Meowth (Team Rocket)
- This article is about the Meowth who works for Team Rocket. For the TCG card from the Team Rocket set, see Meowth (Team Rocket 62).
- For the Wizards Promotional card, see Team Rocket's Meowth (Wizards Promo 18).
- For the EX Team Rocket Returns card, see Rocket's Meowth (EX Team Rocket Returns 46).
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 Meowth of Team Rocket | ||||||||||||||
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Meowth (Japanese: ニャース Nyarth) is a member of Team Rocket, more specifically part of a trio with Jessie and James, that follows Ash Ketchum and his friends around in the Pokémon anime, usually trying to steal Ash's Pikachu. His major difference from other Meowth, and pretty much almost all Pokemon, is that he can talk.
In the anime
History
Meowth's earliest memory is being alone at Camp Pokéhearst. With no food, he was always starving, and tipped over a basket of baseballs believing it was food. As punishment for tipping the basket over, the baseball coach hung him from a tree; from this tree, he was able to see a movie called That Darn Meowth!, which depicted a Meowth in Hollywood being given delicious food by its family. Meowth instantly decided to go to Hollywood, which he believed would be a paradise.
However, when he arrived in Hollywood, he was merely a stray Pokémon, and was constantly being chased for stealing food. Soon, a Meowth gang, led by a Persian, took him in. Meowth lived on the streets as a member of the gang for a long time; the gang annoyed the humans in town, stealing food and causing trouble in general. One day, Meowth came across a female Meowth named Meowzie. She rejected him, saying that he was poor and that she preferred humans, so Meowth attempted to make himself more human-like to make her love him. Thus, he painstakingly taught himself to speak human language and walk upright like a human. When he approached her after this transformation, she once again rejected him, calling him a freak. Heartbroken, Meowth remembered the first human word he learned to speak—"rocket"—and was inspired to join Team Rocket.
There has been some debate as to whether or not Meowth was ever Giovanni's "Top Cat" (personal pet). He has stated himself as such in front of Giovanni with no objection (only to say that Persian was now in that position). Yet in Training Daze, he was shown to have been present at Team Rocket HQ for a short time, during which we see that Persian is already there. During this time, Meowth became a servant to Giovanni, bringing him food and drinks; however, he was unsuccessful at this task because he tripped over a wire, spilled Giovanni's coffee and got himself electrocuted. Giovanni didn't appear to be angry, but he assigned Meowth to Jessie and James's team. In light of this, it should be noted that Training Daze potentially contradicted other stated facts from previous episodes regarding Team Rocket's back story.
Meowth made his debut in the anime in Pokémon Emergency. Alongside Jessie and James, they set their sights on the injured Pokémon in the Viridian Pokémon Center. As the two sent out their TREkans ([[{{{2}}} (move)|{{{2}}}]]) and TRKoffing ([[{{{2}}} (move)|{{{2}}}]]) from their Meowth balloon, they quickly overtook the Pokémon Center, which only had three people inside. Before they could steal any of the Pokémon, however, Ash's Pikachu, who teamed up with many other Pikachu in the Pokémon Center, used an electric attack, causing the entire Pokémon Center to explode. It was here that Team Rocket decided to capture Pikachu, deeming him as an exceptionally powerful Pokémon, and made it their goal to capture him.
In Go West, Young Meowth, Meowth, Jessie, and James returned to Hollywood while following Ash, and Meowth was reunited with Meowzie, who had since been abandoned by her mistress and was forced to join the gang of street Meowth. Meowth fought his former Persian leader to win Meowzie's love, and won, but Meowzie demonstrated that her loyalty was with Persian since he took care of her when she needed it, and Meowth was once again heartbroken.
