PJ028: Sobbing Sobble!

is the 28th episode of , and of .
==Synopsis==
Continuing their Galar region trip, Ash and Goh are perplexed when their food disappears in front of their eyes! It’s the work of a timid Pokémon named Sobble, who becomes invisible whenever it touches water. And when it cries, everyone cries! Goh catches it, but when he sends it into battle, Sobble becomes overwhelmed and runs away. It gets captured by Team Rocket, who can’t resist crying along with it. Luckily, Goh thinks of a way to block the effects of Sobble’s tears, so he and Ash send Team Rocket blasting off again! Goh apologizes to Sobble, and the little Pokémon is once again overwhelmed—this time with joy!
==Episode plot==
Ash, Goh, Pikachu, Raboot, Riolu, and both of their Farfetch'd are eating breakfast, preparing for the second day in the Galar region. The Sobble from the previous episode returns, using its invisibility to steal food from the group while they're distracted. Goh manages to see it, and while staring it down, Sobble becomes visible again before running into a wall, surrounded by the group. Due to all of the people and Pokémon around it, Sobble begins to cry, which soon causes the whole group to start sobbing before Sobble becomes invisible again and runs off.
Ash and Goh decide to find it again, due to it being a Pokémon they had never seen before. While searching near a fountain, Nurse Joy appears and suggests that Sobble rarely show up in big cities like Wyndon. However, she suggests to check inside the fountain, due to the fact that Sobble prefers water. Goh introduces himself to Sobble, explaining that he really liked his invisibility, and asked Sobble if he wanted to join him. When Sobble doesn't respond, Goh becomes frustrated as he really wants to catch it, throwing a Poké Ball at the fountain. The Poké Ball hits Sobble without Goh realizing it, since he was worried that he had wasted a Poké Ball. However, as Goh's Rotom Phone exclaims that Sobble had been captured, Ash and Goh are shocked.
Meanwhile, the Team Rocket Trio are lamenting that a previous plot to capture Pikachu failed after being blown away by a strong breeze back in the Kanto region. Meowth explains that somehow the balloon carried them all the way to Galar. After spotting Ash and Goh, Team Rocket tries to sneak up on them while the two listen to Sobble's Pokédex entry, before being blown away by another strong gust of wind. Nearby, Riolu is digging in the ground, only to find a large, wild Silicobra in the ground, which promptly attacks. Goh decides he wants to catch it, and throws a Poké Ball at it, but Silicobra easily deflects it. Deciding that he would have to battle it, Goh decides to send out Sobble to battle, which Ash shows excitement about, wanting to see how Sobble battles. After Silicobra roars at Sobble, it becomes invisible again out of fear. Goh tells Sobble to use Water Gun, which Sobble reluctantly does. Silicobra uses Dig, and Goh has Sobble use Pound on it when it pops up. In retaliation, Silicobra sprays sand onto Sobble, making its invisibility useless. Silicobra then tackles Sobble, causing it to be knocked back, before crying, which in turn makes everyone else cry. Sobble begins to run away, and Goh attempts to return it, but it was already too far away. Ash and Goh decide to split up to try and find it.
Ash ends up finding an Oddish, while Goh finds it near a river. Goh tries to explain that they weren not going to do anything to Sobble, but Sobble ends up crying again and jumps into the river. Goh decides that they will have to do something to make themselves immune to Sobble's tears, before remembering something Mr. Mime did while chopping onions. Ash soon returns and rejoins Goh to follow the river downstream. Further along the river, Team Rocket is yet again sad over their failure, before a Morpeko arrives and begins eating their food. Meowth uses their Rotom Phone to analyze it, but the Rotom decides that it doesn't feel like it. After Morpeko eats all the food, Jessie throws a can at it out of anger, but it misses and hits an invisible Sobble, which quickly becomes visible as Morpeko runs away. After hearing Ash and Goh calling for it, they decide to capture it so they can exchange it for Pikachu. Goh feels guilty that Sobble ran away because he made it battle without considering how it felt. Ash tells Goh that he just has to try harder when they find it, and that Goh only just caught it, so not everything will work out right away.
Goh agrees, but before he can go back to searching, Team Rocket shows up, and reveals that they had captured Sobble in a cage. After refusing Team Rocket's offer, Team Rocket summons the TR Gacha Machine, which produces an Armaldo and a Magnezone. Ash and Goh choose their usual Pokémon: Pikachu, Raboot, and Riolu. However, Ash and Goh are quickly immobilized due to Magnezone's Metal Sound. Jessie taunts Ash and Goh, saying that they're morons for wanting to save a crybaby like Sobble. This causes Goh to become angry, telling Jessie to be quiet, and that while Sobble may be a crybaby, it is anything but weak. Goh then promises Sobble that he'll save it, before Magnezone's Metal Sound becomes stronger. Seeing Goh struggle to save it, Sobble recalls some of its past of being ignored and scared all the time, before remembering that Goh genuinely liked it for who it was, and was risking his own safety to save it. Sobble, now filled with determination to escape and reach its new trainer, bends the bars of the cheap cage Team Rocket had used to imprison it, becoming invisible due to its sweat. It jumps out and bounces off of Jessie's head, while Meowth panics after realizing Sobble has disappeared. Goh calls out to Sobble, but Armaldo puts its foot down on it, stopping it in its tracks. This causes Sobble to begin crying again, including Magnezone and Armaldo, to Team Rocket's dismay. However, Ash, Goh, and their Pokémon are now wearing goggles, revealing that Mr. Mime had taught that trick to them. Now that they are immune to Sobble's tears, they use a team attack made up of Vacuum Wave, Ember, and Thunderbolt, causing Team Rocket to blast off.
Goh approaches Sobble and apologizes for forcing it to battle earlier, and says that Sobble's timidity is a gift, because it is always alert and can protect his friends if need be. Goh finishes his apology by saying that because of that, Sobble isn't weak, but that he's strong. Sobble begins to cry tears of joy, which Goh begins to panic about since they all took off their goggles. Team Rocket has been defeated again, and are sitting by their balloon when the Morpeko from earlier appears, asking for more food. After they tell it to get lost, it transforms into Hangry Mode, and uses Aura Wheel on them, causing them to blast off again.
==Debuts==
===Pokémon===
*Morpeko (Full Belly and Hangry Mode)
*Silicobra
*Goh's Sobble
===Move===
*Aura Wheel
==Trivia==
*Who's That Pokémon?: Sobble
*The episode was originally scheduled to air on May 31, 2020, however, it was postponed indefinitely due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, along with the series.
**Therefore, the episode's originally intended airing was replaced with a rerun of .
**The airing of Next Episode Preview about was shown instead.
**After that, the episode has a reschedule air-date: July 12, 2020.
*During the preview, Ash, Pikachu, Goh, and Team Rocket were all crying, as a reference to Sobble's tears.
*Sobble's capture marks the first time a male protagonist aside from Ash catches another starter Pokémon from the same region as their initial.
===Mistakes===
*When Sobble was about to cry again, Riolu's feelers are colored blue instead of the usual black.
==Gallery==
==References==
Category:Episodes in which a main character obtains a new Pokémon
Category:Episode focusing on Sobble
Category:Episodes featuring Champions