Pokemon Learning League
Main Idea
Written By
Timothy Whitfield
(Episode opens with Dawn, Piplup, Ash, Pikachu, Brock and Serena coming into Accumula Town on a mostly calm & balmy sunny mid-afternoon. Some stratocumulus clouds are in the sky, the wind's blowing, and flocks of Tranquil and Pidgeotto fly across the sky. The leaves on many of the trees in the area are in an abundance of color, while others have lost them altogether. The local people surrounding them are getting ready for a special event. Dawn looks over to the audience and casually speaks to them.)
Dawn (casually): Hey, guys.
Piplup (casually): Piplup.
Brock (casually): Hello.
Ash (casually): Hey, there.
Pikachu (casually): Pika-chu.
Serena (casually): Hi.
(They go on through the town. As they do, they take notice of an open-air market, a Pokemon performance going on for the moment and two trainers having a battle.)
Serena: Hey, Brock. Is there a good spot we can stop & rest at?
Brock: Let me see.
(He gets out his guidebook and looks through it.)
Brock: Here's a nice park area we can stop at.
Dawn: Sounds good. When we get there, I've got a little surprise to show you all.
Ash (interested): Okay, then.
(They continue on through the town. Eleven and a half minutes later, they come to the local park. There are some people and their Pokemon going about their business, doing some training or playing with them, hanging out with friends & having fun and having lunch together. The gang finds a secluded spot next to a bed of Fairy flowers.)
Dawn (confidently): All right, guys, you ready?
(They all nod their heads.)
Dawn: All right, then.
(She goes into her backpack and gets out the Kanto Ribbon Cup.)
Ash (amazed): Whoa! That's awesome!
Pikachu (amazed): Pika!
Brock: Yeah. Congratulations, Dawn.
Dawn: Thanks, Brock.
Brock: So, was there a lot of tough competition at the festival?
Dawn: Oh, you bet there was.
Ash: Yeah, but I bet you had no problems with many of them.
Dawn: Indeed I did, Ash.
Serena: Would you mind telling what the final battle was like?
Dawn: Well, all right.
(Flashback to the final battle of the Kanto Grand Festival, where Dawn is facing off against Nando. Dawn has her Lopunny and Mamoswine out, while Nando has his Roserade & Armaldo.)
Dawn (V.O.): It had all come down to me & Nando, and we had some of our best Pokemon out.
Lilian: This final battle will now begin!
(The clock starts counting down.)
Nando: Roserade, use Bullet Seed. Armaldo, you use Rock Blast.
(Roserade fires multiple gold seeds surrounded in a light green aura from its flowers at Mamoswine. Armaldo holds out its claws and three light blue rings surround its body. Then, the rings form into glowing white rocks & circle around its body. Now, Armaldo pulls it claws up and the rocks come together in between them, and then throws them at Lopunny.)
Lillian: And Nando comes out with a strong start.
Dawn: Counter with Charge Beam and Hidden Power!
(Lopunny opens her mouth and an orb of yellow electricity forms in front of it.)
Lopunny: Lo-punny!
(Now, she fires a massive beam of electricity from the orb at the Bullet Seeds, colliding with them and cancelling them out. Now, Mamoswine's tusks glow yellow and little blue balls appear in between them. Now, it fires them and it collides with the Rock Blast, cancelling it out.)
Lillian: And Dawn successfully & effortlessly counters both attacks.
(Both lose some points, though Nando loses more.)
Dawn: Now, use Ice Fang and Bounce!
(Mamoswine's tusks glow light blue, then grow longer and get covered in ice. Now, it goes charging towards Armaldo. Lopunny jumps high into the air and falls towards Roserade. Both attacks hit their marks and do a considerable amount of damage to their opponents. Nando loses more points.)
Nando: Roserade, Magical Leaf. Armaldo, use X-Scissor.
(Roserade spins around quickly and it releases glowing light green leaves from its body at Mamoswine, hitting it & doing damage to it. Armaldo pulls its claws into its shell and then they glow light blue once they emerge from it. Now, it slashes Lopunny in an 'X'-like fashion, doing some damage to her.)