Because of the effort Meowth exerted while learning to speak and walk like a human, he has not learned the signature move of his species, Pay Day. In Meowth Rules!, Meowth was worshiped by an island of people who believed that he could bring them riches with Pay Day. When he was caught in a battle meant to induce Pay Day, Jessie and James had to secretly bail him out by throwing the last of their spare change and some of James's prized bottlecaps in order to appease the islanders. Upon learning of his species' love for gathering coins and shiny objects from Ash's Pokédex later in Do I Hear a Ralts?, Jessie criticized him for not doing so.
Several times, Meowth and Pikachu have had to team up, such as in the episodes Bound for Trouble and Hoenn Alone! when both were separated from their respective parties. His relationship with Jessie and James varies in quality; for example, in Go West, Young Meowth they stated that they regarded Meowth as a friend, but in Bound for Trouble, having discovered Meowth and Pikachu after the two had been stuck together, they both stated that they had really been looking for Pikachu and Meowth was just 'part of the package'. Meowth seems to have aspects of each of his teammates in him; in arguments, he can often be seen siding with either Jessie (usually denouncing James' incompetence) or James (usually complaining about Jessie's overdramatic and rash behavior). Despite these fights, the three remain very close and loyal friends, although at one point in Giovanni's Gym in Viridian City, they threatened to split up. However they realized they had over reacted, and became friends again, proving themselves very loyal to each other.
Meowth has also, since late Johto, had frequent fantasies about presenting Giovanni with various Pokémon. These fantasies often involve whatever creature it happens to be assisting Giovanni in his daily routine.
Much like Ash's Pikachu, Meowth does not stay inside a Poké Ball, but is technically a wild Pokémon unlike Pikachu. Strangely, though he first appeared in the second episode, in an era where Ash scanned nearly every Pokémon he came into contact with his Pokédex, it took until Do I Hear a Ralts? for Ash to do this to Meowth. However, this was a mere accident: Meowth was dressed up like a Kirlia, and Ash had never seen one before. In Two Degrees of Separation!, Dawn, unlike Ash, scanned him right away. She also made the same mistake as Ash when she scanned Meowth as a Shiftry in Leave it to Brocko!. Also, in the episode The Lost Lapras, Tracey started examining Meowth (despite not having a Pokédex), but only because he was interested in the fact that he could talk.
Meowth normally does not battle unless there are extreme circumstances; his explanation is that his ability to talk and walk upright came at the expense of battling ability. However, when forced to fight, Meowth is fairly resourceful, such as dumping a bucket of water on an Onix to weaken it. In Jumping Rocket Ship!, however, Meowth fought extremely well, even knocking out Barry's Empoleon with Fury Swipes, which normally wouldn't do much damage. Yet just two episodes later, in Get Your Rotom Running!, Meowth was unable to break a display case using Scratch. Meowth's Fury Swipes attack was shown to slice dough in order to make ramen in the episode, Noodles! Roamin' Off!. Christopher, a former Team Rocket member and the owner of the ramen shop, saw Meowth do this and asked him to work in his restaurant as a noodle maker. After some thought, which included reflecting back on previous failures and the lack of appreciation and respect from Jessie and James, Meowth quit the Team Rocket Trio and accepted the offer. However, he eventually rejoined the group after hearing that James and Jessie were in danger.
Meowth has used his claws to pick locks on several occasions, such as when Jessie, James, and he wanted to get into the Old Chateau in Canalave City.
Jessie also used him during the Princess Festival in the episode Princess vs. Princess, Jessie's Contest in Mean With Envy and the Pokémon Ping Pong Tournament in To Thine Own Pokémon Be True!.
In the Appeals Round in the Contest, he created an ice sculpture of Giovanni, his Persian and himself.
In "the Jester"'s battle with Erica, he used "Transform". He did this by using the pouch attached to his belly. He transformed into a Sunflora first, using Razor Leaf against Jynx. Later, he transformed into a Kirlia and again into a Wailord. He popped the inflatable Wailord with his claws and "the Jester" was eventually disqualified.
