Review JN145: Rocket-dan Strikes Back!

[Kasumi]

Why would Yuyama just comment to mock them? It makes no sense. Also who is Masafumi Mima? Last time I checked Musashi is still voiced by Megumi Hayashibara.

PS. I thought the episode was fantastic and I'm so happy we got to see all of TR's Pokémon, even the ones who weren't physically there.

 

[ii kanji]

Also who is Masafumi Mima? Last time I checked Musashi is still voiced by Megumi Hayashibara.

Mima is the anime’s sound director who has been in role since the beginning of the series. He is Miki’s bud and a big TRio stan who was instrumental in creating the Rocket radio show during BW. He normally does a bit of stanning on Twitter. Megumi doesn’t have a Twitter account (although I did check her LineBlog which is also notably quiet )

 

[L-05308]

Jessie and James and Meowth will absolutely come back together over the course of the next two episodes - I’m hoping they take Butch and Cassidy’s lead by just going to run their Malasada buisness in Alola and live with Bewear

I understand the anguish though, because this was theoretically Team Rocket at their most powerful - I loved it, I thought it was a cool plan and loved seeing the old Pokémon, some even with new moves (I’m sure Bulbapedia won’t acknowledge Yanmega clearly using Air Slash)

I knew Arbok and the others would get referenced here - I still expect Mimikyu and Mareenie to appear again when they all back to Alola in the end, nice to see everyone remembered though (although we all pretty much count Growlie as one of James more notable Pokémon, despite it never being on his team)

Good to see Latias story progressing, now we can get straight into it next week.

I did think Infernape fighting Carnivine, Hawlucha fighting Gourgeist in the Preview meant we might see one of Ash’s Unova Pokémon fighting too but alas, I wonder which Pokémon are going to be neglected by this epilogue in the end…

And Ludicolo showing up makes me happy; that means all of Brock’s Pokémon have appeared from Sun and Moon onwards (Crobat, Sudowoodo and Comfey yet to appear in Journeys) I’m still hoping Misty’s other Pokémon can appear too

 

[Die-Hard Dragon Devotee]

I did think Infernape fighting Carnivine, Hawlucha fighting Gourgeist in the Preview meant we might see one of Ash’s Unova Pokémon fighting too but alas, I wonder which Pokémon are going to be neglected by this epilogue in the end…

At this point, probably a lot of them..........

 

[El Squibbonator]

Is this really the last we're going to see of the TRio? If so, what a lame note for them to go out on.

 

[jungle_penguins]

I like how Delibird gave them food. That's never happened before has it?

I completely forgot about Victreebel's scream that took me by complete surprise for like the 3rd time this past decade.

Love this episode, I don't think the Latias/Latios plotline is interesting to me but the Rockets are always nice.

 

[MarshiyanMisutaa]

The subs didn't explain anything.

 

[Gabo2oo]

This was the episode I expected the most and somehow I feel like I don't have that much to comment on? Don't get me wrong, I was fanboying hard throughout the whole thing regadless. (And my post is still long so...)

I had a feeling most of their Pokémon's individual roles would be relegated to throwing a couple of attacks, but I still think their screentime could've been distributed a bit more evenly. I like how this plot of all things is what directly helped develop the Latias arc, so I'm okay with the episode focusing a bit on the twerps' side, but I still think some of their scenes could've been shorter to help Team Rocket's side (that's 15 characters!!) get more screentime. Not the Ludicolo scene though, that was golden, especially Croagunk's reaction.

It was nice to see Team Rocket's Unova Pokémon showing a bit more personality, even if it was brief. Also shoutouts to their blast-off animation, i.e. no animation, a clear reference to DP eyeroll. The motto was super good on the other hand though, but I don't think this episode excelled in the animation department overall, which is sad considering it's the third-to-last episode ever.

I counted the Rocket Dan-Danka (twice), Sakaki's Theme from OS, the XY motto music (way too briefly), and the Journeys motto music. Could've gone a bit further, but there was also a clear bias towards XY battle music, which I love (especially the Super Secret Training theme), and they put freaking Maemuki Roketto Dan as the ending theme, which was the song I was hoping for the most! Rocket-Dan Forever would've been the obvious "nostalgic" choice, the Rocket Dan-Danka was too recent and probably would've been featured in the episode itself. Maemuki is the only one that fully shows their lighthearted side and it hadn't shown up since forever so it was the perfect choice.

The ending really took me by surprise. They've been prone to split-up over petty fights before, but man by this point I wasn't expecting it to happen again. And by the end of the episode, plus in front of all of their old pals, at that. Between this and the Latios cliffhanger, things are finally getting interesting.

