Overview – The Glory of Team Rocket
Pokémon TCG fans, brace yourselves—The Glory of Team Rocket is shaping up to be one of the most anticipated Japanese Pokémon card sets.
Scheduled to release on April 18, 2025, this set marks the villainous return of the franchise’s most notorious syndicate: Team Rocket.
This new set is a spiritual successor to EX Team Rocket Returns (2004) and the original Team Rocket expansion (2000), both of which hold significant weight among collectors and vintage enthusiasts.
The Glory of Team Rocket pays homage to these classic sets, but with a modern twist—bringing back Dark-looking Pokémon, Team Rocket’s Pokémon, and key villainous trainers like Team Rocket's Giovanni, Team Rocket's Ariana, and even Team Rocket's Archer.
For collectors, this is a golden opportunity. Sets like these are known to gain high demand, especially when they feature unique, villain-themed mechanics, full-art trainer cards, and playable Pokémon with nostalgic design cues.
🔥 Scroll down for exclusive card leaks, full set details, and where to pre-order your booster box!
The Glory of Team Rocket Set Release Date Details
The Glory of Team Rocket is confirmed to be a Japanese-exclusive release on April 18, 2025.
It will likely later be integrated into an English set as part of a future Scarlet & Violet expansion in May 2025's Pokemon Scarlet & Violet Destined Rivals.
🔍 What We Know So Far:
|
Detail |
Information |
|---|---|
|
Japanese Release Date |
April 18, 2025 |
|
Set Theme |
Team Rocket villains, Dark-looking Pokémon |
|
Confirmed Pokémon |
Mewtwo ex, Annihilape, Blaziken, Zamazenta, Cetitan, Team Rocket's Meowth, Team Rocket's Porygon, Team Rocket's Tarountula, Team Rocket's Moltres |
|
Featured Trainers |
Team Rocket's Giovanni, Team Rocket's Ariana, Team Rocket's Archer |
|
Returning Mechanics |
“Team Rocket’s” prefix |
- Set Theme & Mechanics: This set brings back cards with "Team Rocket’s" ownership, like Team Rocket’s Porygon, Team Rocket’s Meowth, and Team Rocket’s Persian. Expect disruptive abilities that target the opponent’s hand, benched Pokémon, or force player shuffles.
- Rocket's Pokémon & Strategy: The comeback of Team Rocket's Pokémon may introduce retro-style effects that activate from the discard pile, impact opponent’s benched Pokémon, or boost power when multiple Rocket’s Pokémon are in play.
Team Rocket's Moltres ex Full Art Leak - Revealed April 2025
Leaked on April 8th on PokeBeach.com, we're getting a Full Art Team Rocket's Moltres ex Super Rare (SR).
So far, the comments have seen mixed reviews. The main gripe collectors seem to be having with this new Moltres Full Art is that "no one cares about Team Rocket's Archer" or "this trainer". Also it seems people feel that this card is lack-luster and generic.
What do you think? I don't mind it personally, we know that this is the general style of these SR's, so I'm relatively fine with it. Is it amazing? No. But it's not a bad card either.
For more details on this, check out the PokeBeach.com article outlining the moves translated into English.
Team Rocket's Tyranitar Leak - Revealed April 2025
Leaked by PokeBeach.com on April 7th, we've got some real mean-looking Pokemon from the Tyranitar line.
Not much to say here, other than I really love the artwork on that Team Rocket's Larvitar. It just pops out of the background and the palette is just gorgeous.
For more details on the moves, and English translations, visit this article from PokeBeach.
Team Rocket's Articuno, Team Rocket's Zapdos, Team Rocket's Moltres ex Leaks - Revealed April 2025
April 6th brought us the reveal of the legendary birds. Articuno got some love in Battle Partners (sv9) with a stunning Art Rare, but we'll see if we get an Special Art Rare (SAR) or Art Rare (AR) Moltres in The Glory of Team Rocket.
For more details, check out this article from PokeBeach.com.
Clamperl 102/98 Art Rare Leak - Revealed April 2025
This is a gorgeous Art Rare (AR). The palette and design are stunning, and I love the perspective artwork.
Early comments on this Art Rare seem to be mostly positive, but some questioning what this Pokemon has to do with Team Rocket. I'm not bothered by it.
For more details, check out this article by PokeBeach.com.
Annihilape Leak – Revealed March 2025
The leak featuring Annihilape introduced a fierce new fighting-type card with an aggressive attack that scales based on damage counters with abilities like Vessel of Rage.
This Pokemon is always pissed off, so it's very fitting for this set.
For more details on this evolution line and its moves, read this PokeBeach.com article here.
Blaziken Leak – Revealed March 2025
I personally like the artwork here as fire art is effortlessly cool. Although, I'm usually more partial to the water starters, such as Torchic, which was one of my starters from this era of games, and ultimately, Blaziken championed my team.
Blaziken and its evolution line appears as a fire-type card with heavy damage to your opponent's benched Pokemon.
