BW098

Beauties Battling for Pride and Prestige! (Japanese: 世界一華麗なポケモン！？チラチーノVSツタージャ！ The Most Magnificent Pokémon in the World!? VS !) is the 98th episode of the, and the 755th episode of the Pokémon anime. It first aired in Japan on October 11, 2012 and in the United States on February 2, 2013 as the first episode of the sixteenth season, Pokémon Black & White: Adventures in Unova.

Blurb
After finding out that this year’s Unova League will be taking place in Vertress City, Ash can’t wait! Our heroes say goodbye to Cynthia and Jervis and off they go, planning to stop by the Village of Dragons on the way so Iris can visit her hometown.

During a break for lunch, Iris and Emolga have an unpleasant encounter with a group of three well-dressed and snooty girls, who throw around some insults about their appearance and then flounce away laughing. Iris is furious at their arrogance, and heads into town to find out who the mean girls were and where to find them. It seems the three are part of the Flower Garden Troupe, a group of female performers and their Pokémon. That means no guys allowed in their headquarters—and no male Pokémon, either!

But Iris is determined to get in and get even, and she manages to talk Ash and Cilan into coming with her, even when that means all three of them getting decked out in fancy dresses, jewelry, and makeup. Pansage has to wear a pink bow—and even Pikachu’s tail gets a disguise!

Once inside, our disguised heroes ask if they can watch the troupe rehearse, and the leader Moira agrees. She offers them some pointers on style and poise, and then presents them with a series of challenges. First, our heroes’ Pokémon will have to cross a balance beam to demonstrate their sense of grace. When that proves too easy, the stakes are raised: it’s a balance beam battle, and this time there’s a mud pit underneath! Finally, it’s time for the Beauty Battlefield, where Iris finally gets her revenge, defeating Moira and one of her minions and knocking them into the mud. A beautiful victory!

Plot
Back at Cynthia's villa, Cynthia tells and  that the Pokémon Center has informed her of the Unova League's location, which Jervis says is Vertress City. Cynthia suggests that the three head there right away so they will have time for preparations before the league. Anxious to go, Ash agrees, and the three head outside.

Outside, the group prepares to say their goodbyes and plan out their route to Vertress. Jervis suggests heading there via Opelucid City. The mention of Opelucid City shocks, who offers an alternate route via the Village of Dragons. Curious to see Iris's hometown, Ash and agree. Ash, Iris, and Cilan thank Cynthia for her hospitality, and they all say their goodbyes. After departing from Cynthia's villa, Ash vows that he will win the Vertress Conference.

After walking through the woods for a while, they decide to stop and enjoy the lunch Jervis packed them. After letting out their Pokémon, they all sit down to eat. Ash and Iris enjoy their meals, and Cilan marvels at how the sandwich's components compliment each other. The Pokémon are enjoying their lunch too, especially, who finishes his food fast. Oshawott is still hungry however, and notices Pignite's near-full bowl next to him. Being sneaky, Oshawott swipes Pignite's bowl and devours it in an instant. This angers, who fires a at Oshawott in revenge. This infuriates Oshawott and the two get in a fight. Ash tells them to knock it off, but Oshawott aims a at Pignite anyway. However, the attack hits instead and sends her flying. Naturally, Iris is terrified and goes to try to find Emolga. Ash, Cilan and the other Pokémon leave their meals and follow her.

The three eventually find Emolga knocked out at the bottom of a cliff, and Iris retrieves her. Ash scolds Pignite and Oshawott for causing this incident and demands them to apologize, which they do. Suddenly, a female voice asks Iris if "that unattractive Emolga" belongs to her. Offended, Iris demands to know who insulted Emolga. Out of nowhere, a trio of elegantly-dressed girls and their Pokémon appear at the top of the cliff. The girl in the middle—the one who deemed Iris's Emolga unattractive—introduces herself as Moira and her, Cinccinoette, as "the most elegant Pokémon in the world." Intrigued, Ash scans Cinccino on his Pokédex. Moira is accompanied by two other girls, Mona and Cher, who show off their and, Lilligantette and Roserade-ette as the "second- and third-most elegant Pokémon," respectively. Ash scans the other two Pokémon on his Pokédex as well.

Moira explains that they came out here to get some fresh air to enhance Cinccino's beauty, but Iris's "ugly" Emolga soiled her beauty. This enrages Iris, who defends her Emolga. Moira then goes on to deem Ash's Snivy "uptight and pathetic," and concludes that every one of their Pokémon is "ugly and pathetic." Mona and Cher agree, and claim that they must leave so they don't catch the ugliness of Ash, Iris, and Cilan's Pokémon, and so the three walk off. Ash and Cilan are annoyed, but Iris is furious and chases after them.

