EP269

The Ties That Bind (Japanese: けっしょうトーナメント！フルバトル６ＶＳ６！！ Tournament Finals! Full Battle 6 VS 6!!) is the 269th episode of the Pokémon anime. It was first broadcast in Japan on October 10, 2002 and in the United States on September 20, 2003.

Blurb
''Ash is about to take on his long time rival, Gary Oak, in the next battle of the Johto League Silver Conference, and he's determined to do everything he can to win. He stays up all night researching strategies and trying to learn more about Gary's Pokémon. Gary has a lot of strong Pokémon, and he trains many different types, so Ash has to pick his team carefully. Gary starts out with Nidoqueen, and Ash uses Tauros. Gary wins the first round, but Ash takes the second. It's going to be a very close match! In round three, it's Ash's Heracross versus Gary's Blastoise. Who will win? (To be continued!)''

Plot
When last seen, is shocked to learn that his first-round opponent in the Victory Tournament will be against, his eternal rival. After exchanging trash-talk, among which involved a half of a, Ash is enraged at the notion of Gary threatening to sweep him at the tournament. That night, back in his suite, Ash rummages through his backpack to find the other half (the smaller white half) of the Poké Ball, and proceeds to tell and  his story of how the two of them had ended up with the halves of the ball:

It had been a few days before Ash first left to start his journey as a Pokémon Trainer. Fishing by a stream, he managed to catch a, which proceeded to slap him in the face before falling back into the water. Gary, on the other side of the stream, appeared to taunt Ash in both his skills and knowledge of Pokémon (Ash being unable to name any of Magikarp's attacks, including the that was used on him, and Gary says Magikarp was the weakest Pokémon). The two had liked the stream as a fishing spot, and the rivalry escalated to the point that both Trainers were fishing in the same spot (but from opposite banks). When both Ash and Gary caught a bite, both reeled their lines in, but discovered that both had caught onto the same rusted Poké Ball. After a brief tug-of-war, the Poké Ball broke in half. Though Ash was willing to accept that the "fishing battle" was a draw, Gary had declared it a loss, as "tying with Ash was just as bad as losing" - a position that he held to this very day.

Ash had kept his half of the Poké Ball as a good luck charm. He admits that losing to Gary and Eevee had taught him that he wasn't ready to take him on at the time, but he is prepared for the upcoming match. Though Ash is ready to battle Gary the next day, Misty reminds him that the next day is a rest day, with the Victory Tournament starting on the day after. Brock advises Ash to use that day to prepare his strategy.

The next day, reopens their new larger souvenir stand. Though tells Jessie that business may not pick up due to it being the rest day, James is confident that he could drum up business by holding a one-day sale of limited edition collector's pins, to appeal to the collector's market. Meanwhile, back in the suite, Misty is surprised to learn that Ash and Brock had buried themselves in books, preparing his strategy. Ash, for one, has not slept since the last night (Brock, however, had), though Brock is quick to point out that Ash is not as computer-literate as either himself or Misty. Ash, however, has managed to get a page up on Gary, showing data on ten of his Pokémon. However, just as he is trying to demonstrate to Misty on his computer skills, the computer crashes. Misty takes the opportunity to get Ash off the computer desk for breakfast.

Outside, Ash and company are discussing strategy. Brock notes that Gary has no particular type preference, just like his grandfather, and that he keeps rotating his Pokémon. Ash confirms this, and says that he has been that way for as long as he has known him. As Brock reaffirms that his team-building strategy will be crucial, Ash sees a shadow flying overhead. Once again, the greeting is a dead giveaway that it is, having arrived from Charicific Valley after a late-night request to  by Brock. Just as Ash is greeting Charizard, Gary appears. After a brief greeting, the two stare each other down until appears to break the silence, surprising both. also appears, herself and Professor Oak having arrived to watch the Silver Conference live instead of on TV. Professor Oak advises the two to lighten up before moving onto other matters: having received a lot of new Pokémon data, Professor Oak updates the Pokédexes for both Ash and Gary. Though Misty and Brock are excited about the new Pokédex data and what they can learn from it, Gary stares at his Pokédex intently before leaving. Misty and Brock also remind Ash to prepare their strategy, so they, too, also leave, but not before Delia gives Ash some encouraging words.

Later that day, Meowth and Jessie congratulate themselves for selling out their merchandise yet again, thanks to the Trainers that did not advance to the Victory Tournament also buying their pins. James, however, is working even harder, as he adjusts his new machines to make 3000 new commemorative badges just to make the demand for the next day.

The next day, the Victory Tournament begins in earnest. Macy and Jackson are seen watching from the stands as the announcers explain the Victory Tournament: a Full Battle with a random selection of battlefields (between grass, water, rock, and ice-based fields). In the round's opening match, easily advances when his  defeats a. Back in the locker rooms, Ash congratulates Harrison on his victory, and reminds him that he will square off against the winner between Ash and Gary in the quarterfinal round. Back on the field, Misty and Brock have already been seated, with, , , and ready to cheer Ash on. However, Gary has also brought his cheerleaders to cheer him on. As the announcer makes note of Gary being Professor Oak's grandson and Ash reaching the round of 16 at the Indigo Plateau, the match begins on the rock field, with Gary making the first move.

