AG130

Choose It or Lose It! (Japanese: ライバル対決！VSマサムネ！！ Rival Battle! VS !!) is the 130th episode of , and the 404th episode of the Pokémon animated series. It was first broadcast in Japan on May 26, 2005, and in the United States on March 25, 2006. 
==Blurb==
Morrison and Ash are battling each other in the Hoenn League, and Morrison is so upset he can't bring himself to choose his next Pokémon after his Girafarig is knocked out! He's almost disqualified before he decides to send Growlithe out against Ash's Corphish. But Morrison doesn't have Growlithe attack, and his Pokémon is quickly knocked out. Ash angrily demands to know why Morrison isn't fighting, which makes Morrison realize his Pokémon are counting on him to give it his best, too.
He rallies and brings out Swampert—both it and Corphish unleash their strongest attacks, resulting in a double KO! It's time for a battlefield change and Morrison apologizes to Ash. Then, Pikachu and Morrison's Steelix take to the grass battlefield. Another head-to-head battle results in Pikachu out of the match, and Torkoal is defeated as well! It's up to Grovyle to beat Steelix, but Morrison's agile Gligar gets the better of their aerial battle. Gligar and Ash's Swellow have another double KO, so this match will be decided by Glalie and Metang. Some clever strategy wins the day for Ash, who becomes one of only 8 semifinalists!
Elsewhere, Team Rocket's work as snack sellers pays off when their boss takes them to the all-you-can-eat buffet as a reward. But is he making a big mistake in trusting them? And Ash and Tyson will face each other in the semifinals, in a match that begins with a real bang!
==Plot==
’s latest Ever Grande Conference match has come to a sudden pause as his friend and opponent Morrison struggles to overcome the challenge of battling a friend. Just before the referee disqualifies him for not choosing a Pokémon, Ash interrupts him, stating that Morrison can still battle. Morrison hastily sends out his to take on Ash's Corphish. Corphish begins the battle by firing a at Growlithe. Morrison tells Growlithe to evade the attack by using continuously, still unable to take any offensive action towards his friend and rival. Corphish lands a critical hit on Growlithe with , knocking it out. Morrison tells Growlithe that it did an excellent job. Ash, however, demands to know why Morrison will not put up a serious fight and harshly attacks his honor, telling him that he might as well quit now if he will not like he means it. Morrison says he does not need to be told that and apologizes to Growlithe for his weak actions. With renewed vigor, Morrison yells loudly and promises Ash that he will show true battling spirit. , Max, , and are relieved at this change.
Morrison chooses as his third Pokémon. Corphish and Swampert clash their Crabhammer and attacks with tremendous power. Ash and Morrison exchange excited proclamations of their fighting spirit. Swampert blasts a to match Corphish's Bubble Beam, but both Pokémon seem evenly matched. Crabhammer and Focus Punch are used again, but each attack hits the other Pokémon in the face, knocking them both out.
Since Morrison has lost three Pokémon, the battle goes into intermission. During the break, Morrison apologizes to Ash for his previous actions. He goes on to say that he usually relishes victory, but when he realized that Ash was his next opponent, he did not know what to do. Ash's scolding made Morrison realize that fighting with all you have is what a real friend would do. Ash agrees, saying that they should finish the second round at full power. The Trainers shake hands and both refuse to lose but promise to remain friends regardless of the outcome.
The second half of the round will take place on a grass Field. Ash chooses as his second Pokémon to battle Morrison's fourth selection, . Steelix spews , but Pikachu dodges and uses . Steelix counters with a devastating attack. Steelix disappears underground and batters Pikachu into the air with . Ash tells Pikachu to not give up and has him use Iron Tail. Steelix dives underground to evade and smashes Pikachu into the air yet again. Pikachu lands a direct hit with Quick Attack, but Morrison shouts to Steelix to not give up. Both Pokémon are commanded to use Iron Tail, and the clash sends off blue energy in streaks. Pikachu is knocked to the ground by the clash and declared unable to battle, leaving Ash with four available Pokémon and Morrison with three.
Ash decides to send out as his third Pokémon choice. Morrison says that the type's advantage will not work. Steelix uses Dragon Breath, which Torkoal protects itself from with . Torkoal uses while Steelix unleashes a second stream of Dragon Breath, both attacks clashing. Overheat proves more powerful and lands a direct hit on Steelix. Torkoal unleashes while Steelix uses Dragon Breath once again. This time, the result is an explosive draw. Using the resulting cloud of smoke as cover, Steelix escapes underground. Torkoal guards itself against Steelix's Dig by using Iron Defense. Steelix immediately switches to Dragon Breath, hitting and knocking out Torkoal. This leaves Ash and Morrison tied with three usable Pokémon each.
