BW103: Drayden Versus Iris: Past, Present, and Future!

is the 4th episode of Pokémon: BW Adventures in Unova and Beyond.
==Synopsis==
Iris has been challenged by Opelucid Gym Leader Drayden, and she’s back in town to battle him! But as soon as she arrives (with Ash and Cilan in tow), a crisis of confidence sends her scurrying up a tall metal tower for some fresh air and solitude. Her retreat doesn’t last long, though—Officer Jenny is quickly on the scene to order her back to the ground, and she makes Iris promise never to do that again. It seems the aspiring Dragon Master has a bit of a history here...
Upon running into her former dorm advisor Martha, Iris reveals that she used to be a student at Opelucid Academy, one of the most famous schools of Pokémon knowledge in the Unova region—led by none other than Gym Leader Drayden as the academy president. It seemed the perfect opportunity for her to make an intensive study of Dragon-type Pokémon, but the free-spirited Iris had trouble fitting in with the other students, and soon became homesick and lonely. She first climbed the tower in an attempt to get a glimpse of home, and the fresh air reminded her of her beloved Village of Dragons, so the top of the tower became her favorite retreat. After a battle against one of her classmates went wrong and she got a stern talking-to from Drayden about connecting with her Pokémon, she decided the academy just wasn’t for her, and returned home before setting out on her journey with Axew.
Now it’s time for Iris to prove to Drayden how much she and her Pokémon have grown together! The battle begins with Drayden’s Haxorus up against Iris’s Excadrill—it’s a rematch of the battle they had in the Village of Dragons when Iris was younger! This time, it ends in a draw, as Excadrill and Haxorus manage to knock each other out at the same time. Next up, Drayden calls out his Druddigon, and Iris turns to her Dragonite. She initially plans to attack from the air because Druddigon can’t fly, but quickly remembers that Dragonite prefers an even playing field, and shifts her strategy to match her Pokémon’s wishes. The two seem evenly matched, and Druddigon eventually comes out on top.
Iris is defeated, but the battle has served its purpose, and Drayden is satisfied with her potential and the strength she’s shown. He advises her to keep training and getting stronger, and asks her to come back and visit when she’s ready. As he leaves, Martha reveals that it was actually Drayden who suggested to the Village Elder that Iris go on a journey...and that he’s been planning for her to take over as the Opelucid Gym Leader when he retires!
Iris is stunned by this news, and asks for some time to consider her decision while she continues her journey. Next stop: Vertress City and the Unova League!
==Episode plot==
The heroes head to Opelucid City. Iris is still surprised how Drayden reacted, but will battle him. Ash enthuses her, though she is troubled, again, in Opelucid City. Two children pass by and Iris tells them they are wearing uniforms of Opelucid Academy. She shows them the building. Cilan heard trainers come here to study from the entire Unova region. Iris confirms that, as well as that Drayden is the president of the Academy and invites people to attend the classes. Ash is amazed that Drayden is also the Gym Leader. Iris is troubled too much and runs off and climbs the nearest tower.
Ash and Cilan look for her and find her at the top of the tower, taking deep breaths. Officer Jenny is not pleased Iris is here again and soon gets her back down. Jenny scolds Iris and yells she should never do that again, for she could've gotten hurt. A woman approaches Iris, who recognizes the woman as Martha. Iris introduces Ash and Cilan to Martha, who was in charge of the girls' dorm at the Academy. Martha still remembers Iris as the most troublesome student of the Academy. They come to Drayden, who heard what happened and suggests they eat lunch. Iris admits she is never comfortable when Drayden is around. Ash asks Iris what was she studying. Iris replies she does not want to think about that much, especially the battle when Drayden's Haxorus defeated her Excadrill, who did not obey Iris for a time.
