Summary
The best episodes of Pokémon Horizons are often the ones that have a big impact on the plot. Even some of the monster-of-the-week episodes stand out for their quality, like the Palafin-focused episode. These episodes feature character development, action-packed battles, and new plot revelations.
Pokémon Horizon began airing in Japan on April 14, 2023, and fans have now had over a year to get to know the series' new setting and characters. While it's difficult to step into the shoes of a legend like Ash Ketchum, Liko, Roy, Friede, and the rest have quickly become as comfortable and familiar as the cast of the original series. The series is filled with adventures and a mysterious plot that slowly unfolds as the heroes discover the truth about Liko's pendant and its connection to an ancient explorer named Lucius.
Over 50 episodes in, and the story of Pokémon Horizons is stronger than ever, while some clear and undeniable progress has been made in solving the mysteries of Lucius and Terapagos. The series has established compelling villains, given the heroes personal motivations for taking on this quest, and shown the true power that Pokémon possess. These facts have led to some truly fantastic episodes over the past year, and here are the 10 best Pokémon Horizons episodes so far.
This list includes episodes that have not been officially released in English, so may contain spoilers for those who watch the dubbed version of the show.
10 Pokémon Horizons' Opening Sets Up an Epic Adventure
Episodes 1 and 2, “The Pendant That Started It All”
Pokémon Horizons really doesn't waste any time getting off to an exciting start. While things initially seem simple, with Liko going to a new school far from home to learn about Pokémon, The situation quickly becomes more complicated when the intruders attempt to take Liko away with them, and then another group of strangers appear to protect her from the first group.. Who should Liko trust? The episode also introduces Terapagos, a then-unknown Pokémon, for the first time, continuing the tradition of early episodes featuring a mysterious Pokémon.
Friede and Captain Pikachu also got their chance to impress, and certainly made an impact in their first battle, even if the Explorers eventually escaped with Sprigatito. The episodes did a good job of introducing the new main characters, Liko and Friede, without making the villains look completely weak like Team Rocket.
9 Dot Steps Up To Be The Third Hero Of The Series
Episode 16, “Quaxly, We Can Do It!”
Episode 16 picks up directly from the previous episode, ending with Riko being hypnotized by the Explorers' Spinel, which leads to her pendant being stolen. As the Rising Volt Tacklers struggle to track him down and retrieve the pendant, Dot, who is locked in the ship, ends up caught up in the events and forced to leave her room for the first time in the series. Dot has a close relationship with a wild Quaxly living on the ship, and Friede offers her the opportunity to capture it here.made her an official coach and increased her role on the show.
The episode also features some fun action scenes as Liko, Roy, and Dot fight Spinel, defeat the bad guys, and retrieve the pendant. The pendant even allows them to summon the Titan Arboliva, which helps them escape.
8 Black Rayquaza proves his power against Amethio
Episode 33, “The Roaring Black Rayquaza” (Japanese title)
This episode features both Amethio and the Rising Volt Tacklers unexpectedly encountering Rayquaza, with Amethio eager to battle the legendary Pokémon. The episode features an impressive battle scene between Amethio's Ceruledge and Rayquaza, with Ceruledge being torn apart by the Sky High Pokémon's incredible power. When a stray attacks Liko, Terapagos will transform into a new form, Terastal Form, and can protect Liko with its abilities.. It fires off the Tera Starstorm attack, nullifying Rayquaza's Draco Meteor before returning to its normal form.
Terapagos' true form appearance alone would be enough to earn a spot, but every appearance of Black Rayquaza has been a highlight in Pokémon Horizons. Even though Amethio is ultimately defeated by Rayquaza, he still has a very entertaining fight, making this episode stand out.
7 Sprigatito Reveals Its Origin
Episode 40, “Goodbye, Sprigatito” (Japanese title)
After accidentally injuring Liko, Sprigatito spots a familiar house in the distance and wanders off, finding itself back with the breeder who raised it before it was given to Liko. While searching for Sprigatito, Liko stumbles across the house and meets the breeder, who still remembers Liko's Sprigatito fondly. It turns out that Liko's Sprigatito is quite like her, having a hard time making friends with people of her own kind.; her attempt to protect them from a wild Pokémon resulted in an unintended injury, causing the other Pokémon to fear her. Sprigatito was as lonely as Riko when they met.
While this episode doesn't really have much action, it's a good episode about the characters Liko and Sprigatito, and also reveals the true origins of the first Pokémon partners, something fans have wondered about for years.
6 Quaxly and Dot overcome their first big challenge
Episode 50, “Shine, Terastal! Jump, Jump Quaxly!” (Japanese title)
Another great character-driven episode, this one sees Dot, who took the Terastal Basics course with Liko and Roy, being given her test, which pits her against her friend and mentor, Iono. Dot struggles with performance anxiety at first, and had originally planned to take the test as her alter ego, Nidothing. With increased confidence, Dot was able to face Iono on her own and fight well despite being at a disadvantage in terms of type.. Although Dot ultimately lost the match, her performance and ability to use Terastallization were good enough to pass the exam.
