James breaks the fourth wall in this episode at the end by saying, "Drat, we wasted this episode cheering the good guys!" This also marks the first time when Team Rocket has broken the fourth wall.
Among the weakened Pokemon is a Sandshrew which should've been immune to Raichu's electric attacks.
Team Rocket roots for Ash and Pikachu. As such, this is the first time they express support for a main character.
This is the first episode in which Ash wins a Gym Badge for actually defeating the Gym Leader in battle. Here, he defeats Lt. Surge to win the Thunder Badge.
None of Ash's other Pokemon appear in or are even mentioned in this episode.