Ash is working his way towards the Cinnabar Gym. For right now, he's in a Pokémon battle against another trainer. The trainer sends out Rhyhorn and Ash sends out Bulbasaur. Rhyhorn uses Take Down which feels like an earthquake to Misty. Ash tells Bulbasaur to use Leech Seed but Bulbasaur gets hit before it can launch the attack. Ash calls Bulbasaur back but Bulbasaur refuses to return. Rhyhorn aims another Take Down at Bulbasaur but Bulbasaur uses Razor Leaf on Rhyhorn. Then Bulbasaur uses Vine Whip and Rhyhorn faints. The trainer congratulates Ash's victory. Ash sees that Bulbasaur isn't feeling to well. Its bulb starts to glow and Ash realizes that there is something wrong with it.

Ash takes Bulbasaur to the Pokémon Center and Nurse Joy goes to examine it. Bulbasaur is put on a machine and wires are hooked up on it. The test came out to be positive. Nurse Joy comes out and tells Ash that Bulbasaur is not sick and that it is just getting ready to evolve. Ash asks how long until it evolves and Nurse Joy looks out the window. The flowers start to sparkle. Nurse Joy tells them about the Mysterious Garden and how Bulbasaur go there to evolve. Finally, we see a row of Bulbasaur moving up in the darkness.

While everyone is sleeping, Bulbasaur is walking in the hallway. Pikachu hears this and wakes up to see what's going on. Bulbasaur and Pikachu walk outside. They have a short talk outside when suddenly a couple of strong vines reach out and grab Bulbasaur. Bulbasaur tries to resist but the vines pull Bulbasaur in. The vines have come from a group of other Bulbasaur. They carry Bulbasaur to a new place. Pikachu tries to chase after them but one of the Bulbasaur unleashes its vines at Pikachu. Then they leave with Bulbasaur screaming. Pikachu runs back to Ash for help.

Ash is dreaming and Pikachu wakes him up with a Thundershock. Pikachu tells Ash that Bulbasaur is missing and that it knows where Bulbasaur is. Team Rocket is walking in the forest. James complains about the pollen in the air. They soon see the group of Bulbasaur that took Ash's Bulbasaur. They run to catch the Bulbasaur but Bulbasaur use Vine Whip to send Team Rocket into the air. Pikachu leads the kids to the Bulbasaur. Team Rocket falls into a big hole in the ground. Vines start to come out of the forest. They all dive through the vines before it can block their path. They look up and they see the Mysterious Garden. A bunch of Bulbasaur are in it.

Suddenly, a tree begins to open up and a Venusaur comes out of it. It steps onto a stump and gives a big roar out. Ash looks up Venusaur in his Pokédex to get more information on it. Ash finds his own Bulbasaur and calls to it. Brock quickly puts his hand over Ash's mouth and tells him that they are not supposed to be here.

The festival starts. Bulbasaur and Venusaur exchange roars to each other. Ash's Bulbasaur is not roaring and it looks really sad. The Bulbasaur start to glow a greenish color. Team Rocket is on the other side of the wall of vines. The plan to use axes and saws to destroy the vines. The vines attack Team Rocket and they run away. The Bulbasaur evolve into Ivysaur. Ash looks up Ivysaur in his Pokédex. Ash and co. watch the festival in amazement. Ash sees that his Bulbasaur hasn't evolved yet. Brock thinks that Ash's Bulbasaur is trying to not evolve. Everyone stares at Ash's Bulbasaur. Ash's Bulbasaur and Venusaur talk to each other. Bulbasaur tries to tell Venusuar that it does not want to evolve. Venusaur gets mad by this and hurls its vines at Bulbasaur. Ash jumps down and takes the hit instead. Brock and Misty follow him. Ash tells Venusaur and Ivysaur that Bulbasaur shouldn't be forced to evolve. A bunch of pollen comes out of Venusaur's bulb and it makes a lot of leaves grow on the tree.

Then comes Team Rocket again in their balloon. Team Rocket says their motto but with different outfits on. A machine comes down from their balloon. James turns the machine on and it starts to suck up all the Ivysaur. Venusaur tries to save some of the Ivysaur with its vines. James turns the machine onto its full strength. Even Venusaur's feet start to lift off the ground. Pikachu tries a Thunder but Misty reminds them that an electric attack might hurt the Ivysaur. Then Pikachu gets lifted off the ground but Bulbasaur uses Vine Whip to save it. Bulbasaur tries a Razor Leaf to destroy their machine but it doesn't work. James sees a Bulbasaur and asks if they should capture it or not. Jessie and Meowth laugh at Bulbasaur because of its size. Bulbasaur gets mad now and lets out a loud roar. The sun rises and it starts to gather energy from the sun. When Bulbasaur has stored up enough energy, it fires the Solarbeam attack. Then it uses Razor Leaf to destroy the bag that held the Ivysaur. Team Rocket falls to the ground next to the Ivysaur. Bulbasaur, Ivysaur, and Venusaur all get angry at Team Rocket. All of them use Vine Whip which blasts Team Rocket off once again.

