A Battle of Mega VS Max!

### Written by

Sonic876, Punkasaurus0530, Frogadier55, NegimaLover, TMNTHedgehog5, and DragonSpore18

### Directed by

Sonic876 and NegimaLover

***A Battle of Mega VS Max!*** is the 38th episode of *Josh's Adventures of Pokémon Master Journeys the Series*.

## Plot

Ash and Goh have traveled to Stow-on-Side in preparation for Ash's third World Coronation Series match against Bea the following day. They enter the Stow-on-Side Stadium, where they find Bea training with her Pokémon. Upon noticing Ash and Goh, Bea stops the training and welcomes them, addressing Ash as "Riolu's Trainer". Ash corrects her and sends out Lucario to show her that Riolu has evolved. However, all this does is make her refer to him as "Lucario's Trainer" now. She invites Ash and Goh to train with her, but they politely decline, saying that they're supposed to meet Korrina here. Seconds later, Korrina indeed appears behind them, looking stern. Goh remembers how, during their first encounter, Bea had said that Korrina had been "too overconfident". However, to Ash and Goh's utter surprise, when Korrina approaches Bea, she suddenly hugs her and starts frantically apologizing for not having been able to buy her the Lumiose Galettes that she loves, offering her a bag of other sweets instead and only noticing Ash and Goh's presence when Bea points them out to her.

While Ash, Goh, Korrina, Bea, and their Pokémon settle down to eat the sweets, which include Poké Puffs and Laverre chocolates, Ash and Goh express their surprise at Korrina and Bea being friends, mentioning what the latter had said about the former. Korrina clarifies that while Bea doesn't share her philosophy of battling for fun, she doesn't hate her for that, and admires how kind she is towards Pokémon and how she's a skilled martial artist. Bea, meanwhile, admits that she appreciates Korrina for all the sweets she brings for her. Following the sweets, Ash and Bea shake hands and promise to have a good battle the next day. Korrina is excited and promises to cheer for both of them, much to Goh's exasperation. That night at the Pokémon Center, Goh wonders what Pokémon Bea will use, but Ash is sure he'll win regardless.

The next day, the Stow-on-Side Stadium is packed to the brim with people excited to witness the World Coronation Series Ultra Class battle. As Bea and Ash enter the battlefield, the announcer points out Bea's Dynamax Band and Ash's Key Stone, noting that in this tournament, each contestant is allowed to only use one of either Dynamax, Mega Evolution, or Z-Moves per battle. At the Drone Rotom's signal, the battle begins, with Ash choosing to lead with Pikachu, while Bea sends out Grapploct. Pikachu makes the first move with Quick Attack. While Grapploct avoids the move with Detect, it still allows Pikachu to get close enough to land an Electroweb and trap Grapploct. However, when Pikachu tries to follow up with Iron Tail, Grapploct surprises Ash by extending its tentacles through the net and using Close Combat, interrupting Pikachu's move before tearing its way out of the net.

Choosing to change up his strategy, Ash withdraws Pikachu and sends out Lucario. In the stands, Goh tells Korrina how Riolu managed to tie with Grapploct in their previous battle. Ash swears to defeat Grapploct this time around, and Lucario shares his sentiment. Grapploct attacks with Liquidation, and even though Lucario tries to use Double Team to hide itself, Bea has Grapploct spin around to launch water bullets and dispel all the copies. The real Lucario attacks with Aura Sphere, but Bea has Grapploct avoid it with Detect, before recalling the Jujitsu Pokémon and sending out Hawlucha in its place. Hawlucha starts off with a High Jump Kick, which scores a direct hit, before following up with a series of Wing Attacks, which Lucario does its best to counter. Bea continues her relentless assault with Sky Attack, which scores yet another devastating hit. Goh notices that Hawlucha is faster than the last time he saw it battle. Korrina tells him that Bea keeps on improving every day, but Goh assures that the same applies for Ash as well.

Despite all the hits it has taken, Lucario is still able to stand back up. Bea performs yet another switch, substituting Hawlucha for Machamp. In the stands, Korrina tells Goh that Machamp is Bea's true ace, which Goh quickly deduces to mean that it can Gigantamax. Machamp's Bullet Punch quickly overwhelms Lucario's Force Palm, and Lucario's second attempt at using the same move doesn't yield any better results, leaving it trapped in Machamp's grasp as the Superpower Pokémon continues to pummel the Aura Pokémon with Bullet Punches and a Cross Chop. Desperate to escape the threatening situation, Ash taps his Key Stone and tries to Mega Evolve Lucario. Lucario, however, rejects the light of the Key Stone and instead frees itself by headbutting Machamp.

Ash apologizes to Lucario, admitting that he lost his temper while panicking and wasn't thinking clearly. The announcer questions if Ash and Lucario's bond isn't strong enough. Suddenly, Leon appears next to him, apologizing for being late and surprising the whole Stadium. He explains that rather than Ash and Lucario's bond not being strong enough, it is, in fact, too strong. Lucario knew that Mega Evolution will occur when it's necessary, but sensed that the time wasn't right yet, so it stopped its Trainer. Now motivated even more than before by Leon's presence, Ash and Bea both swear that they're going to win and resume the battle, with Machamp's Strength and Lucario's Reversal preparing to clash.

## Major events

* Ash Mega Evolves his Lucario for the first time.
* Ash's Lucario learns Steel Beam.
* Ash continues his second World Coronation Series rematch against Bea and wins, bringing his rank to 36.
* Ash and Goh return to Vermilion City.

## Characters

### Humans

* Ash
* Goh
* Lance (fantasy)
* Cynthia (fantasy)
* Korrina
* Bea
* Raihan (fantasy)
* Leon
* Announcer
* Crowd

### Pokémon

* Pikachu (Ash's)
* Lucario (Ash's; Mega Lucario)
* Sirfetch'd (Ash's)
* Grookey (Goh's)
* Lucario (Korrina's)
* Grapploct (Bea's)
* Hawlucha (Bea's)
* Machamp (Bea's; Gigantamax)
* Rotom (Drone Rotom)

## Transcript

*Main article: A Battle of Mega VS Max!/Transcript*
## Trivia

* Get Inspired! Let's Solve a Poké Riddle!!: Machamp
* The Dare da? segment is replaced with eyecatches of Ash, Goh, and Pikachu for this episode.
* This episode marks the first time Ash Mega Evolves one of his Pokémon.
* This marks the first time a Dynamaxed or Gigantamaxed Pokémon has reverted to normal before being defeated in the anime.
* Music from *Kyurem VS. The Sword of Justice* is used in this episode.
* Hawlucha is the only Pokémon to be portrayed with the traditional swirly eyes upon fainting in this battle.
* Bea's lines before Gigantamaxing Machamp and before launching G-Max Chi Strike are direct quotes from her first battle with the player in Pokémon Sword and Shield.
* Chloe, Chloe's Eevee, Goh, a Glaceon, Ash, Regina, and Pikachu narrate the preview for the next episode.
	+ A special preview for JN089 and JN090 was aired after this episode.