Ash chooses as his fourth Pokémon. Steelix unleashes its Iron Tail right from the start, but Grovyle quickly dodges it, impressing Morrison with its speed. Grovyle fires at Steelix, who burrows into the ground once again in retreat. Ash tells Grovyle to prepare to dodge, and Grovyle dodges Steelix's Dig, but now Morrison calls Steelix to use Dragon Breath. Ash calls for Grovyle to use in order to power through Dragon Breath. Leaf Blade shields Grovyle as it makes its way to land the attack, knocking out Steelix.
Morrison matches Grovyle's speed by calling out as his fifth Pokémon. Grovyle uses Quick Attack but Gligar swiftly dodges it and uses . Grovyle barely dodges Gligar's onslaught of attacks by hiding in the tall grass on the field. Grovyle jumps into the air and uses Bullet Seed, striking Gligar. Grovyle once again retreats back into the grass and Gligar pursues as it uses Steel Wing. Grovyle leaps onto Gligar to perform Leaf Blade, but Morrison tells Gligar to shake it off. Free-falling through the air, Grovyle tries Bullet Seed once more, but to no avail. It is helpless to defend itself from Gligar's . Gligar's pincer grips Grovyle's neck and slams its opponent into the ground. The one-hit knockout move is successful and Grovyle is declared unable to battle, leaving both Ash and Morrison with two usable Pokémon.
Ash summons as his fifth Pokémon. Gligar attempts to quickly end it with Guillotine but Swellow responds with a defensive . Gligar falls for the illusion, so Swellow moves in to it. Gligar dodges and responds with Iron Tail, but Swellow evades with Quick Attack. Gligar's lands a direct hit, sending Swellow plummeting toward the ground. Swellow barely recovers by using , which Gligar matches with Steel Wing. Both Pokémon collide in mid-air, creating a large cloud of dust. Both Pokémon are told to repeat their attacks, resulting in another violent collision. The Trainers call for the same attacks again, resulting in a third collision and a huge explosion. Swellow and Gligar fall to the ground, unable to battle. This leaves both Ash and Morrison with only one Pokémon each.
As their final Pokémon, Ash chooses while Morrison calls on . May is surprised at the match-up and Max and Brock note Morrison's advantage. Glalie performs , which Metang matches with . The Pokémon collide, but Glalie takes the brunt of the damage. Glalie responds with an , but Metang's attack forces the Ice Beam right back towards Glalie. Metang follows up with Take Down. Ash tells Glalie to use Ice Beam again to everyone's surprise. Confusion sends it back, but Glalie is told to use , reflecting Ice Beam back again, landing a direct hit on Metang and encrusting it in ice. Glalie follows up with a successful Headbutt, sending ice shards all around. Metang releases an intense and scores a direct hit. Ash tells Glalie to use a spinning Headbutt, but Morrison says he knows how to handle it, and so he tells Metang to finish it with another Meteor Mash using every ounce of energy Metang's got. At the last moment, Glalie ducks under and strikes Metang's underside with its spinning Headbutt. The referee judges Metang as unable to battle and declares Ash the victor. Having won the battle, Ash will now advance to the Top 8 of the Hoenn League.
In another battle, the crowd cheers as commands his to fire a supereffective on an opposing , knocking it out. Having won his battle as well, Tyson advances to the Top 8. Morrison, viewing the stadium from the outside, shouts out in disappointment at his loss, but quickly feels better. Ash tells him that their battle was one of the greatest ever, to which Morrison and May agree. Morrison asks Ash if he is ready for his next battle and if they could battle again someday. Ash confirms and says that he will beat Morrison again, beginning another competitive argument. Tyson calms the situation with the call for dinner. The two agree and have yet another race to the Pokémon Center. May, Max, and Brock are relieved that the two Trainers are back to their old selves.
After another day of selling snacks to the Conference crowd, thoroughly enjoy their promised buffet of various appetizers, main courses, and desserts. Afterward, their boss says that he must go on a business trip soon and will leave the three in charge of management. The team is in disbelief at this news and is happy with working honest jobs.
