Let's face it -- clowns are creepy, but mimes certainly aren't far behind! And there's something deeply unsettling about the Pokémon Mr. Mime. Although in the early seasons of the Pokémon anime it was still relatively harmless and cute, the Alola region and the Detective Pikachu movie have efficiently transformed the once adorable creature into a thing of nightmares.

Delia Ketchum's Mr. Mime, however, has always been seen as a heartwarming figure. Introduced at the end of Season 1 of the anime, he was caught by Ash's mother and has lived with her ever since. But is he just another Pokémon for the Ketchum family, or is there something... more to it?

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Mr. Mime the Super Maid

For starters, Ash's dad is only mentioned by his mother at the beginning of Season 1. She says that he was a great trainer that left long ago to pursue his Pokémon journey. (It feels like that excuse could very easily be abused for the wrong reasons, but hey.) This has led to many wild theories as to who Ash's real father might be.

One of these theories claims that Mr. Mime is Ash's real dad. Although that theory's definitely not true (he wasn't here at the start of Season 1, thankfully), Mr. Mime is definitely a bit of a stepdad to Ash. Ever since Ash caught him in "It's Mr. Mime Time," Mr. Mime AKA "Mimey" as he's been nicknamed, has been living with his mother back in Pallet Town.

Mimey has been shown over time as being the help around the house. He mops, sweeps and in general, just helps Delia with daily household chores. In a way, he's one of the series' most consistent and long-standing Pokémon!

Ash has even expressed jealousy towards his mom's favoritism in regards to Mimey. He claimed that Delia loved Mimey more than she loved him, as she'd often take his side whenever there was bad blood between them. Mimey and Ash do get along well, however, and Mimey has even battled at his side, though he's been shown as not being as reliable as Ash's other Pokémon.

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Mr. Stepdad..?

In the anime's early seasons, Mimey was really just like any other of the many Pokémon that help Delia Ketchum around the house. He was even shown eating from a bowl as a regular Pokémon does. He was, however, very possessive of Delia and protective of her things. He was also very competitive when it came to impressing her with the chores he does, as shown by that time Brock came over and the two of them entered a domestic competition to see who was the better help around the house.

Things start to get pretty weird in the Alola region, however, which is probably where the rumors came from. In the first episode of the show, Delia Ketchum goes on an all-inclusive vacation with Ash, Pikachu... and Mimey, who's even dressed as a human. He's also seen sunbathing by her side, and there's a bit of a questionable picture where he puts his hand on her thigh in the cab. Yikes.

Pokemon Mr Mime Delia Ash

Although this might seem weird because Mimey is a very humanoid Pokémon, the truth is that if you were to replace him with, let's say, a pet monkey, none of his behavior would seem that inappropriate. Still, this is a good reminder to GameFreak that human-looking Pokémon can lead to awkward situations, so maybe it's best not to have too many of them around.

One thing's for sure: both Ash and Delia Ketchum are lucky to have so much help and support for someone -- even if it isn't Ash's dad. Mimey might not have any plans to become a Pokémon master anytime soon, but at least he's reliable.

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