Pokémon: The First Movie — When Pokémon Hits the Big Screen.
Something I’ve always wanted to do with this gaming journal/blog thing is to expand into other mediums such as movies and TV shows. I mostly do video games as a foundation as that’s what I know most about. I want to build a structure that can hold its own before decided to add on more things to it, it’s like building an expansion of a house. Also, the topic here is Pokémon, so I guess this is a sense of me dipping my toes into the pool with this one. Also seeing how today is Pokémon Day, I figured what better time than now?
Anyway, very rarely something enters pop culture that takes the world by storm. Rather it be something along the lines of Ghostbusters of the 80s, to TMNT of the 90s, to the mid to late 90s with the rise of Pokémon. Pokémon since its introduction has become a worldwide phenomenon that has been strong for the last 25 years. However, I feel like Pokémon peaked around 1998 and 1999, or at least in a pop culture sense. The Pokémon cartoon show on Saturday mornings was a major hit as it had kids fall in love with the Pokémon trainer Ash and his beloved Pikachu. With the help of friends Misty and Brock, they go on awesome Pokémon adventures all while trying to stop the always comical Team Rocket in nearly every episode. I love myself some dumb villous goons and Team Rocket is no different. I can almost do an entire writing piece on the trio of Jessie, James, and their iconic talking Pokémon in Meowth alone, as they always get into hijinks and make elaborate plans, only for them to it blowing up in their face figuratively, in some cases literally.
Yes by 1999 Pokemania was in full swing. I remember going to video game tournaments, collecting trading cards, you name it. If you were not all in with Pokémon, what were you doing as a kid? Unless you were more into Digimon or something, nothing wrong with that.
So, when I heard that there would be a full out Pokémon animated movie in theaters? You better a younger me was very excited. Pokémon on the big screen!? Sign me up! Not only that, but it was also going to go into the story of Mew. There was said at that time to be 150 Pokémon but what if there was a mystery 151st Pokémon? That’s kind of where Mew started. Afterall 150 is Mewtwo, what about the original? Rumors came out like wildfire on how to capture Mew in the original Pokémon Red and Blue games. The rise of the internet also took this rumor mill and cranked it into overdrive. So not only are we getting a full out Pokémon movie, but we’re going to get about two of the at the time the most powerful Pokémon of all. I mean look at the poster above, it looks more like a championship title fight at the MGM grand than a movie about cute monsters based on a video game. The movie is kind of like a dinner meal where you get an apatizer then the main course. The first part is a short called “Pikachu’s vacation” then the main movie being “MewTwo Strikes Back”, Because he already attacked once already, I guess?
The movie starts with a short mini video titled Pikachu’s Vacation. Kind of the appetizer before the main meal as the movie itself starts hot and heavy. It involves Ash, Misty, and Brock going to a theme park for Pokémon and letting their Pokémon out to enjoy some R&R and doing Pokémon things. Pikachu and friends and met up by a gang of bullies consisting of the Pokémon known as Raichu, Cubone, Marill, and Snubbull. This might not seem like much, but this was advertised that Pikachu’s Vacation would have never before seen Pokémon. This was the case of the Pokémon Marill and Snubbull. Marill was a big deal as there was a rumor of a “Pikablue” Pokémon that was pretty much a blue Pikachu. So, to see the rumor somewhat be real and to see Pokémon that would not been seen again until generation 2 with Pokémon Gold and Silver, that was a big deal for the young Pokémon fanbase. If there was any reason to watch this short, it’s for us younger fans to see all new Pokémon. We had no idea what the future of Pokémon would be, we were still in the first generation so there was a sense of mystery and wonder.
Pikachu’s Pokefriends and the rivaled Pokémon take on each other in sports and other friendly rivalries until Ash’s Charizard’s head gets stuck in a pipe. The two sides decide to put aside their differences and to help out Charizard and all end up enjoying the day before parting ways to their trainers. Short, sweet, and gives the lesson of letting differences aside to solve big problems. I have no issues here.
Now we get into the meat and talk about the movie itself. Pokémon: Mewtwo Strikes Back. The story starts with a group of scientists that want to make a clone of the most mysterious and powerful Pokémon of all in Mew. They succeed and Mewtwo is born. However, Mewtwo is upset that he believes that he is nothing more than an experiment and wreaks havoc and destroys the research lab. There’s a line a scientist says about how their goal was to make the most powerful Pokémon ever, and it was a success before Mewtwo destroys everyone. Honestly a cool moment and really gives the seriousness that Mewtwo is more powerful and unlike any Pokémon we have ever seen. Geovanni, the leader of the evil organization in Team Rocket is impressed by Mewtwo’s power and wants him to work for him. However, Mewtwo abandons Team Rocket after realizing that he’s just being used as a weapon for Geovanna’s gain, again showing Mewtwo’s conflict that he’s more and too powerful to just be used as someone else’s puppet.
Mewtwo goes back to the lab he was created and sets up a home base there. Mostly in Pokémon we don’t see this level of violence in the original cartoon, especially this early in the movie. So, to see it go this dark this fast was a great way to introduce Mewtwo, our antagonist. It’s already proven that this Pokémon is much darker and is going to be something Pokémon trainers have never had to dealt with before. It’s not dark to the case it will turn people off but really shows that Mewtwo is going to be quite the menace our hero Pokémon trainers are going to have to deal with. It’s such a complex concept here with Mewtwo as he asks himself “why am I here?” and really explores the ideas of existence and what our meaning is in life.
