EP178

The Grass Route (Japanese: ポポッコ！くさポケモンバトル！！ ! Grass Pokémon Battle!!) is the 178th episode of the Pokémon animated series. It was first broadcast in Japan on December 21, 2000, and in the United States on November 3, 2001. 
==Blurb==
En route to Ecruteak, Ash and company are caught by the sight of a Skiploom racing by. Following after it, they encounter its trainer, Ephram. He and his Skiploom are training for the upcoming annual Grass-Type tournament, a contest for Grass Pokémon only. Confident he can win any local tournament, Ash decides he and Bulbasaur will enter as well. Ephram and his Skiploom train hard as the tournament quickly approaches. However, Ash doesn't think it is necessary for someone of his Pokémon prowess to prepare. Find out who triumphs as young Ephram and Ash face off in the final round of the tournament!
==Plot==
 informs that Ecruteak City is on the other side of the upcoming mountain, and the news instantly gets Ash hyped for his next Gym match. The group notices an array of Pokémon around them, but a running grabs their attention. Ash's group follows the Pokémon and soon encounters its , a young boy named Ephraim. Ephraim introduces his Skiploom as "Skippy", and asks Ash if he is a Trainer, and Ash shows Ephraim his three Badges as proof. Ephraim immediately challenges Ash to a against one of his Grass-types, eager to train Skippy. Ash accepts, calling upon his . After a attack fails to work, Ephraim calls for Skippy to use its , and Chikorita is dazed by Skippy's speed. Ash orders Chikorita's to use , which successfully knocks away the clones and hits the real Skippy. Ephraim watches as Skippy bounces back onto its feet and he orders a . Chikorita batters the seeds away with a before knocking Skippy out with a direct Tackle. Ash celebrates his victory, but scolds him, saying he should be ashamed of how badly he hurt Ephraim's Skiploom. Skippy proves to be fine, and Ephraim invites the Trainers back to his house. 
At his house, Ephraim introduces the group to his parents. Ephraim's father reassures his son that even though he lost, at least he learned some valuable tricks from an experienced Trainer like Ash. He offers Ash and a place to stay for the night, and Ash happily accepts the kind offer. Misty turns her attention to the flowers growing inside the house, and Ephraim's mother admits that the family's Grass Pokémon helped. Everyone goes outside to watch the Grass Pokémon water the fields of flowers and admire their peaceful natures. Ephraim is quick to add that Grass Pokémon can be tough as well. He tells Ash that the reason he challenged him is because he and his Skiploom are training for the upcoming annual Grass Tournament. The Grass Tournament is a competition for Grass Pokémon only, with a large collection of Leaf Stones as the prize. Confident he can win any "local" tournament, Ash decides he and his will enter as well. Meanwhile, finds a flyer advertising the Grass Tournament and decides that they will also compete, in the hopes of winning the prize of Leaf Stones. James plans to use his , but Jessie, having no Grass-type Pokémon, considers having disguise himself as a . That evening, Ephraim is seen training with Skippy and practicing their Double Team and speed moves. Misty asks Ash if he is planning to train, but Ash arrogantly replies that a small local tournament is far too easy for him, and he does not need to train. 
The following day, the tournament begins. Ash is the first to battle, facing a Trainer with a . Ash and Bulbasaur manage to defeat their opponent with a single attack, advancing Ash to the next round. Ephraim's first round battle is against James, posing as "Mr. Semaj" and his Victreebel. Though intimidated at first, Ephraim and Skippy manage to easily take down Victreebel by binding it and draining its energy with , followed by a disorienting . The moment he wins the match, Ephraim's parents rejoice over their son's accomplishment, much to Ephraim's embarrassment. 
Ash's second round battle is shown after, and he challenges Jessie and a disguised Meowth. Bulbasaur uses Razor Leaf, but the attack reveals Mewoth's true identity and Jessie's dishonesty. At this, the Team Rocket trio removes their disguises and recites their . The three try to steal the Leaf Stones, but Ash blasts them off with Bulbasaur's Vine Whip. Afterwards a montage is shown of Ash and Ephraim winning their rounds in the tournament with relative ease. 
The final matchup is between Ephraim and Skippy versus Ash and his Bulbasaur. At first, Ash and Bulbasaur dominate the match, smashing through Skippy's Double Team offensives. After a few exchanges of attacks, Ash tells Ephraim he doesn't want to harm the Skiploom any more than necessary. Ephraim asks Skippy if it is okay to keep fighting or if it would like to stop. Skiploom affirms that it wants to continue, and Ephraim agrees and tells Skippy to do whatever it takes to win. At this, Skiploom unleashes a powerful attack, must to everyone's shock. This unexpected attack hits Bulbasaur directly and sends it flying. Bulbasaur is finished off with a attack from Skippy, winning Ephraim the match and the tournament. Brock figures that all the battling Skippy has done must've given it enough experience for its level to have gone up during the match. Later, as Ephraim is handed the trophy, Ash remembers that pride and power aren't the only things a Trainer needs to win a battle. After this lesson in humility, Ash and his friends continue their journey.
==Major events==
* and James enter the Grass Tournament but lose to Ephraim.
* Ash's Bulbasaur is revealed to know .
===Debuts===
====Pokémon debuts====
* 
==Characters==
===Humans===
* 
* 
* 
* Jessie
* James
* Ephraim
* Ephraim's parents
* Announcer
* Competitors
===Pokémon===
Who's That Pokémon?: (US and international), (Japan)
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* (Ephraim's; Skippy; debut)
* (Ephraim's parents'; ×2)
* (Ephraim's parents'; ×2)
* (Ephraim's parents'; ×2)
* (Trainer's)
* (Trainer's)
* (Trainer's)
* (Trainer's)
* (Trainers'; ×2)
* (Trainer's)
* (Trainer's)
* (Trainer's)
* (Trainer's)
* (Trainer's)
* (×2)
* 
* (×2)
* (×2)
==Trivia==
* This episode is listed on Viz's Pokémon Elements page as "The Grass Root".
* The names Jessie and James go by in the tournament are their own names spelled backwards; Eissej and Semaj.
* This episode is featured on the Volume 1: Grass copy of Pokémon Elements.
* This is the last Japanese episode of the .
* The trumpet fanfare James plays for Jessie's entrance is "".
* This is the second time when dresses up as a , the first time being in Grin to Win!.
* Meowth uses a " " in this episode, clapping his hands in the face of to stun it. The move Fake Out wasn't released until Generation III and coincidentally, is a move that can learn.
===Errors===
* The blurb for this episode misspells Ephraim's name as Ephram.
* When this episode's title is shown, the Pokémon logo is missing.
* James's Victreebel and a are affected by , even though they should be immune to it.
EP178 Title Card Error.png|The missing logo
===Dub edits===
* The original airing of this episode on Hungama TV in started it directly from the title card, skipping the part of the episode that comes before it.
==In other languages==
178
Category:Episodes written by Shinzō Fujita
Category:Episodes storyboarded by Osamu Inoue
Category:Episodes directed by Toshiaki Suzuki
Category:Episodes animated by Izumi Shimura
Category:Episodes focusing on Ash
Category:Milestone episodes
de:Das Pflanzen-Pokémon-Turnier
es:EP180
fr:EP178
it:OA062
ja:無印編第178話
zh:宝可梦 第179集