There’s a festival taking place on the Orange Islands to celebrate the legend of the ‘Great Guardian’ Pokémon Lugia, and the delicate balance of power between the Legendary birds Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres. Then Ash arrives…

Legend has it that should the balance of power between the three bird Pokémon be destroyed then chaos will come to the forces of nature. The only way that calm will be restored is by the appearance of the ‘Great Guardian’ Pokémon Lugia who will rise from the depths of the ocean to end the destruction of the world with help from ‘The Chosen One’.

Enter Pokémon collector Lawrence III, who knows the legend well. His ambition is to capture Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres, hoping that they will lead him to the ultimate prize – ‘The Beast of the Sea’, Lugia.

Lawrence III rides on a giant flying fortress and sets about making his wishes come true by capturing Moltres from Fire Island. True to the legend, the world’s climate starts to change for the worse with heavy rain beginning to fall in the middle of summer. This alerts many of the Pokémon and humans around the world, including none other than Professor Oak himself. He sets off with Professor Ivy and Ash’s mum, Delia Ketchum, to the Orange Islands using his helicopter.

The freak storm catches Ash, Misty, Tracey and the captain of their boat, Maren, off guard and they head for the shelter of Shamuti Island. They dock and are freaked out by the appearance of chanting villagers in animal costumes. It’s okay though, Maren recognises her friend Carol among them, and it turns out that there is a festival taking place, and being the first Pokémon Trainer to arrive on the island during the festival, Ash is declared ‘The Chosen One’.

Ash’s mission is to travel to the bird’s islands and collect three glass balls representing the elements, then bring them back to the island shrine where the Festival Maiden will play a song to end the task. Ash is eager to get started, but Pikachu is a bit more cautious.

Back out at sea with a fresh storm raging, Ash and Pikachu soon crash onto Fire Island and easily pick up the first glass ball. An aerodynamic boat turns up carrying Misty, Tracey and the Festival Maiden Melody, who feels guity for sending Ash off in such terrible weather. Before they can say too much, Zapdos appears and has a word with Pikachu through lightning communication. Team Rocket have caught up with Ash, but they are the least of his worries – Lawrence III appears and captures Zapdos along with Ash, his gang and Team Rocket, too!

Inside the flying fortress, Ash manages to free Zapdos and Moltres and the two Legendary birds start fighting. This causes havoc and the flying fortress is soon out of control, crashing into Lightning Island. As the gang all rush to escape, Ash takes the opportunity to grab the lightning ball to continue his mission. As they all jump on board Melody’s board, a typhoon starts up around them. It turns out to be Lugia and it carries them all the way back to Shamuti Island.

Here Ash meets a Slowking, who turns out to be the guardian of the Shamuti Shrine. When Ash gets over the surprise of the Pokémon talking to him, he gets his instructions of what to do with the glass balls he has collected.

Now it’s Lugia’s turn to have a chat with Ash, and the Pokémon tells him to go to the Ice Island where he will find Articuno’s glass ball. The Legendary Pokémon also reveals that Ash is the actual chosen one that the legends foretold!

Ash’s journey to the Ice Island is helped along by Charizard, Squirtle and Bulbasaur who try to help the hero get across a frozen ocean, but all the time the Legendary birds try to stop him in his tracks. Racing through the island’s foliage, Ash manages to pick up the Ice ball and a fight ensues between the birds with Articuno knocked unconscious from the sky!

Bizarrely, Ash, Pikachu and Team Rocket escape from the island on the back of Lugia, but the weight is too much, so Team Rocket jump off ‘to save the world’. Lawrence III reappears, this time with Lugia in his sights. Lugia hits Lawrence with a massively powerful attack, but is weakened and plummets into the sea, taking Ash and Piakchu with it. Rescued by Misty, Ash and his Pokémon scramble back to shore.

With the final ball placed into the shrine, Melody plays her song and Lugia is rescued from the depths along with the three birds. This rights all the wrongs and the climate returns to normal. Lugia takes Ash and Pikachu for a triumphant ride. Ash is soon brought back down to earth, though – his mum turns up and tells him off for worrying her so much!

The Power of One Facts…
• This is the second Pokémon movie made, and while the title cashes in on the fact it was the year 2000, the true title is The Power Of One.
• In Japan, where their titles are often more literal, the movie is known as Mirage Pokémon: Lugia’s Explosive Birth.
• Brock is the only main Pokémon character that isn’t in the main movie, but he makes a cameo appearance in Professor Ivy’s lab. This is because Brock was written out of the Orange Islands story for fears that his character might offend people!
• The Pokémon Slowking, Lugia and Articuno make their debuts.

And here’s a ScreenBurst of images from the movie, click on an image to see a larger version…