History[]

Dark City was home to two rival Gyms that were unsanctioned by the Indigo Pokémon League: the Yas Gym and the Kaz Gym. Each hoped to become an official Pokémon Gym by driving the other out of town, and would hire wandering Pokémon Trainers to fight for them. These battles came to resemble street fights more than anything else, and caused such damage to the town that Trainers earned a bad name amongst the inhabitants. The fighting grew even more intense as a Nurse Joy, who worked as an official League Inspector, was about to arrive in town to determine whether either Gym was worthy of becoming official.

Ash Ketchum and his friends arrived in Dark City shortly after the Kaz Gym Leader hired Team Rocket to serve as bodyguards. Ash and his friends were then attacked by 3 Dark City inhabitants-specifically three young boys-until a restaurant owner broke up the fight and explained everything to the group. After defeating Team Rocket-an unremarkable feat for Ash and his friends around this time-they were approached by a recruiter for the Yas Gym, who brought them to the Yas Gym Leader to have them join, but Ash refused. The leader did not take this rejection kindly and ordered his men to attack Ash as payback for refusing, but Misty and Brock saved him and they quickly fled the Gym. Realizing that the two Gyms were bent on destroying each other regardless of what harm or damage they might do to others, Ash's group, the three boys, and the restaurant owner came up with a plan to stop them. Their plan revolved around a shared quality of the Yas' Scyther and the Kaz's Electabuzz, who both hated the color red. To prepare for it, Ash, Pikachu, and Misty set up antennas on the roof connected to wires that are linked to the ground, Brock and one of the boys build ramps on the house walls, and the other two boys and restaurant owner set up barrels of ketchup on the rooftops.

Once both Gyms began their battle, with Team Rocket being caught in a collapsing building, the group set their plan into motion by pushing the barrels onto the ramps and pouring ketchup onto both Gym Leaders. The plan worked to perfection, with Scyther and Electabuzz being tricked into attacking their Trainers and then each other after ketchup was dumped on them too. Both Gyms decided to team up and attack Ash and his friends, but Ash, prepared for this too, had Pikachu use Thunderbolt on the antannas, which sent a powerful blast of electricity to the Gym members. Both Gym Leaders still refused to give up, but Nurse Joy then revealed herself and informed the leaders that neither would become an official Gym unless they could learn to not use their Pokémon to cause violence, which she advised them to learn from Ash. The members of each Gym and their Pokémon were soon put to work repairing the town. Team Rocket, who also had ketchup dumped on them, are then chased out of town by Scyther and Electabuzz, concluding the Episode.