In To Thine Own Pokémon Be True!, Jessie and Meowth were disqualified from the Pokémon Ping Pong Tournament because Meowth sliced the ball with his claws instead of hitting it. In Dressed for Jess Success!, James disguised as Jessilina due to Jessie being sick. Meowth, following his promise in Old Rivals, New Tricks!, is used for the appeal, where he used his talent for slicing ramen noodles. The two then gave the judges the ramen to taste, which was declared to be of excellent quality. Upon seeing the appeal on TV, Christopher became very proud.
In Arceus and the Jewel of Life, Meowth first made an appearance in the opening song when he and Team Rocket were powering a blimp by peddling on a bike. However, they grew tired and crashed before they had a chance to do anything. Not too long after, Team Rocket appeared again when Kevin explained Sheena's ability to communicate with Pokémon. Meowth appeared later in the movie when Arceus was floating down to investigate the fake Jewel of Life. After Arceus found out the Jewel was fake, it attacked the group. Ash, Sheena, Kevin, Dawn and Brock escaped, but Team Rocket was caught in the explosion and ended up being washed into the lake. Meowth made minor appearances throughout the rest of the movie as the battle between the legendary Pokémon continued. Meowth also made an appearance in the credits, when an Electrode used Explosion on Team Rocket when they sneaked into the corn field.
In the Best Wishes series, Jessie, James, and Meowth were sent to the Unova region under orders from Giovanni after they were promoted in Memories are Made of Bliss!. To prevent them from getting too much attention, Giovanni did not allow Jessie's and James's other Pokémon to be sent to them, only making them use Pokémon native to Unova. This, however, made Meowth think of what would happen to him. Throughout most of the series, Meowth and his two friends were presented as horribly failing and erroneous criminals, always failing in their missions to capture Ash's Pikachu or other Pokémon. Recently, however, he, along with the rest of his team, developed a more serious attitude in their work, as he had when first introduced, being quicker-witted and much more resourceful than before and using ingenious methods of escape and thus proving much more difficult for Ash to defeat. He has also demonstrated much more battling skill than before, being agile enough to land on his feet when blown back by Ash's Pidove's Gust, and unlike before, does not horribly injure himself in battle. In The Pokémon Harbor Patrol!, he, along with Jessie and James demonstrate their agility easily dodging Pikachu's Thunderbolt. In What Lies Beyond Truth and Ideals!, the extension of his battling skill was shown; took on multiple opponents, including several of Team Plasma's Liepard.
In Club Battle Finale: A Hero's Outcome!, while in Nimbasa City, Team Rocket prepared to put their latest plan into action. Later, in the next episode, Meowth was found injured by Ash, Iris and Cilan. While recovering, Meowth explained that while in Nimbasa City, he had botched up Team Rocket's scheme badly and was fired by Giovanni, leading to Jessie and James turning their backs on him. Later, Iris's Axew was kidnapped by a Scrafty, who wanted Axew's help to get its home back from a Mandibuzz. Using his ability to speak to both Pokémon and humans, Meowth not only helped get Axew back but also helped Scrafty get its home back and helped Mandibuzz return to her original nest. Afterwards, Meowth decided to travel with Ash and his friends, only for Iris to attempt to capture him in a Poké Ball. The capture nearly succeeded but Meowth broke out and told her he was going to help her regardless. Ever since, it seems to have become a running gag that he ends up in a Poké Ball at one point in an episode, as Iris tried twice (one of which was because Meowth didn't want a Purrloin to get caught), and by Cliff. However, in Crisis from the Underground Up!, it was revealed that Meowth's being fired was fake and all just one of Team Rocket's schemes to steal all the Pokémon from Nimbasa City's Pokémon Center.
He along with Jessie and James later reappeared starting in New Places... Familiar Faces!.
In Meowth, Colress and Team Rivalry!, Team Rocket invaded Colress's newest laboratory and drew his security into a trap in the woods. Once Colress was alone, Meowth approached him and attempted to convince him to join Team Rocket. Colress refused, but offered to allow Meowth to participate in an experiment to increase his strength. Meowth agreed, having undergone training to resist the mind control device. However, Colress still managed to take control of Meowth, and ordered him to attack Jessie and James. Using Frillish and Amoonguss, they managed to snap him out of it before escaping.
