While Pokémon isn’t usually celebrated for its fashion, it’s a media franchise that has long succeeded in offering memorable character designs, which also include the outfits the characters wear in the show. These outfits communicate personality at a glance. Just like Ash’s simple cap-and-jacket combo signals a relatable kid, Gym leaders wear stylized clothes to match their favourite Pokémon type. Like Elesa, who is known for her fondness for the electric-type Pokémon, appears in a bright yellow, attention-grabbing attire.
Similarly, villainous teams push this even further. Every villain team has its unique uniform with consistent colors and bold logos, so they are easy to spot and instantly recognizable. However, Pokémon isn’t the only anime using this strategy; lots of anime give villains pretty memorable looks. Take Hunter x Hunter‘s Phantom Troupe, for instance. Well-regarded for their distinctive and stylish outfits, each member of the group has a unique design that reflects their “phantom” aesthetic and reinforces their identity as a group. Pokémon does the same thing with its evil teams, giving them looks to showcase their personality before they even say a word.
14. Team Yell
In the anime, Team Yell wasn’t just created as a villain team. But rather to give Marnie, their favourite gym leader, an over-the-top support squad as she works towards becoming the champion of the Galar region. As the name suggests, the team’s main focus is to appear loud and proud. Hence, the members sport clashing layers of black leather, neon pink accents, and spikes in every possible place.
The grunts of this team usually go full neon with hot pink face paints, mohawks and sleeveless tops plastered with Marnie’s logo. On the other hand, Marnie skips on the pink overload (specifically the giant vuvuzela horns) and opts for a ‘pastel goth’ aesthetic. In Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield, she dons a short, pale pink dress with scalloped hems under a black leather biker jacket adorned with silver studs and buttons. Paired with silver choker and black chunky boots, she strikes the perfect balance between rebellious and elegant.
13. Team Skull
Imagine a dance battle crew dropped into a punk-inspired wardrobe, and you’ve got Team Skull. Their look is more muted compared to Team Yell’s, with black and white dominating their color palette. They all wear black tank tops with a white cross in the front, skull helmets, and white shoes, accessorized with chain necklaces bearing their emblem.
The grunts appear in punk outfits with bandanas. With male and female grunts differing as males sport baggy shorts and females ragged shorts. Additionally, the grunts’ hair and eyes are also gender specific, as the men have blue hair and eyes while the women have pink. But while this costume is chaotic, it reflects their laid-back nature since they don’t resemble an organized crime syndicate, but rather a group of troublemakers.
12. Team Plasma
Before their Black 2 and White 2 glow-down, Team Plasma rocked a pristine Renaissance look. The grunts’ outfits were inspired by knights as they tried to enforce their own definition of justice throughout Unova: liberating all Pokémon from their trainers. In that icy blue-and-white color scheme, they donned long tunics with hoods embellished with an X on their heads and a coat of arms on their chest that looked like a shield with a blue P, with one side black and the other white.
In the sequel, the grunts wear a more militaristic outfit: black uniforms and black caps while retaining the X on top and the coat of arms on their chest.
11. Team Aqua
Team Aqua’s mission is clear – “expand the sea” – which puts them in direct opposition to Team Magma’s land expansion motive. Their grunts wear a fitted nautical striped top paired with jeans, a distinctive belt-like sash around their waists, and standard-issue boots.
They also wear bandanas with a white skull with crossbones in the shape of the letter “A”, reinforcing the maritime theme. On top of that, there are some subtle differences in this Pokémon villain team’s costumes depending on gender. Men tend to wear loose, cropped trousers, while women opt for trimmed and more fitted shorts.
10. Team Magma
With the goal to evaporate water and expand the land mass for more space for Pokémon and people, Team Magma’s outfits are inspired by volcanic and magma motifs. To that end, this villain team costume features a red crop top with a distinctive “M” logo and a horn-shaped hood. And similar to the gender differences in Team Aqua’s costumes, male grunts put on loose-fitting tops and pants in black, while females wear more fitted jumpsuits.
9. Team Flare
Aiming to reduce the strain on the world’s resources, Team Flare’s goal is to eliminate all life on Earth except themselves. All Team Flare grunts wear the same coordinated red suits over white dress shirts and black ties, gloves and shoes, matching red sunglasses, and a belt featuring a stylized, fiery “F” emblem. Both genders top off their appearance by styling their hair to look like red flames.
