Edits nearly done
I'm actually enjoying XY Team Rocket and it feels awesome - I managed to bring them back to Decolora Adventures level and MORE, since good XY stuff is obviously better than most of DA. Still far from ideal and one needs to settle on off-screen headcanons with some of the exits but it works. Also, you can feel they actually work hard - meaning no targeting pikachu all the time and targets that make sense. Tweaked episode order helps as well - Kalos Queen is their subplot but it doesn't intrude on their work except for "Tripokalon arc" when most of the "spy on the twerps, get involved with them" stuff happens. Most of the plots/missions will still feel pretty basic and like it's nothing special despite the cool cosmetics and gadgets (thunder, for example), with Team Rocket being used as a source of conflict just to evolve someone's Pokemon BUT... at least it's all on the quality level now, 1 sec blast-offs don't degrade them in places where too jarring and they keep their act consistent. Following DA they still get blasted off in a traditional manner and I guess that's OK... even though I'm a fan of jetpacks, those are the best during a more focused arc... Let's just say they don't have them in Kalos and Alola ok? Maybe it's only for super conquest missions I dunno. But they are still capable of retreats on some ocassions. And THAT'S something I can accept.
And yeah, lots of stuff was removed. Good stuff that was "infected" was salvaged. They are doing this big thing JUST so they can take Pikachu? The mention of Pikachu removed, now the flow is pretty good. They made those super psycho faces? Removed. Obviously I leave less harmful ones but the most jarring examples were removed. There were a few. Now they feel like a decent enough TRio, not psycho morons who live simulatunously during Diamond and Pearl and after Best Wishes.
