The Pokémon franchise is massively popular around the world with its many video games, ongoing anime, and constant output of new movies. Believe it or not, the first movie, Mewtwo Strikes Back, was released before the 2000s and has finally received a remake over twenty years later.
The Netflix remake, Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution, tells the same story of Mewtwo's origin and mission against humanity but in a different way. While the remake proves to have enhanced the movie in some aspects, there are also aspects of the original that cannot be matched. Regardless of which version is preferred by fans, both have appealing assets to mention.
10 Remake: Animation
The biggest and most apparent difference between the two versions is the style of animation. While the first movie stuck to the traditional anime style, the remake took a more modern approach with CGI.
In particular, the CGI really stood out in two particular scenes. Thanks to the CGI, Mewtwo's armor saw a major upgrade from its original sleek design. Rather than a simple dark suit, Mewtwo had a more menacing feel with red energy flowing throughout the armor. In addition, the realistic raging waters during the storm made for an extra intense scene as Ash's team barely made it to safety.
9 Original: Ash's "Death"
If there's one scene that everyone remembers from the first movie, it's the one where reckless Ash rushes right into the attacks of Mew and Mewtwo. As a result, Ash's body turns to stone until he is magically brought back to life by the tears of all the fighting Pokémon.
The remake replicates this scene as well, but for some reason, it doesn't have the same effect on the heart as the original. In the original, it's as if time stops when Ash turns to stone. As each Pokémon watches Pikachu attempt to shock its partner back to life, it really feels like the moral of the story hit everyone at the same time.
8 Remake: Painting Humans As The True Bad Guys
The beginning of the movie opens with the origin of Mewtwo's creation. Stemming from Mew, Mewtwo came into existence with the help of science and humans. Right off the bat, he went on a rampage, unable to comprehend his reasons for existing as an artificial creation at the hands of humanity.
Things only grew darker for Mewtwo when he fell into the hands of Giovanni, who took advantage of Mewtwo's lack of understanding and used him to aid Team Rocket. Once Mewtwo finally caught on to Giovanni's scheme, he decided to get revenge on all of humanity. The remake did a good job of building up to Mewtwo's role as the antagonist.
7 Original: Introduction Of New Pokémon
In the Pokémon anime timeline, the events in Mewtwo Strikes Back take place during Ash's journey through the first region, Kanto. At the time of the original release, there was only a fraction of the total number of Pokémon that we know today. However, the original movie was strategically used to introduce some new faces into the franchise.
For example, during Ash's first battle of the movie, his opponent sends out Donphan, a Pokémon from Generation II's Johto Region. This was a very clever way to make fans curious and excited about the next generation.
6 Remake: Team Rocket's Boat
As times changed and technology advanced, the animation style was not the only thing to get a major upgrade between the original and remake. In the original, Team Rocket's mode of transportation during the big storm was a Viking-inspired boat, while the movie's remake saw something very different.
Instead, Team Rocket enters the scene, singing and cruising along in a pedal-powered boat in the shape of a Lapras. But despite their boat's updated design, Team Rocket still, of course, failed to capture Pikachu before getting swept away by the storm.
5 Original: Who's That Pokémon?
Fans of the anime are familiar with the one-question quiz, "Who's That Pokémon," shown before and after the commercial break. After being shown a random silhouette, the fans try to guess which Pokémon it is.
Both the original and remake pay tribute to this guessing game, but there's one subtle difference that makes the original funnier. When prompted with Scyther's silhouette, Jessie and James both called it "Alakazam," which is a wrong but believable mistake on Team Rocket's behalf. This production error, however, was corrected in the remake to avoid confusion.
4 Remake: Drowzee VS Pikachu
In both the original and remake, Ash's battle with the pirate trainer seems to be a regular match at first glance. However, one of the pirate's Pokémon has been swapped out between the original and remake for a very good reason.
In the original, the pirate's Golem faces off against Ash's Pikachu. As a ground-type, Golem should hypothetically be able to resist Pikachu's Electric attacks, but it was instead defeated by a Thunderbolt. Thankfully, this was easily corrected in the remake by swapping the Ground-type out for the Psychic-type Drowzee.
3 Original: Pikachu's Vacation
In addition to the main movie, the original Mewtwo Strikes Back came with a bonus side story called Pikachu's v. While Mewtwo's story proved to be a little dark at times, Pikachu's Vacation was much more lighthearted and fun.
On an adventure of their own, Ash's Pokémon team met Raichu, Snubbull, Cubone, and Marill, who began to bully and argue over who was better. After several intense competitions, the Pokémon all come together, in the end, to help poor Charizard out of a sticky situation. Unfortunately, this wholesome short was removed from the remake.
2 Remake: Easter Eggs
If you have a vast knowledge of the Pokémon universe and were playing close attention to details in the remake, you probably picked up on several easter eggs throughout the movie. These easter eggs are subtle references to new generations or iconic moments of the franchise.
One visible easter egg can be seen on Corey, one of the three trainers who join Ash and his friends on New Island. The tiny design on his jacket was changed to resemble a sword and shield, clearly symbolizing the latest Pokémon games. Wingull, a Generation III Pokémon, and Brock's famous "Jelly Donuts" were also casually mentioned.
1 Original: Nostalgia
Although the original and remake of Mewtwo Strikes Back ended up nearly identical in terms of story, there's something about the original that will always hit a little differently-Nostalgia.
Especially for fans who grew up watching Pokémon, the original first movie holds a special place in our hearts. Sure, the animation may not look as modern and fancy as the remake, but the original is where it all began. And while we all held our breaths in anticipation of Ash's fateful leap in the remake, it's the impact of the original movie that got the tears flowing.