JN123

Bewitch, Battle, and Bewilder! (Japanese: セミファイナルⅡ　「幻惑」 The Semifinals II: "Dazzle") is the 123rd episode of Pokémon Journeys: The Series, and the 1,208th episode of the Pokémon animated series. It first aired in Japan on September 2, 2022, in Canada on February 4, 2023, in South Africa on February 28, 2023, in the United Kingdom on April 5, 2023, in Australia on April 27, 2023, and in the United States on June 23, 2023.
==Blurb==
The second match of the Masters Eight Tournament semifinals is here, and it’s Ash versus Cynthia! Our hero wants to battle Leon in the finals, but Cynthia’s determined to keep that from happening. It’s a six-on-six battle, and first is Ash’s Dragonite versus Cynthia’s Spiritomb, who eliminates Dragonite. Then Cynthia switches out Spiritomb, and the next matchup is Roserade versus Gengar. But Roserade is switched out for Spiritomb again, and Gengar goes down. Ash calls out Pikachu, and Cynthia rotates through several of her Pokémon until she reaches Spiritomb again. Pikachu almost lands a win, but Spiritomb has the last laugh with Destiny Bond. Can Ash make a comeback?
==Plot==
The second match of the Pokémon World Coronation Series Masters Eight Tournament semifinals is about to commence, where the winner will earn the right to face Monarch in the finals. At one end of Wyndon Stadium, Goh is giving and his team words of encouragement, while at the other end, Diantha is doing the same with , believing she could be the one to end Leon's unbroken winning streak. To the surprise of the famous actress, Cynthia reveals that she intends to retire from once the tournament has ended.
The first of Alola and the -famous Sinnoh Champion both enter the battlefield. As per usual, Dan explains the rules: the match is a six-on-six Full Battle, with no limits to how many times each is allowed to change their Pokémon and each of them may only use one of either Dynamax, Mega Evolution, or Z-Moves per battle. While the announcer wonders if they will use the same cards they did in the quarterfinals, the two Champions send out their first Pokémon. Ash's choice is his , while Cynthia unexpectedly leads with the . Backstage, Diantha notes that Cynthia has instantly seized control by leading with a Pokémon that no one anticipated. As the signal to start the match is given, Ash orders a shower as his first move, only for Dragonite to be struck back by Spiritomb's . After getting back on its feet, the Dragon Pokémon completes the use of Draco Meteor, scoring a direct hit, but Spiritomb merely shrugs it off and laughs mockingly. Ash's next attack is a , but Spiritomb stops Dragonite in its tracks by using , causing Dragonite to fall . With Dragonite left vulnerable, Spiritomb proceeds to use a flurry of s, gradually draining away Dragonite's energy. Ash's pleas for his Pokémon to wake up prove fruitless, with the end result of Dragonite being defeated in its sleep without managing to deal any real damage to Cynthia.
While Ash recalls Dragonite and prepares to send out his next Pokémon, Cynthia abruptly recalls Spiritomb as well. Both Trainers' second Pokémon, and , enter the field simultaneously. Roserade's barrage fails to do much damage due to being , while Gengar scores a direct hit with . The next exchange of moves comes in the form of a and a , with both attacks striking their mark. With Roserade now suffering from a , Cynthia recalls it and returns Spiritomb to the battlefield. Yet again, another exchange of attacks is made, this time between a and a Sucker Punch. While both sides suffer super effective damage and get back up, unlike Spiritomb, Gengar ends up falling back down and fainting, increasing Cynthia's lead.
Once more, Ash recalling his fainted partner is accompanied by Cynthia withdrawing Spiritomb, this time in favor of . Knowing that Cynthia is setting the pace, Ash responds by sending in in the hopes of stopping her momentum, not realizing Cynthia had expected Ash to send in his strongest partner. Pikachu's series of s fails to make contact with the swiftly moving type, who strikes back with . When Togekiss follows up with , Ash finds Pikachu flinching and unable to execute the commanded , leaving him to suffer a direct hit. Diantha and Leon realize that Togekiss's Ability, , helped to make this happen. Making yet another switch, Cynthia sends out her to take the type advantage over Pikachu. Aiming to take out Pikachu here and now, she orders an . Pikachu evades the attack by jumping high into the air using the slabs of earth flung up by it, once again following Cynthia's prediction. When Pikachu starts using next, Cynthia has Gastrodon use . This time, though, things are going according to Ash's plan, as, instead of directly attacking Gastrodon, the Iron Tail slices off the tops of some of the stone pillars created by Stone Edge and sends them flying at Gastrodon. While Gastrodon manages to catch the rocks and absorb the impact, this leaves it immobilized and defenseless, allowing Pikachu to use to smash through the rocks and into Gastrodon, finally giving Ash a knockout of his own.
