DP045 : Ill-Will Hunting!
Pokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl
DP047 : Sandshrew's Locker!
A Maze-ing Race!
DP046.png
DP046   EP512
迷路でシャッフル!みんなでハッスル!!
Shuffle in the Maze! Everyone Hustle!!
First broadcast
Japan September 13, 2007
United States January 19, 2008
English themes
Opening Diamond and Pearl
Ending
Japanese themes
Opening Together
Ending 君のそばで 〜ヒカリのテーマ〜 (PopUp.Version)
Credits
Animation Team Iguchi
Screenplay 武上純希 Junki Takegami
Storyboard 浅田裕二 Yūji Asada
Assistant director 浅田裕二 Yūji Asada
Animation director 岩根雅明 Masaaki Iwane
Additional credits

A Maze-ing Race! (Japanese: 迷路でシャッフル!みんなでハッスル!! Shuffle in the Maze! Everyone Hustle!!) is the 46th episode of Pokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl, and the 512th episode of the Pokémon animated series. It first aired in Japan on September 13, 2007 and in the United States on January 19, 2008.

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Spoiler warning: this article may contain major plot or ending details.
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Blurb

Dawn needs to turn in her coupon for a new Pokétch application, but she has to do it at the Pokémon Center on the far side of the forest, and time is running out! Team Rocket, wearing disguises, hands Dawn and her friends a fake map and tells them there's a shortcut through a nearby cave, but first they want to take a photo of all our heroes' Pokémon. Before Team Rocket can complete their plot, a group of Graveler and Golem stampede through the cave, splitting up our heroes and all their Pokémon!

Now Dawn, Ash, and Brock are wandering through the cavern and the outdoor maze at the cavern's end. Meanwhile, Team Rocket discover why the Golem and Graveler were in a hurry: they were fleeing an irritated Onix! After some misadventures of her own, Dawn and Croagunk are reunited with Brock and several other Pokémon, including Ash's Staravia. When Brock asks Staravia to search for Ash in the maze, Team Rocket swoops down and nabs it!

Fortunately, Ash is nearby and he hears Dawn and Brock calling for him. He also sees Team Rocket with his Staravia! Ash has found many of Dawn and Brock's Pokémon, so he has them try to stop Team Rocket. Pachirisu accidentally shocks its own team and Team Rocket escapes-for now! Our heroes decide to work together to break through the wall separating them and soon the whole team is back together, except for Staravia.

Team Rocket come back once again, unable to resist the thought of all our heroes' Pokémon together in one place, but Ash and Pikachu are ready for them. Pikachu frees Staravia, then sends Team Rocket flying into the stratosphere. And even after all this excitement, Dawn still makes it to the Pokémon Center in time to get the Coin Toss application for her Pokétch!

Plot

Dawn leads Ash and Brock to a Pokémon Center in a hurry, in hopes of receiving a new application for her Pokétch. When they arrive at the Center, however, the Nurse Joy there states that it is in fact the Pokémon Center on the other side of the woods that is giving away the application. She also states that the giveaway is ending soon, so the party heads out in a hurry for the Center on the other side of the woods.

On the way they are stopped by Team Rocket in disguise, who tell them that they can take a shortcut through a cave, and give them a free map to navigate through a maze at the end of the cave. In exchange for the map, however, the party must take a group photo of them and all their Pokémon inside the cave. While setting up the photo shoot, Team Rocket plan to swipe all of the party's Pokémon, but before they can everyone is interrupted by a group of Graveler and Golem passing by using Rollout. The party is thus split up.

Ash and Pikachu make it out of the cave first, meeting Paul who is attempting to catch a Fearow that is flying nearby. He asks if Paul has seen the others, to which Paul coldly replies no. He decides to go find Brock and Dawn, leaving Paul be. Team Rocket, disguised as rocks, are able to split up Ash and Pikachu by blocking paths in the maze, but are blasted off by the Onix that was chasing the earlier Golem and Graveler.

Dawn and Croagunk make it out of the cave and into the maze next. They also meet Paul, ask him if he has seen the others, and leave when he rudely replies no. Brock, Ash's Turtwig, Staravia, and Aipom exit the cave last, and follow suit by meeting with Paul, asking him if he has seen the others, and getting a cold reply (this time it's Paul who leaves). Staravia volunteers to search for everyone by sky.

Pikachu, now alone, meets up with Buneary and Happiny. Croagunk saves Dawn from being squished by the Onix by pushing her into a crack in the maze wall which it made with Brick Break. Ash, regretting being split up with Pikachu, meets up with Dawn's Piplup, Buizel, Pachirisu, and Brock's Sudowoodo. Though Piplup and Buizel quarrel about which way to go, they soon team up and are able to force the rampaging Onix to retreat.

All the separate groups, except Ash's, finally find each other with Staravia's help. When Staravia flies back up to look for Ash's group, however, a recovered Team Rocket snatches it and temporarily escapes. Brock and Dawn finally find Ash by calling out, but are still separated by a single wall. Team Rocket come back and trap Ash's group by crushing and placing rocks on the maze path. Ash tells Piplup and Buizel to use Bubble Beam and SonicBoom respectively at the Rocket Balloon, in order to free Staravia. He tells Pachirisu and Sudowoodo to use Discharge and Mimic respectively, but Pachirisu's Discharge zaps Ash's group accidentally, allowing Team Rocket to escape.

Everyone decides to break a hole in the maze wall, and after a while of their Pokémon executing attacks on it, the wall is broken, but not without Team Rocket noticing them. Pikachu, however, surprises Team Rocket from atop a tall hill, then uses Iron Tail to break Staravia's cage and finally Thunderbolt to send Team Rocket blasting off again.

Everyone, now reunited, make it out of the maze and to the Pokémon Center, where Dawn receives the Coin Toss application. They continue on their journey, using the new application to lead the way.

Major events

For a list of all major events in Pokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl, please see the timeline page.

Debuts

Pokémon debuts

Characters

Humans

Pokémon

Trivia

Errors

  • In the English dub, when Dawn gets her Coin Toss app, Pikachu's mouth moves to say something, but there is no sound. This error isn't present in the original Japanese version.

Dub edits

In other languages



DP045 : Ill-Will Hunting!
Pokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl
DP047 : Sandshrew's Locker!
Project Anime logo.png This episode article is part of Project Anime, a Bulbapedia project that covers all aspects of Pokémon animation.