Personality and characteristics
Meowth has an ambitious, conniving, and idealistic personality. He has made it his life goal to please Giovanni (or "Boss", as he and his teammates call Giovanni), and will stop at nothing to capture or steal useful or rare Pokémon, especially Ash's Pikachu, which he has been pursuing since he encountered him in Pokémon Emergency. Unlike most other Pokémon, who are not truly evil and will only commit evil deeds when ordered to do so, as stated by Jessie's Ekans in Island of the Giant Pokémon, Meowth is both perfectly capable of and willing to commit evil deeds without the aid of others.
Despite his seemingly outgoing nature, Meowth also has a contemplative inner side not seen as often. In one of his image songs, Meowth's Song, and in Mewtwo Strikes Back, he is shown to be a bit of a philosopher. In Mewtwo Strikes Back, he and his clone (in addition to Pikachu) were the only Pokémon not to participate in the giant battle, Meowth remarking (in the dub) that the originals and the clones shared the same air, moon, and planet, giving them common ground. Meowth comforted Ash's Chimchar in Tears For Fears! and actually expressed some admiration for Ash and his friends, commenting, "You (Chimchar) have buddies who'd give you the shirt off their backs if you needed one." It is possible during that time that Meowth developed a friendship with it, as seen in A Real Rival Rouser! when he, Jessie and James cheered it on, and in Evolving Strategies! when he was happy to see it evolve. On a few occasions, Meowth has become stranded with Pikachu, and during these times, the two work together fairly well. Pikachu distrusts Meowth for obvious reasons, but Meowth is more willing to let go of the past and work together. Usually, by the end of these episodes, Meowth will betray Pikachu once they find Jessie and James.
Meowth is an amorous Pokémon, developing crushes on occasion (obviously not as much as Brock, but still a fair amount). The first of these was the aforementioned Meowzie. The next one seen is Cassandra, the (human) herbalist. Due to this infatuation, he decided to help her Paras evolve. However, he was replaced by a Persian so that he can continue traveling with Jessie and James, as Cassandra thought he was a hero and should continue doing his (not so) good work with Team Rocket. After this, three more cat-based Pokémon followed, beginning with May's Skitty. However, due to the fact that Jessie wanted to catch the Skitty, Meowth helped Skitty escape in order to avoid Skitty getting hurt with the rest of the team. Later on, in Big Meowth, Little Dreams he fell in love with another Skitty. In For The Love Of Meowth!, Meowth fell in love with a Glameow this time, one that belongs to Mamie. Similar to May's Skitty, Meowth tried to get away from Jessie and James so Glameow would not join them in blasting off. After Meowth was surrounded by Jessie, James, Ash, Dawn, Brock and Mamie, Meowth gained power from the love he felt, allowing him to defeat several Pokémon thrown at him, including Ash's Infernape and Staraptor, Jessie's Seviper and Yanmega and Dawn's Togekiss. However, after getting hit with James's Carnivine's Bullet Seed, Glameow evolved into Purugly and squished Meowth, making Meowth lose his feelings for her. In Movie Time! Zorua in "The Legend of the Pokémon Knight"!, Luke's Zorua used this trait to her advantage and turned into a female Meowth causing Meowth to become infatuated and unable to do her harm. He did this again in Purrloin: Sweet or Sneaky? when he fell in love with a Purrloin he thought was female. During the time when Meowth was traveling with the group, Oshawott fought with him, usually when the two exploit two of their characteristics at the same time (falling in love with the same Pokémon, or when their prides are being entangled).
Meowth also has demonstrated aspirations of being a parent-like caretaker, coddling Togepi's Egg before fighting for custody of it, only to finally lose it to Misty. To regain custody of Togepi, he even defeated Brock's Onix by throwing a bucket of water in its face and finishing it with a Fury Swipes attack to the head.
