Part I: Early Unova (Nuvema to Striaton)

by WeakScallion June 7th, 2026

This is the first part of my rewrite series on the Black and White series of the Pokémon anime. For an introduction to the project, read this post!

This 6-episode arc covers Ash's arrival in Unova and his first few days of travel alongside his 2 new companions.

Along the way, Ash catches his first 2 Pokémon, meets a promising trainer from Nuvema Town that will challenge him during his journey, and obtains his first Gym Badge. Meanwhile, Team Rocket initiate their operations in Unova.


BW001 In The Shadow of Zekrom! (rewrite for canon BW001)

The intent of a reboot in Canon BW is respectable but leads to its fair share of issues, and so some things are to be changed. First and foremost, Ash’s age is never specified.

Much like in canon, Ash and Pikachu travel with Professor Oak to Unova. They have an encounter with Zekrom that leaves Pikachu’s electricity unstable, and Ash eventually decides to stay as soon as he realises all of the Pokemon he’ll meet are wholly new.

Likewise, Team Rocket will be on that same plane. Giovanni wants to have Unova’s secret organization (later shown to be Team Plasma) to show themselves, and so he sends these 3 fools as ‘fodder’. Jessie, James and Meowth are not aware of Giovanni’s ill opinion of them and so they take this undercover mission seriously, leaving all of their Pokemon behind (including Wobbuffet) and dressing up as civilians. Pikachu of course gets the best of them.

Upon arriving at Professor Juniper's lab to test on Pikachu, Ash meets Juniper’s part-time aide, Bianca. She is an absolute disaster of a girl and for the moment is there for comedic support, but it is clear she is a nice girl.

Tests conclude Pikachu has lost the ability to properly concentrate his electricity and, as a result, has lost access to the move Volt Tackle. While they conduct further analyses, Trip arrives at the lab too to start his adventure.

This version of Trip is a cocky know-it-all sort of character, sure, but is presented as studious and academic more so than anything else, showing a preference for logic and formal battle tactics (i.e. type advantages, knowing the side-effects of all moves).

Juniper introduces Ash to Trip, pointing out how Ash has had experience in other regional leagues and thus could help him out. Trip, who has little to no knowledge of foreign Pokemon, wants to see all those Pokemon Ash used, but Ash mentions he left them all (other than Pikachu) in Pallet Town as that’s what he does. Trip believes it to be the most stupid decision ever, while also stating that they surely are not all that impressive, for Unovan Pokemon are the strongest in the world — after all, his idol only uses Pokemon native to the region, so why bother with the rest.

Ultimately, Trip is irritated enough by Ash to want to challenge him to a fight. He picks Snivy believing type advantage will prevail, but gets pretty much instantly crushed by a succession of Quick Attacks and Iron Tails (since Ash doesn’t want to force Pikachu’s electricity usage); in Johto’s Casey fashion when she got demolished by Charizard. Trip, shocked and pissed off, leaves promising he’ll soon crush Ash and then he’ll win the Unova League. This whole encounter is observed by Oshawott, who, much like his canon counterpart, is fond of Ash.


BW002 Enter Iris and Axew! (rewrite for canon BW002)

Pikachu is deemed as recovered for the time being and so Ash says his goodbyes and is about to head out on an adventure when they all see a Lillipup rushing out of the laboratory into the wild. Bianca comes running after it and lets Juniper know he came in and stole some relevant paper reports, some of them on Pikachu’s case. Juniper and Bianca head out to find him and so does Ash, although indulging himself in the beauty of the Unova region.

The encounter with Iris and Axew stays mostly the same as in canon. Likewise, he then attempts to catch a Pidove, failing catastrophically after a huge flock of them attacks him.

Ash and Iris then spot a Lillipup sleeping under a tree’s shadow, and Ash identifies him as the one he’s searching for because of a distinctive birthmark he saw when the pup escaped. Ash catches Lillipup and intends to go back to tell everyone. However, he’s interrupted by Team Rocket (who caught Woobat before that, like in canon) who capture Pikachu and Axew. Ash tries to use Lillipup to face them but Lillipup is still asleep. Ash begs him to wake up, which he does to then burp out the remainders of the documents he stole (and ate) directly to Ash’s face.

Lillipup goes to sleep again and Team Rocket prepares to escape again when Oshawott steps up and defeats them (like in canon), leading to Pikachu and Axew’s rescue.

