Despite being a huge fan of Pokemon as a kid I did not watch much of the Pokemon TV show. I watched all of Diamond and Pearl while it was airing but that was it. I didnt watch the original series not Advanced Generation and basically I fell off the entire franchise just a few episodes into Best Wishes. However before that point while I wasnt keeping up with the TV show I was absolutely keeping up with the movies. I saw every Pokemon movie up through Arceus and the Jewel of Life and that was how I stayed up to date on what the current Pokemon status quo was. I dont remember every detail from all those movies its a lot of movies after all but I have fond memories of all of them. They were consistently my favorite part of Pokemon moreso than the TV show even moreso than the games. The Pokemon movies were Pokemon to me and my memories of them are the standard upon which I judge the entire franchise. But theres no telling what will happen to those memories as Im rewatching them. Its been over a decade after all and I first watched them as a kid without much discerning taste. The Pokemon movies define my memories of the franchise but are they gonna hold up upon revisitation? Will the epic tales they tell stand the test of time and prove themselves as enduring worthwhile additions to this megolithic franchise? Or will they reveal themselves as little more than cheap cash grabs pandering to the lowest common denominator in order to score a few more fistfuls of dollars from eager tykes and their parents open wallets? And am I even gonna be able to see them with fresh eyes when my nostalgia goggles are so tight around my experiences with them? Theres only one way to find out: rewatch them in tandem with watching the show and discover what they leave me with now that Im 22 with a far more discerning critical eye. Its gonna be a weird wild experience but Ive never backed down from a challenge before and I dont intend to start now. So lets dive right into the first Pokemon movie conveniently titled Pokemon: The First Movie to see where this grand tradition started and see if it still holds up after all this time. Mewtwo Strikes Back is one of those movies that pretty much everyone remembers watching as a kid. I wont spoil anything major in case some of you reading it havent seen it yet but it tells the tale of Mewtwo the first ever Pokemon clone. He was cloned from the DNA of the legendary first Pokemon Mew created as a lab experiment by Team Rocket to be the strongest Pokemon ever capable of conquering anyone and anything with his psychic powers. But Team Rocket made an incalculable mistake in their quest to create the strongest Pokemon: they actually succeeded. Mewtwo is an unbeatable powerhouse who no one can control and hes none too happy at finding out that the purpose of his creation was to be a slave to humanity. He goes full Frankensteins Monster and rebels against his creators setting off on his own with a heart full of rage and a burning desire to forge a new meaning for his existence even if it means crushing the entire world under his unstoppable heel. Meanwhile Ash and company are enjoying their adventures as always when an unexpected invitation embroils them in Mewtwos cataclysmic plans. Can they stop the mad Pokemon from destroying the world or have the scars of his creation sunk in too deep to accept anything less than Armageddon? Just by that description I think you can get a sense of what made this movie leave such a lasting impact on the generation of kids who first experienced it. Pokemon has gone big in the past but this is the first time the scope of its narrative has truly become massive. Mewtwos tale isnt just another exciting romp or just another badass showdown its a fullon epic tragedy steeped in dark portent and an undercurrent of mythic awe that makes you feel like youre watching a legend come to life before your eyes. The stage feels grander the emotions rawer the ultimate meaning far more ancient and everlasting. Mewtwo himself is a far more mature character than you might expect driven to evil deeds not out of pettiness or inherent cruelty but because of deep existential trauma thats crippled his ability to grow as a sentient being. His entire purpose for existing in the first place was to be a tool for others to wield he was born without meaning and he projects that selfhatred onto the world around him as he rages against what he sees as the unchangeable evil of humans and Pokemon. In a lot of ways I think Mewtwo Strikes Back was many of our first introductions to the idea that fiction would ask difficult questions of us. It could present us with villains who had to be stopped but demanded out sympathy all the same. It could present us with philosophical conundrums on the meaning of life how were born versus who we choose to be. Sure its not exactly Aristotle but the epic scope and depth of the films ideas in contrast with its kidfriendly presentation make for the rare film that can ask make sixyearolds to step out of their comfort zones and face grander less comfortable ideas than they might be used to. Of course if you remember anything from this film as an adult today its sure to be the opening and ending sequences. The films middle stretch gets a little draggy as it puts all the pieces in place for the final showdown theres a lot of people and Pokemon involved and even Team Rocket gets a bstory as they sneak around Mewtwos fortress to give the audience a tour of the inner machinery driving his plan. Also this franchise has not yet lost its unfortunate affinity for cheesy 90s pop ballads in place of emotional heft. It still all looks very nice as OLM flexes their movie budget to bring the Pokemon world to life like never before. The character animation on humans and Pokemon alike is fluid and satisfying with plenty of nuanced little details that speak to their personalities. Theres an obvious effort to animate everyone in frame not just the most important characters background characters react to events in the foreground Pokemon scuffle and play along the sidelines and it goes a long way to selling the reality of this world. The cinematography gets an upgrade as well with plenty of sweeping landscape shots that show off the wellrealized background art and let you sink into the majesty of the environments. And good god is it great seeing the Pokemon battles realized with the full potential of animation. The action is fast and furious everyones pulling out a dozen different moves and the impact of every blow rings across the screen. This is the first time the Pokemon fights have felt as organic and explosive as they deserve to like were watching two sentient beings try to triumph over each other instead of just video game characters exchanging turnbased blows. Its not exactly Ghibli but its polished to a damn fine mirror shine all the same. But that opening and ending. Sweet buttery Christ that opening and ending. Theres a reason those two sequences have lingered in our collective cultural consciousness for upwards of two decades now they are truly jawdropping. The prologue details Mewtwos creation subjugation and liberation with the gravitas befitting a Shakesperian antihero it pushes the franchises usual lighthearted good nature to the side in favor of pure mythic weight. And watching the evolution of Mewtwos consciousness as he becomes consumed by the darkness of his situation makes for one of the most gripping aweinspiring supervillain origin stories ever made. And a lot of credit needs to go to Mewtwos voice actor for pulling that off because he sells the fuck out of this characters tragic rage honestly the entire dub cast is in top form here. By the time hes left his captors behind and sworn revenge on the world thats wronged him youre left utterly spellbound you just witnessed the birth of a vengeful god in a franchise about making cute plush critters battle each other. And without spoiling the ending yeah we all make fun of how cheesy and contrived that resolution is but as its just letting that last battle play out the weight and exhaustion and pain growing and growing and Pikachu taking a stand and Ash charging into the fray and the horrible wordless silence that settles in right before everything is set right again Fuck man. Im not even ashamed to admit it still made me cry over a decade later. Thats the mark of something truly special even though its a kids movie it mostly lets its darkness be honest uncompromising and true. So yeah as amazed as I am to say it Pokemon: The First Movie still holds up. Its not perfect and it does drag in the places between when it gets to really flex its more epic ideas but your childhood self wasnt wrong to find as much value in it as you did. Its a shockingly resonant piece of epic fiction that pushes Pokemon to the next level and grounds it in something darker grander and more aweinspiring than its even been capable of before. Its a kids film through and through but its the most colossal kids film I can possibly imagine that still appeals to such young sensibilities. Time and time again Pokemon has proven itself to be more than just a moneyprinting machine theres a reason we keep coming back to these characters and their stories so many years later. And Mewtwo Strikes Back while flawed is proof that this franchise is capable of some truly incredible things.