Wake Up, Snorlax!

Episode 41 in the series aired on October 28th, 1998, six months after it originally aired in Japan.
As we return to the Kanto region, we find our heroes traveling through a forest where they happen upon an old man sitting upon a rock. The queer looking fellow plays his Pokeflute for the group, and a sleeping Pikachu is woken up! But to the old man's dismay, our heroes have no food with which to repay him for the Pokeflute concert.

As they continue on their way, Ash, Misty and Brock come upon a village with absolutely no food! The baker is out of bread; the grocer is out of vegetables; even the resident frenchman has no ingredients wherewith to procure pasta! Later, the mayor informs our heroes that there has been a shortage of food since the town's river dried up. In order to progress the plot, they travel upstream to discover the cause of the water shortage.

'Snorlax is the heaviest species of all known pokemon with some weighing more than 1,000 pounds'. That's right, Dex. It appears as though a Sleeping Pokemon has blocked the stream which formerly supplied the town's water, and this Snorlax is in no mood to remove himself. For their own reasons, Team Rocket also wants to remove the Snorlax, and so in a unforseen attempt, they team up with Ash, Misty and Brock in order to move the Pokemon. 'Well I never thought I'd live to see this day, even with nine lives; Team Rocket and team twerp working together,' an incredulous Meowth remarks. After what seems like a thousand valiant attempts, and a trademark Psyduck mishap, Brocks recalls the fabled awakening power of the Pokeflute- that very same flute which the old man had been playing at the beginning of the episode. And so, with the old man's help, Snorlax is awakened, and helps to eat up the excessive foliage blocking the spring. The town's water supply is restored, and to celebrate, the Mayor throws a fantastic feast, while the Sleeping Pokemon, Snorlax, falls back into a deep slumber.

Quotable Quotes:

'How would you look if you got kissed by Meowth?' - Pokemon Breeder Brock
'Nothing makes me angrier than being told the truth' -James
'Pikachu' -Pikachu
'Give it a smack attack right on the lips!' -James
'Just a bit further' -Meowth
'Hey, you don't look half bad, Meowth.' -James


Trainer Tips:
Snorlax
カビゴン (Kabigon) makes his debut as the 11th card of the Jungle series, illustrated by the famed Pokemon artist, Ken Sugimori; in fact the very same Ken Sugimori who developed the original artwork for the Pokemon gameboy games.
According to the Pokedex, Snorlax is 'Very lazy. Just eats and sleeps. As its rotund bulk builds, it becomes steadily more slothful.'
This massive Sleeping Pokemon weighs 1,014 pounds and measures up to 6 feet 11 inches.
Snorlax can be found on Route 12 and 16, but must be awakened by a Pokeflute before they can be caught. Some notable moves Snorlax will learn under vigilant training include: Harden - lv 41; Double Edge - 48; Hyper Beam - 56