Nando: Now, use Mega Drain and Brick Break.
(Armaldo's claws glow white and it hits Mamoswine with it, dealing some damage. Now, Roserade sticks out its arms and releases a green beam from the flowers on its hands and drains some of Lopunny's energy, restoring its own in the process.)
Lillian: Those attacks really hit their marks.
(Dawn loses even more points.)
Dawn: Now, Lopunny use Focus Blast! Mamoswine, use Take Down!
(Lopunny puts her hands together and forms a light blue ball of energy in between them. Now, she spins arounds and fires it at Armaldo. Now, Mamoswine's body becomes surrounded in an orange aura and goes charging towards Roserade. The Focus orbits around Mamoswine and it lands a direct hit, doing a good amount of damage to both their opponents.)
Lillian: Ooh, and Dawn counters back with an interesting combination of Take Down & Focus Blast.
(Nando loses more points. Now, a montage goes on showing their Pokemon doing various attack combinations & dodging them in an elegant fashion. Dawn speaks as it goes on.)
Dawn (V.O.): We both gave it all we got, and it seemed like we were neck-and-neck.
(Montage ends with their Pokemon starting to become exhausted and a little scuffed up. Two minutes remain on the clock.)
Lillian: With only two minutes left on the clock, it all comes down to this, folks. Who will be our new champion?
Nando: All right, Roserade use Solar Beam, and Armaldo, use Water Pulse.
(Roserade gathers light in its flowers, puts them together and then fires a bright yellow beam. Now, Armaldo opens its mouth and a blue ball of energy appears in front of it. Then, it fires a spiraling stream of water from it. Both attacks combine into a single beam and it hits both opposing Pokemon, delivering a great amount of damage, as well as scuffing them up.)
Lillian: Now, that's what you call a stunning combination.
Dawn (calling out): Can you two still continue?
(They both turn around and nod their heads.)
Dawn: Oh, good. Now, Lopunny use Focus Blast! Mamoswine, you use Ice Shard!
(Mamoswine forms a large ball of ice from in between its tusks and fires it. Lopunny puts her hands together and forms a light blue ball of energy. Then, she spins around and fires it. The Focus Blast orbits around the Ice Shard.)
Lillian: Whoa, now that's a creative use of attacks.
(The combination lands its mark and does great damage to the opponents. Nando loses some points.)
Dawn: Now, use Focus Blast again, then Ice Beam! Mamoswine, use Ice Fang, then Take Dawn!
(Lopunny puts her hands together and forms a light blue ball of energy. Then, she spins around and fires it at Roserade. Now, a light blue ball of energy forms in front of Lopunny's mouth. Now, she shoots light blue beams from it. The attack starts to encircle the Focus Blast and forms into spinning blades of ice. Mamoswine's tusks glow light blue, then grow longer and get covered in ice. Now, body becomes surrounded in an orange aura and goes charging towards Armaldo. Both attacks hit their respective opponents, doing a great amount of damage, though Roserade takes a bit more.)
Lillian: And Dawn has pulled off two stunning combinations.
(Nando loses more points.)
Nando: Roserade, use Magical Leaf and Razor Leaf. Armaldo, you use Rock Blast, then Water Pulse.
(Roserade spins around quickly and it releases glowing light green leaves from its body at Mamoswine. Now, it fires razor-sharp light green leaves from the flowers on its hands. The two attacks blend together into a leaf twister. The attack directly hits Mamoswine, doing a serious amount of damage to it and falls to its knees. Now, Armaldo holds out its claws and three light blue rings surround its body. Then, the rings form into glowing white rocks & circle around its body. Now, Armaldo pulls it claws up and the rocks come together in between them, and then throws them at Lopunny. Now, it opens its mouth and a blue ball of energy appears in front of it. Then, it fires a spiraling stream of water from it. The Water Pulse envelopes the Rock Blast and the combination heads towards Lopunny, landing a direct hit and doing a great amount of damage. She falls to the ground. Dawn loses a good amount of points.)
