Mew has captured our hearts as the playful but powerful legendary Pokémon that is one of the hardest things to catch a glimpse of in the game and TV series. With Pokémon being one of the biggest franchises in video game history, Nintendo's second biggest earner (falling only behind Mario), and Mew being one of the most iconic figures in the Pokémon world, you would have thought there wouldn't be so many contradictions and unanswered questions about the character's time at the top.
With the seemingly endless list of fan theories and unexplained twists, Mew has become one of the Pokémon that we know very little about. Making things worse, the officials rarely come out with any official explanations around it and leave us searching around like a bad version of Sherlock Holmes for any clues we can find. Luckily, we have the internet to conspire with the millions of other fans and create ridiculously complicated answers that probably throw us further off track than when we started.
Now, in any great character there are always things that you can nitpick and prod at if you wanted, but because so little is known it's really all up in the air at this point. Through all the mess of this, though, has come some pretty integral points that conflict with the narrative. This is not promising when the some of the small amount of information we have on the Pokémon is a little questionable.
15 The Result Of A Prank Gone Right
This is the classic story of Shigeki Morimoto, one of the game's developers, who added Mew to the game just a few weeks before the game's release without the creators' knowledge. It was meant to be seen only by the developers of the game, until the avid players uncovered a glitch to catch the then unknown Pokémon. As soon as word was out, the legend of Mew was born, becoming a novelty that only those in the know could attain, and leading to multiple contests that could unlock your very own Mew. In the end, Shigeki Morimoto ended up doing a huge favour for the marketing of the games, seeing as they were struggling in the earlier weeks. He lit the fire underneath and took the original Pokémon games to the heights we know today.
14 Mewtwo Moves Its Way To The Front
One that fans have been going back and forth on for awhile is why Mew comes after Mewtwo in the Pokédex when it's clear that Mew was around before him, being the creator of Mewtwo. Many have said that it's because no one was sure Mew was even real until Mewtwo became a problem, but the journal entries hidden in the Pokémon Mansion in the Gen l games say that scientists discovered Mew in a jungle in Guyana. So why the hold up on the Pokédex entry? It did come with an added perk, saving you the eyesore of having a gap in your Pokédex if you couldn't get ahold of Mew at the time. We all know Pokémon's fan base has a bit of a habit for being a little O.C.D. about these things.
13 Serious Lack Of Certain Moves
Mew is supposed to contain the DNA of every Pokémon you see today and so should be able to learn every move in the game, but there are certain moves that can only be learned by one Pokémon. This includes the starter Pokémon's big moves and various others that have to be learned under specific circumstances. All things considered, it's a minor thing that only the finicky among us are concerned about, but it could be fixed. On the upside, it can learn every TM, HM, and move taught by the tutor in the game. One of the many complications that come with maintaining a Pokémon that has such unique abilities must be keeping a steady through line that supports them all. All I'm asking is that my Mew gets a little Blast Burn, that's all.
12 Left Out Of The PokéRap
The Pokérap is the anthem of my youth and many of yours. While it contained almost every Pokémon of the original 151, they left out Mew, who is the only Pokémon to be left out of the Pokérap and no reason has been given as to why. It was only in the Hoenn Pokérap that Mew was finally included, two generations later. Maybe this is because Mew didn't officially appear until the release of the movie Mewtwo Strikes Back, or they weren't sure if it was going to be as permanent of a fixture as it turned out to be. Still, it was one of the most talked about Pokémon since the release of the game, and you would think that would earn it at least a shoutout. We'll never know now, but at least it has had its rightful place in the anthem eventually.
11 Useless Moves
While there have been many a questionable move in Pokémon, with the likes of Splash and Celebrate, giving a genderless Pokémon the moves of Attract and Captivate makes about as much sense as a chocolate teapot. The moves work off of opposite genders being infatuated with one another and therefore unable to attack, whereas poor Mew doesn't fit either. It's not necessarily the moves it does have that are the problem, but the moves it doesn't that could have been in their place. Three of the most powerful moves from the starters get left out, but they give it two moves of absolutely no use to it. Our small pink friend just can't catch a break. I've said it once and I'll say it again... just a little Blast Burn?
10 Mew Has An Ugly Clone
A very popular theory surrounding Mew was started because of its almost identical stats to Ditto, including the fact that they're the only two Pokémon in the entire game who can transform. Both have a pink colour to them, both weigh exactly 8.8 pounds, and are two of a select few genderless Pokémon in the game. By now we all know that Mewtwo is a clone of Mew. Well, the theory goes that in the previous attempts at creating a clone there were a few failures along the way. Enter Ditto. Failure isn't a kind word but let's be honest, it's the right one when you look at it. Mew is a cute, energetic little thing compared to the formless blob that is Ditto.
9 There Can Only Be One
In the original Pokémon it was said that Mew was the "ancestor of all Pokémon". Given that its said to have the DNA of every single species of Pokémon that makes sense, yet in Pokémon Diamond and Pearl the creators introduced Arceus, who was supposed to have created the entire universe and been totally alone when it was born. This has sent many a fan into a tailspin of speculation and fan theories around the subject; did Mew create Arceus? Or did Arceus create Mew? What it really boils down to is a chicken and the egg-type paradox that the officials will give us no answer to. Nothing against them, but when it's a huge conflict like this, don't you think they should have an answer for us?
