Pikachu's Goodbye (Pokémon the Series: Original Series)

Pikachu's Goodbye (Japanese: ピカチュウのもり Forest of Pikachu/Pikachu's Forest) is the 39th episode of the Pokémon anime. It was first broadcast in Japan on April 16, 1998, and in the United States on November 20, 1998. It is notable for being the first episode to air after the "Electric Soldier Porygon" incident and airing alongside "The Battling Eevee Brothers" as part of the first hour-long Pokémon special.

Plot
When Pikachu wanders off, the heroes see a field of Pikachu, whom Ash's Pikachu quickly befriends. When Team Rocket try to kidnap the Pikachu, Ash's Pikachu defeats them and gains the loyalty of the other Pikachu. Ash, seeing that his friend will be happier staying with them, makes the difficult decision of releasing Pikachu.

Why It Rocks

 * 1) The plot of Ash's Pikachu befriending a field of Pikachu is very well-done and shows us just how creative the Pokémon anime is.
 * 2) The episode has great writing, emotional moments and very well-done character development between Ash and Pikachu.
 * 3) This episode was a great way to make up for the "Electric Soldier Porygon" incident that occurred in Japan back in 1997, and brought the Pokémon TV series back to where it left off.
 * 4) Some of the music pieces from the video games are heard again, and stand out even more.
 * 5) There is one funny moment where Misty tells Ash to watch out for a tree before Ash crashes into it in a very humorous reference to George of the Jungle.
 * 6) The flashback montage songs, "Goodnight, my Pikachu" in Japan and "The Time Has Come" in the English and international versions, are great choices for the near-end of the episode.
 * 7) *"The Time Has Come" is more heartbreaking and sadder than what you'd expect, while "Goodnight, my Pikachu" has a more relaxing and calmer tone.
 * 8) Great animation for its time, especially for the Indigo League season.
 * 9) The flashback montage of Ash and Pikachu's time together after Ash leaves Pikachu with the other Pikachu in the wild is emotional and heartbreaking.
 * 10) The addition of a baby Pikachu in the Pikachu flock is a very great addition within the Pikachu family.
 * 11) The scene where Pikachu is trying to save the baby Pikachu from going over a waterfall and the other Pikachus jump in to help is really tense.
 * 12) Great ending: When the sun rises, Pikachu decides to rejoin Ash and they embrace each other with a passionate hug, with Ash crying happily while still hugging Pikachu as the cheers of the wild Pikachu echo in the background.
 * 13) This episode shows that Ash and Pikachu have a very good dynamic that would continue for years to come.

Reception
"Pikachu's Goodbye" was met with critical acclaim by both fans and critics. YouTuber Lumiose Trainer Zac gave it an 8/10, quoting "They had us in the first half, not gonna lie", and it gained an 8.1/10 on IMDb.

Many people see the episode as an awesome way to make up for the "Electric Soldier Porygon" incident by making an episode related to Pikachu, the one responsible for the incident.

Trivia

 * Like in "Pokémon: I Choose You!", the first episode of the series, the Pokémon in this episode's "Who's that Pokémon?" segment in this episode is Pikachu.
 * This is one of the few episodes that 4Kids Entertainment did not lessen the brightness of, which is especially notable in the ending scene with Pikachu and Ash. The original reason for this is unknown at this time.
 * Brock didn't seem to realize that it was he who influenced Ash into letting Pikachu go, despite him being against it later on.
 * Before this episode was first broadcast on TV Tokyo, a short segment titled "アニメ ポケットモンスター問題検証報告" ("Problem Inspection Report on the Pocket Monsters Anime") was aired before it, with Miyuki Yadama explaining the issues with the previous episode and how TV Tokyo, its affiliate networks, professional doctors, the Japanese government and even the United Kingdom's Independent Television Commission came together to research the cause of this at-the-time unknown issue to ensure that it would not happen again.
 * It is rumored that the episode was an apology for the "Electric Soldier Porygon" incident.