Dawn: Lopunny, Mamoswine. Can you get up?
(They struggle, but manage to get back on their feet, though just barely.)
Dawn (relieved): Oh, good.
Nando: Now, use X-scissor and Mega Drain.
(Armaldo pulls its claws into its shell and then they glow light blue once they emerge from it. Now, it starts slashing at Mamoswine in an 'X'-like fashion. Roserade sticks out its arms and releases a green beam from the flowers on its hands at Lopunny.)
Dawn: Quick, dodge them!
(They move out of the aim of the attacks and narrowly miss them. Nando loses some points.)
Dawn: Now, finish it with Bounce and Ice Shard!
(Lopunny jumps high into the air and falls towards Roserade. Now, Mamoswine forms a large ball of ice from in between its tusks and fires it. Both attacks make their marks, deal a great amount of damage to both Roserade & Armaldo. Both of them fall to the ground, completely exhausted & knocked out.)
Lillian: Armaldo & Roserade are unable to continue. With only just a few seconds left on the clock, Dawn has just pulled off a victory here at this year's Grand Festival!
Dawn (exuberated): Yeah, we did it!
Nando: You two did battle valiantly. You deserve a good rest.
(He calls the back to their Pokeballs, puts them back on his belt and goes over to Dawn.)
Nando: Dawn that was truly a remarkable battle.
Dawn: Well, thank you Nando.
(Now, we dissolve over to the winner's circle.)
Mr. Contesta: Congratulations, Dawn. It gives me great pride & pleasure to present to you the Ribbon Cup.
Dawn (appreciatively & honored): Thank you.
(She holds it up to the air.)
Dawn (excited): All right! The Ribbon Cup is now mine!
Piplup (excited): Piplup, Piplup!
Lopunny (excited): Lopunny!
(Dissolve back to the present day.)
Serena: That was a great story there, Dawn.
Dawn: Well, thanks Serena. So, how are the Showcases going for you?
Serena: They've been great.
(She shows her the Princess keys she's won so far.)
Dawn: That's awesome!
Voice (O.S.): Um, excuse me.
(They turn around and see a trainer named Michio coming over to them. He has red hair, emerald green eyes, is around Brock's age, and is wearing an orange buttoned shirt, beige pants and sneakers.)
Brock: Hello, there. My name's Brock.
Serena: I'm Serena.
Ash: My name's Ash, and this is Pikachu.
Pikachu: Pika-chu.
Dawn: I'm Dawn, and this is Piplup.
Piplup: Piplup.
Michio: Nice to meet you all. I'm Michio.
Brock: So, is there anything we can help you with?
Michio: As a matter of fact, there is. I'd like to show you guys this.
(He pulls out a booklet, which has tricks & tips about being a good breeder & coordinator, from his pocket and shows it to them.)
Brock: Oh, I see. What's it about?
Michio: Have a look for yourselves.
(He hands it to Brock and he looks through it. After he finishes, he passes it to Ash, who does the same & then passes it to Serena and then to Dawn. She hands it back to Michio after she finishes.)
Brock: That was pretty good, Michio.
Michio: Thanks, Brock. I'm hoping that it will help out any new upcoming breeders & coordinators.
Brock: Yeah, something tells me that it will.
Dawn (agreeing): Yeah.
Ash: So, where do you come from?
Michio: I came from Driftveil City.
Ash: That's nice. You know, I think Lex would like to see this.
Michio: Oh, you really think so?
Ash: Sure.
(He goes into his bag, takes out the Pokepilot, turns it on and calls Lex, who is doing some training with a Braixen.)
Lex: Hey, guys. How are you all doing?
Serena: We're doing great, Lex. How about you?
Lex: I'm doing really well, thanks.
Brock: What kind of training are you doing there with Braixen?
Lex: Oh, we're working on its speed and physical attacks.
Ash: Cool, and how's it coming?
