Ah, the sad memory montages definitely provoke tears. When a Pokémon leaves, it's usually hinted throughout the episode though, which means that I have time to prepare. But when you said that you're not particularly sad about never getting to see those Pokemon again, I immediately thought about evolutions. Those make me sad because, for example, when May's Torchic evolved, I really missed it and still to this day prefer Torchic's personality over Combusken's and Blaziken's.
That's James, though. Even though he is an antagonist, he really respects his Pokémon and would rather become friends with them instead of using them for tools of battling (much like N). Although James is losing his sensitivity as the series goes on /sigh
My only guess would be that it was time for a new group of Pokémon for Team Rocket. Ash, Pikachu, Jessie, James, and Meowth are the only characters (that appear commonly) who are guaranteed to stay in the anime. Everyone else will either take a season/series break or be cut forever because of refreshing.
I didn't mention her because I just listed three from the top of my head. Although I'm not a Misty fan because she was Ash's puppet and had little development toward her goal of being a Water type master.
That's James, though. Even though he is an antagonist, he really respects his Pokémon and would rather become friends with them instead of using them for tools of battling (much like N). Although James is losing his sensitivity as the series goes on /sigh
My only guess would be that it was time for a new group of Pokémon for Team Rocket. Ash, Pikachu, Jessie, James, and Meowth are the only characters (that appear commonly) who are guaranteed to stay in the anime. Everyone else will either take a season/series break or be cut forever because of refreshing.
I didn't mention her because I just listed three from the top of my head. Although I'm not a Misty fan because she was Ash's puppet and had little development toward her goal of being a Water type master.