The world of Pokémon has become so vast and complex you can't turn around without hitting another fan theory. One of the most famous fan theories in the franchise pertains to two of the most iconic Pokémon of the First Generation: Mew and Ditto. As the only two Pokémon that can legitimately learn the move Transform, fans of the series have begun to wonder if Ditto could be the result of a failed attempt at cloning Mew. After all, Mewtwo is referred to as the first successful clone of Mew, not the only clone.
Mew and Ditto have far more in common than just the ability to use Transform. Starting with the obvious, they are similar shades of pink, but interestingly, their Shiny variants are the same shade of light blue. Aside from their appearances, their biological makeups are also startlingly similar. They are both genderless, weigh the same, and their stats are perfectly balanced across all categories. Their genetic similarities speak more to scientific intent than a simple coincidence divined from nature.
In the games Pokémon Yellow, Pokémon FireRed, and Pokémon LeafGreen, wild Ditto inhabit the Pokémon Mansion on Cinnabar Island. This is noteworthy because, based on the various journals that litter the downtrodden building, the mansion is the former home of a scientist who studied Mew and had a hand in the creation of Mewtwo. The idea that wild Ditto now roams the abandoned mansion feels like more than a coincidence because as Sherlock Holmes would say, the universe is rarely so lazy.
Carrying the DNA of all Pokémon, Mew can Transform into any Pokémon in the world. The idea is that this ability is possessed only by a Pokémon so rare that many don't believe it exists and the fairly common species known as Ditto doesn't quite hold up, even by Pokémon logic. Mew is said to be the ancestor of all Pokémon, which would explain why it carries their DNA. If carrying the DNA is a requirement to use Transform, it adds credence to the idea that Ditto is a failed clone after all.
The ability to use Transform is astonishingly rare in the world of Pokémon, considering only two out of 898 and counting are capable of doing it. Even Zoroark's Illusion ability, while similar, is leagues below Transform. Zoroark only looks like other Pokémon, while Mew and Ditto become them. When Mew and Ditto use Transform, their Typing, Moves, Ability, and Stats change to that of the Pokémon they have morphed into, something Zoroark's Illusion does not do. That such a rare ability belongs only to the ancestor of all Pokémon and a sentient blob found commonly in most regions implies a strong connection between the two creatures.
If there's one thing Pokémon fans like to do, it's paying attention to even the smallest things in the series. Yet, there's too much to ignore regarding the connection between Mew and Ditto. Even if Pokémon didn't intend for Ditto to be a failed clone of Mew at its conception, there's enough evidence to support it that they could just retroactively declare it to be fact. Pokémon shows no signs of slowing down, but as fans who have grown up with the series get older, they crave more complexity. But still, conspiracy theories are always fun.