EP234

Xatu the Future (Japanese: ネイティオのだいよげん！ 's Big Prediction!) is the 234th episode of the Pokémon anime. It was first broadcast in Japan on January 31, 2002 and in the United States on February 8, 2003.

Blurb
''Ash and friends meet a Xatu, a Pokémon said to have the ability to see into the future, and the young girl whose job it is to watch over an entire flock of the same and interpret their strange predictions. They meet her at a difficult time in her career, as the locals are just beginning to doubt the accuracy of these Pokémon's predictions, which have guided their community for centuries. The girl herself even finds her own faith waning, but when the Xatu forecast a cataclysm that would endanger all in the village, she must decide whether to trust in her Pokémon or to let age-old traditions fall by the wayside.''

Plot
finishes their latest pitfall trap just in time for and  to fall into it. The group realize that it has been very peaceful lately, so Ash decides to test the group by jumping on it. Team Rocket are shocked as their trap isn't being activated, so they emerge from their shrubs. Jessie demands that the twerps fall into the hole already. James jumps on the ground a few times, finally causing the whole ground to cave in and they all fall. At the bottom, pops out and causes them to fall again, right through a ceiling of a tunnel. Jessie quickly recalls her nuisance Pokémon to his Poké Ball.

A woman rushes by, but with no time to speak she tells everyone to simply follow her. The group arrives at a colossal tower built with rings, with giant spheres connecting them. Ash notices a few perched on one of the spheres and scans them with his Pokédex. The woman informs them that the Xatu can tell the future. Jessie and are intrigued, but their pleas for a fortune go unanswered. The woman introduces herself as, and she explains that the Xatu are often in a trance state because they are watching the future and past at the same time. She then calls out to a Xatu as she runs upwards towards an exit. Everybody else follows her and are amazed that the other side is a giant stone auditorium with a group of people sitting on the bleachers. The Xatu perch themselves on the surrounding balustrade. Calista holds two fans in the air and orders the audience to follow her movements. Soon, the Xatu do similar patterns with their wings. Jessie orders to translate, but he reveals that he can only speak human and Pokémon. Calista suddenly concludes the day will be mostly sunny.

Suddenly, clouds gather and it starts to rain. Confused, Calista fears the "day" has finally arrived. She decides to hold off the gathering and runs back into the tower. Her two Xatu and Ash's group follow her, and shortly after Xatu Two joins them. Meanwhile, Jessie attempts to entertain the crowd with a game of paper, scissors, rock, but this only confuses the audience. Team Rocket soon trail behind. At a weather station under the tower, everyone watches as Calista sends out a Xatu-painted radar to check the weather patterns, but to no avail. Meanwhile, Team Rocket continues downward until Wobbuffet causes them to roll into the station. Xatu Three makes some wing movements and Calista reveals that a human with the ability to predict the weather will appear today. James and the group look at each other, but are none the wiser. Calista is certain of her interpretation because she is a thirteenth-generation Xatu prophetess, and she admits that Xatu Three is getting on in age. Jessie then reveals that she was once a meteorologist for a news program, but was let go because of her inaccurate forecasts. Xatu Three begins sweating, and Jessie urges it to stop looking into her past, and it eventually does when it faints.

Determined to solve the strange weather patterns, Calista orders Jessie to help interpret the data, but Jessie is unable to offer any insight. Suddenly the trio of Xatu spring to their feet and begin moving their wings. Calista is horrified and reveals that the long-awaiting "day" of a great flood will arrive tomorrow. She reveals that she and the Xatu's services will come to an end as well. Ash and the others plea for calm. Calista fears that today's wrongful prediction will jeopardize the trust the people have for the Xatu. Even so, she has faith in her Xatu's fortune-telling skills.

She takes to the stage and warns her followers of the great danger. The people rush to the stage and offer their many valuables as tokens of gratitude before fleeing to reach safety. As everyone waits, arrives and delivers Team Rocket their overdue bill. As a result, the trio sneaks over and tries to swipe one of the valuable items, but Ash catches them before they could do anything. Team Rocket threatens Delibird, which prompts it to assist them. Delibird showers everyone with explosive s. James then sends out to use  while Delibird drops in a few more presents. Weezing then cuts the Smokescreen. Team Rocket are surprised to see that the Xatu are still there, but Calista explains that the Xatu were able to predict where to move to avoid being damaged. Delibird offers up another round of Presents, but this time they heal the Xatu completely. Just before Team Rocket can do anything else, Delibird drops a Present next to them and then leaves before it sends Team Rocket off into the sky.

The Xatu do another wing pattern, and Calista then reveals that the flood will still come, today that is. Calista watches as the Xatu continue to move their wings. She translates that Ash and his friends will be fine if they leave soon. The Xatu then describe fate, and declares that their predictions should only be used as a guidance and not as a predetermined version of the future. Calista accepts Xatu's message in full. With that said, the Xatu themselves, Calista and Ash's group away before the flood hits. The giant surge soon arrives and floods the auditorium. Above the disaster zone, Calista then decides to move to a city and to pursue her real goal, to become a meteorologist for a news program. Meanwhile, Team Rocket is at the mud-entrenched ruins of the would-be weather station, still searching for any abandoned valuables. Delibird soon flies off, but Team Rocket know full well that it will be back to collect its dues so they flee into the distance.

Humans

 * Jessie
 * James
 * Crowd
 * Jessie
 * James
 * Crowd
 * Crowd

Pokémon
Who's That Pokémon?: (US and international),  (Japan)
 * ('s; multiple; released; debut)
 * ('s; multiple; released; debut)
 * ('s; multiple; released; debut)
 * ('s; multiple; released; debut)
 * ('s; multiple; released; debut)
 * ('s; multiple; released; debut)
 * ('s; multiple; released; debut)

Trivia

 * This episode was initially going to be called Future Shock. Some cable providers erroneously refer to the episode as this working title.
 * This episode's dub title is a pun on the.
 * In this episode, uses a variation of their.
 * The way and the  communicate is similar to that of.
 * Music from Pikachu's Vacation, Mewtwo Strikes Back, and The Power of One can be heard in this episode.

Errors

 * When the dark clouds first appear, Calista tells the crowd to stay even though it is pouring. However, the rain is only a slight drizzle at that point.
 * calls the pit used to trap and  "indivisible" instead of "invisible".
 * Once again in the ian dub, Delibird is mistakenly called "Thunderbird".

In other languages
Die Xatu und die Zukunft EP236 EP234 無印編第234話 精灵宝可梦 第235集