Lex: It's going well. Let me show you. Okay, Braixen, do Low Kick!
Braixen: Braixen!
(It ducks down and swings one of its legs around, knocking over some wood pilings.)
Serena: That's pretty good.
Lex: Thank you, Brock. (He turns over to Michio.) Hi, there. I'm Lex.
Michio: Hey. I'm Michio.
Lex: So, what are you guys up to?
Dawn: Right now, we're just relaxing at a park.
Lex: Ahh, that sounds good. What else?
Brock: Michio showed us a booklet he made that'll help upcoming breeders & coordinators.
Lex (intrigued): Really?
Dawn: Yep. Would you like to see it?
Lex: Okay, sure.
(Michio shows him the booklet. Lex carefully analyzes it.)
Lex: Hmm. That's really nice.
Michio: Why, thank you.
Lex: No problem. If I may give you a suggestion, how about you add in a main idea sentence to the beginning paragraph of each section of the booklet?
Michio (wondering): Um, okay but how would that make it better?
Lex: It's very simple: it'll help tie together all the facts being presented, and there are certain ways you can do this.
Michio: Oh, like what?
Lex: Well, one way is setting up the purpose. It'll help a writer like you come up with the details of a paragraph, as well as helping you decide on a topic sentence that'll tie everything together. Let's say, you wanted to write about what it's takes to be a great trainer. You think about what you want to talk about.
Brock: Okay, that's pretty good. What else?
Lex: Another good way is through the use of a stated or implied topic sentence. A main idea can be either be stated in a specific manner or be implied by some details in a paragraph. When you use the latter, they can be conditional sentences or you can pose them as questions. Basically, leading with any one of them will prepare your audience for what's to come.
Serena: All right, now what?
Lex: The next thing you need to know is the placement of your topic sentences. They can go at either the beginning or the end of a paragraph. At certain times, it's important to start off with a sentence that explains what the main idea is details of the paragraph to the reader. However, if you save it for the end, it can help build suspense and seemingly tie together some unrelated ideas if it's done right.
Ash: That's an interesting one. Anything else?
Lex: The last thing is to use split topic sentences. This is usually done to convey contrasting viewpoints. Any paragraph using this tend to follow a certain curve: you state your viewpoint & give the details to support it, then it's gradually followed by details that could disprove the original statement, and finally it ends with a refuting statement. Thus, this helps create a clear picture of your main idea.
Brock: Those are some interesting tips there.
Lex: Yes, they are. So, how about I show you guys something?
Dawn: All right, Lex.
Piplup: Piplup.
(Pan down to a lower panel showing four trainers presenting their own main ideas in different manners.)
Lex: All right, you guys ready?
Brock: Yeah, we are.
Lex: Very well, then. Now, this trainer wants to share some tips about what it takes to be a great Pokemon Performer. How do you think she should present her main idea?
Serena: She should use an implied topic sentence.
Lex: Very well, Serena. Now, this girl wants to share some of her Pokemon food recipes to young breeders. How do you think she should present her main idea?
Ash: She should have it at the end of the paragraph.
Lex: Okay, then Ash. This trainer wants to tell about his travels in the Kalos region. How do you think he should present her main idea?
Dawn: He should use split topic sentences.
Lex: Okay, then Dawn. Lastly, this guy wants to tell new some tricks on how to catch certain Pokemon. How do you think he should present her main idea?
Michio: He should start off by setting up its purpose.
Lex: All right, Michio. You guys did great.
Brock: Thank you, Lex.
Lex: No problem, Brock. Now, if you'll excuse us, we have to get back to training. See you guys later.
Ash: See you.
Pikachu: Pika-chu.
(He turns the Pokepilot off and puts it back in his pocket.)
Dawn: So, Michio, how did you first get into breeding and Contest?
Michio: Well, what I wanted to do was come up with new breeding techniques that could help bring out the best in my Pokemon, and also push the limits of what their attacks could do, so I thought it'd fun to enter contests.
Dawn: Oh, okay and how's it been going?
