History Main / TeamRocketWins

The simplest answer is that they got their act together-- ''really'' together-- and are now a threat. As to "why", the Author wants to shake the heroes and viewers out of their comfort zone by allowing the bad guys [[YouCantThwartStageOne to win round one]] so the heroes will be forced to get their act together and make their next encounter a truly epic fight. These third string villains undid the VillainDecay that put them at the bottom of the SortingAlgorithmOfVillainThreat by going through TrainingFromHell, using some kind of UpgradeArtifact or ArtifactOfDoom, or are under the effects of a VillainOverride. Another possibility is that they catch the heroes off guard. Maybe Team HarmlessVillain was NotSoHarmless all along, and have been [[IAmNotLeftHanded pretending to be weak]] to lull the heroes into [[{{Pride}} complacency]] (which warrants the question, [[WhyDontYaJustShootHim Why didn't they just shoot them?]])

* Team Rocket, the TropeNamer from ''{{Pokemon}}'', beat the crap out of Ash's Pokemon when they were allowed to run Viridian city's gym using Giovanni's Pokemon, at least until Ash managed to regain momentum and beat them at their own game. There have been a few other instances where Team Rocket has been successful in battle, but it was because they were [[EvilIsDumb trying to do something good for a change]] or something like that. Their victories never lasted too long, and they were often sent flying at the end of the episode anyway.
** Jessie (under thinly-veiled disguises and while using an alias) has managed to impress judges at Pokemon contests and sometimes even ''wins'' while competing against the current female coordinator traveling with Ash.
** In one story, James won a contest that involved teamwork with one's own Pokemon. He used Mime Jr. and was steadfast in playing by the rules despite Jessie's repeated attempts to encourage him to cheat. So this goes with "Team Rocket can win if they act like good guys" rule.

*** Even wilder, [[spoiler:they actually become competent. They almost capture Pikachu and Iris's Kibago. Key and operative word: almost. We're four episodes in and they've yet to blast off ''once''.]]

*** Even wilder, [[spoiler:they actually become competent for once. They almost capture Pikachu and Iris's Kibago. Key and operative word: almost. For once, they don't blast off.]]

* One ''LooneyTunes'' short has [[WileECoyoteAndTheRoadrunner Wile E. Coyote catching the Roadrunner]]. Of course, the coyote has shrunk down to a comically puny size so the Roadrunner is '''much''' bigger than him. Wile E. [[LampshadeHanging lampshades this by]] [[NoFourthWall pointing out to the audience that he has absolutely no clue what to do next.]]

--->'''Wile E. Coyote:'' [[SignLanguage (''Holds up a sign'')]] Okay, wise guys, you always wanted me to catch him. Now what do I do?

--->Wile E Coyote: [[SignLanguage (Holds up a sign)]] ''Okay, wise guys, you always wanted me to catch him. Now what do I do?''

** A bumper on 'The Road Runner Show'' (CBS, 1966-68; ABC, 1971-72) had the coyote diverting the Road Runner's attention by drawing a portrait of the two, the coyote in the drawing with a rifle in hand. The coyote grabs the Road Runner's neck only to have the coyote drawing blast him in the ass with the rifle.

** An issue of the Laff-A-Lympics comic book (Marvel #5) had the Rottens apparently renouncing their cheating ways and winding up winning. However, they were disqualified because [[spoiler:The Great Fondoo and Magic Rabbit, who were "kicked off" the team, kidnapped Boo Boo Bear and Blue Falcon, took their physical forms through Fondoo's magic, and caused the Yogis and Scoobys to lose on purpose.]]

** Should be, since in another episode, Rufus Ruffcut extended his neck to cross the finish line first and was awarded the win. But since Dastardly is the token villain (in spite of the fact that most of the other drivers are prone to a little chicanery), he [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption ''has'' to be declared a pathological loser.]]

* In ''ThePowerpuffGirls'' story "Smart And Smarter" (Cartoon Network Block Party #59), Mojo Jojo outwits Blossom, with her sisters' blessings! Blossom (who let her ego swell after being admitted to a special school) blows her ice breath which Mojo counters with a heat shield. The trail of melted ice reaches Blossom's foot (which she doesn't see) and emits static electricity from her hands which in turn fries her to a frazzle. The ending panel has Buttercup shaking hands with Mojo.

* In [[ThePowerpuffGirls]] story "Smart And Smarter" (Cartoon Network Block Party #59), Mojo Jojo outwits Blossom, with her sisters' blessings! Blossom (who let her ego swell after being admitted to a special school) blows her ice breath which Mojo counters with a heat shield. The trail of melted ice reaches Blossom's foot (which she doesn't see) and emits static electricity from her hands which in turn fries her to a frazzle. The ending panel has Buttercup shaking hands with Mojo.

