Netflix's Pokémon: Mewtwo Strikes Back Evolution is a brand-new adaptation of Pokémon: The First Movie, and it features some changes to the original version - including being a CGI remake. Mewtwo Strikes Back Evolution debuted on Netflix for National Pokémon Day. The reboot movie tells the story of Mewtwo's creation. After Dr. Fuji clones the legendary Pokémon Mew, his experiment - Mewtwo - rebels against him and his employer, Giovanni. It's then up to Ash Ketchum and his team to stop Mewtwo's plans to conquer the world with his army of clones.
Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution is a fairly straight-forward remake that doesn't add much to the original film. The majority of the changes are small, keeping the structure of the original intact. However, the animation does add a new layer to the characters' appearances, like Mewtwo's armor as featured on Pokémon GO. Most of the movie features either shot-for-shot recreations or only the smallest of alterations. But there are changes that have a larger effect on the overall movie when compared to the original.
While the Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution story is identical to the original version, the remake boasts an all-new CGI animation style - and it's fascinating to see the same story adapted into a different art form. Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution reworks tons of classic moments from Pokémon: The Movie, including Mew hopping on the blades of the windmill and Ash emerging from the smoke with the original Pokémon, all of which have been reworked for this new movie. But again, Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution doesn't change much from the story, as its primary goal was to bring Mewtwo Strikes Back into a new era of animation, which it most certainly did. Despite that, there are some notable differences between the two.
Mewtwo Strikes Back's Biggest Changes To Original Pokémon Movie
Many of these changes are smaller in scale, only noticeable to the diehard Pokémon fans. For example, Team Rocket helps Ash travel through the hurricane in a Lapras speedboat, trading the Viking costumes for sailor suits and a musical number. Also, in Ash's opening battle with his pirate-clad challenger, Pikachu fights a Drowzee instead of a Golem. These are the biggest changes, and they're hard to spot.
Aside from those, Mewtwo has an additional line at the beginning, when he dreams of Mew and the outside world. "I cannot forgive the world where a certain someone flew away from me," Mewtwo says, before waking up to the reality of his existence and relationship to Mew. This new line of dialogue is a nice setup to Mewtwo's central conflict. There's also the omission of the prologue from Pokémon: The Movie's "Complete Version," or kanzenban. This prologue included a dark storyline where young Mewtwo befriended Ambertwo, Dr. Fuji's attempt at cloning his dead daughter. It makes sense that this plotline wouldn't make it to the new movie, but it could've been an impactful way to update the story for unfamiliar American viewers.
At the end of the day, the majority of changes Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution makes to the original Pokemon movie were minuscule. It's a straightforward redux of its source material. In many ways, it's like what Disney did with 2019's The Lion King. Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution is a good way for new Pokémon fans to watch a classic story. However, unlike The Lion King, Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution didn't include all the incredible music of the original. "Brother My Brother" is a banger, central to the iconic Pokemon/clone fight, and the fact it was cut is a tragedy.