Team Rocket's balloon

Team Rocket's balloon is a reoccurring transportation device used by the Team Rocket trio in the Pokémon anime. It usually takes the form of a hot-air balloon with the balloon stylized to look like Team Rocket's Meowth.
==Design History==
In The Beginning series, the balloon appeared stylized as Meowth's head with a raised right paw and tail. It had a green basket and beige sandbags. Under the basket was a trapdoor that usually released various mechas or tools Team Rocket used to capture Pokémon. This design was kept until the Black & White series.
Starting in the Black & White anime series, the balloon is redesigned. The Meowth balloon now lacks its raised paw while the basket is now blue, has propelling rockets instead of sandbags, and also dons the signature Team Rocket 'R' logo on it.
The balloon is redesigned yet again starting in The Dream Continues! and all throughout the XY and XYZ series where the Meowth balloon now has two visible paws, an open mouth, visible stitiching, and propellers at its sides. The basket retains its look from the previous design.
Finally, in the Sun & Moon series onward, it is redesigned to have the balloon from the XY and XYZ design with a smoother look as well as having the green basket and beige sandbags of the first design with an added green stripe and red Team Rocket logo. However, the balloon is now rarely seen in the series.
==Other Balloons==
While the Meowth balloon is the most prominent design used by Team Rocket, they have used a variety of other designs as well as devices that resemble the balloon.
*In The Fortune Hunters, small remote-controlled balloons that resemble Team Rocket's hot-air balloon are used. They have hands emerging from their baskets.
*A Wobbuffet balloon nicknamed the "Wobballoon" first appeared in The Wayward Wobbuffet and was used occasionally after its debut until the Black & White anime series.
*In As Clear as Crystal, a device resembling the Wobballoon is tossed to Ash and co.. It first inflates into the shape of a Wobbuffet and shortly self-destructs.
*A Sneasel balloon is used in Pop Goes the Sneasel after Team Rocket contemplated replacing Meowth with Sneasel.
*A Poké Ball balloon is used in Showdown at Linoone. The round shape of the balloon attracts Tokin, a Linoone owned by Kimmy Shoney. James' Cacnea attempts to attack Tokin with Needle Arm, though this only pops the balloon.
*In Fighting Fear with Fear!, a Gliscor balloon that doubles as an attack mecha is used. The balloon carries Team Rocket in a basket while the Gliscor-shaped balloon is also able to operate different attacks including launching missiles from its claws and moving its tail.
*In Pokémon: The Rise of Darkrai, a Carnivine balloon is used to chase after Ash and co.. However, it is blown away by a group of Drifloon and Drifblim who use Gust.
*A Yanmega Balloon appears in Pokémon—Zoroark: Master of Illusions where it is seen following Ash and co..
*A round, purple hot-air balloon with a red Team Rocket logo appears in Enter Iris and Axew!.
*A Lugia balloon piloted by Team Rocket appears in Dreams Are Made of These! where it carries away a cage containing Ash's Pikachu, Goh's Scorbunny, and Professor Cerise's Yamper. However, a Mew is able to quickly destroy the balloon and free the Pokémon by transforming into a Lugia and using Aeroblast.
==Gallery==
Category:Team Rocket