Team Rocket are then notified by Giovanni that they must stop it with these episodic shenanigans and go do something bigger — for example, the Dreamyard.


BW003 A Sandile Gusher of Change! (adapted from canon BW003)

The episode stays mostly the same, other than the joke at the start at how disastrous Bianca is, having let Oshawott escape. Juniper also argues the reports Lillipup ate weren’t important, since her investigations on Pikachu’s issue had reached a dead-end.

Other than that, this episode still serves as world-building filler and as the introduction to the Sunglasses Sandile.


BW004 A Battle Club Rescue! (rewrite for BW004 The Battle Club and Tepig’s Choice!)

When Ash and Iris arrive at the Battle Club, they see a fight going on. Unlike in-canon, this time the trainer’s Dewott is facing off against Trip’s Snivy. Trip seems about to edge the fight, but Dewott’s sheer strength proves to be too much still, defeating Snivy.

Trip runs to congratulate the other trainer and loudly wonders if Oshawott would have been a better choice for a starter. Ash comes in and the Dewott trainer rushes to see Pikachu from up close. Trip, who has seemingly grown tired of the foreigner gist already, dismisses their presence and Pikachu’s uniqueness.

Trip is visibly excited Ash will face that trainer’s Dewott, saying that he will now taste what a real Unovan trainer can do. Oshawott coming out and being scared of Dewott (so, evolution issues) is something I’m surprised didn’t carry on into future episodes. Anyway, the fight is of course interrupted by the Tepig plot, in which Trip also helps out ever so slightly.

Upon learning Tepig was abandoned by his trainer after he was deemed to be too weak, Trip apologizes to Snivy and tells him he’d never do something like that.

Don George, seeing Tepig be visibly weakened, lets everyone know he will contact Professor Juniper so she can take Tepig back with her, and will personally take care of him until then. Trip waves the group goodbye, after which they all contact Juniper, who says she’ll take care of it as she looks over at the disastrous Bianca.


BW005 Triple Trouble at Striaton Gym! (rewrite for BW005 Triple Leaders, Team Threats!)

Up until the fight, the episode can stay the same.

Regarding the fight, Ash says he wants to face all three at the same time in a Triple Battle. Ash uses Pikachu, Lillipup and Oshawott. Oshawott is extremely energetic but scalchop-dependent, Lillipup is shown to be extremely lazy and barely participates at all, and so Pikachu is carrying despite his still unstable electricity, which makes Ash hesitate to use Thunderbolt.

Eventually, Oshawott deals the finishing blow on Chili’s Pansear, but Cress’s Panpour finishes it soon after. Pikachu is thus left on his own against Panpour and Pansage, while Lillipup sits on the corner of the battlefield.


BW006 A Dreamyard Scheme! (rewrite for BW006 Dreams by the Yard Full!)

The episode starts on the cliffhanger we were left at. Pikachu is cornered, the two monkeys have him cornered and his Thunderbolts are not strong enough yet… and then the lazy Lillipup has a vision and mistakes Panpour and Pansage’s heads for food, rushing forward to grab a bite.

He happens to be particularly strong, allowing Pikachu to get some space and for them together to finish Panpour. Lillipup jumps to eat from Pansage’s broccoli head next, but is blown away by Solar Beam and gets knocked out.

Pikachu ends up defeating Pansage in the final 1v1, granting Ash his first badge.

Cilan eventually joins Ash, expressing his desire to see the world alongside someone with such interesting views on how to use different Pokemon personalities.

The Dreamyard plot then unfolds. Jessie, James and Meowth are there without being too sure about the purpose of collecting all this energy, or what these readings are hinting at. But if the boss wants them, then so be it — and if they can catch a Musharna in the process, even better.

Pikachu and Professor Fennel’s Munna fight them off, but they are decisively aided by a Dark Pulse from a mysterious figure standing on a nearby cliff, which flees right after.

At the end of the episode, well after the group heads for Nacrene, we get our first peek at a still unnamed and hardly recognizable pair of Plasma grunts, who find a few particles that were left behind from what Team Rocket were trying to collect.


Updated summary

Ash's team: Pikachu, Lillipup, Oshawott Iris' team: Axew Cilan's team: Pansage

Badges obtained: 1 Season progress: 6/48


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Pub: 05 Jun 2026 21:22 UTC

Edit: 08 Jun 2026 18:18 UTC

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