Gary leads off with, while Ash leads off with. Nidoqueen starts with a super-effective that sends rocks flying into the air and causing Tauros damage. But he manages to push through the oncoming rocks and heads for Nidoqueen with a. But Nidoqueen blocks Tauros by catching his horns and then launches a, easily knocking Tauros out of the match.

Ash sends out as his second Pokémon, and Gary pulls Nidoqueen for. Magmar begins with a, but Heracross evades the attack and connects with (incorrectly referred to as ). This sends Magmar straight up, allowing it to use. Magmar catches up to the falling Fire Blast and lands on Heracross, causing it massive damage. Adding insult to injury, Magmar also adds a point-blank to cripple Heracross. Suddenly, Heracross manages to blow the fire away with his wings and charges Magmar with a, which overpowers Magmar's Flamethrower defense, knocking it out.

Unfazed, Gary sends out - the final form of his, and the most powerful Pokémon on his team. Heracross starts with Fury Swipes, but Blastoise responds with. Who will come out on top of that attack, and who will win?

Major events

 * is revealed to have obtained a, an , a , a , a , a , and a.
 * Ash's Charizard returns from the Charicific Valley.
 * and Gary receive a Pokédex upgrade from.
 * wins his second round, advancing to the quarterfinals.
 * Ash begins his second round Full Battle against Gary.
 * Ash's Tauros is revealed to know.
 * Ash's Heracross is revealed to know.
 * Gary's starter Pokémon is revealed to have been a, which has since evolved into a.

Pokémon debuts

 * Gary's Blastoise

Humans

 * Jessie
 * James
 * Jackson
 * Macy
 * Charles Goodshow
 * Gary's cheerleaders
 * Crowd
 * Jackson
 * Macy
 * Charles Goodshow
 * Gary's cheerleaders
 * Crowd
 * Gary's cheerleaders
 * Crowd

Pokémon
Who's That Pokémon?: (U.S. and international),  (Japan)
 * ('s)
 * ('s)
 * ('s; on computer screen)
 * ('s; on computer screen)
 * ('s; on computer screen)
 * ('s; on computer screen)
 * (on computer screen)
 * ('s; on computer screen)
 * (on computer screen)
 * ('s; on computer screen)
 * ('s; on computer screen)
 * ('s; on computer screen)
 * ('s)
 * (flashback)
 * ('s; on computer screen)
 * ('s; on computer screen)
 * (on computer screen)
 * ('s; on computer screen)
 * (on computer screen)
 * ('s; on computer screen)
 * ('s; on computer screen)
 * ('s; on computer screen)
 * ('s)
 * (flashback)
 * (flashback)

Trivia

 * The English title of this episode is very similar to that of a future episode.
 * Coincidentally, the  cartoon series also has an episode titled the same.
 * When is looking for his half of the broken Poké Ball, the rubber gloves and the clothesline  gave him in the first episode can be seen.
 * The battle between Ash and marks the first (and so far only) time in the whole series that  isn't in Ash's active party, though he is still present on the sidelines to cheer him on. Ash likely gave his Poké Ball to, at least temporarily, to make this possible. The fact that this occurs means that Pikachu is ineligible to battle, as Ash states in the next episode.
 * During the flashback, Ash is seen wearing a straw hat, which may give the viewer the impression that the fight involving the rusted Poké Ball predates Ash winning his Pokémon League Hat at the raffle mentioned in Primeape Goes Bananas.
 * This episode is featured on Volume 5: Blastoise from Viz Media's series.
 * This is the first time Ash's Heracross is seen using a move that is not a one.
 * In the English dub, and  seemed to be aware that Gary's starter Pokémon was, as when  sent out, Misty asks, "Wait, isn't that...?". Brock replies, "The same Squirtle Gary originally received from Professor Oak? Yeah, that's the one." This was not the case in the original Japanese version, as they were surprised that Gary owned a Blastoise.
 * doesn't recite the or blast off in this episode.

Errors

 * After Ash told Misty and Brock about the broken Poké Ball, Ash was holding a whole Poké Ball instead of the lower white half that he has.
 * Brock mispronounces 's name.
 * In Harrison's battle, his Sneasel knocks out a Machamp, but both the official, the announcer and the Machamp itself, refer to it as a.
 * When Tauros was knocked out by Nidoqueen's, the announcer says that Nidoqueen defeated Tauros with just one attack. However, this is incorrect, since Tauros was previously hit by Nidoqueen's.
 * When Brock was listing types that would match up well (for Gary) against, one of the types he mentions is Rock. While this is true for a , it is not true for Heracross, since its secondary type is Fighting (which is resistant to Rock-type moves).
 * Heracross's is incorrectly referred to as  in the dub. In addition, Heracross cannot legally learn Fury Swipes.
 * The announcer mentions as the single most powerful Pokémon attack. However, Fire Blast is equally powerful, and moves such as  are more powerful still. However, it is the most powerful  attack, not counting  at max power (in the original version, it is correctly stated that Megahorn is the most powerful Bug-type attack).
 * Gary's Blastoise's lower jaw was miscolored blue instead of tan in the scene where Blastoise uses.

In other languages
Alte Rivalen EP271 EP269 EP269 無印編第269話 精灵宝可梦 第270集