Dot's struggles with fighting in front of crowds are understandable, and it's something the Pokémon anime hasn't really addressed much in the past. This episode is a perfect example of the value Dot brings to the series, making her one of the most relatable characters in the cast.
5 Mighty G saves the day
Episode 42, “Transform! Hero of the Sea, Palafin!” (Japanese Title)
A silly, fun episode, this one focuses on a trip to the beach with Ludlow, one of the lesser-known members of the Rising Volt Tacklers. Turns out, Ludlow has a secret identity: He is actually Mighty G, a hero who protects the seas and shores along with his Pokémon companion, Sharpedo.. Mighty G teams up with the Pokémon Palafin, who also has superhero-like transformation abilities, to defeat a group of angry Klawf and save the world.
Mighty G is pretty funny, and especially surprising coming from the quiet, seemingly wise Ludlow. He's clearly heavily inspired by My Hero Academia's All Might. It's also just a great highlight episode for a Pokémon, bringing the superhero fun along with Palafin.
4 Liko Battle and the Deepening Mystery
Episode 56, “Liko vs. Rika! Overcoming the Battle” (Japanese Title)
Riko faces her biggest challenge yet: a duo battle, alongside Gym Leader Katy, against Elite Four member Rika. Although Riko enters this battle with some type advantages over Rika's ground type, no Elite Four member can be defeated so easily, and Riko begins to freeze in battle alongside these two highly skilled trainers. Katy and Rika both support Liko, helping her awaken her fighting spirit.allowing her to return, though ultimately not enough to win. Meanwhile, Terapagos wanders off and leads Dot to a new person: Penny.
The episode introduces some of the lore from the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet games into the series with the Scarlet Book, as well as officially introducing Penny, who previously had a small cameo. Riko and Rika's battle is a joy to watch, and Riko's loss seems to be motivating her, giving her a taste of what truly powerful opponents are like.
3 Explorers attack an ancient castle
Episode 25, “Rivals in the Dark!”
One of the focuses at the beginning of Pokémon Horizons is finding Riko's grandmother, who originally gave the pendant to Riko, in the hopes that she might learn more about it.While they eventually find Diana's grandmother's house and get some valuable information from her, the Explorers track them down and begin their attack.causing chaos at the ancient castle. It introduces two new members of the Explorers, Coral and Sidian, who will go on to have much larger roles in the Terastal Debut arc.
This episode has a lot of destruction, and some really cool, fast-paced battles. It's further proof that the Explorers aren't as useless as Team Rocket, and that they're actually a threat. Coral is also a very interesting villain, with her tendency to rely heavily on self-destruction becoming a running gag in the series.
2 Black Rayquaza first appearance
Episode 6, “The Ancient Poké Ball”
One of the most surprising and impactful episodes of the series occurs early on, shortly after Riko and Roy first meet. The Rising Volt Tacklers are once again attacked by the Explorers, who clearly have the upper hand. Roy, in possession of an Ancient Poké Ball of unknown origin, suddenly finds his ball starting to glow, as does Riko's pendant. Suddenly, a giant Black Rayquaza appeared in the sky and started to rampage, turning the whole situation upside down. as both heroes and villains struggle to survive, Rayquaza unleashes a devastating attack and escapes, setting off one of the main storylines in Pokémon Horizons.
Black Rayquaza has proven time and time again that it's not something to be taken lightly, and this episode showcased this incredibly rare Shiny Legendary Pokémon by making its power clear. While Roy still hasn't really posed any real challenge to Rayquaza, it's clear that he's made some huge strides since their first encounter.
1 Rayquaza returns to face the adventurers
Episode 45, “To a Place Far, Far Away” (Japanese Title)
One of the densest Pokémon episodes ever, this episode sees the Explorers trick Rayquaza into appearing by imitating Terapagos' call, luring it in. They begin to pour everything they have on Rayquaza, but it quickly proves to be insufficient. Coral lands a devastating blow on Rayquaza with Self Destruct, causing it to back away and crash into Brave Olivine, severely damaging the airship. As the Explorers begin to lose, Amethio is forced to team up with Friede to help repel Rayquaza.fulfilling what fans have been hoping to see since the two first met.
Above all, this episode has Evolution of Sprigatito into Floragato under tense circumstances, marking a huge moment for Liko. The damage to the ship was not easily repaired either; the ship is still being repaired even after more than 10 episodes, proving that the encounter had some major consequences. For these reasons, it is clear that episode 45 of Pokémon Horizon is the best – or at least the best so far.