Jessie's Arbok
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Jessie's Arbok (Japanese: ムサシのアーボック Musashi's Arbok) was the first Pokémon Jessie was known to have; she received it as a chūgen gift (a birthday gift in the dub).
In animation
History
Pokémon the Series: The Beginning
Kanto
It was mentioned in Island of the Giant Pokémon that Jessie received Ekans as a birthday present (for chūgen in the original Japanese version). It is unknown who the gift was from.
Arbok first appeared in Pokémon Emergency! as an Ekans. Throwing their Poké Balls down from their Meowth balloon, Jessie and James used both it and James's Koffing to quickly overtake the defenseless Viridian Pokémon Center. Koffing's job was to create a Smokescreen while Ekans destroyed the computers. Chasing Ash, Misty, and Nurse Joy, Ekans scared all of Ash's Pokémon, and Misty attempt with Goldeen didn't succeed. However, Nurse Joy's Pikachu came out and replenished Ash's Pikachu with a Thunder Shock attack while at the same time attacking the Rocket trio. Giving Ash's Pikachu enough power to stand up, Ash charged up Pikachu using Misty's charred bike, letting him have his own Thunder Shock. As Team Rocket was being electrocuted, Koffing's Smog was ignited by the voltage, causing the entire Pokémon Center to explode and sending Team Rocket blasting off.
While the St. Anne had already sunk into the ocean in Pokémon Shipwreck, Ekans was responsible for the vessel flooding with seawater after Jessie ordered it to open a hole in the floor to escape. Team Rocket later escaped with Ash and his friends thanks to their Water Pokémon.
Ekans was separated from Jessie in Island of the Giant Pokémon along with Meowth and Koffing after a group of Gyarados sent them flying with Dragon Rage. When Team Rocket's Pokémon came across Ash's Pokémon, who were also separated from their Trainer, Meowth ordered Ekans and Koffing to attack them. However, they both refuse to listen, simply stating Meowth is not their Trainer. Meowth tried to convince the two Pokémon that, as bad guys, they don't need the company of their Trainers to do anything bad, but Ekans told him that "there are no bad Pokémon; only their Trainers are bad." Because of the situation, the two groups of Pokémon joined forces to look for their Trainers. The next day, Ekans and the rest of the Pokémon were seen being chased by a group of giant mechanical Pokémon. It would not be until they jumped into a mine cart their Trainers were riding that Ekans would be reunited with Jessie.
In Beauty and The Beach, Ekans and Koffing were entered into the Beach Beauty and Pokémon Costume Contest. The two dressed up as an Omastar before being kicked off the stage by Gary Oak.
It eventually evolved into an Arbok in Dig Those Diglett!, along with Koffing, after James and Jessie were desperate for them to evolve. Despite their new forms, however, they were easily overwhelmed by a horde of Diglett and Dugtrio.
In The Problem with Paras, Arbok, along with Weezing, faked losing a battle against Cassandra's Paras so it could gain the confidence to evolve.
In Princess vs. Princess, Jessie used Arbok during the Queen of the Princess Festival competition. Arbok helped Jessie reach the finals, but ultimately, it was defeated by Pikachu's Thunder Shock.
In The Misty Mermaid, Team Rocket attempted to steal the Water-type Pokémon belonging to the Cerulean Gym. The trio attacked during an underwater performance, with Arbok and Weezing coming out to battle, though Weezing immediately floated to the surface. Despite being alone and outnumbered, Arbok rounded up its opponents and moved in to finish them off. However, a Seel intervened, evolved into Dewgong, and froze Arbok with Ice Beam.
In The Battle Of The Badge, Arbok was used by Jessie when she acted as the temporary Viridian City Gym Leader. It was swiftly defeated by a Thunderbolt from Ash's Pikachu.
In Go West Young Meowth, Arbok and Weezing defended Meowth from his old gang. Their distraction allowed Meowth to take on the leader, a Persian. and defeat it.
Orange Islands
In Pikachu Re-Volts, Arbok was used to try to nab the Pokémon Butch and Cassidy stole. It, along with the rest of Team Rocket's Pokémon, was hypnotized by Butch and Cassidy's Drowzee and forced to attack its Trainer. They were later freed by Ash and his Pikachu and joined together to battle Drowzee.
In Bound For Trouble, Arbok saved Meowth from a giant Pidgeot, using Wrap and Bite to scare it off.
Pokémon the Series: Gold and Silver
Jessie used Arbok as her main battling Pokémon in Johto, preferring it over Lickitung and later Wobbuffet.
