Rocket’s Scyther · Gym Heroes (G1) #13

8 comments

1. 

   feyblade

   (12 years ago)

   Shadow Images gets REALLY interesting when you use it in conjunction with a pokemon that can copy moves from other pokemon you control. It’s interesting to see just how many coin tosses you can force your opponent to go through, after setting up shadow images, hitting them with confusion, and putting them through a sand attack, among other things

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2. 

   MarxForever

   (10 years ago)

   It should come as a surprise to no one, but the name of the Shadow Images attack on the original card was かげぶんしん or “Shadow Divide”. The same name for Double Team in Japan. And frankly, Shadow Images is a much cooler and fitting name. So I’m going to have to say Nintendo of America dropped the ball this time.
   Kudos Wizards. You may have screwed up a lot during your time as the English distributor of the TCG, but you certainly knew how to give attacks and Pokemon Powers concise, cool sounding English names…most of the time.

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   • 

     AmbassadorMarxForever

     (2 years ago)

     · As MarxForever noted above, Shadow Images is the debut – and as of October 2022, somehow still the only appearance in the TCG – of the attack otherwise known as “Double Team” in the English branch of the Pokémon franchise.
     · This is also the debut of the attack Blinding Scythe, which won’t return until PK Kabutops.

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3. 

   The Nintendo Channel

   (8 years ago)

   I like the fact that Shadow Images covered the possibility of a potential Rocket’s Scizor as a Stage 1 Pokémon in the then-future. That’s pretty nifty.

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   • 

     DMNBTThe Nintendo Channel

     (8 years ago)

     …and then we got Rocket’s Scizor as a Basic Pokemon. That’s pretty NOT nifty.

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     • 

       OtakuDMNBT

       (8 years ago)

       Putting things into context:

       1) Understand that as much “reminder” or “explanatory” text as we get now, stressing things that anyone who is not a novice knows from having learned the fundamental rules of the game. Like not applying Weakness and Resistance for attacks that can hit Pokémon on the Bench. As that is the norm it is only there so no one panics because in fact the attack must STATE that Weakness/Resistance applies to Bench hits for that to be the case.

       2) Odds are that by the time the English version of this card released (possibly even the Japanese version), someone involved in the design process for Rocket’s Scyther knew an Evolution for Scyther was in the works, but by then the designers had ALSO already settled an overly complex method for denoting Team Rocket affiliated Pokémon. If it was an Evolved Pokémon, it got “Dark” in its name. If it was a Basic Pokémon without an Evolved form, then it had “Rocket’s” in its name. Why the split? The designers apparently wanted being bad to be a choice so if it was a Basic that could Evolve, it would be neither “Dark” nor “Rocket’s”. Not sure if the-powers-that-be just dug branching Evolution or were sprinkling in some actual philosophy with their design philosophy. ;)

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4. 

   100000Volts

   (8 years ago)

   I got this card in japanese at Publix for only $2.00 at their vending machine in 2002 when pokemon popularity was declining. I also got a mew fossil for $2.00 too, AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAAHAHHAA. I WILL NEVER SHUT UP ABOUT IT!

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   • 

     Tokiwa City Smuggle100000Volts

     (2 years ago)

     Wohoho I used to get the vending sets from one local Publix store from their vending machine and this was in 2000 the brink popularity of Pokemon!

     Reply