Pokémon: I Choose You! Pikachu!

== Episode Plots ==
A battle between a Nidorino and Gengar is broadcast on the television and, after Gengar gets the advantage, Nidorino is called back and switched for Onix. The cameras then show ten-year-old Ash Ketchum watching the battle on television until he is interrupted by his mother. She tells Ash to go to sleep. Ash protests and she changes the channel to a program with Professor Oak describing the three Pokémon he can choose from in the morning: the grass type Bulbasaur, the water type Squirtle and the fire type Charmander. Ash falls asleep and dreams about owning a Bulbasaur and then a Squirtle, talking about the advantages in his sleep. The next morning, Ash dreams about owning a Charmander, throwing a Poké Ball, which turns out to be his alarm clock, designed to look like a Voltorb.
When the alarm clock hits the wall Ash wakes up and rushes, still in his pajamas, to Professor Oak's laboratory to collect his first Pokémon. Ash, however, runs into Gary Oak, the professor's grandson, along with the people of Pallet Town, who, along with Gary's cheerleaders, show their support for Gary. Gary tells Ash that he already got his Pokémon, although he does not tell Ash which Pokémon he chose. Gary, who tells Ash that he is already behind, leaves with his cheerleaders and the townsfolk following. Professor Oak then appears, telling Ash that he is late. The two go inside, where the Professor tells him that the three starter Pokémon have been taken by Trianers who were on time.
The Professor tells Ash that there is still one Pokémon left, a Pikachu. Professor Oak then warns Ash that it might not be a good idea to choose Pikachu. However, Ash decides to take Pikachu, but Pikachu is not as happy and electrocutes Ash. Oak then gives Ash his Pokédex and Poké Balls, with Pikachu electrocuting both Ash and Professor Oak. Ash then leaves the laboratory and is greeted by his mother and the people of Pallet Town. His mother is impressed with choice but Pikachu electrocutes Ash's mom and the crowd. Ash is given his backpack filled with supplies and some advice from his mother, and leaves, literally dragging Pikachu behind him, after tying a rope around Pikachu's waist and using rubber gloves to protect himself.
After dragging Pikachu along for a while, he decides to try and improve his relationship with Pikachu by untying him and taking off the rubber gloves. Pikachu, however, continues to ignore Ash's instructions, including when he asks Pikachu to attack a Pidgey. Ash throws a Poké Ball and almost captures Pidgey, who escapes and runs away, with Pikachu happily laughing at Ash's failed attempt. Ash then decides to sneak up on Pidgey, hiding behind his pajama top, later using it to trap Pidgey, who escapes using its Gust attack and then its Sand Attack. Pikachu continues to laugh at Ash, who then watches a Rattata steal food from his backpack.
Ash, more determined than ever, turns around and spots three Pidgey, including the one he had tried to capture. Ash throws a rock but misses, with the three Pidgey flying away. Ash then spots another Pokémon and throws a rock, and hits his target. The Pokémon, however, is a Spearow, who begins to attack Ash and then Pikachu. Pikachu used Thunder Shock to scare Spearow away, although Spearow cries out and a whole flock begins to attack Ash and Pikachu, who run away but are easily caught and attacked by the Spearow. Pikachu, who had run ahead of Ash, takes a lot of damage before Ash arrives to scare away the attacking Spearow.
Ash picks Pikachu up and runs to a cliff edge, where he decides to jump off and into the water below, where he sees a Magikarp and a Gyarados. He then grabs a fishing lure and is pulled out by Misty, who questions Ash about the state Pikachu is in, telling him of a nearby Pokémon Center. Ash takes her bike and cycles off towards the Pokémon Center, with the flock of Spearow following behind them. Ash crashes the bike and crawls over to Pikachu, putting a Poké Ball out for Pikachu to enter, to protect it from the attacking Spearow. Ash then stands up to the Spearow, challenging them to attack him. Pikachu, seeing Ash's courage and determination to protect him gets to his feet and climbs onto Ash's shoulder, jumping into the air and using a lighting bolt to release a strong Thunder Shock attack, which scares away the Spearow flock.
Later on, when the storm clears, Ash and Pikachu wake up. Ash tells Pikachu that they beat the Spearow Gang and Pikachu nods in agreement. Ash looks up into the sky and sees a mysterious flying Pokémon in the sky towards a rainbow. The Pokédex can give Ash no information as it was not registered in it and tells Ash that there were still more Pokémon which have not been discovered. Ash and Pikachu decide to walk on towards the Pokémon Center in the next city (Viridian City), as Misty's bike is too badly damaged to use. The two continue walking and eventually, from a hilltop, are able to look down on the city as the episode ends.