Michio: It's been great, and my Pokemon have been enjoying it, as well.
Dawn: That's good to hear.
Michio: Yep. Oh, hold on a second.
(He goes into his bag, pulls out a can of Pokemon food and pours out a small amount.)
Michio: Here, you two. Try some of this.
(He gives a small sample to Pikachu and Piplup.)
Pikachu (contented): Cha!
Piplup (contented): Piplup!
Michio: Glad you two like it.
Serena: So, guys, how about we do what we did before with Lex?
Ash: Okay, Serena, but let's see if the viewers want to do it before we start.
Brock: Very well. (He turns over to the audience.) You guys up for doing this? (He casually waits for an answer from the audience for one second.) All right, then.
(Dissolve to the sections of Michio's booklet.)
Dawn (V.O.): Okay, let's get to it. In this section, it's talking about how to bring out the best in your Pokemon during a Contest. How do you think the main idea should be presented here? (She casually waits for an answer from the audience for one and a half seconds.) From using an implied topic sentence. Sure, why not.
Serena (V.O.): Here, it mentions tips on what to use to make good Pokemon food. How do you think the main idea should be presented? (She casually waits for an answer from the audience for one and a half seconds.) By using split topic sentences. Okay.
Brock (V.O.): Now, in this section, it talks about giving certain Pokemon the proper care & nourishment they need. How do you think the main idea should be presented? (She casually waits for an answer from the audience for one and a half seconds.) By having it being placed at the beginning of the paragraph. Very well, then.
Ash (V.O.): Finally, this part talks about how effective combination attacks can be during a Contest. How do you think the main idea should be presented? (She casually waits for an answer from the audience for one and a half seconds.) By setting up what its purpose is. All right, then.
(Dissolve back to the gang and Serena casually speaks to the audience.)
Serena (casually): You guys did well.
Michio: So, how would you guys to see some of my Pokemon?
Ash: Sure.
(He gets out three Pokeballs.)
Michio: Go!
(He tosses them up into the air and a Duosion, a Florges, and a Murkrow emerge from them.)
Duosion: (gurgles.)
Murkrow: Murkrow.
Florges: Florges.
Ash: That's pretty cool.
Pikachu (agreeing): Pika-chu.
Michio: Indeed, they are.
(Brock comes over to them and carefully examines them.)
Brock: They all look really healthy. You're doing a great job
Michio: Mmm-hmm. Now, Duosion use Shadow Ball! Florges, you use Moonblast!
(Duosion forms a ball of black and purple energy with black static around it from its mouth. Then, it throws it into the air.)
Florges: Flor-ges!
(It gathers energy from the Moon. Now, it forms an orb of pink energy from its mouth and fires it.)
Michio: Now, Murkrow use Brave Bird!
Murkrow: Murkrow!
(Its body becomes surrounded in a light blue aura and it flies straight at the ball of energy, breaking through it with full force. Sparkles rain down from it.)
All (in awe): Whoa!
Piplup (in awe): Pip!
Pikachu (in awe): Pika!
Serena (impressed): That was great, Michio.
Michio: Thank you, Serena.
(He gets out a bag full of Pokepuffs and Poffins and give the three two of each one.)
(Just then, Serena's stomach grumbles.)
Serena: (chuckles embarrassingly.) Guess I'm getting hungry.
Brock: All right, I'll make some lunch right away.
(They turn over to the audience.)
All (casually): Thanks a lot, guys.
Pikachu: Pika.
Piplup: Piplup.
(Now, we dissolve to moments later, where they are having lunch. Brock's made some onigaris, tempura, fresh ramen noodles, Monte-Cristo & cheddar apple sandwiches, a taco salad and some pineapple slaw and ham wraps.)
Serena: That was an interesting episode. Did you enjoy it? (She casually waits for an answer from the audience for one second.) Oh, okay. We'll see you next time
(They all casually wave goodbye to the audience & resume on eating. Now, we pull back away from them and fade to black, ending the episode.)