Ash's Goodra

Ash's Goodra (Japanese: サトシのヌメルゴン Satoshi's Numelgon) was the fourth that   in the Kalos region, and his forty-fifth overall.

History
Prior to its debut, Goodra was a Goomy that lived peacefully in its homeland,, as the only Goomy that lived there. It often played with a, which it was close friends with. One day, while it was playing with Wooper, a large swarm of, , , , and began to invade the homeland under the command of a. Goomy, being exceptionally weak and fearful, ran around and panicked, and could do nothing to defend itself or the fellow inhabitants from the intruders except cry. It and Wooper were then confronted by Florges and was struck by a Moonblast, which sent Goomy flying and caused it to land on a fleeing. Due to this frightening and unusual experience, Goomy developed an immense fear of Bug- and Pokémon.

Goodra first appeared as Goomy in A Slippery Encounter!, where it dropped from the same Swanna onto 's head. It looked weak and tired, so Ash and took it to a nearby river to heal him. After having water poured on it, Goomy quickly recovered its health. When popped out of 's bag to greet him, it hid behind Ash, as it is weak to Fairy-types. After traveling for a while, Goomy was frightened once more by a disturbed whose tree had been attacked by. Confused, decided to use one of his inventions to see why Goomy was so terrified of Bug-type Pokémon; this revealed Goomy's backstory. When Goomy and were captured by, Goomy watched as Pikachu tried to escape. The cage absorbed Pikachu's, so Pikachu rammed into the side of the cage until he made a hole big enough for them to squeeze out of. Goomy was able to slip through, but it was too tight for Pikachu. Seeing Pikachu's predicament, Goomy slipped back into the cage and used its slimy body to help Pikachu squeeze through.

While escaping Team Rocket, Goomy managed to slow James down with, giving Ash and his friends enough time to battle the trio. However, when and Pikachu tried to fend off Team Rocket, they ended up getting  by 's, making them attack each other. As Ash grabbed onto both of his Pokémon to try and calm them, Goomy began to admire the lengths Ash would go to in order to protect his Pokémon, motivating it to fight. After intercepting and Inkay's combined  and Psybeam, it used Bide to absorb the hits and eventually defeat Team Rocket. Later, Goomy indicated to Pikachu that it wanted to go with Ash, allowing Ash to capture it in a Poké Ball.

In One for the Goomy!, Goomy was sent out to meet the rest of the Pokémon. It was initially intimidated by the group, especially Dedenne; however, it warmed up to them as they were playing. When they were interrupted by Team Rocket's attempt to capture everyone's Pokémon, Goomy, Dedenne,, , and Bonnie were separated from the group. While Serena was battling Team Rocket, Goomy remembered what happened to its old home and fled. Team Rocket found Goomy and attempted to capture him, but they were stopped by Dedenne. Once Goomy saw how much Dedenne cared for him, it battled against Team Rocket long enough for Ash and the others to find them. After the battle, Goomy started affectionately nibbling on Dedenne's ear, no longer afraid of him.

In The Green, Green Grass Types of Home!, Ash had Goomy watch his Coumarine Gym battle against Ramos, in order to help it get stronger. Later on, Goomy had a practice battle against Pikachu, but was interrupted by an injured. After Spoink recovered, they followed it to its home, where they found a bullying all of the Spoink. Ash and the other tried to stop Grumpig, but it hypnotized the Spoink into attacking them and forced them into Team Rocket's trap. Goomy and Dedenne later sneaked out of the cage and attempted to get the key, but ended up getting caught by Grumpig. Dedenne battled Grumpig and lost, which encouraged Goomy to fight. Goomy used Bide to counter all of Grumpig's attacks, but couldn't do much without any offensive moves. Right when Goomy was about to be hit by, Ash jumped in the way and defended it from harm. Seeing how much Ash cared for it allowed Goomy to evolve into Sliggoo and learn Dragon Breath, and was easily able to defeat Grumpig and Team Rocket.

