Episode Stats:

Japanese Episode 26:  "Erika to Kusaihana" 

("Erika and Kusaihana")

American Episode 26:  "Pokemon Scent-sation"
Pokemon Dare Da?  Kusaihana
Japanese Air Date:  September 23rd, 1997
American Air Date:  October 12th, 1998
Important Characters:  Erika (Erika), Sato-chan (Ashley)
Important Places:  Tamamushi City (Celadon City)

Satoshi-tachi arrive in Tamamushi City, a place where perfume is all the rage.  Satoshi lets his distaste for the smelly stuff known to the public, so he isn't allowed into the Tamamushi City gym to battle Erika.  The Rocket-Dan, wanting access to the gym for their own purposes, decide to help Satoshi by dressing him up as a girl (Sato-chan).  The plan succeeds in sneaking Satoshi into the gym, where he soon challenges Erika.  As the battle becomes tied, the Rocket-Dan make an appearance that ends in an explosion, causing the gym to catch fire.  Satoshi risks his life to save Erika's Kusaihana, and he is later rewarded the Rainbow Badge for his bravery.

---

Thoughts
A mere two episodes after the last gym battle, we're given the battle with Erika.  Like I've said before, I really think the animators rushed this one, and we wind up paying for it when we're given a huge period of filler episodes after the Sekichiku battle. 

Anyway, this is a good episode because of several things.  One, it's just neat what the anime producers have done with Tamamushi City.  The fact that a bunch of girls would be so adamant about their perfume that they'd ban trainers who don't enjoy it is certainly creative.  But the thing that does it for me with this episode are the Revolutionary Girl Utena references.  The whole flower thing, the fact that the part where Erika is telling the story of Omunait looks an awful lot like the story told at the beginning of the first Utena episode, etc. etc. 

Similarities?

Utsudon keeps its Japanese voice.

Paint Edit
When we first see the three perfume girls, there's a red sign behind the one on the right-hand most side, the girl with the pigtails.  4Kids deleted the text.  The sign appears again when Erika berates Satoshi for not liking perfume (the whole "P is for this, E is for that" speech), and again the text is erased.

Paint Edit
When Kasumi smells the perfume on her wrist ("It smells just like a garden"), there's a red sign in the background with kanji and hiragana.  For the dub, the sign is replaced by a flower pattern, and it really does blend in with everything else.

Also in the shot right after Kasumi sniffs her wrist, there's the sign I just talked about above with the flower pattern, but there's also a square-shaped sign higher up that had what looks like scribbling on it (it could just be some kanji that my gaijin eyes can't recognize).  That was replaced with a picture of a flower.

Dialogue Edit
Why do the Rocket-Dan want the perfume formula so much?  So they can sell it and make lots of money!  Kojirou wants money and Nyasu wants cat food, but Musashi wants something a bit different in the original version.  In the dub, she dreams:

Jessie:  "Then I'll be as irresistable as Cleopatra!"

What does she want in the Japanese version?  A "Yume no HAAREMU"--a Dream Harem!  That's right, she dreams of having the world's most beautiful men in a harem!  This was changed for obvious reasons.  Then again, in the dubbed Dragon Ball, Oolong said he was going to use the Dragon Balls to wish for a harem filled with 100 women--in both the syndicated version and the Toonami version!  They could have conceivably left the reference in, seeing as how most kids wouldn't know what a harem is in the first place, but I'm sure 4Kids just wanted to be cautious.

Paint Edit
The sign outside the shop where Satoshi turns into Sato-chan has "Bargain" and "Sale" written on it in katakana.  This was covered up with "Sale" written in English.  There are actually four signs in the Japanese version, but only two in the dub.  The one with "Bargain" written on it was erased completely (so all you see is the wall) and the one on the very right had its kana erased.

Dialogue Edit
Every once in a while, an episode comes along that introduces a phrase or expression that is used in the dubbed version of Pocket Monsters to either cover up the show's origins or to make the censors happy.  In Episode 12 we got the infamous "rice balls changed to American-food-of-the-day" thing.  This time, we get something else:

Meowth:  "Just one question--What am I supposed to do with this blaster ball?"

That's right, folks.  "Blaster Ball."  The word "bomb" was replaced with "blaster ball."

This is a really strange edit, because Team Rocket was allowed to say the word "bomb" back in Episode 12.  I mean really, what's wrong with saying "bomb!?"  Other kids' shows say it all the time, and I think Pokemon is the only show I've ever heard the term "blaster balls" used in.

I guess the movie Meet the Parents was right--you can't say the word "bomb" on an airplane.  And apparently, that rule goes for Pokemonas well.

Side Note
Is it me, or does Monjura (Tangela) look like a Tataragami (the worm-covered monsters from Princess Mononoke)?

Monjura and the Tataragami--one and the same?

Dialogue Edit
During the fire scene, we hear a bunch of the girls saying various miscellaneous dialogue.  In the Japanese version, very little is said at all.  Why am I mentioning something so trivial?  Because one of the things said is really really cheesy:

Perfume Girl:  "We've gotta catch em' all!"

That only reinforces the notion that Pokemon is nothing more than a 22-minute advertisement for the newest video game/toy/comic/video/toothpaste.  Luckily 4Kids doesn't do this to us too often, but when they do...*shakes fist angrily*

Paint Edit
At the very end, when Satoshi is walking away from the gym, the building to the right has a vertical sign which says "Esuteteiku Salon" (???).  To the left, a similar sign says "Soukou Bank."  Both were erased in the dub.

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