In Japanese, he often puts the word "Nya" into his sentences, the equivalent of a meow in Japanese. This was abandoned in the English dub shortly after the beginning of the series. Because Meowth can speak human language but is a Pokémon, he is useful as a Pokémon translator. Despite being a Pokémon though, he is in charge of building and repairing the machines used by his team.
Moves used
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Moves Improvised
- In Bound For Trouble, Meowth jumped onto a Rhydon and used an improvised Tickle attack, however the move Tickle wasn't released until Generation III.
- Meowth claimed to be learning Night Slash in Jumping Rocket Ship!, but he has never been seen using the move. The reason to this is that he claimed the move too scary to use.
- Meowth also improvised a move that he called "Fury Swipes of Love" in the episode For The Love Of Meowth! to protect a Glameow he was in love with.
Voice actors
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In the games
Pokémon Yellow
Meowth appears as part of Jessie and James's team each time they appear in Pokémon Yellow, alongside Ekans, Koffing, and their evolved forms. However, unlike in the anime, Meowth resides in a Poké Ball instead of traveling around with Jessie and James.
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Second to fourth battle (Rocket Hideout/Pokémon Tower/Silph Co.) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Pokémon Black 2 and White 2
Team Rocket's Meowth was distributed via Wi-Fi from December 7, 2012 to January 10, 2013 for Japanese players of Pokémon Black 2 and White 2, because of its involvement in the Best Wishes: Episode N season of the anime.
Team Rocket's Meowth was distributed via Wi-Fi from May 10 to June 9, 2013 for Korean players of Pokémon Black 2 and White 2, because of its involvement in the Best Wishes: Episode N season of the anime.
Team Rocket's Meowth was distributed in Italy as part of the Pokémon Day event held at the Mirabilandia amusement park. It was available from July 13 to 14, 2013.
| Pokémon Info | Trainer Memo | Battle Moves | Ribbons | ||||||||||
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 ニャース
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♂ | Dex No. | 0052 | Random nature. | Normal | Fury Swipes | 
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| Lv. 15 | Type | Normal | Sing | ||||||||||
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Normal | Pokémon Cartoon | Dark | Nasty Plot | |||||||||
| OT | Ｒだん | Apparently had a | Dark | Snatch | |||||||||
| ID No. | 12072 | fateful encounter at | This Pokémon was available in Japan and Wi-Fi from December 7, 2012 to January 10, 2013. | ||||||||||
| Item | Ability | Lv. 15. | |||||||||||
 Smoke Ball
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Pickup | ||||||||||||
| The date this Pokémon was received is determined by the date on the DS when the Wonder Card is received. | |||||||||||||
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Pokémon Puzzle League
Meowth is a playable character, along with Jessie and James. Their theme is Double Trouble.
Pokémon Zany Cards
In Special Seven mode, Meowth appears as card #2. When the Meowth card is used, he will force the opponent to draw 2 cards. This can be countered if the player has another Meowth card, in which case the effect will pass on to the next player, unless they also have a Meowth card, and so on.
Meowth also makes a cameo in Four Kings mode. When the game is won, he tells the player to try the next level of difficulty. Meowth also appears on the box art.
Super Smash Bros. Melee
Meowth appears as a trophy. This trophy is unlocked after obtaining each All-Star trophy for all 25 playable characters.
Melee trophy information
This...is Meowth's dream. Meowth strides all over the globe scattering invitations to other Pokemon, insisting they come to "Meowth's Party". At this wonderful party, guests are packed in like sardines as Meowth climbs up the stage with its faithful guitar. It strikes a chord, pauses, and then rocks their world.
Pokémon Channel
Meowth appears on the PNF (Pokémon News Flash), along with Psyduck. He goes out and interviews random Pokémon in random locations.