In The Whistle Stop, when Team Rocket stole a whistle from Arielle, Meowth blew it in the right note to cause Arbok to dance around and cry out in reaction. This allowed Meowth to command it to help capture a group of Ledyba from Arielle by having it dig underground and jump out in front of them for Meowth to throw a net on them and tie them in ropes. Arbok used its tail to grab the ropes when they tried to escape. Still, the Ledyba eventually escaped and dragged Arbok into Jessie's Lickitung and James's Victreebel, who were attacking the twerps and Arielle.
In Beauty and the Breeder, Arbok, alongside the rest of Team Rocket's Pokémon, was entered in the Pokémon Beauty Contest. They impressed the crowd with their stylish looks before getting thrown out by Officer Jenny for breaking the rules.
In Wobbu-Palooza!, Arbok was used alongside Victreebel to try to stop the Wobbuffet Festival crashers, since everyone else refused to fight due to festival rules. Arbok battled their Hitmonlee and lost quickly to his Rolling Kick and High Jump Kick attacks. Wobbuffet was sent out afterward and managed to defeat them with his Counter.
In Imitation Confrontation, Arbok battled Duplica's Ditto, Mini-Dit. Mini-Dit transformed into Wobbuffet and used his moveset to battle Arbok and Weezing before transforming into Pikachu and blasting Team Rocket off.
In A Ghost of a Chance, Arbok and Weezing battled against Morty's Gengar. Due to its ability to turn invisible and hide in the shadows, Gengar was able to disorient the two before defeating them with Shadow Ball.
In The Big Balloon Blow-Up, Jessie used Arbok's Poison Sting to pop some of her competitor's balloons during the Pokémon Balloon Race. This caused a number of them to drop out, though Team Rocket ended up not finishing due to Pikachu destroying their balloon.
In The Mystery is History, Jessie sent out Arbok against Cassidy's Houndour to see who would be the one to steal a Lugia nicknamed Silver. Arbok's Poison Sting was easily overwhelmed by Houndour's Flamethrower, after which Ash and his friends arrived to intervene. In A Promise is a Promise, the battle for the Lugia continues. The attacks from both sides of Team Rocket's Pokémon broke the energy barrier holding Lugia captive, and it blasts them all away.
Pokémon the Series: Ruby and Sapphire and Chronicles
In A Ruin with a View, Jessie sent out Arbok alongside Weezing to battle the Team Magma Grunts who approached them. Not long after being sent out, Team Magma's Houndoom used Roar to send Arbok and Weezing back into their Poké Balls.
In We're No Angels!, Arbok and Weezing accidentally made Team Rocket the town heroes by destroying a mecha heading towards them.
In In the Knicker of Time!, Arbok and Weezing battled Ash and his friends for the final time, where they were blasted off by Pikachu's Thunder.
In A Poached Ego!, Team Rocket took on Rico, a Pokémon poacher who had captured a herd of Ekans and Koffing in Petalburg Woods. Arbok battled Rico's Fearow and managed to hold its beak shut, leading Rico to recall it. In the follow-up match, Arbok knocked Fearow out with Headbutt, allowing Meowth to free the captured Pokémon. James and Jessie reluctantly ordered Weezing and Arbok to stay in the wild and guard the young Ekans and Koffing. The pair tearfully escaped into the wilderness as Jessie, James, and Meowth fought Rico and his Tyranitar by themselves.
Pokémon Journeys: The Series
Arbok appeared in a fantasy in Rocket Revengers! when Team Rocket reminisced about their old Pokémon.
Personality and characteristics
Jessie often relied on Arbok in battle because of its intimidating nature and its abilities to use Dig and swim in the water, like in The Misty Mermaid. Outside of battling, Arbok was deeply attached and loyal to Jessie, as revealed during its temporary separation from her in Island of the Giant Pokémon, and its later release in A Poached Ego!. Jessie offered Arbok support in times of difficulty, like during blastoffs or when it failed its movie audition in Lights, Camera, Quacktion.
Despite its loyalty to Jessie, Arbok showed a moral conscience of its own, revealing in Island of the Giant Pokémon when it was an Ekans that there is no such thing as an evil Pokémon; rather, that moral responsibility lies with the Trainer. There have also been rare occasions where Arbok and Weezing refused to obey their Trainers, such as in A Chansey Operation, where they refused to attack a Chansey because it had treated the injuries they suffered from Team Rocket's schemes and Got Miltank?, where Arbok, along with the rest of Team Rocket's Pokémon, refused to attack the Miltank or any of the Pokémon at an oasis where humans are not welcomed out of respect.
