Japanese Title: The Mystery of the Missing Pokémon!
Original Airdate: March 4th, 1999
US Airdate: February 5th, 2000
Cassidy and Botch?!
The one where... Pikachu gets Brainwashed and Crazy.
Just as Ash, Misty, and Tracey set foot on Mandarin Island, Pikachu and Togepi turn against them and join a group of other angry Pokémon. When the misbehaving Pokémon disappear, Officer Jenny arrives and informs them that dozens of Pokémon have been reported missing, including Meowth! Everyone fears a Psychic attack is behind this mystery. Will Jessie and James actually join forces with our heroes? Could they possibly win a battle for the first time?
Tropes
- Accidental Misnaming: See Running Gag.
- Alternate Identity Amnesia: After the Pokémon got freed from the effects of Butch and Cassidy's Drowzee, they are confused about where they are, or what happened when the were Brainwashed and Crazy.
- Brainwashed and Crazy: Any Pokémon that steps foot on Mandarin Island, thanks to Butch and Cassidy's Drowzee, with its powerful psychic attacks being magnified and broadcast over the island.
- Brought Down to Badass: When Pikachu breaks the machine, Drowzee can no longer amplify its hypnosis to the entire island. This does absolutely nothing to stop it from delivering a heck of a fight against multiple of Ash's and Team Rocket's Pokémon.
- Continuity Nod: Butch and Cassidy acquired the Drowzee from their previous scam at the Breeding Center.
- Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Drowzee often look lazy and silly, but this episode shows just how dangerous and terrifying Drowzee can be. It also establishes Misty's adorable Togepi as being far more powerful than it appears.
- Enemy Mine: Jessie and James team up with Ash and company to bring down Butch and Cassidy in order to rescue Meowth and their other Pokémon.
- Guile Hero: Ash antagonizes a brainwashed Pikachu into destroying the machine that amplified Drowzee's psychic power.
- Harmless Electrocution: Pikachu's electric attacks strike Ash with enough power to cause the nearby machine to overload and explode. Meanwhile, Ash suffers no long-term effects.
- Hey, That's My Line!: Jessie, James, Butch, and Cassidy argue over Team Rocket's motto.
- "I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight: Ash, Misty and Team Rocket tried to reach out their mind controlled Pokémon but failed. However, Ash is able to save the Pokémon by taunting his Pikachu to use Thunderbolt on him as he stands on the machine that is controlling him and the others, which sets them free.
- Immune to Mind Control: Officer Jenny's Gastly is somehow unaffected by Drowzee's amplified hypnotic signal. Officer Jenny claims it is because Psychic attacks don't work on Ghost types. This wasn't the case in the games at the time, where due to a programming error, Ghost-types were ineffective against Psychic types.
- Internal Deconstruction: Pokémon are shown to be highly dangerous when you don't have any Pokémon to protect yourself from them. Ash and Co. have to spend most of the episode hiding from the Pokémon on the island due to having no way to protect themselves from them. It's only through quick thinking by Ash that the day is saved.
- Knight of Cerebus: Cassidy and Biff are at it again, and boy howdy they are not playing around. They make it very clear in this episode they have no qualms potentially KILLING Ash and Co., and very nearly won!
- Nightmare Face: In-universe, both Ash and Misty were horrified by the angry faces Pikachu and Togepi gave them.
- No-Sell: Officer Jenny's Gastly is able to resist Drowzee's psychic attacks and the onslaught of dozens of Pokémon.
- Pre-Explosion Glow: Happens when Butch and Cassidy's hideout blows up, thanks to Drowzee and Togepi's psychic attacks clashing (the latter through Metronome.)
- Redemption Promotion: When Jessie and James team-up with Ash and his friends instead of fighting them, they actually succeed in winning for once. Tracey lampshades this as the end.
- Running Gag: This episode introduces the gag of people getting Butch's name wrong, though it is only a one-off joke in this episode and doesn't become a real problem for Butch until his next appearance.
- Trojan Horse: Jessie and James are let into Butch and Cassidy's base by offering a cart full of Pokeballs. Once they are inside, the heroes jump out of the cart.
- Unexpectedly Dark Episode: And how. The group are completely at the mercy of a bunch of Brainwashed and Crazy Pokémon, there is a dark, oppressive atmosphere throughout the episode, and it's only through some quick thinking that the group manages to come out on top.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: While Cassidy and Butch are shown being carted away, what became of their Drowzee after their base exploded is left unknown. Unlike some of the other Pokémon they've used over the years, it's never been seen again.
- Given that it was stated to have been acquired during their Breeding Center plan, it was likely returned to its original owner.
