Anger Born of Worry: Dragonite barks at Iris after she tries to take an attack for him and both get saved by Pikachu. Its surprise by Iris's genuine concern is a sign that it really is warming up to its trainer.
Aw, Look! They Really Do Love Each Other: Dragonite finally begins to obey Iris in the final fight against Giovanni after she almost takes a hit for him, and he is sincerely touched by her concern.
Jessie, James, and Meowth, upon seeing that their boss is risking his own self-destruction along with the destruction of Unova, immediately jump into action to save him, with Dr. Zager expressing worry about Giovanni's well-being as well. Giovanni calls for a retreat after being saved and restored to sanity, even letting Jessie and James help him to stand and walk. Team Rocket may be evil, but they're like family when it counts.
But Now I Must Go: Meloetta leaves Ash and his friends at the end of the episode, much to Oshawott's disappointment.
Eye Catch: The Dare da? is Landorus in Japan, and Persian in the U.S.
The Pokémon Live Caster at the end of the Japanese episode's initial airing showed Team Rocket's previous Pokémon. They then showed three phone numbers where fans could vote for either Wobbuffet, Mime Jr., or Dustox to return to the series. A winner would be drawn to win a Nintendo 3DS XL. Wobbuffet won, and would return in the final Best Wishes episode to be added for Pokémon XY. Subsequent airings would put Drilbur on the Live Caster
Graceful Loser: Giovanni accepts failure with dignity and orders Team Rocket to bow out and retreat, even having an accepting smile on his face as he does so.
Know When to Fold 'Em: Giovanni and Team Rocket's retreat from Unova after losing Meloetta.
Omnicidal Maniac: When Giovanni is consumed by the power of the Reveal Glass, he becomes a Laughing Mad psychopath who claims he "lives for destruction" and orders the Weather Trio to destroy Unova.
O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Jessie, James, and Meowth realize something is very wrong with Giovanni when he goes mad with the Reveal Glass's power, because they know he would never order destruction; his real desire is conquest.
Put on a Bus: Team Rocket leave Unova and are completely off the show for the next 11 episodes. Back when this was originally aired, it was an event advertised as "the final actions of Team Rocket", suggesting that they could possibly be gone for good following this departure, but this either didn't stick or was false advertising to start with. Played straight with Dr. Zager, who is never seen again after this episode aside from a split second cameo on the final end credits of Best Wishes, which is never seen in the international dub.
Save the Villain: The episode climaxes with Jessie, James, and Meowth diving onto Giovanni in order to save him from his own madness.
Taking the Bullet: A non-lethal version. When Iris and Dragonite were about to be hit by Thunderus's attack, Pikachu jumped in front of them to take the blow. This was actually a positive version of the trope as Pikachu ended up absorbing some of Thunderus's power which ended up supercharging his Electro Ball.