Here are more details on the Blaziken evolution line's attacks, translated from Japanese in this PokeBeach article.
Zamazenta Art Rare (AR) Leak – Revealed March 2025
Seeing Zamazenta appear in a Team Rocket-themed set is unexpected but exciting. The card features a darker version of the Legendary Pokemon with stunning artwork. It reminds me of Mufasa.
It's like a corrupted or manipulated Zamazenta, suggesting that Rocket’s reach even extends to Legendaries.
For more details on its moves and mechanics, read this article from PokeBeach.
Cetitan ex Leak – Revealed March 2025
Cetitan ex continues the trend of EX cards with massive power and drawback mechanics. I'm not a huge fan of this Pokemon, but I'm not expecting to like every single card. The artwork is cool though, this EX really pops out of the frame.
More details on Cetitan ex and Cetoddle in this PokeBeach article.
Team Rocket’s Wobbuffet Leak – Revealed March 2025
Next is the leaked Art Rare (Illustration Rare) and regular Rare versions of Team Rocket’s Wobbuffet.
The palette is super vibrant and interesting. Unfortunately, these are just regular Rocket Grunts, and not more recognizable characters like Jessie and James.
I remember pulling a holo Wobbuffet back in the Neo Discovery days, and I still have it. The holo of the card was stunning, with equally beautiful artwork, marking it as a stand-out in my collection.
It's rumored that this will be the promo card for the English Destined Rivals set.
This card has interesting moves, like Rocket Mirror, which reflects damage based on coin flips (e.g., Move all damage counters from 1 of your benched Pokemon to your opponent’s active Pokémon.)
I'm a huge fan of this card and artwork. For more details on Wobbuffet's move set, read this article on PokeBeach.com.
Team Rocket’s Ampharos Line Leak – Featuring Ariana – Revealed March 2025
Team Rocket’s Flaaffy and Ampharos, introduced alongside Team Rocket's Ariana, were revealed in a major March drop.
Ariana is showcased here in some beautiful regular artworks, featuring Team Rocket's Mareep, Team Rocket's Flaaffy, and Team Rocket's Ampharos.
It's hard to believe there's an evil Mareep floating around, but I guess even big, cute fluff balls can be corrupted.
For more details on these 3 cards including moves and translations to English, read this article from PokeBeach.com.
Team Rocket's Meowth & Team Rocket's Persian
I think this Art Rare card is beautiful; however, I have a hot take. I'm a big fan of Team Rocket's Giovanni, with his badass, Don Vito vibe. This card portrays him to look like a little baby. He's supposed to be cool and intimidating, not some man-baby who raided his dad's closet for a big boy suit.
Team Rocket's Meowth looks great though, and it really pops out with the background.
Here are more details about the card's moves and translations over at PokeBeach.com.
Team Rocket’s Mewtwo ex Leak – March 2025
The star of the set is undeniably Team Rocket’s Mewtwo ex. This card combines legendary power with dark manipulation.
So far we just have the EX leak, but there must be a Mewtwo SAR coming with it, and it's probably going to be a banger.
Find more cards and more details about the set reveal here at PokeBeach.com.
Where to Pre-Order Pokemon The Glory of Team Rocket Booster Box
Ready to lock in your box before it sells out? You can pre-order The Glory of Team Rocket Booster Box now from High Value Hobby — your go-to online store for authentic Japanese Pokemon cards.
✅ Why Pre-Order with High Value Hobby?
- Guaranteed Japanese authenticity (with factory sealed shrink wrap)
- Fast dispatch for pre-orders (just a few days after release)
- Competitive price per box (with special rewards & discounts for High Value Members)
- Fast & secure shipping from Canada (with special packing care taken for each order)
- Highly rated (with tons of Reviews, average 4.9 star rating)
🛒 Don’t wait—Japanese sets sell out quickly, especially high-demand releases like this one!
Final Thoughts – Why This Set Matters to Collectors
The Glory of Team Rocket isn’t just another themed set—it’s a celebration of one of Pokémon’s most iconic villain factions.
- It bridges the gap between vintage-era collectors and modern collectors / investors
- Offers gameplay innovations with a nostalgic twist
- Brings back Rocket’s Pokémon, and fan-favorite characters
If you’re a collector who thrives on unique, themed sets—or an investor looking for the next Japanese set with serious potential—this is the one to watch.
Stay Updated – This Page Will Be Updated As More Leaks Drop
We’ll be updating this post regularly as new leaks, cards, and details emerge. Be sure to:
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If you want to see more details on cards not mentioned in this article, like Team Rocket's Porygon, Team Rocket's Tarountula, Special Energy cards like Team Rocket Energy, and more, visit PokeBeach.com.
Additionally, you can also find the artworks and card scans over at Pokellector.com.
Thanks for reading! Got a favorite Rocket card so far? Let us know in the comments 👇
And remember — you can pre-order your booster box here to be one of the first to crack open The Glory of Team Rocket.