One of the Pokémon anime's most defining features is Team Rocket's slapstick comedy, gloriously cheesy puns and their never-say-die attitude towards stealing Ash's Pikachu. For all their mistakes that led to defeat after defeat, they've also concocted some rather clever schemes that should have ended successfully. Here are some of their best near misses and complete blunders.
Near Miss: "The Battling Eevee Brothers"
Ash and friends arrive at a Pokémon trainer party hosted by three brothers who own one of Vaporeon, Jolteon and Flareon. They also have a little brother who owns an Eevee. Soon enough, Team Rocket shows up and successfully steals most of the Pokémon, the food and some valuable evolution stones. For good measure, they even use their famous Meowth balloon as a diversion while driving off with their haul in a truck.
The make a huge mistake, though, getting cocky and stopping too early for rest. Thanks to a helpful ink trail left by Misty's Horsea, the gang finds them. Team Rocket overcomes the three older brothers yet somehow loses to one attack by an Eevee fighting its very first battle. So near yet so far.
Worst Blunder: "Volcanic Panic"
Even Team Rocket's incompetence should have some limits. Setting aside the foolishness of trying to steal a gym leader's Pokémon -- Blaine's Magmar in this case -- it doesn't take a genius to know going deep into a volcano and blasting freeze rays everywhere risks causing a chain reaction. Furthermore, the fact Magmar actually lives in the volcano and rests in its lava should've made it obvious a layer of ice would never be enough to weaken it.
Their scheme put the island's entire population at risk. and only the hard work of several Pokémon stopped a full volcanic eruption. This was an astonishing lapse in judgment, even by Team Rocket's standards.
Near Miss: "Ditto's Mysterious Mansion"
Meowth sums up this episode perfectly: "Dimwits! How'd you manage to mess this one up?" Every time Team Rocket uses their hot air balloon and then executes their plan, all they really have to do is fly far enough away that Ash and friends can't catch them, then land and avoid detection from any flying Pokémon Ash may send out.
In this case, Team Rocket successfully steals a Ditto, but rather than taking it straight to Giovanni -- who could have it transform into any Pokémon he desires -- they stop after a quick getaway and try to force Ditto to transform into a Dratini. Even without a perfect facial transformation, Duplica's battle with Ash showed her Ditto can imitate other Pokémon's attacks successfully. Giovanni could have made great use of Ditto while Jessie, James and Meowth may finally have been rewarded for stealing a valuable Pokémon.
Worst Blunder: "The Water Flowers of Cerulean City"
One of the most basic science lessons is water conducts electricity, and Jessie and James apparently never learned it.
Team Rocket crashes Misty's battle with Ash at the Cerulean City Gym and tries to suck all the water and Pokemon out of the pool, then sprays the water all over the room. Unfortunately, they forgot the one Pokémon they're normally so obsessed with catching, Pikachu, is an electric type. Ash quickly commands Pikachu to use thundershock, and the battle is over.
Near Miss: "The Song of Jigglypuff"
Just imagine the damage any competent criminal could do by using a Jigglypuff to sing an entire city to sleep. They could steal everything they want: Pokémon, money, valuable jewelry, even food and drinks. Team Rocket gives a preview here and absolutely has the right idea with near-perfect execution -- except they didn't have strong enough ear plugs, falling asleep along with everyone else.
Had Team Rocket simply captured Jigglypuff and figured out how to avoid falling asleep themselves, the possibilities thereafter would have been pretty much endless.
Worst Blunder: "All Fired Up"
Of all Team Rocket's terrible schemes, this one has to be up there with the worst. They try to steal the torch from the Pokémon League's opening ceremony -- twice in one episode. What could go wrong? Let's start with the fact that the Pokémon League is televised worldwide and has a massive crowd in attendance, meaning they would never get away with it in the long run. They do take the torch, but the flame goes out thanks to Meowth's blunder.
Later they break into the stadium and use more fire to power a giant mechanical bug. There's no real semblance of a plan or goal aside from causing chaos and destruction, which they do until the legendary bird Moltres emerges from the flames and sends Team Rocket blasting off again, putting a stop to this terrible, terrible plot.
Of course, Team Rocket's buffoonery is a big part of what makes them and the show so fun and enjoyable. They just wouldn't be Team Rocket anymore if they suddenly succeeded at their job, so long live their many formulas of failure.
