026a - A Day at Pelipper Pier: Vermilion Gym Beckons!

"'I feel like we just walked into a Scooby-Doo episode.'"

Episode Synopsis
With the nastiness of the Underground Passage behind them, Victor takes Rose and Cobalt to Pelipper Pier: an amusement park run by two over-the-top proprietors. But Rose and Cobalt have other plans when they find out the Gym is in the park.

Episode Summary
The episode begins with Rose waking up in the Vermilion City Pokémon Center to a very excited Victor. He tells Rose that they should go to Pelipper Pier, a theme park which Rose has never heard of. She agrees, and sends Pepper to wake Cobalt up by teleporting on top of his chest. Cobalt and his Pokémon wake up in shock and fear, and after Rose catches Bango eating bacon, they head to the Pier.

Once at the Pier, Rose tries to pass herself of as a theme park veteran to avoid being embarrassed, only to find out that first-time Pier-goers get in for free. Cobalt successfully charms the ticket salesman into giving them free Dash Passes, and into thinking that Rose is their police escort (so that she doesn't have to pay for a ticket).

They enter Pelipper Pier, described as "a theme park mashed up with Coney Island and Disney World." Rose, and Cobalt pass up several rides before Victor convinces them to ride the Exeggutor High Drop, a drop tower ride based on the Alolan Exeggutor. As they enter the ride, the Pirate and Spooky Leaders/Announcers provide running commentary over the park's speaker system. Rose, Cobalt, Victor, and their teams enter the ride, with Cadence choosing to fly alongside the seats instead of getting buckled in. At the top, before the first drop, Rose sees a large, glittering blue bird fly over the Pier.

After surviving the Exeggutor High Drop (Baritone and Treble loved it), they walked in the direction of the Gym, located within the Pier. Rose checks the Legendary Tracker App that she downloaded from Professor Skye and sees Articuno's icon hovering over the Pier, but decides not to mention it to Cobalt or Victor as it begins to snow.

First, though, they enter the Psychic Fun House, where it is revealed that Cobalt is afraid of Mr. Mime. They pass through the entry hall and Hypno doorway, verbally sparring with the Pier's announcers, before walking through the Hall of Mirrors. One mirror shows Pokémon as their final evolutionary stages: Bango appears as an Arcanine, Scramble as a demon jet plane Togekiss, Sakura as a very tiny Venusaur, and Baritone as an Alolan Marowak. They then pass through the Wibble Wobble Wobbuffet room and enter the gift shop, where Rose buys and wears a "Mime the Gap" pun shirt simply to spite Cobalt.

Mitch greets Rose, Cobalt, and Victor at the entrance to the Vermilion Gym, and lets them in after getting special clearance from the Gym Leaders. There, Victor leaves the group to go to the spectator seating, and Rose and Cobalt are met by Thurl in a Haunted Mansion-style room. After talking to them, he disappears through a trap door, and Rose and Cobalt are gifted with a distressed top hat and pirate's hat.

After the room they're in stretches, Rose and Cobalt get in a mine cart, and are welcomed to the Gym by the Pirate Leader/Announcer before rocketing off. They pass through a sequence of rooms set up like the inside of a pirate's ship before landing on a platform emblazoned with a Koffing skull.

There, they encounter Thurl, and fight him in a Team Battle: Thurl's Mr. Mime and Dewpider against Pepper and Cadence. Rose and Cobalt take pictures of both of Thurl's Pokémon before beginning the battle. Pepper assassinates the Mr. Mime with Shadow Claw in the spine after missing twice, and Cadence knocks out the Dewpider with Powder Snow and Peck. Rose gifts her top hat to Pepper, who seems pleased by it.

After Thurl disappears again, Rose and Cobalt ride another doom buggy past a fortune teller, a ballroom filled with dancing Pokémon ghosts, and some dark, water-filled tunnels.

Cast
Alan Sells as GM, Victor, Thurl, all the Pokémon, and all the NPCs.

Jake Mason as Rose Jenny

Josh Nichols as Cobalt Elm

Annie Craton as Pirate Leader/Announcer

Jonathan Craton as Spooky Leader/Announcer

Trivia

 * This is Articuno's third appearance in the series thus far.
 * Preparation for this episode (both parts A and B) took place over several months, in contrast with  027 's five days.
 * In the pre-show announcements, Alan mentions it's his mission to make Josh/Cobalt capture as many Pokémon as possible, simply because Josh didn't want to.
 * In the interlude, Jake challenges listeners to do 20 push-ups, except for Shannon, who he encourages to lie to him.
 * Despite her hatred of them, Rose buys her first pun shirt to spite Cobalt.