Favorite version of the Team Rocket trio

[Pokegirl Fan~]

What is your favorite version of the Team Rocket trio and why?

My favorite version would be the Team Rocket Trio of the Original Series since they had the perfect balance of being threatening villains while also being comedic villains. They were at their best in this series imo and they felt the freshest there.

My rankings would be OS Trio>SM trio>BW trio>AG trio>>>DP trio=XY trio

 

[Blaze Master X]

SM Team Rocket.

SM Team Rocket has never ruined episodes and not appeared in more than half of SM series. Less annoying.

 

[Leonhart]

OS Rocket-dan, mostly from the first dozen episodes before they became completely incompetent. At least prior to the St. Anne episode, they seemed like they were more trusted by Sakaki before they started to decline into total goofiness.

 

[CMButch]

I would say it goes for me:
BW TR > OS TR > XY TR > SM TR > AG TR > DP TR.

 

[AznKei]

OS TRio. I remembered the roasts between them and the twerps were pretty strong at the time, not too mention they felt fresh for being in the 1st series.

XY TRio was redundant. They appeared in most episodes and always ended being blasted off after failing of commiting crimes. Jessie got to participate in the Pokemon Showcases but the spotlights from her was barely shown, along with anyone outside of Serena.

SM TRio was pretty good. Their stealing antics got toned down and they had good relationships with Bewear, their caretakers during Alola.

 

[mehmeh1]

OS>>>SM>AG>BW>XY>>>DP

 

[DatsRight]

Almost certainly OS Trio is the best handled (at least till the later points of Johto perhaps). Not only were they at their most fresh amusing, but they felt like relevant antagonists back then. Their backstories and ties to the regions felt as key as the twerps', and they also had more amusing chemistries and schemes with the protagonists back then, while even their better written later series tend to struggle with making them a third wheel.

Otherwise I was quite fond of SM Trio. They started off a bit rough (XYZ was one of their worst points) but by Ultra Legends nearly every appearance was fun. I will say I thought they could have done more with them, what with their lair and the Z Ring that rarely seemed to come into play, but I liked seeing them have to change up their mission planning long term and seeing their livelihood a lot more often. They also intervened with the twerps' limelight far less.

BW was fun for a brief shake up as well as seeing more of their ties to the organisation, but without their personalities it just wasn't the same characters. Late BW and early XY did try to keep up a mix of comical again but still more competent and putting up better fights, but inevitably their credibility fizzled out soon and by the end of XY they were more just their old shtick but blander and more repetitive.

AG had some good moments and it was nice having the old dub cast for most of it, but it was obvious they were getting stale by then and I thought AG made them a bit TOO pitiful (I always felt them ending up punching bags to even more ridiculous antagonists like Harley was their lowest point). DP resolved this by giving them more darkhorse moments or focus on their non villain niches (it was fun seeing Jessie WIN contests and be a legit rival at last) but otherwise the flanderization was in full throttle by that point.

 

[WishIhadaManafi5]

What is your favorite version of the Team Rocket trio and why?

My favorite version would be the Team Rocket Trio of the Original Series since they had the perfect balance of being threatening villains while also being comedic villains. They were at their best in this series imo and they felt the freshest there.

My rankings would be OS Trio>SM trio>BW trio>AG trio>>>DP trio=XY trio

Well said. Really loved that balance they had back then. Not too silly yet not too serious. Same could be said about Ash and co.. Both sides balanced each other out. And their burns were classic.

 

[Ignition]

OS, DP, & SM though anything that's not BW TRio is fine by me.

 

[Dragalge]

OS always reigns supreme! That said SM was the best TR we got since Sinnoh so they get some points too.

 

[JustAStatistic]

OS TR easily takes this.

 

[brtnvm]

My vote goes to BW TR, although I'm not a big fan of the characters in general. Even as a kid I thought that they just wasted screen time, now THEY are the real fillers(I actually appreciate fillers but not them). I guess they're supposed to be comic relief but when you repeat the same joke 100 times it's not funny anymore.

 

[Cradily19]

OS was the only time they were genuinely funny, moreso in Kanto than Johto though. SM TR was surprisingly decent though.

AG is when they started to get repetitive but still had their moments, by DP them appearing in every ep was overkill.

 

[SerGoldenhandtheJust]

I would say it goes for me:
BW TR > OS TR > XY TR > SM TR > AG TR > DP TR.

Why did you like XY TR more than SM or DP TR. Just wondering

 

[CMButch]

Why did you like XY TR more than SM or DP TR. Just wondering

DP TR were annoying, the most annoying version of trio ever. As of SM; they were more menacing and "villainous" than SM, which SM TR were more comedic.And I feel they did more work in actually challenging Ash's skills rather than SM TR.
BTW, why asking me only? There are like 12 people on this thread... lol.Just wonderin'.

 

[DatsRight]

DP TR were annoying, the most annoying version of trio ever. As of SM; they were more menacing and "villainous" than SM, which SM TR were more comedic.And I feel they did more work in actually challenging Ash's skills rather than SM TR.
BTW, why asking me only? There are like 12 people on this thread... lol.Just wonderin'.