Spoiler

Where those hands at lmao

 

[Lightning Flame Blast]

Abrupt as the ending was, I liked it. TR having an actual plan and using all these old bastards was a sight to see and their final attack looked glorious.

That said, I call bull on Infernape not trampling Carnivine and Gourgeist in seconds on his own, let alone with Hawlucha’s support. Also Pikachu, you’re the world champion…

 

[R1ke]

That was a good ep, really nice seeing TR’s pokemon again one last time. Even the ones that couldn’t make it in person. Their plan was entertaining and I like how Brock/Misty got involved too. Ludiculo’s dance and Mime Jr’s acting were great lol. The ending was abrupt but I highly doubt this is their last appearance. Probs setting up for later. Latias was alright but about time it actually does something

 

[MegaGreninga]

What song was playing in background i cant find it on youtube was this same song played that Bewear vs team rocket Marnoi

 

[SonansuMan]

Finally got around to watching this episode with subs and where do I even begin..

The premise of this episode had me hooked alone, finally getting to see the return of the TR mons that had been out of the picture for a decade now. This plotline was something long overdue in Journeys and I appreciate that even in spite of their huge cast lineup this time around they were able to get at least one solid moment in for everyone, including the twerps (my personal highlights being Amoonguss breakdancing and Wobbuffet nuking a whole ass tree ). I definitely think that this episode was held back by the limit of only having 22 minutes to progress through everything, but the pacing surprised me with how many things they tried to pack in the story. Sadly, my biggest issue with it is how it gradually builds up the genuinely good plan that's devised just to instead have it end both abruptly and underwhelmingly so because of Latia's integration in the plot. Not only does the climax feel unsatisfying with how swiftly Latias PNG-blasts them out of the plot, but also ruins the feeling of finality as Ash wasn't actually given the opportunity to fully face the TRio at their absolute best. The one saving grace is that TR probably won't be fully resolved here (which I don't think could've been done enough justice with the limited time even without the Latias shenanigans), but where they choose to take it remains wholly in the air right now. Overall as a 'finale', it could've been executed much better but I still enjoyed what they were able to put out.

NOTES:

• Super happy that Mime Jr. got to be in the spotlight this episode, its character was fun as always and it felt as if it never left
• Having a moment of appreciation for all the past mons was cool to see and I think it was the best way to handle it without either making the episode crowded/low on time. Who'd think Lickitung would get acknowledged in 2023?
• The only TR mon that did nothing of note was unsurprisingly Morpeko, but funnily enough, having its only role as being cute on the sidelines is still more positive than 99% of what it's contributed since it was caught
• The BWmons were showcased nicely here and I'm happy they got to show way more character this time around. Frillish and Amoonguss getting a proper return episode before Primeape is insane to think about lol.

OVERALL SCORE:
8/10

 

[kantoskies]

One of the highlights of the episode was for sure Morobareru getting down low to Takeshi's Paradise. The shot of it spinning on its head right before the scene cut got a genuine laugh out of me! Having these different characters interact from different eras of the anime is something I love about this miniseries, even if it happens way too infrequently.

I think the Rocket trio's plan was pretty good, it was more than just "hey throw a net and see what happens lol"- I still would have preferred them actually capture Pikachu and have had that be the cliffhanger instead of another breakup, but the plan itself was still pretty good. I like that each HQ Pokemon got a chance to do something, and like I mentioned earlier it's nice to see the BW Pokemon retroactively be given personality. I'm also glad there was a montage of the rest of their Pokemon, though I do wish it had been one big group shot to save on time. It was a nice touch that they dedicated this mission to their "graduated" Pokemon. And good lord am I so happy it was Delibird who delivered them instead of Pelipper!

We got another nice motto sequence, I really can't overstate how happy I am they did away with reusing the same animation over and over. It really makes those scenes flow better. I'm annoyed they used the dumb music from Pocket Monsters '19 for it though, truly any other motto theme would have fit better- even the other Hayashi track Ready to Ignite they've been using these past several episodes fits them so much better. The XY motto music did briefly play but it was cut way too short. I also think it's a crime we didn't get more nostalgic music for some of the attack scenes- where was the GS Rocket encounter theme!? Or Raid- even though it's not specific to the Rocket trio it played during so many of their heists in Kanto?? I also wish they had replaced Team Song in the climax with Team Rocket Forever- it would have meant all three of their vocal songs were used in some way during the episode. Though I was thrilled the episode opened with the Route 29 music!