Unfortunately, by the time Iris reaches the road, she is too late, as the three girls have already left in their tour bus. Iris is still determined to catch up to them, however, and the three head to the nearest town to track them down.

In a nearby town, they ask an employee of a store if she has seen a bus decorated with flowers. The employee answers that it is the tour vehicle of The Flower Garden Troupe. Surprised that the group has never heard of them, she goes on to explain that they are a very popular theater group expressing elegance in Pokémon in their shows, but only female humans and Pokémon may perform. When they aren't doing shows, they practice their acts in their club room down the street. Cilan thanks her for the directions, but the woman notes that only girls are allowed in their club, so only Iris would be allowed in. Iris takes them over there anyway.

They reach the Flower Garden Troupe club building, and Iris is ready to go in. Ash points out that he and Cilan can't enter since they're boys, but Iris has a plan to solve that issue. Iris then drags them into a costume store.

Inside, Iris puts on a fancy dress. Ash and Cilan are forced to cross-dress, much to their embarrassment. Iris has also taped a yellow heart-shaped piece of paper onto Pikachu's tail to make him look female, and must wear a bow on his head to look more feminine as well. Ash asks Iris why he and Cilan have to do this just for her, but Iris points out that his Snivy was ridiculed too and he should want revenge as well. Though reluctant, Ash and Cilan go along with Iris's plan, and the three "ladies" exit the shop.

Once they arrive at the club building, the receptionist asks why they have come. Iris responds that she needs to speak with "Lady Moira." The receptionist, thinking they are friends of Moira's, lets them in. Ash thanks her, but the receptionist is puzzled by Ash's masculine voice.

Inside the building, Iris is ready to confront the girls. They arrive at their practice room, and Mona answers the door. Due to their disguises, Mona doesn't recognize them and is suspicious about the unknown guests. Iris assures her that this is, in fact, the first time they have met. She then explains that they would like to see them practice their acts so they can learn from them. Mona is still somewhat hesitant to let them in, so she asks Moira if it's all right. Moira says yes, but she first wants them to introduce themselves, and then evaluates their attire. She appears to disapprove of them at first, but suddenly says their pick of attire is perfect. She goes on to say that the Flower Garden Troupe's members always dress in such an elegant way, even in casual times. Ash does not agree with this wisdom, but Cilan whispers to Ash to just play along with it. Next, Moira asks them to introduce themselves, which Iris does. Moira asks who the others are, so Iris introduces Ash and Cilan as Ashley and Cilanor, respectively. Moira then checks to make sure the Pokémon are female, and Pikachu emphasizes with his tail that he is.

Moira says that in order for the Pokémon to behave elegantly, you need to add "" to their names when addressing them. Ash whispers to Iris that he doubts this will make any difference, but he agrees to call Pikachu "Pikachu-ette". wants to come out, but Iris tells him to stay in and go along with it until the session is over. They then enter the first room.

Moira says that the first rule in a performance is to always be aware of your audience, that way you will make the best impression. To practice, the three girls pose in front of a mirror with their eyes closed and praise their Pokémon's elegance, while Iris angrily grunts at their vanity. Ash embarrassingly imitates the pose, but Cilan keeps an open mind and reassures Ash. Pikachu and Pansage sigh, still not completely on board with this "Pokémon elegance" stuff.

Upon entering the next room, Moira explains Performance Rule #2: unless you and your Pokémon walk with style and grace, your Pokémon's beauty won't shine through.

After saying this, Moira sets up a balance beam. The first test is that the Pokémon must be able to walk the balance beam without ever looking down. Snivy and Emolga easily accomplish this, but Moira says there is more to the test. With a push of a button, a pool of muddy water emerges from the floor under the balance beam. Iris asks why the sudden change. Cher explains that grace is harder than it looks: one wrong turn, and a Pokémon's beauty is soiled like a rose being thrown into filthy water—sinking, rather than blooming. Moira explains the first test is for the Pokémon to safely cross the balance beam. The Pokémon that makes it first to the other side of the balance beam is the winner. Though a risky task, Iris politely agrees to do it.

First up is Roserade vs. Pansage. Pansage and Roserade bump into each other and each of them attempts to push the other away. Both successfully push each other a little to the side, but when Pansage attempts to punch Roserade away, Roserade dodges to the side and Pansage trips into the mud. Mona hysterically laughs at Pansage's clumsiness. Moira deems Pansage untrained, much to Cilan's disappointment.

Next up is Lilligant vs. Emolga, and once again, the two fight for the balance beam. Emolga almost gets pushed into the muddy water, but being part Flying-type, she glides back up. Still in the air, Emolga effortlessly kicks Lilligant from above into the mud, causing Mona to panic. Iris then imitates her hysterical laugh, and makes Ash and Cilan do so as well. Imitating them once again, Iris then goes on to rub her victory in Mona's face, claiming Lilligant "sank like a rock." Mona, being a sore loser, is concerned, but Moira assures her that she will confront Iris in the next round.