Ash congratulates Bulbasaur for a job well done. Venusaur takes out a vine and Bulbasaur takes out its vine as well and they happily shake vines with each other. The Mysterious Garden disappears and Ash and his friends are glad that they went. They wave farewell to the Ivysaur and Venusaur and then they leave.

English Official Summary

In the course of his journey, Ash battles a mountaineer Pokémon trainer he encountered in a small wooded area. Ash deploys his Bulbasaur against the mountaineer's Rhyhorn, but Bulbasaur is behaving very strangely, causing even Pikachu to be concerned. In the end, Bulbasaur defeats Rhyhorn, but Ash decides to go immediately to a Pokémon Center and seek help from Joy. What could be the problem with Bulbasaur?

French Official Summary

Lors de son périple, Sacha affronte un Dresseur Pokémon alpiniste qu'il a rencontré dans une petite région boisée.

German Official Summary

Im Laufe seiner Reise kämpft Ash gegen einen wandernden Pokémon-Trainer, den er in einem kleinen Waldgebiet getroffen hat.

Italian Official Summary

Al termine di una lotta, il bulbo sul dorso del Bulbasaur di Ash comincia a illuminarsi e il ragazzo, preoccupato, lo porta subito al Centro Pokémon. Ma Bulbasaur non sta male, si sta solo preparando a evolversi!

Portuguese Official Summary

Durante uma batalha com um Rhyhorn, o bulbo nas costas de Bulbasaur começa a brilhar, fazendo Ash levá-lo ao Centro Pokémon. Eles descobrem que este Bulbasaur não está doente, mas sim se preparando para evoluir!

Finnish Official Summary

Rhyhornia vastaan käydyn ottelun aikana Bulbasaurin selässä oleva sipuli alkaa hohtaa, jolloin Ash vie sen paikalliseen Pokémonkeskukseen. Käy ilmi, ettei Bulbasaur ole sairas, vaan valmistautumassa kehittymään!

Spanish Latin America Official Summary

En una batalla con el Rhyhorn de otro Entrenador, el bulbo en la espalda de Bulbasaur empieza a brillar. Ash lo lleva al Centro Pokémon del lugar. Pronto descubren que Bulbasaur no está enfermo, ¡se prepara para evolucionar!

Spanish Official Summary

En el trascurso de su viaje, Ash lucha con un Entrenador Montañero que se encuentra en una pequeña zona boscosa.

English Great Britain Official Summary

In the course of his journey, Ash battles a mountaineer Pokémon trainer he encountered in a small wooded area. Ash deploys his Bulbasaur against the mountaineer's Rhyhorn, but Bulbasaur is behaving very strangely, causing even Pikachu to be concerned. In the end, Bulbasaur defeats Rhyhorn, but Ash decides to go immediately to a Pokémon Center and seek help from Joy. What could be the problem with Bulbasaur?

Dutch Official Summary

Tijdens een gevecht met een Rhyhorn, begint de bol op de rug van Bulbasaur te gloeien. Ash brengt hem meteen naar een Pokémon Center, waar ze ontdekken dat Bulbasaur niet ziek is, maar op het punt staat om te gaan evolueren!

Norwegian Official Summary

I løpet av en kamp mot en annen Treners Rhyhorn, begynner kulen på ryggen til Bulbasaur å lyse, og Ash tar den med til det nærmeste Pokémon-senteret. De oppdager snart at Bulbasaur ikke er syk - den skal til å utvikles!

Swedish Official Summary

Under en strid mot en annan Tränares Rhyhorn, börjar blomlöken på Bulbasaurs rygg att glöda, vilket gör att Ash tar den till närmaste Pokémon-center. De upptäcker snart att Bulbasaur inte är sjuk; den håller på att utvecklas!

Danish Official Summary

Midt under en kamp begynder blomsterløget på ryggen af Bulbasaur at lyse, og det får Ash til at tage den til det lokale Pokémon-center. Snart opdager de, at Bulbasaur ikke er syg – den gør sig bare klar til at udvikle sig!