In Good Friends, Great Training!, Ash showed Sliggoo to his rival. They agreed to have a Double Battle, with Ash using Sliggoo and Pikachu against Tierno's Wartortle and. Before the battle could begin, Team Rocket appeared with their mecha and tried to capture Pikachu. Sliggoo was able to rescue Pikachu by using Dragon Breath on the machine, but Team Rocket managed to grab it, Wartortle, and Raichu. After Raichu attacked James and Wartortle attacked Jessie, Jessie used Pumpkaboo to attack the cage in retaliation with, which caused it to fall down a cliff and shatter at the bottom, freeing the Pokémon.

When they encountered a rock in the way, Sliggoo tried to destroy it by ramming into it. Though it initially failed, together with Wartortle and Raichu, it was able to destroy the rock. Just before Pikachu was about to be captured by Team Rocket's mecha, Sliggoo rammed into the mecha, destroying it and rescuing Pikachu. A Shadow Ball launched by Jessie's Pumpkaboo then accidentally hit the remains of the mecha. This started a fire, which surrounded Ash, Serena, and Pikachu. Sliggoo remembered how, when it was a Goomy, there was a group of Pokémon trapped in a similar situation. Bolstered by the memory, Sliggoo used Rain Dance to protect its and put out the fire, and evolved into Goodra in the process. It then used its new move, Dragon Pulse, to send Team Rocket blasting off. Later on, it and Pikachu resumed the Double Battle against Tierno's Wartortle and Raichu. As Pikachu struggled against Wartortle, Goodra used Bide to counter Raichu's and, and hit Wartortle and Raichu after Pikachu used Iron Tail to block a countering. After Goodra and Pikachu blocked another attack by Wartortle and Raichu, they defeated them with a Thunderbolt and Dragon Pulse, winning Ash the battle. In The Moment of Lumiose Truth!, Ash used Goodra as his second Pokémon in his Lumiose Gym battle against Clemont, first sending it out to face. Eventually, Heliolisk used to  Goodra, forcing Ash to recall him. He later sent out Goodra as his last Pokémon, and it went up against Clemont's last Pokémon,. At first, Goodra was at a disadvantage, since it was still paralyzed and Luxray had active, making all of its  moves more powerful. However, upon remembering how Goomy had regained its energy when water was poured onto him, Ash had Goodra use Rain Dance, which both nullified Electric Terrain and activated Goodra's Ability, curing it from its paralysis. Midway into the battle, Ash told Goodra to use Bide, forcing it to endure Luxray's attacks. Clemont intended to defeat Goodra before Bide was finished charging, but Luxray's attacks were incapable of dealing enough damage, and Goodra released the gathered energy at Luxray, defeating it and winning the Gym battle for Ash, thus earning him the.

In Defending the Homeland!, Ash and his friends came across Keanan, the caretaker of Goodra's homeland. Goodra became hesitant to return to its home, remembering how it was forced out. However, Wooper and many other residents encountered Goodra instead, allowing them to reunite. When the Pokémon noted that Florges and her army were attacking more Pokémon, Goodra decided to intervene, motivating the other Pokémon to fight back and draw Florges out, and in the process overcoming its fear. During the battle with Florges, Goodra was forced to defend its fellow Pokémon, using its body to shield them from her attacks, heavily damaging it in the process. As Florges was about to finish Goodra off with a, Goodra managed to stand up at Ash's encouragement, learning in the process. Goodra's Ice Beam managed to overpower Florges's Moonblast, defeating her. Just then, Goodra was knocked out by a and  surreptitiously fired by Jessie's Pumpkaboo and James's Inkay, forcing both sides to retreat and recuperate. While Goodra slept, Pikachu, Dedenne, and Wooper were abducted by an under the orders of Florges, who had been blackmailed by Team Rocket. In Beyond the Rainbow!, the group pursued Pikachu, Dedenne, and Wooper despite Goodra's injuries. Eventully, only Ash, Bonnie, and Goodra reached Florges's hideout, where they found Florges holding a weak. At that moment, Team Rocket betrayed Florges, draining the mystical water inside the cave and revealing Florges's true motives about saving Floette. After escaping, Goodra changed its opinion of Florges and joined forces with her to rescue Pikachu, Dedenne, and Wooper and send Team Rocket blasting off. Goodra then used Rain Dance, restoring the mystical water and saving Floette. With Floette nursed back to health, Florges and Goodra made a truce and Florges was forgiven for all of the trouble she caused. Ash then decided that Goodra should stay behind at its homeland when he saw Goodra happy with its friends. They had a tearful goodbye and promised to meet again someday.

