AG080

That's Just Swellow (Japanese: 初挑戦！空中競技・ポケリンガ！！ Beginning Challenge! Sky Match - PokéRinger!!) is the 80th episode of the, and the 354th episode of the Pokémon anime. It was first broadcast in Japan on June 10, 2004 and in the United States on May 28, 2005.

Blurb
Outside Crossgate Town, the kids meet a Trainer named Shane and his Swablu. He is practicing for the PokéRinger competition, a contest where flying Pokémon battle in the sky to capture a ring and place it on the goal post.

Ash and May both sign up with Taillow and Beautifly. Meanwhile, Team Rocket has also arrived in town. As a child, James received training from a champion PokéRinger, and decides to enter the competition as well.

The competitors are matched up into three separate groups of four. In the first group, Shane and his Swablu use the wind to their advantage and win the round. Ash faces the previous PokéRinger champion in the next group, but knocks out his Volbeat to win. In the last group, May and James face off against each other, but Dustox (borrowed from Jessie) scores the goal.

In the next round, Ash's Taillow faces off against a Skarmory and wins easily. Shane goes up against James, but his Swablu gets blinded by the sun, giving Dustox a chance to score.

While the competition is going on, Jessie and Meowth have been tricking Trainers into leaving their Pokémon behind for a special "relaxing" treatment. They trap the Pokémon into a net and prepare to run. Meowth tries to order James to leave with them, but James refuses.

Ash and James begin the final round, but they are interrupted by a freak tornado in the middle of the field that blocks their path to the ring. Ash sends Taillow into the swirling wind, and its determination causes it to evolve into Swellow. Swellow snags the ring and leaves the tornado, with Dustox on its tail. Swellow punts the ring onto the goal, and James is dragged away sobbing by Team Rocket.

Swellow frees the stolen Pokémon, and then Pikachu sends Team Rocket blasting off with Thunderbolt. Ash attends the award ceremony, where his picture is displayed alongside the previous PokéRinger champions.

Plot
and arrive in Crossgate Town, where they immediately help a  floundering in the air. The Swablu belongs to Shane who tells them that they were for the annual PokéRinger competition, a game that involves two or four Trainers using their Pokémon to capture a ring that is hanging in the air with the first  to successfully bring the ring to the goal post winning. Shane informs Ash and his friends that a PokéRinger tournament is scheduled later in the day. There are lots of Trainers coming to compete, not all of them local. Shane is forced to admit that this is his first tournament. is here as well, and James reveals that he is experienced in the sport of PokéRinger. Having learned from his PokéRinger teacher who had been very first winner of the tournament, James reveals he had some aspirations of becoming a player when he was younger. So James becomes determined to compete in the competition. After the contestants are randomized, Shane is placed in the first round. is in the second round along with the defending champion, Volt, and his. Then James makes a somewhat unusual entrance, getting placed in the third block along with. May, displaying a characteristic lack of manners, totally ignores James even after he wishes her a good battle. The tournament gets underway and Shane emerges victorious in the first block.

Volbeat seems to have the early advantage in the second round by possessing attacks. Although the other two Trainers' Pokémon fall quickly to Volbeat's, manages to resist the electricity and grab the ring. Volbeat, however, doesn't give up and another Thunder causes Taillow to drop the ring while trying to dodge. Volbeat takes it and goes for the goal. However, Taillow's counterattack causes Volbeat to lose the ring, securing Ash a win in the second round. Now, James and May face off in the third round. May and concentrate their efforts on the other two Pokémon in the round, underestimating James's skill as a PokéRinger. James's rides Beautifly's  attack to the goalpost, making it to the semifinals. Meanwhile, the business scheme that Jessie and have concocted seems to be raking in the cash and the Pokémon. They are bringing them in from the ranks of all the losers' Pokémon. Then it is time for the semifinals to begin. After Ash and Taillow defeat a Trainers', Shane and James face off. Swablu has the early advantage, but James's experience pays off tactics-wise. When the sudden sunlight blinds Swablu as the clouds move, James takes the ring and proceeds to the finals.

