Casey is watching the Electabuzz; who have not been performing well even among their standards. Casey laments that they were once number one. First off- erm, no they weren't; the whole point of her being into them was that they're underdogs like her. Second, I once again question this spinoff being for fans; who'd typically notice a detail like that being wrong like I just did.
Anyway, this episode largely follows Casey trying to help team member Cory DiMario and his Pokémon regain their confidence. He has a Charizard who gets temporarily stuck inside a piece of playground equipment like in the Pikachu's Vacation short movie. It's a bit more timid than most, its name is Don. There's also a young man named Benny; which doesn't inspire much confidence.
I'm not really sold on the story they're trying to tell with Don. After seeing the elder Charizard, Charlie in "Blossom's Dream" (we'll talk another time); this isn't really working for me. I don't know why, it doesn't have the same appeal to me as a wilder beast; or even anything I can't get from those fanarts of a Shinx with Intimidate spooking a Tyranitar; or a Timid Gengar and a Brave Clefable.
Bottom line- Casey is going to be the one to help whip Cory and Don back into shape. In other words- we're in big trouble.
Shockingly, Casey's attempts to motivate Don don't work; and the Charziard runs off in a huff. Stop. Don't. Come back. Not even halfway through this thing.
Regrouping over a meal at Cory's father's ranch; Casey tries to determine her next move with Don. His father also reveals that Cory injured himself and his performance hasn't been the same since then; which is another reason that makes me want to shut this off and watch Dennis Quaid's The Rookie instead.
Sadly, Casey ropes Cory's dad into her scheme along with Benny. However Mrs. DiMario would have fit into this; I can't imagine. Yet, somehow, it starts getting through to Cory and Don. Honestly not the worst part of this- that comes later.
The shout therapy gives way to a cheerleading session; complete with matching uniforms. It's only the second weirdest attempt I've seen: first is still Elite Beat Agents.
While Cory's spirits start to lift; Don still needs to work on his flight. He's up to jumping; but still needs work. There's also a flashback to an umpire at a training camp who was kind of a piece of trash barking orders like they're in the corps. It's not really important, and I'm sparing you the scene.
Casey then decides to reignite Don's fighting spirit by using him in battle; which should have been their opener. Cory's dad sends out Ampharos, which Casey; as a big fan of yellow striped monsters adores. OK, I'll give them that one.
Regrettably, the animation is full of still shots and flashes to white; looking like editing I would do in Windows Movie Maker. Halfway through this, just barely.
After the battle, an argument takes place between Casey and the others; further undermining the weight this holds as an alternative to the main series. Simply swapping one character for another doesn't automatically solve the problem with the protagonist; if anything, it can just create a different one.
This scrap causes Cory and Don to just leave; leading to the infamous "Where have you gone, Cory DiMario?" line. Again, I get this joke; but what 10-year-old would get a reference to Simon and Garfunkel? Granted, I reference songs from the '80s and '90s a lot; but I try to keep some context whether it's Ozzy or A Tribe Called Quest.
As Cory and Don do their own training exercise, Casey, Benny and Mr. DiMario try to search for them in the vicinity. They climb the hills to a waterfall; and every passing minute just makes me miss the nuance of "Charmander: The Stray Pokémon" more and more.
After some truly horrendous off-model shots of Don, Cory gives into Casey's insults; and orders Don to jump the gorge. It goes marginally better than Homer's attempt; and gives me yet another chance to use my Speed Racer clip.
Once the aforementioned reference to The Graduate is made, everyone does another sweep for Cory and Don. They find Cory and Don in the gorge (called Gloom Canyon, because we're stacking cliches on top of each other this time); and after Casey falls in, Cory hoists her out, finally sparking Don's flame and having him take flight!
With Cory and Don's confidence now restored, we close on Casey once again cheering on her team. She may not have been my favorite side character (personally wouldn't go beyond more than an Easter egg in the background in my story); but even she deserved a better finale than this.
"Those Darn Electabuzz" is a damn shame of an episode of this danged spinoff. Very little to justify its existence, with some very middling animation and a story that doesn't make for a good outing for even Casey. Moreover, there's numerous other Johto characters that could have been much better to focus on; like Sakura and the Kimono girls. I will especially be getting on that in my next Chronicles review. If you want a better episode with baseball elements, go watch "Pulling Out the Pokémon Base Pepper" from the Sun and Moon series instead.
Post-review follow-up: Most annoying character of the episode goes to Casey for alternating between fangirl and nattering coach. Dishonorable mention goes to Benny for basically being superfluous at best.
Next Chronicles review will be on "The Search for the Legend," and I would instead advise a search for a better spinoff. That's all for now, take care.
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