After a long absence, Goodra made brief appearances in Master Class Is in Session! and Performing a Pathway to the Future!, watching the Gloire City Master Class Pokémon Showcase on television along with Keanan and the other wetland Pokémon. Goodra reappeared in A Diamond in the Rough!, where it was happy to meet up with Ash and the group, who visited the wetlands again on their way to Lumiose City. In the process, Goodra also made acquaintance with Ash's Noivern and Squishy. Goodra later helped a group of search for one of their friends, who was somewhere in the wetlands playing pranks on the other wetland Pokémon. When the Carbink was finally found, Team Rocket appeared in a mecha with the other Carbink trapped in it. Goodra, however, had its friends use to blast the Carbink through the arms of the mecha, freeing the others. After everyone was freed, Goodra managed to destroy the mecha and blast Team Rocket off. Afterwards, Goodra, the other Pokémon, Ash and his friends were seen relaxing and playing in the wetlands' spring, where Ash promised it to win the Kalos League. It was later revealed that Ash had also asked Goodra to return for the Lumiose Conference to which it had happily agreed. Subsequently, Goodra was driven to Lumiose City by Keanan and, for the first time among Ash's released Pokémon, rejoined his party to fill up the last spot of his Kalos team, in order to prepare for the upcoming Full Battle in the Lumiose Conference semi-finals.

Goodra was used as Ash's fifth Pokémon in the semi-finals in A Riveting Rivalry!, where it faced Sawyer's. After a collision between Goodra's Ice Beam and Slurpuff's, Goodra once again showed its great bulk by withstanding a super effective and , while charging its Bide. Slurpuff, however, used to increase his  and greatly reduce the damage from Goodra's Bide. Another collision between Ice Beam and Flamethower created a cloud of smoke. Unlike Goodra, Slurpuff was able to locate his opponent due to his great sense of smell and proceeded to hit Goodra with another Fairy Wind. Goodra was then engulfed by the flames of Slurpuff's Flamethrower, but it was able to endure the attack much to Sawyer's surprise. It then fired off another Bide which Slurpuff countered with Fairy Wind. The explosion caused by the collision of their attacks knocked both Pokémon out.

In Down to the Fiery Finish!, Goodra was used in the finals of the Conference against Alain, where it had to battle Alain's. Goodra started the battle with Rain Dance and then launched an Ice Beam. Bisharp, however, dodged the attack and attacked with, but Goodra used its antennae to stop Bisharp and throw it in the air. Goodra then launched a Dragon Pulse which collided with Bisharp's Focus Blast. Goodra was then hit in succession by Bisharp's Iron Head and Focus Blast attacks, but it was able to withstand the attacks and hit Bisharp with a powerful Bide. Despite this, Bisharp was still able to battle and managed to score another hit with Iron Head. As Goodra fell to its knees, Ash had it use one last Dragon Pulse, but Bisharp used to cut through the attack and defeat the Dragon Pokémon.

In A Towering Takeover! Goodra, along with Ash and Ash's other Pokémon, was taken captive at the top of Prism Tower by Lysandre. It could only watch in horror while Ash and Greninja were hit by Team Flare's miniature version of the Mega Evolution energy weapon, until Ash and Greninja freed themselves using Bond Phenomenon, in the following episode. Alain's Charizard broke Goodra and the other Pokémon free with, leaving everyone to battle Lysandre's Pyroar and his Mega  together. During the battle, Goodra and Pikachu combined their Dragon Pulse and Thunderbolt to defend against and Gyarados's. Goodra continued battling Mega Gyarados in The Right Hero for the Right Job!, where it managed to hit it with Dragon Pulse. Gyarados, however, retaliated with which defeated it. In Battling with a Clean Slate!, Goodra and the rest of Ash's Pokémon received medals from Professor Sycamore for their heroic efforts against Team Flare. Goodra finally returned to the wetlands in Facing the Needs of the Many!, where it had a tearful goodbye with its Trainer and Dedenne.

It appeared again in Till We Compete Again!, where it settled a dispute between a Wooper and a Lotad.