8. Aether Foundation
Aether Foundation employees wear crisp white uniforms accented with gold details, topped with a white cap with two golden buttons. While the base design is similar, the male and female versions differ slightly. Males have brown hair and wear a white jumpsuit with stripes across the chest and knees. Females, with blue hair, wear a shirt and pant combo with stripes only on the chest.
Both kinds include the Aether Foundation symbol on the collar, four pockets on each side, and a large bum bag adorned with the emblem and two golden buttons. The employees finish off their appearance with long white gloves and white shoes with golden buttons and soles. Their leader, Lusamine, also caught fans’ attention with a white and gold dress, paired with matching gloves and a floral hat.
7. Team Galacti
Team Galactic brought the retro future aesthetic to the Pokémon world. They all sport light grey space outfits, including grey shoes, and the infamous Turquoise bowl haircut. The grunts wear long, grey, full-sleeved shirts under grey vests with high collars and the letter “G” stylized on the chest; however, females have a more feminine cut to the suit. Men complete the look with black pants, while women wear grey pants.
6. Team Explorers
Team Explorer blends functionality with high-fashion precision. Both male and female members wear a fitted gray uniform complemented with black and deep magenta details. The design features dark gray tops with a magenta stripe on the right side, paired with a structured, cropped, light gray jacket and black gloves.
The male variant includes black trousers with gray boots. While the female version incorporates a black skirt with a magenta stripe over matching tights and heel boots. The magenta stripe accents add a sleek and modern edge to the overall look.
5. Mirror B.
Miror B. is technically not a team, but he first made his appearance in Pokémon Colosseum as a Cipher admin, helping to control shadow Pokémon. In Pokémon XD: Gale of Darknesshe made his own “Team Miror B.” and didn’t display the same level of cruelty as other Cipher leaders. But he is still considered a villain due to his past involvement in Cipher’s nefarious schemes.
Nonetheless, Miror B. stands tall with his Pokeball-inspired afro. The man maintained his 70s funk flair with bell-bottom pants and an open purple jacket with no undershirt. Coming to accessories, he sports a yellow scarf, high heels, a belt with a star, and his signature single black glove.
4. Team Star
Team Star is a group of rebellious students of the Naranja/ Uva Academies, defying school norms and wearing modified uniforms. Their look features star-shaped glasses and helmets displaying the team’s signature star logo in yellow with a white thunderbolt striking through it. Male grunts wear a tie with a white star, a white shirt with a yellow star on its left shoulder, and white shoes.
Female members sport a sleeveless shirt lacking the signature logo, but they do get the same star-patterned tie as well as a pair of white kitten-heeled shoes. For bottoms, the male grunts put on orange pants while female grunts wear shorts in Pokémon Scarlet. Whereas in Pokémon Violet, Team Star wear purple bottoms instead of orange.
3. Team Pinchers
Team Pinchers wear uniforms in a dark green and charcoal color scheme with light green accents. Grunts wear black T-shirts with matching military boots and black gloves. But there are differences in the uniform depending on gender.
Male members sport a green waist-length vest with front pockets, charcoal knee-length shorts, and dark green caps. Female grunts wear cropped vests with front pockets, charcoal shorts, and light green caps. Both variants feature a mechanical arm on the right arm that serves as a primary tool and weapon.
2. Team Dim Sun
Team Dim Sun opted for a militaristic style with their signature color: black and purple. Male grunts appear in a dark gray undershirt topped with a black, high-collar jacket featuring the team’s logo on the chest. This resembles a stylized swirl in purple with two sharp, angular points extending from its sides, resembling cat ears.
The look is paired with dark gray tapered trousers marked by a purple stripe down each side. Female grunts wear the same top and jacket, but swap the pants for a short skirt featuring a purple hem. Both variants complete the look with black boots and gauntlets, each with purple cuffs, and a black belt with a white buckle, adding some contrast to the outfit.
1. Team Rocket
Team Rocket’s legendary black outfit with a bold red “R” on the chest is an iconic costume among Pokémon villain teams. It’s basically a black turtleneck with matching pants, boots, and gloves. But the simplicity of this look is also its best feature.
This costume is no-nonsense, sinister, and instantly recognizable. Even better, it’s also the most functional one out of everything on this list. Proving that you don’t really need fancy cloaks, tons of bright colours, or a million accessories to stand out for your criminal master plans.
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