The final round is Ash versus James. However, the battle is interrupted by Meowth, and he and James have a furious conversation aided by flags, as though they have suddenly started using the semaphore system. Meowth gets smacked in the face by a flag, and James turns his attention back to the battle at hand. James has the advantage and uses on Taillow. However, Taillow retaliates with. James isn't out of the round yet, but a sand tornado starts and engulfs the ring completely. It appears as though after the tornado is over, it will be a matter of speed - who can take the ring first. In a surprise move, Ash orders Taillow to fly into the tornado but it is knocked back. In a second attempt to enter the tornado, Taillow evolves into. successfully fends off the tornado and seizes the ring. James makes one last desperate play and tries to take the ring to the goal, but Ash orders Swellow to use Wing Attack and knocks the ring into the goal, thereby winning the PokéRinger tournament. James is heartbroken and Jessie shows up in the Meowth balloon with all of the stolen Pokémon. However, Swellow saves the day with a Wing Attack. The Pokémon are freed from Team Rocket's net. Then Ash tells Pikachu to use causing the balloon to blow up, and Team Rocket blasts off. Ash is then granted honorary lifetime citizenship of Crossgate Town as a reward for winning the PokéRinger tournament.

Major events

 * ,, and James participate in the Crossgate PokéRinger.
 * Ash's evolves into.
 * Ash wins the Crossgate PokéRinger, while James places second.

Pokémon debuts

 * Ash's Swellow

Humans

 * Max
 * Jessie
 * James
 * Volt
 * Shane
 * Competitors
 * Volt
 * Shane
 * Competitors

Pokémon
Pokémon Trainer's Choice:
 * (evolves)
 * (newly evolved)
 * (Volt's)
 * (Shane's)
 * (competitor's)
 * (competitor's)
 * (competitor's)
 * (competitor's)
 * (competitor's)
 * (competitor's)
 * (competitor's)
 * (competitor's)
 * (competitor's)
 * (competitor's)
 * (competitor's)
 * (competitor's)
 * (competitor's)
 * (competitor's)
 * (competitor's)

Trivia

 * The episode's title is a reference to the phrase "that's just swell".
 * This marks the first time fills in for James in the Team Rocket's motto, though he had done so for Jessie previously.
 * Oddly, hiccupped at the end of the motto and said "Wobba-hic!".
 * This marks the first time 's original theme is played since Hoenn Alone!, the last episode of the original series, simultaneously making it the first time said theme was featured in the . It is also the first time that both the original and new themes are played in the same episode. However, note that the beginning of the original theme music appeared in AG020 and AG024.
 * This marks the first time James borrowed a Pokémon from Jessie, who usually borrows Pokémon from him to compete in Pokémon Contests.
 * This episode marks one of the extremely rare occasions that a member of Team Rocket refers to one of the main characters by name (this being James while speaking to May after entering the PokéRinger competition).
 * This episode is similar to Pursuing a Lofty Goal! in multiple ways:
 * Ash enters a PokéRinger with his Pokémon, while James enters with one of Jessie's  Pokémon.
 * In each episode, the over-confident and boastful former champion enters only to be knocked out in the first round.
 * Ash's Flying-type Pokémon evolves into its final form, helping him win the competition.
 * Ash's Pokémon hits the hoop over the goal section with its wings (even the background music is the same in both episodes).
 * Advance Adventure and an instrumental version of OK! are used as background music.

Errors

 * Instead of, Ash commands to use "Wing" against Volbeat.
 * Some of the international dubs corrected this error.
 * When all of Team Rocket's captured Pokémon are in a net, one of the Golbat was colored like a Crobat.
 * While Shane is talking to Max about the competition, the man who is sitting behind him is slightly overlapping Shane.
 * The challengers were divided into three blocks, and from each one the winner moved to the semifinals. However, there were four semifinalists instead of three.

Pokémon Trainer's Choice

 * Question: Trainers, which of these Pokémon evolves into ?
 * Choices:, ,
 * Answer: OK, Trainers! If you chose, you were right!

In other languages
Der König der Ringe EP356 AG080 AG編第80話 精灵宝可梦 超世代 第80集