One of the infamous members of the Team Rocket trio, Jessie is considered the leader and by far the most capable of the team, though that isn’t saying much. She and her cohorts' hijinks have caused a number of problems for Ash and the gang throughout the Pokémon anime series.
While she is easily recognizable for any Pokémon fan there is a lot about her the average fan doesn’t know. From her childhood origins to her deepest desires here are some facts about Jessie you may not have known.
10 Team Rocket Is A Means To An End
While she frequently shows loyalty to the organization and its leader Giovanni, her true loyalty lies with herself and her own goals. Though it’s never fully revealed what those ambitions are, it’s apparent that Team Rocket’s ambitions align with hers suggesting it has to do with money or power.
So far she has never outright betrayed Team Rocket or Giovanni, but many times she hasn’t always followed orders or has allowed Ash and the gang to escape. There have even been times when she willingly sided with Ash for personal reasons.
9 Promoted To Advanced Agent
In the Black & White Jessie is promoted to the level of Advanced Agent and proves to be much more capable as an agent of the criminal organization. Whether it’s a result of the promotion or the reason for it Jessie is much more calm and collected as she performs her missions.
In fact, it’s mentioned a few times that she has been highly successful. This doesn’t mean she isn’t prone to goofy hijinks, ridiculous disguises or amateur mistakes, but she is maturing and becoming more capable.
8 Lost Mother In An Avalanche
When Jessie was a young girl her mother, who was a member of Team Rocket, joined an expedition to locate the powerful and mysterious Pokémon Mew. While on the mountain a terrible avalanche was triggered and her mother was never seen again.
Her mother’s body was never recovered and this likely had a lasting impact on Jessie. What’s interesting is that she never developed a hatred for Team Rocket or a desire to capture or kill Mew in retribution. It seems this is a dark and tragic part of her childhood that she left buried and does not seem interested in dwelling on.
7 Enjoys Eating Snow
Jessie’s foster mom was good to her and raised Jessie as her own. Jessie came to develop a kinship with this woman, though it seems it wasn’t strong enough to last into Jessie’s adulthood.
Her foster mother used to include snow as an ingredient in her sushi recipes and Jessie learned to develop a love for the taste of snow. Even as an adult she’ll delightedly eat snow and make sushi using snow as an ingredient just like her foster mother used to.
6 Wanted To Be A Pokémon Nurse
Jessie’s first ambition in life was to become a Pokémon nurse like Nurse Joy at the Pokémon Centers. She attended a school and even though she technically graduated had such bad grades that she was unable to pursue her passion.
It’s unclear if this is something she still hopes to be someday or if she’s abandoned this dream for something else. It probably has a large hand in why she’s so interested in obtaining a Chansey to add to her Pokémon collection.
5 Wrong School
Part of the reason her dreams of becoming a Pokémon Nurse were dashed is she accidentally attended a school meant for Pokémon seeking to become nurses. It’s unclear why this never came up during the time she attended classes or took tests, but she didn’t learn of this mistake until graduation day.
It may have a factor in why she did so poorly on her grades. If the classes were taught to a primarily Pokémon student body it’s likely the material and subject matter would have been confusing for a human. In any case out of embarrassment and poor grades she gave up on her dream of becoming a nurse.
4 Member Of A Bike Gang
After failing school Jessie fell in with a Bike Gang in Sunny town. It’s not known what activities she participated in as a member of this gang but it was likely an introduction into a life of crime that led to her joining Team Rocket.
While in the gang Jessie went by the nickname Chainer Jessie and Big Jess. Chainer Jessie is a result of her habit of swinging a chain around whenever she rode her bike. It seems she parted from the gang on amicable terms.
3 Wanted To Be A Famous Dancer
At some point in her life, Jessie wanted to become a famous dancer and attended a dance school with some friends. At the time she had a boyfriend but abandoned the relationship in order to pursue her career and focus on training.
Unfortunately, she completely botched a routine before a judge and effectively ended her dancing career. Her friends succeeded and went on to fame and fortune. It’s a touchy subject for Jessie who feels she had the chance for a more normal life, but gave it up to pursue her ambitions.
2 Unlucky Love Life
Abandoning her boyfriend for dancing is supposedly one of a few instances where Jessie struck out in pursuit of love. At another point she and her Pokémon were rescued by Dr. White and she developed strong feelings for him. Those feelings were shattered when it was revealed that Dr. White had feelings for someone else.
Though that heartbreak was more recent her first love seems to be the most impactful. Vicariously she set her Dustox free to be with a male Dustox it had fallen in love with whose owner looked a lot like her lost love.
1 Talented Seamstress
It turns out that Jessie is a very talented seamstress. One of the Pokémon in her roster a Mimikyu badly damaged its costume and needed repairs after a battle. This gave Jessie a chance to show her kind side as she promptly obtained the materials and tools she needed to sew the costume back together for her Mimikyu.
Admittedly this could have been for survival purposes as a Mimikyu’s true form is said to kill anyone who witnesses it, but fans like to think she did the repairs out of kindness for a Pokémon that has been very faithful to her.