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Fun anipoke development fact: When Takeshi Shudo was discussing Team Rocket's design with Sayuri Ichiishi, he wanted them to look slightly less reminiscent of the Doronbo gang from Time Bokan. So he suggested they take after the "handsome" villain team from Sasuga no Sarutobi, another anime he worked on at Ashi Pro, and I think the only one from there that didn't involve Kunihiko Yuyama in some way. A lot of people say that James was inspired by Leonardo Medici Bundle from GoShogun (and to be fair, that did come before Sarutobi), but it seems like Shudo just had a type for male villains.