** On a lighter note, he also won in two episodes, one where the robot he sent lost the showdown, but he stole all the monk's Sheng Gong Wu (in the "shake the heroes out of their comfort zone" model), and another where Omi actually loses due to misusing a shen gong wu, and the episode has a downer ending. Despite being an IneffectualSympatheticVillain, hes had several NearVillainVictory s as well
* One ''LooneyTunes'' short has Wile E. Coyote catching the Roadrunner. Of course, the coyote has shrunk down to a comically puny size so the Roadrunner is '''much''' bigger than him. Wile E. [[LampshadeHanging lampshades this by]] [[NoFourthWall pointing out to the audience that he has absolutely no clue what to do next.]]

* In DigimonSavers, Kurata pulls this off several times, and even the victories the heroes manage are bittersweet. This succeeds in adding to Kurata's CompleteMonster status in addition to making his eventual defeat all the more satisfying.

* In season 4 of ''BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' (right when she went to college, and symbolizing the stress she was under) that a thoroughly normal vampire gang don't just beat Buffy but steal her stuff. Afterward she became very unsure of herself, but she gets a good pep talk to get over it. In the end she beats them up, ''and'' happily walks away with her stolen stuff including her (slightly broken) Class Protector Award.
** Another episode in season 5 involves a normal, random vampire managing to stake ''her,'' forcing her to confront the mortality and limitations of being a Slayer.
** In that same episode, Riley fully expects that the wound had been inflicted by some sort of powerful demon. Buffy says it was vampires. Riley assumes that it was a large group of vampires. Buffy says there was just one. Riley continues undaunted ''still'', asking if it was some sort of 'super-vamp,' at which point Buffy finally admits that it was one, entirely normal vampire.
** And again in that episode, we're treated to a pair of flashbacks to [[HeelFaceTurn Spike]]'s two Slayer kills. In the first, not only does he win partially by sheer luck (a cannon explosion throws the Slayer off balance, allowing Spike to disarm her), but when the Chinese Slayer says with her final breath, "Tell my mother...I'm sorry," Spike smirks and replies, "[[CrowningMomentofAwesome Sorry, love. I don't speak Chinese.]]" Both instances were perfect examples of the villain winning, because this was in the era when Spike was most decidedly evil...and looked exactly like Billy Idol.
** In ''MightyMorphinPowerRangers'', Zedd and Rita would pull this off at least once a season.

** Interestingly, repeated encounters with Ash and friends has been like TrainingFromHell to the team, giving them superhuman damage resistance, among other things. Meowth himself commented that a powerful electric cage was nothing compared to Pikachu's thunder attacks. They also learn from their mistakes, though in the process usually make all new ones. Such as in Charmander's debut episode all the way back at the very start of the series, they use rubber coated equipment to nullify Pikachu's electric attacks, but didn't bring any ''fireproof'' equipment.
*** Heck, in some later episodes, Team Rocket actually does some nasty damage to other trainers. In general, Team Rocket manages to win when the plot requires it-Jessie fighting her way to the end of the Princess Festival tournament, Jessie and James defeating the Eevee Brothers, etc.
*** This occurs even in early episodes-- in "The Punchy Pokemon", various trainers are participating in a fighting type only tournament. Though Ash beats them in the end, they very successfully steal a Hitmonlee and thrash their competition with it through a combination of regular battling and standard evil villain cheating. This is pretty notable, since they beat a Hitmonchan raised by a trainer who LEFT HIS FAMILY to train the damn thing.

***Isn't this how Koffing and Ekans being able to evolve was explained?
** It's worth noting that Ash depends almost entirely on his Pikachu, and Giovanni uses ground Pokemon exclusively. All they have to do is be [[GenreSavvy the slightest bit aware of type advantage.]]
*** Not if you realize that Ash's Pikachu has [[GameplayAndStorySegregation constantly disobeyed the actual game laws]].
**** [[ScrewTheRulesIHavePlot Pretty much everything on the show does that.]]
*** ...besides, I'm pretty sure Giovanni's team in the anime wasn't even close to being Ground-focused. Something like a Persian and Kingler (which is ''weak'' to electric attacks, by the way) and something else I can't remember, I think...
**** More specifically, he had a a Kingler, a Rhydon, and a Machamp. Arbok and Weezing were also added by Jessie and James.

** An issue of the Laff-A-Lympics comic book (Marvel #6) had the Rottens apparently renouncing their cheating ways and winding up winning. However, they were disqualified because [[spoiler:The Great Fondoo and Magic Rabbit, who were "kicked off" the team, kidnapped Boo Boo Bear and Blue Falcon, took their physical forms through Fondoo's magic, and caused the Yogis and Scoobys to lose on purpose.]]