Next month, Pokemon Scarlet & Violet – Destined Rivals will be released in English. The Pokemon Trading Card Game set will combine various Japanese expansions, including The Glory of Team Rocket. That set will be released soon in Japan, and all cards have now been revealed. The set will contain cards based on several Team Rocket characters from across the video game series; however, the 2 most iconic members of the group apparently will not be included. According to PokeBeach, there will not be a card featuring Jessie and James, the duo that appeared prominently throughout the Pokemon anime series.
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The Glory of Team Rocket is being treated as a follow-up to the original Team Rocket set from the early days of the Pokemon TCG. That set notably did have a card featuring Jessie and James, and the 2 characters have made multiple appearances in the TCG since. A set based entirely around Team Rocket would have seemed like the perfect place to bring them back, but that won’t be the case. Instead, the set will focus on Team Rocket members that first appeared in the video games, including Giovanni, Archer, and Ariana.
While The Glory of Team Rocket will not feature a card based on Jessie and James, there will be several callbacks to Pokemon cards from the past. As PokeBeach notes, new cards like Rocket’s Hypno feature attacks based on those that appeared in the original Team Rocket set, but with updated requirements and damage that better suit changes to the game over the decades. For that reason, the new set seems like it will be well worth collecting for both newcomers, as well as longtime collectors.
There’s no way of knowing why Jessie and James were left out of The Glory of Team Rocket set. PokeBeach speculates that the decision could have been a result of the characters being written out of the show alongside lead protagonist Ash Ketchum. The current Pokemon Horizons anime features a completely new cast of characters. The Pokemon Company has hinted that Ash could return one day, and if he does, it seems like a safe bet that Jessie and James won’t be far behind. If those 3 do return, it’s possible we could see some new TCG cards to celebrate.
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Pokemon Scarlet & Violet – Destined Rivals is currently slated to release in English on May 30th. In addition to cards based on Team Rocket, the set will continue to include Trainer’s Pokemon, similar to the current Journey Together set. This time around, collectors can expect to see even more iconic characters from the video games, such as Misty, Ethan, Arven, and Cynthia. Preorders for the set were opened on the Pokemon Center website back in March, but did not go as well as planned.
Are you disappointed Jessie and James won’t appear in Destined Rivals? Do you plan on checking out the new expansion next month? Share your thoughts with me directly on Bluesky atย @Marcdachamp, or on Instagram atย @Dachampgaming!
