To be entirely honest, Team Rocket got on my nerves. It felt like their main purpose was to get blasted off by Ash and his friends. They were at their most competent when they are not trying to steal Pikachu, and often, I wished they would leave Ash alone and go about their other schemes. Instead, they served as annoying interruptions most of the time.
Their characterization, however, was relatively entertaining. Their spotlight episodes were good for a laugh. "A Frenzied Factory Fiasco" and the Squishy dream episode were absolutely hilarious. "A Fork in the Road! A Parting of the Ways" and the Malamar episode showed how much Jessie and James care about their Pokémon and about each other, and I always like episodes like that. Jessie's Showcase performances were surprisingly entertaining (even when they were bad). The overenthusiastic way James cheered for each (and the strange looks he got from the people around him) always made me chuckle.
I really liked their inclusion in the Team Flare arc. I had fully expected them to be their usual goofy, semi-useless selves. Instead, they were woven into the crisis in an interesting way - disguised as news reporters, who kept delivering footage to Kalos even after they ditched their disguises. It was a nice change from the way they are usually depicted in the series.
However, unfortunately, their entertaining characterization and the Team Flare arc do not make up for the fact that, most of the time, their appearance made me groan and want to bang my head against a wall.