The episode begins showing Ash stating that he will be the greatest Pokémon master of all time and recaps the events of Pokémon, I Choose You!. The camera then shows an overview of Viridian City and the voice of Officer Jenny is heard warning the citizens of Pokémon thieves. She then spots Ash rushing to the Pokémon Center with Pikachu. She accuses Ash of stealing Pikachu but quickly apologizes when she realizes he is going to the Pokémon Center. She asks for his identification and spots Ash's Pokédex, which confirms that Ash is a Pokémon trainer and not a thief. Ash then asks to take Pikachu to the Pokémon Center, but Officer Jenny decides to take him on her motorcycle. As they pull away, Misty appears lifting her destroyed bike, in an angry mood.
Team Rocket then take their picture off the wanted board and, from their hot air balloon, talk about their plan to steal the rare Pokémon of Viridian City. Ash and Officer Jenny are then seen driving towards the Pokémon Center, with Officer Jenny driving the motorcycle into the Pokémon Center. Nurse Joy, after quickly reprimanding Officer Jenny, calls for a stretcher for an electric type Pokémon and also ask for Chansey to come and to bring the stretcher. Two of these Chansey that Joy called come out with the stretcher and put Pikachu on it. Nurse Joy then goes to start the treatment and then criticizes Ash for allowing Pikachu to battle until it was in such a bad condition. Ash attempts to tell her the story but is cut off. Nurse Joy then goes into the theatre room and Officer Jenny goes to get her motorcycle out of the Pokémon Center.
Ash is forced to wait in the waiting room and after a while decides to phone home. His mom answers the phone and talks to him, and he is depressed due to Pikachu's condition. He talks down about himself, telling his mother he feels like a falling Pidgey, but his mother tells him that he can do anything he puts his mind to. Ash then spots a board showing four Pokémon and he notices the mysterious bird Pokémon he saw flying over the rainbow. The telephone then begins to ring and Ash answers, discovering that Professor Oak is phoning to check up on him. Professor Oak tells Ash that the other three Pallet Town trainers had already made it to Viridian City and that he bet his grandson, Gary, a million dollars that Ash would have caught a Pokémon by the time he reached Viridian City. He then tells Professor Oak about seeing the mysterious flying Pokémon and then hangs up to collect his pizza.
An angry Misty then appears and shows Ash her bike, which was destroyed by Pikachu using Thundershock. She angrily tells Ash that he will have to pay for a new bike. Ash tells her about Pikachu, stating that 'he's not too good'. Misty quickly becomes sad and, after a brief moment, Nurse Joy and the two Chansey bring Pikachu out on a stretcher. Nurse Joy, happy from the successful treatment, tells Ash that Pikachu will still need to stay in the Pokémon Center. Misty also calms down, stating that she will give Ash time before he has to pay for her bike.
The voice of Officer Jenny is then heard as she informs the citizens of Viridian City about an aircraft being detected. Jessie and James of Team Rocket are then seen, with James being unhappy about the fact that they being treated like criminals. The two then drop one Poké Ball each through the roof of the Pokémon Center. Koffing and Ekans come out of their Poké Balls and Koffing uses SmokeScreen, with Team Rocket and Meowth dropping into the building, and reciting their infamous motto. Afterwards, they tell Ash, Misty and Nurse Joy of their plot to steal the rare and injured Pokémon at the Pokémon Center.
They then command Koffing and Ekans to attack, with Koffing using smoke screen and Ekans using tackle attack and ripping the power cables. Ash, Misty and Nurse Joy run into a room filled with the injured Poké Balls and begin to transport the Poké Balls to the Pokémon Center at Pewter City. Koffing and Ekans then burst into the room along with Team Rocket and Meowth, causing many of the Poké Balls to fall on the floor. Ash picks one up and throws it, with a Pidgey appearing, although the Pidgey is scared away by Ekans. Ash then throws another Poké Ball, which is empty and then another with a Rattata inside, which is also scared off by Ekans.
Misty then steps in and begins a battle against them, throwing her own Poké Ball, with Goldeen appearing, although it falls on the floor and there's no water to swim in. She calls Goldeen back and tells Ash to run away with Pikachu. Ash runs away and the stretcher crashes. Pikachu is woken up and comes out to attack. It use Thunder Shock to attack Team Rocket, Koffing, and Ekans, although Meowth escapes the attack. Pikachu then tells Ash he needs more energy and he gets on Misty's destroyed bike, pedaling to make the light come on. Pikachu then uses the energy from the light to use Thunder Shock. Koffing then uses Smokescreen, which causes an explosion that destroys the Pokémon Center, just as Officer Jenny arrives. Officer Jenny comments on the fireworks just as she arrives. Team Rocket are then sent blasting off and manage to hold onto a rope from their hot air balloon, deciding to follow Ash and to kidnap his Pikachu because of its unique power.
