This episode was basically the epilogue to the Team Flare arc. Lumiose City has been recovering really well following the destruction, with most of its structures being rebuilt at a fast pace. Even Prism Tower has been restored pretty well thanks to Ash, Serena, Bonnie, Pikachu, Dedenne, the other Pokemon, and Meyer.
Meanwhile, Clemont has been repairing Clembot, who previously died after sacrificing itself to shut down Team Flare's machine about three episodes ago. Admittedly, I was worried about how they would handle Clembot following its death. It became clear that it would be revived, and I thought Clembot being it's same self would take away the emotional impact; the only way Clembot's death would truly have meaning if it were repaired is if the new one doesn't have any memories of Clemont or any battle it had prior.
My prayers were answered. Clembot has been completely reset; it treats Clemont like a new person, and it needs to learn the basics of battle strategy. Good move, writers!
We then see Team Rocket eating at a restaurant, and they get a call from Giovanni. He congratulates them for destroying Team Flare; this is one of the few moments in the series where the Rocket trio actually succeeds in something and get recognized by the boss. Overjoyed, they try to come up with a present for Giovanni. They eventually settle on Ash's Pikachu.
Eh, that's redundant. I know it's just Team Rocket doing their thing, but still. If they really wanted to give Giovanni a treat, they should've bought some Lumiose Galettes since they are the Kalos regional exclusive treats.
As the episode title suggests, a challenger who previously lost to the Lumiose Gym has returned for a rematch. This kid is named Alba, and he recognizes Ash from the Kalos League finals. No, he doesn't mock Ash for losing. In fact, it's the opposite. Alba is actually super excited to meet him, and he tells Ash that he had an amazing battle with Alain. Ash senses Alba's energy and roots him on, encouraging him to go for the badge. We also learn that Alba previously fought Clembot and lost to it, and now it wants a rematch against it. Luckily for Clemont, he can use the Clembot for its new first battle so that it can learn the ropes.
Ash and the gang temporarily visit Sycamore's lab, where they find Mairin decorating the facility to prepare for Alain's return. Everyone helps her arrange the party, baking sweets and decorating the outer hallway. We see Sycamore transporting Alain by car, and he gets a warm welcome from everyone upon arriving back at the lab. They then have a feast.
Ash talks about his new goal to everyone present: he tells them that he will return to Kanto to "start from zero." When I read that line, I felt worried thinking about the possibility that Sun and Moon would reset Ash's personality to his BW self. Ash expands on the statement and explains that he wants to fight more trainers in order to grow stronger.
Probably one of my favorite parts about this episode is Alain's characterization here. He still feels guilty after learning how Lysandre tricked him, and with Team Flare defeated, he doesn't know where to go from there. He also lost some confidence. I mean, take a look at this clip.
You can see the guilt in his face.
He gets a warm welcome from all the Pokemon in Sycamore's lab (including the Garchomp), and Ash meets up with him there. Ash tells him that he really enjoyed their battle in the Kalos League, and he tries to give Alain a more optimistic way of looking at the future. It was a pretty great scene as it showed how much the two have grown together not only as rivals but also as friends.
Team Rocket then shows up and steals Pikachu. Ash and Alain use Greninja and Charizard respectively to free it and take out Team Rocket. As they are being blasted off, James acknowledges that at least they got beaten "by the two champions." This quote struck me. Again, most fans have this sense that Ash is a loser for losing the finals, but James gives a great outlook and states Ash was also a champion. Indeed, Ash almost won that battle after all, and this is the farthest he's ever accomplished in a League.
We now reach the main meat of the episode: Clembot vs Alba. I don't have much to say about this scene. It wasn't the most impressive battle ever, but it was neat. Alba used a Vivillion, female Pyroar, and a Cubone while Clement used Magnemite, Magenton, and Heliolisk. Alba gets the first kill on the Magnemite through a combination of Flash, Quiver Dance, and a finishing attack. Magneton takes out Vivillion and Pyroar very easily thanks to the Rain Dance + Thunder strategy, while Alba's Cubone knocks out Magneton and gets a decent battle with Heliolisk, ultimately knocking it out with a Bone Rush that broke through Helioliks's attack. Alba gets his badge from Clembot and rejoices, with Ash congratulating him on a job well done and tells him he's one step closer to reaching the League.
As the battle progressed, it became clear that Clembot was going to lose in the end. Not only Alba need to win the fight in order to get his revenge on Clembot, but we are dealing with a new Clembot, one that has to relearn the world around him again. Throughout the battle, Clembot began to develop emotions again, namely the thrill of knocking out a Pokemon and the anger and sadness from having one of its own Pokemon get KOd. Even Clemont tells him,
"Doesn't it feel good to win," or
"It feels painful to lose, doesn't it" so that Clembot can remember these emotions.
Everyone returns back to Sycamore's lab. Professor Sycamore gives everyone a medal for defeating Team Flare and saving the world, basically a repeat of what happens at the end of the X/Y games where the player and the rival characters are awarded with a a medal for their heroic accomplishments.
Alain is hesitant at receiving his medal at first, nor does he feel like he deserves to work back at the lab, but Sycamore encourages him to go back to work as his assistant since a lot of work needs to be done and he "can't do it without [Alain's] help."
Now take a look at these next few pictures:
You can see how comforted Alain feels in these clips. His confidence is restored following this, and he happily joins for a group photo with everyone else.
The episode ends with everyone celebrating the re-opening of Prism Tower with a special event where it is illuminated for the first time in a while during midnight, complete with a countdown leading up to it. Clemont asks Serena what does she plan on doing now that everything is over, and she mentions that she wants to contact Palermo. Ash encourages her to take on her dream with the phrase,
"I believe in you," with Serena happily saying yes. This scene sets up for the next episode where we will see Serena think about her future even further.