As for the "ending"...I can't say I'm surprised people think it's actually how these characters would be written out. I know they haven't been treated well in recent years, but this was so clearly a cliffhanger. The best-case scenario is that we get scenes in the next episode that show what they're up to while split up and building up to them reuniting in the last episode. It would be nice if all their old HQ Pokemon somehow found their "graduated" Pokemon, perhaps with Sonansu's help since he knows where all of them are. Then they all came together to get the trio back together and remind them about how they're all a family. Team Rocket as an organization disbanding in the most quiet, anticlimatic way would be genuinely so funny to me- what the hell does Sakaki even do all day?

Overall I think this was a solid episode, and for all that it tried to accomplish I think it did a good job. I'm glad this isn't the last of the trio and I hope that we get a good showing from them in the last two episodes.

 

[Fairy Type Arceus]

The episode was fun, and I'm not even the biggest team rocket fan. Although that ending, if it is indeed the final time we see team rocket outside of some final episode montages, then that was very lame. And I guess the overall organization isn't going to breakup which is strange. If that is the case here's how I would rewrite it:

Team rocket successfully catches pikachu, and latias informs ash. They give chase leaving us on that cliffhanger. The next episode picks up with pikachu trying to convince meowth that giovannit won't reward them as handsomely as they think he will. They dismiss this and Giovanni is handed pikachu. They stand grinning waiting for their promotion...only to be told by Giovanni he now no longer has a purpose for them and for them to get lost. Feeling betrayed they attempt to battle him, only to get murked but surprisingly do somewhat well against him. Ash arrives and it becomes a 3 vs 1 team rocket team up with ash. Latias manages to free pikachu in the battle at the last moment once Giovanni is down to just Persian and they fight it out. Ash wins and Giovanni is forced to disband team rocket. Jessie and James now see how misguided and lied to they were and decide they want to join Ash on his journey to find themselves and they all walk off Into the sunset with future adventures ahead of them. The final episode is a party episode where everyone is celebrating ashs 11th birthday, we get a quick glimpse of ashs dad and all of his travel companions and then Ash gets a call. He's been invited to a tournament and heads out. The final scenes show Ash sending out gengar as it battles a Nidorino and as the fight begins we transition to a TV screen showing a young Liko watching the match. Cut to credits and a final montage thanking the fans for the last 25 years.

 

[Gengarzilla]

I would say I don't think that's the last we've seen of them, but this disgraceful series of the Pokémon anime has made a habit of disappointing me despite all the chances I gave it, so... you'll understand if I'm not holding hope for a more satisfactory TRio conclusion in one or two weeks.

 

[90'sPokéfan]

What did Giovanni do with Amoonguss? I remembered it more as a stoic pokémon, instead of an emotionel pokémon like a lot of the others. A battle partner for James. It had a good work relationship with James so to speak. I was surprises it did join the others in hugging James, but it also continued to hug James, even when the Giovanni statue explained things.

Or am I misremembering it's personality?

(Of course I'm now overanalysing something for fun )

 

[SlyGecko]

What did Giovanni do with Amoonguss? I remembered it more as a stoic pokémon, instead of an emotionel pokémon like a lot of the others. A battle partner for James. It had a good work relationship with James so to speak. I was surprises it did join the others in hugging James, but it also continued to hug James, even when the Giovanni statue explained things.

Or am I misremembering it's personality?

(Of course I'm now overanalysing something for fun )

Actually... you're right. Amoongus does have a different personality in this episode instead of it's normal serious personality. Kinda reminds me of how palpidoad spent most of JN114 in Goh's arms. It's really out of character.

 

[MarshiyanMisutaa]

I can't really explain it, but this feels like something serious, like their last scene together. Reminds me the time when Musashi left her Contest clothes behind.

Spoiler

 

[Soniman]

The only TR mon that did nothing of note was unsurprisingly Morpeko, but funnily enough, having its only role as being cute on the sidelines is still more positive than 99% of what it's contributed since it was caught

Being a totally worthless Pokémon from beginning to end is definitely on brand, it honestly says a lot that Wobuffet , a Pokémon that’s literally unable to take direct action against anything is leagues above the nothing Morpeko contributed during its tenure. Very glad it it was largely left out and the actual TR Pokémon did the work this ep, would’ve soured me a bit if they suddenly started pretending it was any kind of asset at the 11th hour.

 

[kantoskies]

When they cut to it eating during the climax I was reallllll worried it was gonna be what caused them to fail...boy I'm glad I'm wrong.