Meowth also appears in Pichu Bros. in Party Panic, along with Jessie's Wobbuffet and the Squirtle Squad. He plans a party for himself and invites all the Pokémon from Big Town.
In the manga
In the Ash and Pikachu manga
In the manga series Ash and Pikachu, based on the anime, Meowth appears along with the rest of the Team Rocket trio, Jessie and James.
In The Electric Tale of Pikachu manga
Meowth appears in The Electric Tale of Pikachu manga series along with his teammates Jessie and James.
His first appearance is in the chapter Pikachu's Excellent Adventure. He is searching for the Hidden Village with Jessie and James when he runs into Tommy, Pikachu and other Pokémon, who are also searching for the village. Meowth offers them free breakfast (made by Jessie and James) and the trio travel with them to the village. Later, he is expelled from the Hidden Village by Kangaskhan when Jessie and James try to steal the Pokémon.
Meowth makes his next appearance in You Gotta Have Friends, when he, Jessie and James attempt to steal a herd of wild Pikachu. Following this, the Team Rocket trio begin regularly appearing in the manga, following Ash to the Pokémon League championship at Indigo Plateau and cheering him on at the Orange League.
In the movie manga adaptations
As Meowth has appeared in every movie to date, he has appeared in the manga adaptations of them.
In the TCG
Meowth is featured in the TCG as one of Team Rocket's Pokémon and as a Pokémon 
. The following is a list of cards featuring Meowth.
| Meowth Cards listed with a blue background are only legal to use in the current Expanded format. Cards listed with a green background are legal to use in both the current Standard and Expanded formats. | |||||||
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| Card | Type | English Expansion |
Rarity | # | Japanese Expansion |
Rarity | # |
| Team Rocket's Meowth | 
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Wizards Black Star Promos | 18 | Unnumbered Promotional cards | |||
| Rocket's Meowth | 
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EX Team Rocket Returns | 
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46/109 | Rocket Gang Strikes Back | 
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059/084 |
| Meowth
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Movie Commemoration Random Pack | 017/022 | ||||
Trivia
- There is some inconsistency as to whether or not Meowth hates water. In Snow Way Out!, he wanted a hot spring, and in Who Gets to Keep Togepi?, he is seen taking a bath with the egg that will hatch into Togepi, and at least twice he suggests that all three of them go into the water (once in Pokémon Paparazzi and once in Fit to be Tide), while in episodes like To Catch a Rotom! he prominently remains swimming in the sea without showing any displeasure. However, in Pokémon Shipwreck, Friend and Foe Alike and Big Meowth, Little Dreams (Part 1), he hates water, as he is a cat.
- Meowth will often replace the words "Me" or "Mouth" with "Meowth". Similar puns are also used in the Japanese version.
- The koban embedded in Meowth's forehead had apparently been lost in A Chansey Operation after an accident, forcing him to search for it desperately. At the end of the episode, however, it was discovered that it had simply been jammed into his head by the impact.
- Additionally, Meowth had a fantasy about replacing the gold koban with a crystal one in The Crystal Onix.
- In the English dub, Meowth referred his koban as a charm.
- Additionally, Meowth had a fantasy about replacing the gold koban with a crystal one in The Crystal Onix.
- Meowth claims he is unable to learn Pay Day as a trade off for learning to speak. He claims to have 'used up all his move slots' doing so.
- In the Latin American Spanish dub, he is referred to as "Chimuelo" ("toothless") by James, a common form used in Mexico.
- Meowth is the only Pokémon to have ever been a Gym Leader, briefly sharing the title with Jessie and James in The Battle of the Badge.
- Meowth is the first talking Pokémon in the anime. He is also one of the few talking Pokémon that don't do so telepathically.
Related articles
For more information on this Pokémon's species, see Meowth.
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| Worked with (all three): |
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| For a list of other Pokémon Team Rocket has commanded, see here and here | |||||||
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This article is part of Project Anime, a Bulbapedia project that covers all aspects of Pokémon animation. |