Speaking of our trainers… We get Ash and our friends in a friendly Pokémon battle. We get some classic Pokémon fighting action here when they get a message from a hologram of a lady. No, it’s not them asking for help from Obi-Wan Kenobi being their only hope. Instead, it’s a message that the most powerful Pokémon trainer has offered a challenge to anyone that can go toe to toe with them. Ash, wanting to be the best like no one ever was, is excited about the opportunity and is ready to face the challenge.
They decided to go to the island where Mewtwo is at, but Mewtwo decided he’s going to test our trainers and create a storm so only the strongest can go against him. Ash is picked up by the show’s goons and on-going bad guys in Team Rocket. Here they are dressed as Vikings to deguse themselves so Ash and his friends don’t notice. Team Rocket hopes to get the trust of Ash so they can capture Pikachu when the time is right. Team Rocket has their own motives for wanting to meet up with Mewtwo and they think they will get a sweet reward from their boss who Mewtwo abandoned earlier in the move, also to help snag Pikachu, it’s always about that yellow mouse. There’s a line where someone says they thought Vikings were extinct and then Ash says something about them being mostly in Minnesota. Kid me admittedly got a really good laugh out of this dumb joke, one of the highlights for me.
Ash and friends survive the storm and only a few trainers are left when they at last go face to face with Mewtwo. There’s some dispute that the most powerful Pokémon trainer cannot be a Pokémon themselves, but this is Mewtwo’s game, so he makes the rules. Team Rocket also makes it to the island and learns that Mewtwo is making clones of Pokémon to do his bidding and could be used to possibly take over the world. It’s ironic and makes Mewtwo more villainous as his whole thing at the start of the movie was him being a clone of mew and that he hated that he was made to do the bidding of others, only for him to make clones of other Pokémon to do just that himself. All this stuff while the Pokémon Mew is sneaking behind Team Rocket looking at things itself in trying to put the pieces together along with Team Rocket, Mew is quite the curious little fellow. Team Rocket doesn’t see Mew just yet and it’s kind of a great dynamic of the rarest Pokémon of all being right under Team Rocket’s nose and they don’t notice it. Just away enough to be out of the way. The viewers of the movie that are mostly Pokémon fans at the time yelling “Mew is right behind you!” only to turn around and it's not there, only to just miss the rare Pokémon. It’s a pretty entertaining dynamic that I adore.
Back to the action, we find out the lady in the hologram is in fact a brainwashed nurse joy, a reoccurring charter of the cartoon. She announces that the most powerful Pokémon trainer is also the most powerful Pokémon. Then Mewtwo makes his grand entrance. One of the trainers' clams that if Mewtwo is a Pokémon, that he can be captured. However, the trainer is no match for the powerful psychic abilities of Mewtwo and makes quick work of most of the trainers.
Mewtwo uses his cloned Pokémon for his army, and we get a huge fight between Pokémon trainers and the clones. Might as well called this movie Pokémon Attack of the Clones instead of strikes back. Ok, joking aside Ash later finds the cloning machine after it clones Team Rocket’s Meowth and frees the reminding captured Pokémon that were being cloned. The real and fake Meowth have a cool moment seeing each other in a “facing yourself/looking in the mirror” sort of way. Ash, now with an army of the real Pokémon are leading the charge to fight Mewtwo’s army of clones for an epic showdown. After some big Pokémon battles between the clones and real Pokémon, Mew at last shows up and we at last get the face-to-face conflict between Mew VS Mewtwo. Who is the real most powerful Pokémon?
All the clones and Pokémon fight each other except the cloned Pikachu and the Clone Meowth. They learn that there is no reason to have this massive fight and that we can get along, kind of going back to the short before the movie in understanding differences and working together. Make peace, not war. Ash then tries to stop a blast from Mew and Mewtwo to stop the mindless violence, only being turned into stone. Likely the best and closest we can come from death in this case. Pikachu tries giving Ash a thunder shock and it does nothing and what seems like the end of our hero. The Pokémon start to cry realizing the sacrifice Ash made in order to stop the violence and make peace and the tears bring Ash back with the magic of plot. Yeah, I know it’s kind of cheesy, but this is a movie for a younger fanbase and power of friendship power trip and all that jazz and for them could be a tearjerker moment.
At this moment Mewtwo learns what I think is the ultimate lesson of the movie. It’s not how you are brought onto this world, but what you do with the time that you have in life. That you control your own destiny. Not to be defined by your upbringing and where you come from but by your choices and actions is what defines you. Mewtwo sees the light and ends up teleporting everyone off the island and erasing their memories. It’s like nothing happened! I guess that’s one way to make this movie non-canon. Ash talks of seeing a legendary Pokémon the day he left his home time of Pallet Town, recalling back to the first episode of the cartoon, the Pokémon would end up being Ho-Oh, a legendary Pokémon in what would be the next, main series of games in Pokémon Gold and Silver. The movie ends with Ash and the gang enjoying themselves and Team Rocket getting ready to plot their next plan to capture Ash’s Pikachu. The beat goes on.
Overall, for a Pokémon movie aimed for younger fans, it works. There are tons of Pokémon, so your fan favorite is bound to be here, great moments, a few clever jokes, and a really good lessons that are taught here, just a good time for Pokémon fans. Mewtwo Strikes Back also got a remake in 2019 that’s with updated CG animation.
For a first attempt at a Pokémon movie and at the peak of Pokémon’s popularity again, it works. It’s nothing groundbreaking or a masterpiece of any kind but if you ever want to get that generation one Pokémon nostalgia or are a big Pokémon fan, it’s worth watching. Kind of a window of what Pokémon was in the late 90s during the franchise pop culture peak.
