GS138: Better Eight Than Never

is the 45th episode of Pokémon: Master Quest.
==Synopsis==
Having finally seen stability restored to the Blackthorn Gym, Ash and Clair face off in a gym battle. Ash opens with a surprise entry, his Snorlax, and defeats Clair's Kingdra to take victory in the first round. Clair quickly comes back, wearing Snorlax down with her Gyarados. Ash sends in Pikachu, hoping its advantage as an Electric Pokémon will be enough to defeat Clair's Water Pokémon. It isn't until he puts Pikachu's speed to use, however, that he emerges victorious. At two to one, Ash is only one win away from earning his final badge, but this last round—against Clair's Dragonair—promises to be the hardest one yet.
==Episode plot==
Ash stars his rematch and final battle with Clair, the rules being the same as the previous match. Clair sends out her Kingdra, so Ash knew she'd do that and sends his Snorlax, claiming he retrieved it yesterday. Snorlax starts with Hyper Beam, but misses due to Kingdra's Agility. Kingdra strikes with Swift, but Snorlax is not hurt, so uses Body Slam. Kingdra repeats Agility and attacks Snorlax, who is not yet hit. Kingdra uses Hydro Pump, which hits Snorlax and uses Hyper Beam on it. Liza gives Charla some food to eat, while she goes to watch the Gym battle.
After the attack, Snorlax appears, as it dived to evade the attack. Snorlax uses Body Slam and hits Kingdra, who slips out, as they are in water. Clair declares when Snorlax comes out of water, Kingdra will use Hydro Pump. Snorlax jumps out and leans, avoiding any damage from Hydro Pump. Kingdra uses Swift, hitting Snorlax in its face. Kingdra uses Hydro Pump, hitting Snorlax. However, Ash sees Kingdra is exhausted, so Brock sees Snorlax's endurance is the key point in this battle, so Misty knows Snorlax will take hits. Kingdra uses Hyper Beam, but Snorlax dives to dodge. With Ice Punch, Snorlax defeats Kingdra.
Clair calls Kingdra back after being defeated, while Liza arrives to watch the battle. Brock attempts to flirt, but Misty pulls his little ear. Team Rocket digs a tunnel, for another attempt to get the Dragon Fang. Meowth sees the map and thinks the Dragon Fang is nearby. However, water begins to flow out, as Team Rocket is washed away, since they were digging under the lake. Clair sends out Gyarados, so Snorlax starts with Hyper Beam. However, Gyarados' Hydro Pump cancels the attack and hits Snorlax. Snorlax goes to use Hyper Beam, but fails and gets hit by Dragon Breath, which paralyzes it. With a Hyper Beam, Gyarados defeats Snorlax. Clair praises Gyarados and tells Ash that evens the score.
Charla smells more food, but a Pokémon takes it, making her confused. Ash calls Pikachu, who goes to battle Gyarados. Pikachu starts with Quick Attack, evading Hyper Beam and attacking Gyarados. Gyarados goes to bite, but misses. Pikachu uses Thunderbolt, which gets negated by Gyarados' Dragon Breath. Gyarados uses Hydro Pump, managing to hit Pikachu. Gyarados then wraps Pikachu, so Pikachu uses Thunderbolt on it. Gyarados continues to use Bite, cornering Pikachu. Gyarados uses Hydro Pump, but in last moment, Pikachu uses Agility, walking on the water and uses Thunderbolt, defeating Gyarados.
Meanwhile, Team Rocket uses a machine to dig through, while they relax. The machine found something, so Team Rocket goes out and finds Charla. Jessie thinks they should pull out this Charizard's fang, but they all blast off by her Flamethrower, leaving a bag of cookies, which a Pokémon takes. Clair sends her last Pokémon, Dragonair. Pikachu starts with Thunderbolt, but Dragonair dodges. Once it is enough to the ground, Pikachu uses Quick Attack on Dragonair. However, Dragonair dodges and retaliates with Hyper Beam, defeating Pikachu. Ash gives Brock his Pikachu to watch during the match. Ash sends out his last Pokémon, Charizard.
For the last match, Kaburagi opens the Gym's roof, as it will also take the place among the sky. Charizard uses Flamethrower, but Dragonair dives. Dragonair uses Hyper Beam, but misses. Charizard retaliates with Flamethrower, but Dragonair still dives into the water. Dragonair uses Dragon Rage, affecting Charizard with it. Charizard retaliates with Flamethrower, but Dragonair dives and attacks with Hyper Beam. However, Charizard's Fire Spin negates the attack. Dragonair dives, so Charizard uses Fire Spin, causing water to disappear. Misty, Brock and Liza see that Dragonair lost place to hide.
thumb|The last round: Charizard vs. Dragonair!
Charizard uses Flamethrower, which gets negated by Safeguard. Dragonair slams Charizard with Iron Tail. Dragonair repeats the same move, but Charizard blocks it. Charizard uses Seismic Toss, but Dragonair stops it with Dragon Rage, causing it to fall down. However, Charizard stands up, so Dragonair uses Hyper Beam. Charizard evades and retaliates with Flamethrower. Dragonair dodges and uses Iron Tail, but Charizard blocks it and uses Seismic Toss. Dragonair uses Dragon Rage, but this time, Charizard uses Fire Spin, hitting Dragonair with it. Charizard tosses Dragonair down.
After the field clears, Dragonair is defeated. Ash hugs Charizard, while Clair calls Dragonair back. Misty, Brock and Liza congratulate him, while Clair and Kaburagi are impressed, so Ash is given the Rising Badge. Ash is glad, as he has all eight badges. Later, Ash thanks Charizard, who goes with Liza and Charla away. The heroes, Clair and the old man wave goodbye to them.
==Debuts==
===Move===
Dragon Breath
===Item===
Rising Badge
==Trivia==
*The "Who's that Pokémon?" is Muk.
*This episode's name is a pun on the statement "better late than never".
===Mistakes===
*When Liza was giving Charla some food, Charla's eyes were completely black. This happened as well to Ash's Charizard, in many scenes during the battle.
*Dragonair's horn was missing after it fainted.
==Gallery==
==References==
Category:Episodes featuring Gym Battles
Category:Episodes in which a main character obtains a badge
Category:Episodes focusing on Ash