Mewtwo Strikes Back

General Information

Date Released (USA): November 12, 1999

Directed By: Michael Haigney, Kunihiko Yuyama

Run Time: 75 Minutes (US Version)

Pikachu Short: Pikachu's Summer Vacation

Plot Outline: Scientists genetically create a new Pokemon, Mewtwo, but the results are horrific and disastrous.

Star Pokemon: Mewtwo, Mew

Other Info:

This was the first Pokemon movie to hit the US and wow did it make a huge impact on not only the Pokemon world but also for movies. This was the first anime film ever to gross over $30 million dollars in ticket sales beating out the film "Titanic" in only the first week!

Personal Notes: I remember this one well. I was 10 and my friend and I were lucky to be able to see this awesome movie two days after it was out. It's my favorite Pokemon movie of them all still today.

Summary

A group of scientists have been working in a secret laboratory, attempting to create the strongest Pokemon yet in existence. For this, they have taken DNA from a fossilized hair sample of the legendary Pokemon Mew, using the elusive creature's genetic code to bio-engineer Mewtwo. And his scientists succeeded...a little too well. Mewtwo was created and destroyed the lab in search of its purpose in the world. Giovanni, leader of Team Rocket lands on the destroyed island to find Mewtwo. He offered to help Mewtwo with his purpose. He had Mewtwo fight battles in his Gym; never losing any of them but Mewtwo still wants to know his purpose. When Giovanni tells Mewtwo that his only purpose is to obey humans, he becomes enraged and begins to destroy the gym. He jets off to the island from where he was created to find his purpose for himself...

We see Ash and friends getting ready to eat lunch as a trainer comes up and requests a battle with Ash the credits roll on screen as Ash takes down the trainer's Donphan and Machamp with Bulbasaur and Pikachu. Team Rocket look off in the distance as they are also attempting to cook lunch.

Mewtwo looks on at this battle Ash is having through a camera with the help of what appears to be nurse Joy how has been possessed by Mewtwo sends out invitations to some of the best trainers that he spies on in his battle stadium he developed over the destroyed Pokemon lab from which he was created. Ash and company receive one of those invitations from a Dragonite. They accept and head for the harbor where they would cross the sea to new island. At the harbor, Officer Jenny is redirecting people because of a very bad sea storm taking place. Officer Jenny tries to convince other trainers there who are trying to get to New Island that it's not safe to cross to water to the New island. However some trainers fly onward to the new island anyway even after Officer Jenny threatened to arrest them. Meanwhile Ash and Company sees a boat with Team Rocket in disguise posing as Vikings. They offer to take them to New Island. As they make their way across the sea, they get hit harder and harder with waves. Team Rocket's disguises get washed away during one hit. Before any of them get time to react, they all get thrown over board. Ash and Company manage to use their water Pokemon to continue on to New Island where Nurse Joy greets them at the entrance. Team Rocket later washes ashore afloat with Weezing.

Once there Ash and three other trainers who flew over the storm are told by Nurse Joy to wait here and see her "master" (Mewtwo) Mewtwo does show up in impressive fashion, takes Nurse Joy out his control and gives a speech about how all how Pokemon can never live side by side with humans and trained Pokemon are like slaves to humans. Pikachu tries to explain to Mewtwo how Ash is his friend. Mewtwo doesn't believe Pikachu and sends him flying across the room! Ash catches Pikachu. Mewtwo then battles with them and defeats all the Pokemon Ash and the three other trainers had to battle against Mewtwo! Shockingly afterwards, Mewtwo captures all their Pokemon into black Poke Balls to make clones of them! Ash tries to save his Pikachu tries to run from to Black Poke Balls, but they both end up falling into the cloning machine below! They get sent to a machine which Team Rocket had stumbled upon earlier after washing ashore. The Machine overloads however and explodes! The explosion sends the Black Poke Balls open and the Pokemon return to their Trainers. However the Pokemon still were cloned and show up on Mewtwo's side.

Ash tries to fight back against Mewtwo but fails several times when he is flown back towards a wall with a psychic attack. Out of nowhere, Mew shows up and saves Ash! Mew and Mewtwo begin a massive battle along with the cloned Pokemon and their real counterparts. The fighting is gorilla like brutality; not how a Pokemon battle would be. Pikachu refuses to fight his cloned partner no matter what the cloned Pikachu does to him. Everyone remarks how wrong it is for Pokemon to fight in sort of way: to the death. The Pokemon all become exhausted and can barely go on.

Mew and Mewtwo however prepare to end this once and for all with a final attack. Ash leaps into the way and gets turned into stone! Pikachu desperately tries to revive him with shock attacks but has no luck. The Pokemon begin to cry seeing how Ash sacrificed himself for them. The gathering of tears brings Ash back to life. Mewtwo realizes how Ash sacrificed himself and hovers into the sky with his cloned Pokemon saying he will never forget what happened here and these events should be forgotten.

Everyone finds themselves back at the harbor they used to reach the new island. They don't remember anything. Nurse Joy can be seen directing trainers to shelter from the storm. The storm suddenly clears however. Then Ash spots Mew in the sky which he can't quite identify. He remarks how he saw a rare Pokemon in the sky on the first day of his journey. Team Rocket meanwhile find themselves on an empty island in paradise as they call it remembering not a thing as well of the amazing events they experienced with the battle of Mewtwo and Mew...

Written by: Pikap0w3r

Images

Mewtwo, breaking free of his captive state in the lab in which he was created from Mew's DNA.

Ash with Pikachu after Mewtwo's phychic attack.

A cloned Charizard emerging from the cloning machine.