Cynthia admires Ash's skill to find an opportunity in the midst of a crisis and Pikachu's ability to exploit it as she recalls her fainted Pokémon. Replacing her fainted Gastrodon, Spiritomb rejoins the battle yet again; however, Ash is now ready for it and subsequently tells Pikachu to spin around while using Thunderbolt. The resulting vortex of electricity not only successfully repels Spiritomb's Hypnosis, but also strikes it at the same time. Ash identifies the strategy as Counter Shield, a tactic that he came up with while he was traveling through Sinnoh and which Cynthia recognizes from the Sinnoh League. Ash assures Cynthia that he's grown much stronger since then and has Pikachu ensnare Spiritomb in an Electroweb, successfully avoiding a Sucker Punch in the process. As Pikachu goes for a finishing Iron Tail, Cynthia orders Spiritomb to do something unspecified. Moments later, Pikachu's move connects, causing the Forbidden Pokémon to retreat into its Odd Keystone and the audience to cheer. However, as Dan inspects Spiritomb, dark energy suddenly emerges from the keystone and envelops Pikachu, causing him to seize up. The announcer recognizes Spiritomb's last-second move as , whose effect has now been activated. As a result, Pikachu is instantly drained of all his remaining strength and faints alongside Spiritomb. With this double-knockout, Ash's ace has been taken out, and his ability to use has been eliminated, giving him a severe handicap as Cynthia continues to stay in control of the battle.
==Major events==
* reveals she plans to retire from after the Masters Eight Tournament.
* and Cynthia begin their Full Battle in the semifinals.
* Cynthia is revealed to own a and a .
===Debuts===
====Pokémon debuts====
==Characters==
===Humans===
* 
* 
* Goh
* Jessie
* James
* 
* 
* 
* Diantha
* 
* Hop
* Dan
* Announcer
* Crowd
===Pokémon===
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* (; )
* ('s; )
* ('s)
* ('s)
* ('s)
* (Dan's)
* (Professor Cerise's; Rotom Phone)
* (Team Rocket's; Rotom Phone)
* (Trainer's)
* (Trainer's)
* (Trainer's)
* (Trainer's; Galarian Form)
==Trivia==
* Get Inspired! Let's Solve a Poké Riddle!!: 
* This episode marks the first main series appearance of a other than the one that belongs to .
** This episode also marks the first main series appearance of a since Master Class Is in Session!, 297 episodes earlier.
*** This episode also marks the first main series appearance of 's Roserade, following its debut in Pokémon: The Arceus Chronicles.
* Although the two first met in Top-Down Training!, which aired almost fifteen years prior to this episode, this episode marks the first time has battled .
* Despite Togekiss being classified as a type since , released almost nine years earlier, this is the first time that its Fairy type is explicitly recognized in the .
* As of this episode, is the only regional introduced up to this point, current or former, whom hasn’t battled.
* This is the first instance of Counter Shield being used since When Regions Collide!, 225 episodes ago. 
** This marks the first time Ash has used it since Familiarity Breeds Strategy!, 556 episodes ago.
*** Cynthia recalls seeing Ash use this technique from said episode in the Lily of the Valley Conference.
** Much like for the purpose it was originally created for, Counter Shield is used here to defend against a Pokémon's .
* This episode marks the first use of since its debut in Shocks and Bonds!, 806 episodes earlier.
** Coincidentally, on both occasions, the move was used by a female character during one of Ash's Full Battles in a tournament.
** This episode also marks the first time Ash has faced a female in a Full Battle since the aforementioned episode and the one following it. 
* The Dare da? segment is replaced with eyecatches of Ash, Goh, and for this episode.
* The episode's English dub title is a reference to the song "", and is similar to a previous episode.
* James, , Jessie, , and narrate the preview for the next episode.
===Errors===
===Dub edits===
==In other languages==
123
Category:Episodes written by Atsuhiro Tomioka
Category:Episodes storyboarded by Hiromasa Amano
Category:Episodes directed by Akihiko Ōta
Category:Episodes animated by Yoshitaka Yanagihara
Category:Episodes animated by Shōtarō Hamanaka
Category:Episodes animated by Aiko Ōyama
Category:Episodes animated by Kimiyo Nakamura
Category:Episodes by multiple animation directors
Category:Episodes focusing on Ash
Category:Episodes in which a Champion appears
Category:Episodes with World Coronation Series matches
Category:Episodes in which an alternately colored Pokémon appears
Category:Episodes which aired in Canada before the United States
Category:Episodes which aired in South Africa before the United States
Category:Episodes which aired in the United Kingdom before the United States
Category:Episodes which aired in Australia before the United States
de:Wechselspiele ohne Ende!
es:EP1212
fr:LV123
it:EP123
ja:新無印編第123話
zh:宝可梦 旅途 第121集