That day, the elder suggested Iris should go to Opelucid Academy. Iris cherished that moment, however she had trouble fitting in, for the rest of the students did not play (like the people at the village), but studied most of their time. Iris also couldn't make any friends there. Martha continues on that students were allowed to use the Academy's Pokémon, not their own. Ash thinks despite studying, they should have fun and Cilan agrees. Iris couldn't even eat, so Martha made her a berry kabob to cheer her up. Iris visits her old room she used way back. Since she had no friends, Iris drew pictures the Pokémon she befriended at the village on the walls. Seeing the tower, she went off to climb it. However, she couldn't see the Village of Dragons from that top and Jenny came to land her down. Everyone was stunned, but Iris couldn't help that, since the fresh air from the top reminded her of the hometown.
Iris knew she couldn't fit in, but a battle, in which she used a Fraxure against a student's Altaria, changed her. Fraxure used Dual Chop, but missed. Iris told it to keep attacking, as Fraxure used Dragon Claw. However, Altaria used Mist and defeated Fraxure with Dragon Breath. Drayden approached her and pointed out she kept telling Fraxure to attack Altaria, but failed to notice Fraxure's exhaustion. He scolded her, telling that Pokémon cannot do everything what she wants them to do. Iris thought of his words when she climbed the tower and felt her friends back home were with her. She came back home and the elder gave her Axew for the journey. Iris visits Fraxure and apologizes for the way she handled it. Fraxure forgives her and decides to cheer for her during the Gym Battle.
Drayden comes and soon they are at the Gym. Drayden sends out Haxorus and Iris sends out Excadrill. Excadrill starts with Metal Claw, to which Haxorus blocks, but still gets pushed back a bit. Excadrill then uses Dig, but Haxorus dodges and follows up with Rock Smash, which makes contact with Excadrill's Focus Blast. Finally, Excadrill uses Drill Run, and Haxorus uses Giga Impact. Both clash head on and are defeated. Iris calls Excadrill back and compliments on the way it battled. Drayden recalls Haxorus and admits he evaluated Iris correctly, as he sends in his next Pokémon, Druddigon, while Iris sends out Dragonite. Drayden senses that Dragonite has led an interesting life. Iris thinks that launching aerial attacks would be most effective since Druddigon can't fly, but then she senses that Dragonite wants to battle head on. Iris has Dragonite use Thunder Punch, but Druddigon blocks it and retaliates with Dragon Claw. When Ash wonders why Dragonite didn't dodge when it could, Cilan explains that Iris wants to respect Dragonite's wishes for fair play.
Druddigon uses Flash Cannon, which collides with Dragonite's Flamethrower. Dragonite uses Thunder Punch again, but stops when Druddigon uses Double Team. With Iris' guidance, Dragonite figures out the real one and hits it with Thunder Punch. He then follows up with Ice Beam which, despite landing a direct hit, Druddigon shakes off the attack. In a last ditch effort, Iris has Dragonite use Dragon Rush, but Druddigon stops the attack by grabbing Dragonite by the throat before finishing it off with Dragon Tail. Iris rushes to Dragonite, letting it know it put up a great fight. Ash and Cilan see that Drayden is a much more powerful Gym Leader than they thought. Drayden admits that Iris did good with making new friends and going to this journey. He wishes Iris once she has grown stronger and trained harder, to come back.
Later, Martha, much to Iris' shock, admits Drayden suggested to the elder that Iris should go out on the journey. Drayden told the elder the Academy failed to bring out the potential from Iris and believed that a journey would allow her to learn things at her own pace. The elder recognized these words of wisdom and told Iris that she may even become the Opelucid Gym Leader one day and Drayden confirms this. Ash and Cilan think it is a great idea, but Iris does not know about this. Martha suggests she should think this over, for she, Drayden and the elder think Iris can live up to such expectations. After bidding farewell to Martha, Ash sees they also need to meet expectations by winning the Unova League and set off to Vertress City.
==Debuts==
===Character===
*Martha
===Pokémon===
*Drayden's Druddigon
===Move===
*Dual Chop
==Trivia==
*"Who's that Pokémon?": Haxorus (US)
*The battle between Iris and Drayden is similar to the exhibition match between both Gym Leaders since both of them are the eighth and final Gym Leader in both of their respective games, Pokémon Black and White.
==Gallery==
==References==
Category:Episodes featuring Gym Battles
Category:Episodes focusing on Iris