XY Trio started off okay (I loved Wobbuffet battling more early on), but about halfway in they started reverting back to being jobbers. You could buy that Ash in that series was starting to surpass them again but at the same time Clemont and Serena suddenly started trouncing them like they were nothing as well. It felt like the writers had just decided they'd had their fill of challenging TR fights. (Even beforehand they were waning a bit more than BW Trio, with a lot of cases the twerps just won easily by plot armour or intervention rather than getting a solid two way battle against them).

I think the issue there is that they hadn't really regained all their comedic charm and versatility to compensate for it until SM, so late XY TR were just doing their old curbstomp shtick but blander and more repetitive, and even worse XY was the one post-DP point they oversaturated their use again. I wanted to see more episodes like BW and SM where the twerps could drive their own stories, but instead TR kept interrupting plots for the same boring one sided fight. Same stock phrases, same curbstomp battle, same attacks, now even the same damn motto animation (I miss the varied mottos).

SM TR kinda gave up on the 'challenging TR' angle as well (none of the Mimikyu battles were really finished, and they barely used their Z Ring, even weak battlers like Mallow and Lillie made them their jobbers), but they were used more reasonably and their roles in episodes were more versatile and vibrant (I liked they called back to other organisation members again too). I don't think they made nearly as many episodes dull and predictable as DP/XY Trio were known for.

 

[CMButch]

You could buy that Ash in that series was starting to surpass them again but at the same time Clemont and Serena suddenly started trouncing them like they were nothing as well.

Serena didn't do it herself, she was more beating them in combined effort with Ash and Clemont. As of Clemont that makes sense since he's a gym leader like 5th one. So makes sense that he's beating them.

I think the issue there is that they hadn't really regained all their comedic charm and versatility to compensate for it until SM, so late XY TR were just doing their old curbstomp shtick but blander and more repetitive, and even worse XY was the one post-DP point they oversaturated their use again.

The only two issues here are that XY TR didn't catch at least 1 more Pokemon each and that they should've stayed BW menacing like, they've would've been best TR ever. TR's comedic entries are gone with the wind. OS-AG should've been only comedic TR while their more "menacing" ,"evil" breaking point should've been DP. That's why Pre-Unova League TR is is the best, they are acting like real, "dark-leveled" team that other teams are doing per series. XY stuck with that even as being jobbers, they were presented with that evil "aura" while in SM it was gone, thanks to a nature of series which was more light-hearted and comedic. They reverted to being comedic which doesn't suit their progression. OS-> AG -> BW S1-early S2 TRio is the real progression of their characters that's why it was such bummer that they reverted to be "comedic", less dark version of themselves post Unova league, still menacing( especially in XY). That's why XY > SM Trio for me.

"but they were used more reasonably and their roles in episodes were more versatile and vibrant"

You're speaking more from character-driven points of TRio (which deserves different rating) but I am talking about menacing-dark driven points(also their competence, battle progression characters), which make sense since that's what I favor( battles over reference/continuity).
I would rather see TR giving good fight for Ash and doing dark level things rather than watching TR for example in that Ditto episode in PM or like having "cute" goodbye moment with Mimikyu, Bewear( in last episode of SM), or Jessie having comedic argument with Matori in Spying for the Big Guy.

 

[Leonhart]

DP TR were annoying, the most annoying version of trio ever.

I don't agree necessarily since I found them more irritating during AG, but what I disliked about them in DP was how they received credit for taking down the Ginga-dan at the end of the Shinou saga.

 

[SerGoldenhandtheJust]

DP TR were annoying, the most annoying version of trio ever. As of SM; they were more menacing and "villainous" than SM, which SM TR were more comedic.And I feel they did more work in actually challenging Ash's skills rather than SM TR.
BTW, why asking me only? There are like 12 people on this thread... lol.Just wonderin'.

I mean I only saw you giving XY TR a more importance than SM TR or DP TR so wanted to know. XY TR for me were stale. DP TR were annoying at times but I love how they allowed Jessie to actually excel at contests. And SM TR I really like coz for me personally they are a perfect balance

 

[CMButch]

I mean I only saw you giving XY TR a more importance than SM TR or DP TR so wanted to know. XY TR for me were stale. DP TR were annoying at times but I love how they allowed Jessie to actually excel at contests. And SM TR I really like coz for me personally they are a perfect balance

Yeah, because I enjoyed them more than SM and DP TR and even AG TR? Even with Jessie being a contestant, still annoyance of DP TR overrules Jessie being in contests. I mean she was also in contests in BF and XY( performance). XY TR were saved by more battle competent and keeping that "evil aura" from BW and being more menacing. But only truly amazing TR was OS( actual menacing and actually funny: 4kids to be more specific) and BW TR( literally menacing and evil with good plans). XY, AG,DP and SM TR all fail in that amazement and quality.
( I like TR, because without them show would be dull, but I feel they could've been way better like better than BW, but meh since people like more comedy than actual TR doing bad work).That's why I was dissatisfied when TR is back to their goof themselves in late BW.