Nurse Joy is then seen talking to her older sister from Pewter City. Her sister states that the Pokémon were successfully transferred. Nurse Joy of Viridian City then states that Ash, Misty, and Pikachu have headed out to Viridian Forest and questions whether they will be okay, although Officer Jenny is confident they will be 'from what I've seen'. Ash, Misty, and Pikachu were then seen walking through the Viridian Forest and Misty screams after seeing a Caterpie, causing a bird Pokémon to fly away. Ash decides to try and capture the Caterpie and throws his Poké Ball, which remains in mid-flight as the episode comes to an end.
The episode begins with Ash throwing a Poké Ball at Caterpie, following on directly from the last episode. Ash captures it and celebrates the capture of his first Pokémon, stating that this is the beginning of his journey to becoming a Pokémon Master. Ash attempts to show Misty his Poké Ball with Caterpie inside, although Misty is less than pleased due to her fear of bug Pokémon. After showing the Poké Ball to Pikachu, Ash releases Caterpie. Caterpie goes climbing onto Ash's shoulder but notices a scared Misty hiding behind a tree and runs over. Caterpie attempts to befriend Misty, but her fear leads to her hurting Caterpie's feelings, calling it 'disgusting'.
Misty decides to stick with Pikachu and then tells Ash that she hates bug Pokémon, carrots, and peppers. Ash then angrily tells Misty that he doesn't like the way she is hurting Caterpie's feelings. Caterpie then climbs onto Ash's shoulder and the two, along with Pikachu, leave Misty on her own in the forest. As Ash is walking away, Pikachu notices that Misty is following them. Ash and Misty argue once again, with Misty stating that she's following him to get the new bike he owes her. The two camp next to the same tree stump but continue arguing. After Ash and Misty fall asleep, Caterpie and Pikachu begin a conversation after looking up at the moon and the night sky. Caterpie tells Pikachu about its desire to evolve into a Butterfree, with one seen flying in the sky.
Caterpie quickly becomes depressed after looking at Misty and decides to sleep next to her in an attempt to become friends. Misty, after waking up, screams and wakes Ash and Pikachu up. Misty shouts at Caterpie to get inside its Poké Ball and, depressed, it does so. Ash and Pikachu attempt to make Caterpie feel better, as a Pidgeotto flies down and begins pecking the ground. Ash throws a Poké Ball but Pidgeotto bats it away with its wing, resulting in Misty telling Ash that he needs to battle Pidgeotto to weaken it before attempting to capture a Pokémon.
Ash then sends Caterpie to battle against Pidgeotto, with Misty and Pikachu being shocked and concerned for Caterpie's safety, due to Bug Pokémon's weakness against Flying types. Pidgeotto begins to attack Caterpie and gets the upper hand by using tackling it from out of the sky. Caterpie rolls up against a tree and Ash calls it back, resulting in Pidgeotto flying into the tree. Ash then sends Pikachu out and uses ThunderShock, which hits Pidgeotto. Ash throws a Poké Ball and captures Pidgeotto. A confident Ash attempts to impress Misty by saying that that is how a Pokémon Master works, but Misty angrily tells him that Pokémon trainers need to know strategy, which includes not sending a worm Pokémon against a bird Pokémon, as birds eat worms.
Jessie, James, and Meowth of Team Rocket then show up and perform their song/motto. Jessie and James then begin to tell Ash and Misty their plans to get Pikachu, resulting in Meowth using his Fury Swipes attack to stop them. Meowth then begins to tell Ash and Misty their plans, so Jessie and James attack him to shut his mouth. Jessie and James then bring out Ekans and Koffing, with Koffing taking Pikachu out of the action by using a Sludge attack. Ash then sends out Pidgeotto in a two against one attack. Koffing attempts to use Sludge again but Pidgeotto dodges it and another attack by Ekans. Pidgeotto attempts to use Quick Attack against Ekans, who goes underground to avoid the attack. Koffing attempts to use SmokeScreen, which Pidgeotto disperses by flapping its wings and then dodges Sludge attack and Ekans' attack from underground. Pidgeotto flies away but is followed by Koffing and Ekans. Pidgeotto attempts to use Gust attack to get rid of Koffing, who dodges the attack and uses a Tackle attack, quickly followed by Ekans.
Ash recalls Pidgeotto and then attempts to fight James on his own, but James stops him and pushes away. Pikachu states its intention to battle but Misty tells it that it can not battle due to Koffing's Sludge covering its eyes. Ash then sends out a tired Caterpie. Ekans and Koffing then attack, with Misty again showing concern for Caterpie. Ash, however, has Caterpie use String Shot to cover Koffing completely and Ekans' head, before using Tackle on Koffing, which flies into Ekans. Caterpie then uses its String Shot on Meowth. Team Rocket, with no Pokémon able to battle, run off but threaten to return. Ash celebrates his first ever Pokémon match victory. Misty congratulates Caterpie for its victory, saying that it is stronger than it looks.
