to attack. In the English dub, Gastly is told to use Confusion, a move it can't learn.
==Gallery==
==References==
Category:Episodes featuring Gym Battles
Category:Episodes featuring a main character's Pokémon learning a new move
Category:Episodes in which a main character obtains a badge
Category:Episodes focusing on Ash
Category:Episodes featuring alternate colored Pokémon