8 One Clone Town
Dr. Fuji, who created Mewtwo, had tried to create clones of the three starter Pokémon prior and failed miserably. Team Rocket cloned Mew and managed to create one of the most powerful Pokémon in existence, which begs the question: why didn't they try to clone any more Pokémon? Possibly because the first try was so disastrous, but it's not like Team Rocket was ever the most logical organization going. Possibly no other scientist could compete with Fuji when it came to cloning, and when he died in the lab's destruction all the research was lost with it. Plot hole or not, I suppose our heroes have that to thank... who knows how powerful a Dragonite or Alakazam clone could have been? We might not have our beloved Ash Ketchum at all.
7 Impossible To Catch
Despite there being many ways to still get a Mew in these games, they require you to use GameShark devices or glitches in the code. Unless you're willing to travel to the land down under and find one of the few EB Games stores giving out the code, that is. That's the only way to go about acquiring a Mew for these games and completing your Pokédex without going through the back door. While it's understandable that Mew was made to be a very rare Pokémon, as he wasn't even supposed to be in the originals at all, the annoyance of having 150/151 Pokémon is a massive irritation to most people and one that isn't likely to be resolved. I'm sure many people have already ventured to the dark side and gotten their Mews that way, but if you're willing to travel you can grab one of those few verified Mews.
6 A Piece Of Marketing Brilliance
As we've found out, Mew was just an attempted prank created by the developer Shigeki Morimoto, leading to one of the most iconic figures of the Pokémon world. They not only ran with it as far as marketing for the original games goes, but also held events that would give out Mews with an I.D. number to prove its legitimacy. Mew events have been happening up until Pokémon X/Y, with certain EB Games stores still giving out Mew codes in Australia. This being the only way to complete your Gen l Pokédex in a genuine way, they managed to turn a simple prank into a cash cow and make a classic Pokémon in the process. In some ways, it could have saved the franchise with a lot of the game's sales riding off of that Mew hype and interest skyrocketing.
5 A Broken Judge Of Character
The bio of Mew in several versions of the game says that Mew is able to make itself completely invisible and will only show itself "to those who are pure of heart and have a strong desire to see it". If this were true, then why would it show itself to Mewtwo when it's so good at detecting your intentions? Surely Mew would have sensed the intentions of Mewtwo. Either stay and help out by staying invisible during the fight to at least make it difficult, or just leave to protect yourself! While this isn't the first hiccup in Mew's character, it was written into the description by the creators. At a certain point you have to keep up with the personality of the Pokémon!
4 Multiple Personalities For Mew
Mewtwo Strikes Back was a huge hit among Pokémon fans worldwide, giving us that iconic teary scene that hit us all in the soft spot. What many of us didn't realize was in the English and Japanese versions of the film there were two drastically different plot points as far as Mew was concerned. In the English version it was a cute, playful thing that didn't even realize it was in a fight until it got hit. The Japanese version, however, showed us a different side, with Mew attempting to take out all the clone Pokémon as Mewtwo tackles the originals. This is a stark contrast and reveals a side to Mew that no one has ever seen before, a Mew that some of us on the English side might want to see.
3 As Dumb As They Come
Now, Mew is supposed to be this highly intelligent creature that can detect when people have bad intentions and avoids them. Yet in every situation that we see him in, besides maybe the Japanese version of Mewtwo Strikes Back, it hasn't shown it. It always comes off as a fun loving, gullible creature that doesn't expect harm from anybody. This is especially seen in the English version of the film where it doesn't even understand it's being attacked until it gets physically hit. I mean, it may be a Mother Theresa-like entity that is happy and all knowing, but it just seems like you could give it a little more problem solving skills for all that intelligence it supposedly has. For all the hassle, Mew could have saved Ash at least a couple of times.
2 One Of A Kind Abilities
Only in the Trading Card Game (TCG) was Mew known to be able to devolve other Pokémon. In the game, Mew has a devolution beam move that can take an evolved Pokémon back to its original form. This begs the question: does Mew actually have this capability? It has never been shown in the series or any prior games, and if it can it's a huge asset and makes it one of only a few Pokémon to be able to devolve other Pokémon at will. This could take your ferocious Charizard back to a cute little Charmander or your Dragonite back to a Dratini. It could also be a way to pick up some moves that you left behind through evolution, should they add this into the Nintendo games. It could also be one of the most heartbreaking moves in the game, as you see all your hard work slip down the drain.
1 Mew Might Be A Mute
Many Pokémon have been able to communicate with humans throughout the years, either through telepathy or actually being able to talk. Meowth is the most famous case of this, but we've never actually heard Mew talk to anyone but other Pokémon in any way. Seeing that it has the ability to transform into any Pokémon and with it being such an integral part to the earlier storyline, you would have thought we would have gotten something out of it, especially seeing as we've heard miscellaneous Pokémon talk. It might be a creative choice to keep the mystique around Mew going, or maybe the legendary Pokémon is a mute. Call me optimistic, but I'm still holding onto the chance we hear its voice in the future.