In the final round, it is Cinccino vs. Snivy. Both perform the usual fighting, but Snivy jumps and pounces Cinccino. When Cinccino charges forward at Snivy, she grabs onto Cinccino's hand and tosses her into the muddy water. All of the competitors are surprised by the maneuver. Ash starts to do his victory pose, but soon switches to a more ladylike one.

Cinccino doesn't stay dirty for long, and cleans herself off in a flash, surprising Iris and Cilan. Moira explains that Cinccino's body is coated with oil, which keeps Cinccino looking glamorous. Ash questions the fairness of Cinccino restoring herself, but Iris is furious!

Upon entering the third room, Moira recites Performance Rule #3: The true beauty of Pokémon is in their strength. She then introduces them to their battlefield, which is surrounded by a moat of muddy water. Moira notes that their battles have a special rule: not only will the losing Pokémon be covered in mud, but the Trainer will be drenched as well. This is to emphasize that both the Trainer and their Pokémon need to show off their beauty. Iris, determined to win, agrees.

All six competitors battle again in the traditional manner with Emolga vs. Roserade, Pansage vs. Lilligant, and Snivy vs. Cinccino. Emolga wins her battle, but Pansage loses his, causing Cilan and Pansage to be drenched in the mud. Snivy is up next, but Iris, content to have a confronting victory, tells Ash to let her take this one. Iris commands Snivy to use many times in the battle, while letting Snivy take hits from Cinccino. At last when Snivy knocks Cinccino and Moira into the mud, Cinccino cannot use the oil to shake the mud off, much to Moira's dismay. Moira wonders how that could happen to Cinccino. Iris then explains that the flurry of Leaf Storms from Snivy gradually rubbed away the oil on Cinccino's fur. Ash and Cilan then realize why the Leaf Storms weren't hitting Cinccino, and they say it was a smart move.

Iris arrogantly tells Moira that she deserved that defeat, and hysterically laughs, which infuriates Moira. They are interrupted, though, by Ms. Chandler, the manager of the Flower Garden Troupe. Ms. Chandler congratulates the guests on defeating their top member Moira, and asks if they would join the Troupe. The three anxiously thank her for the offer, but decline and say they must leave, and do so immediately. Ms. Chandler tries to catch up with them, but they are too fast, much to her dismay.

After changing back into their normal clothes, the three head off to Vertress City once again.

Major events

 * and learn that the Unova League will be held in Vertress City and decide to visit the Village of Dragons en route.
 * Ash and his friends leave Cynthia's villa.

Humans

 * Cynthia
 * Jervis
 * Moira
 * Mona
 * Cher
 * Ms. Chandler
 * Mona
 * Cher
 * Ms. Chandler

Pokémon
Who's That Pokémon?: (US and international)  (Japan)
 * (Moira's)
 * (Mona's)
 * (Cher's)
 * (multiple)
 * (multiple)
 * (multiple)
 * (Moira's)
 * (Mona's)
 * (Cher's)
 * (multiple)
 * (multiple)
 * (multiple)
 * (multiple)
 * (multiple)

Trivia

 * Professor Oak's Pokémon Live Caster:
 * This episode includes cross-dressing, which he has done once in every preceding series. The previous occasions involved him dressing up to challenge the Celadon Gym (which he had been banned from), helping someone practice confessing their feelings, and serving at the Mountain Hut Maid Café.
 * Additionally, Ash assumes the name "Ashley", the same name he took when he cross-dressed for the first time. In another similarity, both this and the first cross-dressings were for disguise.
 * This is the season premiere of Pokémon BW: Adventures in Unova and Beyond.
 * During this episode, 's tail has a heart-shaped piece of paper taped on to make him appear female, marking the first time that the Pikachu gender difference has been acknowledged in the anime.
 * Moira breaks the fourth wall in this episode by pushing the split screen out while arguing with.
 * In the shot after Iris puts her disguise on, the costumes she and Ash wore in An Epic Defense Force! can be seen in the background.
 * This is one of the few episodes where actually laughs as opposed to merely smiling, with the other episode being Evolution by Fire!. In this case, she is laughing at how bad Moira and  look along with  and Iris. However, she is also laughing at the fact that she finally got revenge.
 * A woman who appeared in this episode has a strong resemblance to Otane, a character of the day who appeared in Pokéblock, Stock, and Berry.

Errors

 * On the R1 DVD Release, the opening animation featured the version that had clips from Be an Arrow! 2013 instead of the proper version that had clips from Be an Arrow!. It should also be noted that this error did not occur in the television broadcast of this episode.

In other languages
Hochmut kommt vor dem Fall! EP760 BW098 BW098 BW編第98話 精灵宝可梦 超级愿望 第98集