Ash says that Misty should congratulate Caterpie but, as she is about to touch Caterpie, it begins to use String Shot continuously. Caterpie then evolves into Metapod, with Ash using his Pokédex to learn more information about Metapod. Pikachu then remembers Caterpie's desire to become a Butterfree and Ash introduces himself to Metapod, before holding it next to Misty, as they were about to become friends. A Beedrill flies past and Misty tells Ash that she'll do anything to get out of Viridian Forest and away from the bug Pokémon. Ash, however, says that he is going to stay to capture more Pokémon and runs off, with Misty deciding to follow him.
== Episodes ==
File:Pokemon I Choose You!.webp|Pokemon I Choose You!
File:Pokemon Emerency.webp|Pokemon Emergency
File:Ash Catches a Pokemon.webp|Ash Catches a Pokemon
== Back Cover Summary ==
Discover the amazing world of Pokemon!
To become he best Pokemon trainer in the world, Ash Ketchum is determined to capture all 150 of these incredible creatures. And with the help of Pikachu, his very first Pokemon. Ash quickly learns that becoming a Pokemon master is the challenge of a lifetime!
After a bumpy start, Ash and Pikachu work together as a team - just in time to foil Team Rocket's Pokemon-stealing schemes. And once Misty joins up with our heroes - the excitement never ends! You gotta catch all the action as Ash and company take us on an incredible Pokemon adventure!
Episodes
Pokémon, I Choose You!
Pokémon Emergency!
Ash Catches a Pokémon
includes A Pokerap
== DVD Bonus Film Availability ==
* First appearence on 1999-2002 Columbia TriStar Home Video/Entertainment DVD releases of PKM (1998), A River Runs Through It, Ghostbusters: Collector's Series, Boyz in the Hood, The Second Jungle Book: Mongol and Baloo, Random Hearts, Not One Less, The Blob, Godzilla 2000, Seven Years in Tibet, Shaking Silverman, Cliffhanger, Run Lola Run, The Dark Crystal, and Jill the Ripper.
*It also makes appears on 2003-07 New Line Cinema DVD releases of The Butterfly Effect, Fracture, Cellular, Highwaymen, Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, Friday After Next, Blade: Trinity, Cyber Wars, And The Nativity Story, along with a 2004-05 MGM DVDs of Rocky III, Undertow, Be Cool, The Silence of the Lambs, Dances with Wolves, C.H.O.M.P.S., and They Shoot Horses, Don't They?.
* It can be debuted on the 2006 Sony BMG Music Entertainment DVD such as The Transformers the Movie: 20th Anniversary Edition, the 1999 Anchor Bay DVD of Fantastic Planet, and the 2004 or 2006 20th Century Fox DVD of Speed.
*And even debuted on Artisan/Lionsgate DVDs of Foolish, Aftershock: Earthquake in New York, Julius Caesar (1971), Force of Evil, Saw (2004), Komodo vs Cobra, Beyond the Sea, Ghostwatcher, 5ive Days of Midnight, Angel Heart: Special Edition, Eulogy, Blood Trap, and One Touch of Venus.
== Timeline ==
Format 	Release Date(s) 	Publishers 	Notes
VHS and DVD	December 13, 1998	Viz Video/Pioneer Entertainment 	
DVD 	February 11, 2005	Viz Video/Lionsgate Home Entertainment	
DVD 	June 20, 2005 	Lionsgate Home Entertainment 	Double the Family Fun with Hamtaro Ham Hams Head Seward
== Supplements ==
=== 1998 VHS ===
File:Viz Warning Screen.png
File:4Kids Productions.jpg
File:Viz Video Logo.jpg
File:Pioneer Home Entertainment.png
=== 1999 DVD ===
File:Pionner FBI Warning 1997-2005.png|DVD Warning Screen on early release
File:4Kids Productions.jpg
File:Viz Video Logo.jpg
File:Pioneer Home Entertainment.png
File:Cinram DVD POP Logo.png|Cinram POP DVD Center on early release
File:Vlcsnap-2015- Pikachu DVD.webp
=== 2005 DVD ===
File:Sony R1 FBI Warning.jpg|CTHV DVD Warning Screen on later release
File:Sony Canadian Warning English.png
File:Sony Canadian Warning French.png
File:4Kids Productions.jpg
File:Viz Video Logo.jpg
File:Pioneer Home Entertainment.png
File:Sony Pictures DVD Center 1999-2008.png|Sony Pictures DVD Center on later release
File:Vlcsnap-2015- Pikachu DVD.webp
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