Appearance
| As an Ekans |
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Moves used
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| An × shows that the move cannot be legitimately known by this Pokémon in the games. | |||||||
| A † shows that the move was used recently, unless all moves fit this case or there are fewer than five known moves. | |||||||
In the games
In the core series
Arbok appears in Pokémon Yellow and Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee! as part of Jessie and James's team each time, alongside Meowth/Weezing and its pre-evolved form.
| Pokémon Yellow | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| First battle (Mt. Moon) |
Second battle (Rocket Hideout) |
Third and fourth battle (Pokémon Tower/Silph Co.) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| First battle (Mt. Moon) |
Second and third battle (Team Rocket Hideout/Pokémon Tower) |
Fourth and fifth battle (Silph Co./Route 17) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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In the spin-off games
Pokémon: Catch the Numbers!
Arbok appears in Pokémon: Catch the Numbers!.
Pokémon GO
Jessie always leads with a Shadow Ekans, impiled to have been borrowed from Giovanni. The player has a chance to catch it after defeating her. Unlike most Shadow Pokémon, the Shadow Ekans has a chance to be Shiny.
Pokémon Masters EX
- Main article: Jessie (Masters) → Arbok
Arbok appears alongside Jessie as a sync pair during the special events Double Trouble and Blasting Off Again. In the game, Arbok uses the moves Acid and Poison Jab, with his sync move being Prepare for Trouble Acid.
| Dex | Trainer | NDex | Pokémon | Type | Weakness | Role | EX role | Base potential | Availability | ||
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| #097 | 
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Jessie | #0240 | 
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Arbok♂ |
Poison
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Ground
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★★★ | Event Double Trouble | |
Pokémon Puzzle League
Arbok was one of Jessie and James's three Pokémon in Pokémon Puzzle League.
Pokémon Zany Cards
Arbok is depicted on a photograph on the box art for Pokémon Zany Cards, along with Wobbuffet and Weezing. However, it does not make an appearance in the game.
Artwork
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| Artwork from the Game Freak website |
In the manga
Ash & Pikachu
In Ash & Pikachu, which is based on Pokémon the Series, Arbok appears with Jessie.
Moves used
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| A † shows that the move was used recently, unless all moves fit this case or there are fewer than five known moves. | ||||||||||
The Electric Tale of Pikachu
Jessie's Arbok appears in The Electric Tale of Pikachu. It first appears as an Ekans in Pikachu's Excellent Adventure. All subsequent appearances, beginning in You Gotta Have Friends, are as an Arbok. Like in Pokémon the Series: The Beginning, Arbok is Jessie's primary Pokémon used in battle.
Moves used
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| A † shows that the move was used recently, unless all moves fit this case or there are fewer than five known moves. | |||||||||||||
In the TCG
Jessie's Arbok is featured in the TCG as of one Jessie's Pokémon. The following is a list of cards featuring Arbok.
| Arbok Cards listed with a blue background are only legal to use in the current Expanded format. Cards listed with a green background are legal to use in both the current Standard and Expanded formats. | |||||||
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| Card | Type | English Expansion |
Rarity | # | Japanese Expansion |
Rarity | # |
| Arbok | 
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Hidden Fates | 
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27/68 | Sky Legend | 
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026/054 |
Trivia
- Aside from Wobbuffet, Arbok holds the record for the most appearances out of Jessie's Pokémon, at 143 main series episodes.
- Arbok's arrow-like pattern on its neck differs in some episodes. Sometimes, the ends of the arrow stretch until the ends of its eye-like patterns on its chest and is only a few inches wide. Similarly, there are two red dots on its arrow in some episodes, and in other episodes, there are none.
- In The Misty Mermaid, Arbok was revealed to be able to swim without the need for air.
- Arbok's use of Glare in The Flame Pokémon-athon! marks the first time a main character's Pokémon has used a signature move.
- Its gender was hinted in the Japanese version of Island of the Giant Pokémon. In the subtitles, it refers to itself and Koffing as おれたち ore-tachi, which is a pronoun normally used by males meaning "we", also used by characters such as Ash, Brock, and James in the Japanese version.
- Out of all the Pokémon owned by Jessie or James, Arbok has used the most moves, with eleven.
Related articles
For more information on this Pokémon's species, see Ekans and Arbok.
| Team Rocket's Pokémon | |||||||
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| Jessie | James | ||||||
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| For a list of other Pokémon Team Rocket has commanded, see here and here | |||||||
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This article is part of Project Anime, a Bulbapedia project that covers all aspects of Pokémon animation. |