YMMV / Pokémon S 1 E 24 Haunter Versus Kadabra

• Angst? What Angst?: Sabrina's mom is surprisingly chipper and well-adjusted despite spending god knows how long trapped as an unmoving, yet still sentient doll.
• Anti-Climax Boss: To a lot of fans' dismay, Sabrina ended up being this. Instead of a proper battle with Ash's Haunter fighting Sabrina's Kadabra after a lot of hype, Pikachu gets into another unwinnable battle against Kadabra and Haunter simply saves the day by making Sabrina laugh. It doesn't help that it's yet another "pity badge", and after Ash earned one fair and square against Surge as well.
• Hilarious in Hindsight:
  • Sabrina transforming Misty, Brock, and her mom into dolls becomes this with Pokemon X and Y's Laverre gym resembling a giant doll house.
  • The Official Pokemon Handbook mistakenly stated that Sabrina learned to smile and laugh again thanks to "a very goofy Gengar", when it was actually a Haunter. Ash would later obtain a Gengar with a similar personality to Haunter's.
• Retroactive Recognition: One of Pikachu's cries (after he and Ash see Team Rocket) was reused for Pikachu using Electric Shock in Super Smash Bros..
• They Wasted a Perfectly Good Character: Ash's Haunter is an amusing prankster with a ton of personality. And now that he recently released Butterfree one would expect Haunter to fill the void since he and Ash already have a lot of chemistry. But nope: he's left with Sabrina with little to no fanfare and Ash never sees him again. Years and seasons later, it seems the powers that be finally realized what a wasted opportunity this was and had Ash catch a Gengar in Journeys that has a similar prank-loving personality.