The next round pits Ash against Tyson. Tyson figures that it would come to this eventually and asks for a battle with no regrets, to which Ash agrees. Outside, at night, Tyson lectures his Pokémon to put their heart into their battle against Ash tomorrow. He starts to prepare his team for tomorrow with some special training. Meanwhile, Meowth, feeling restless, observes Tyson's training and calls Tyson's Meowth towards the bushes where he is hiding. Meowth offers advice on defeating Pikachu, which Tyson's Meowth reluctantly listens to. He warns that Pikachu may be cute, but his attacks have destroyed many of Team Rocket's inventions and sent them blasting off again and again. Tyson's Meowth doesn't mind and proceeds to display its power by slicing through some tree branches and walking away. Meowth is surprised and insulted by the gesture. A nearby tree begins to fall, startling Meowth as it crushes him. Elsewhere, Ash takes a different approach and decides to sleep outside in a tree hammock to settle his nerves. Morrison, in his own hammock, is confident Ash will win his match and offers his support before falling asleep.
The next day, the grass battlefield is auto-selected for the heated six-on-six match between Tyson and Ash. Ash chooses Glalie as his first Pokémon, and Tyson releases Sceptile. Glalie uses Ice Beam, but Sceptile counters with Solar Beam, creating an explosion of light that reaches high into the sky.
==Major events==
* continues his Full Battle against Morrison and wins, advancing to the .
* also advances to the quarterfinals.
* Tyson is revealed to own a and a .
* Ash begins his Full Battle with Tyson.
===Debuts===
====Pokémon debuts====
==Characters==
===Humans===
* 
* 
* 
* Max
* Jessie
* James
* Morrison
* 
* Team Rocket's employer
* Crowd
===Pokémon===
Pokémon Trainer's Choice: 
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* ()
* (Morrison's)
* (Morrison's)
* (Morrison's)
* (Morrison's)
* ()
* ('s)
* ('s)
* ('s)
* ('s)
* ('s)
* ('s)
==Trivia==
* The dub title comes from the phrase "use it or lose it".
* The announcer states that 's finishing against was a critical hit, marking one of the few times that this game mechanic has been mentioned in the .
* In this episode, 's appears smaller than most other Metagross.
* Team Rocket doesn't blast off or recite the motto in this episode.
* Type: Wild and music from Celebi: The Voice of the Forest and Pokémon Heroes: Latios & Latias are used in this episode.
===Errors===
* The Pokémon.com blurb says that "Ash becomes only one of eight semi-finalists" and "Ash and Tyson will face each other in the semi-finals" when it should correctly state "quarter-finals".
* When the episode first aired on , the title card was misspelled Choose it or Loose It! This was corrected for all reruns and other releases.
* In several scenes, the part of 's hair beneath his ear is colored tan instead of brown.
* During the battle between Corphish and Swampert, Morrison tells Swampert to use "again" even though it hadn't yet used that move in this battle.
** Similarly, tells to use "again" on , but he had never used it before in this battle.
* After Steelix is hit by 's , the move instantly disappears right before the next scene.
* Steelix fires at at a downward angle, but seconds later, the attack is aimed at an upward angle.
* Morrison's is much larger than normal when Grovyle jumps onto its back.
* While Tyson's Meowth slices the tree, its scarf is missing.
* In the English dub, Brock and Max state that Ash's Glalie should have an advantage over Morrison's Metang, which is incorrect as is resistant to and super effective against .
AG130 Title Card Error.png|The incorrect title
AG130 error 2.png|The Overheat error
AG130 error.png|Meowth's missing scarf
===Dub edits===
* Ash tells Morrison that he was acting like he didn't care about his Pokémon that depend on him, with Morrison replying he actually cares about them, specifically his Growlithe. In the Japanese version, Ash merely states he felt sorry for the way he was behaving lately, with Morrison replying he didn't need to be told that.
====Pokémon Trainer's Choice====
* Question: Trainers, which of these Pokémon would you catch by fishing?
* Choices: , , 
* Answer: OK, Trainers! If you chose Feebas, you were right!
==In other languages==
130
Category:Episodes written by Shōji Yonemura
Category:Episodes storyboarded and directed by Yoshito Hata
Category:Episodes storyboarded by Yoshito Hata
Category:Episodes directed by Yoshito Hata
Category:Episodes animated by Izumi Shimura
Category:Episodes animated by Megumi Yamashita
Category:Episodes by multiple animation directors
Category:Pokémon League episodes
Category:Episodes focusing on Ash
de:Jetzt oder nie!
es:EP407
fr:AG130
it:RZ130
ja:AG編第130話
zh:宝可梦 超世代 第129集