Personality and characteristics
As a Goomy, it was a very friendly Pokémon, as it liked to show its affection to others by nibbling on their ears. Even after it had become a Goodra, it maintained its affection, hugging Ash shortly after evolving. It had also proven to be a capable fighter, but was initially scared until it decided to help Ash. Goomy was easily frightened and was afraid of Pokémon such as  because  Pokémon are weak against Fairy-type Pokémon. In One for the Goomy!, after Dedenne was protecting it from Team Rocket, Goomy was pleased and it was no longer afraid of Dedenne. It was also afraid of and  Pokémon such as  as they destroyed Goomy's original home. When depressed or insulted, Goomy tended to use Rain Dance on the offender, as seen when it used the move on for calling it icky, and in One for the Goomy! where it used the move on Jessie. It views Pikachu as a role model, and wants to become strong like it and its Trainer.

As shown in A Slippery Encounter!, Goomy had a slimy body, which can help reflect attacks without it taking damage or it can put slime on others, making them slimy, as shown when it used this on to help it escape from 's cage. It also used to dry out easily causing it to become weak or tired, but could stop it by absorbing water.

The invasion of Goomy's home was a clearly traumatic event in its life. In the beginning, whenever it encountered dangerous situations, it tended to flashback to the scene of Bug-type Pokémon attacking its home, and would freeze from the shock. However, it is capable of overcoming its fears to help its friends, as seen in its debut episode and One for the Goomy!. It also leads it to sympathize with others, as seen in An Oasis of Hope!, where it became determined to help a, who had also been driven away from its home by a wild. After evolving, some signs of trauma were still present in Sliggoo. In Good Friends, Great Training!, an explosion from one of Team Rocket's mechas caused a fire that reminded it of a group of stranded, young Pokémon surrounded by the fires of the invasion. However, the memory lead Sliggoo to take action, using Rain Dance to put out the flames, and trigger its evolution.

After evolving, Goodra's power and endurance became substantially higher, as it was not only able to deal large amounts of damage, but take hits as well without being knocked out, such as Team Rocket's Pumpkaboo's Dark Pulse and Inkay's Psybeam, Tierno's Raichu's Charge Beam and Focus Blast, and Clemont's Luxray's Thunder Fang, Wild Charge, and Swift. This endurance was usually followed up with a Bide attack against the opponents to deal massive damage. Goodra grew into a brave, strong, and kind Pokémon under Ash's care; in Defending the Homeland!, Goodra completely overcame its fear of Bug-types, Fairy-types, and Poison-types to defend its homeland against 's Bug-type army. Although it still faltered for a moment after seeing the Blue Flower Florges, it successfully defended itself with encouragement from Ash and. Even after a long absence, Goodra's endurance was shown to be as strong as ever, seen when it took consecutive hits from Dazzling Gleam, Fairy Wind, and Flamethrower in the Full Battle against Sawyer's Slurpuff without being knocked out.

It was also shown in The Moment of Lumiose Truth! that when it wins a battle and Ash thanks it for the hard work, it blushes; however, it means that Ash's promise was fulfilled as in A Slippery Encounter!, Ash promised to help Goodra get stronger and he succeeded.

Trivia

 * Goodra was the first Pokémon belonging to a main character that had evolved under their ownership.
 * It was also 's first Kalos Pokémon to fully evolve.
 * Goodra was Ash's first pseudo-legendary Pokémon.
 * It was also the first pseudo-legendary Pokémon owned by a main character to have been caught in its basic stage.
 * Sliggoo's evolution to Goodra was the first time Mega V (Mega Volt) was used as an insert song, albeit an instrumental version.
 * Goodra was Ash's first release since, which was 756 episodes earlier.
 * Of all Pokémon that Ash had previously captured and since released, Goodra was with Ash for the least amount of time before being released, lasting for only 16 episodes.
 * The episode where Ash caught Goomy first aired in the United States less than a week before the episode where Sliggoo evolved into Goodra first aired in Japan.
 * The Japanese version of Beyond the Rainbow!, which featured Goodra's first departure from the group, first aired in the same week as the first English airing of An Oasis of Hope!, which featured the evolution of Goomy into Sliggoo.
 * Out of all of Ash's released Pokémon, Goodra is the only one that officially rejoined his party (albeit temporarily).

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