Here is my review of the really, really bad American version of Mewtwo Strikes Back, and I opted for spoilers to get my point across. And yes, it is rather lengthy.

First off, let me say that the Japanese version of Mewtwo Strikes Back is, IMO, the best the pokemon world had to offer, and my personal favorite. The American version, is well, really bad.

I have seen both versions, and most notably, they change absolutely everything in the American version. And I do mean absolutely everything.

The plot is not the same as in the original Japanese version. In the original, the basic plot is a confused Mewtwo resenting the fact that he was created by humans, not God, and thinks his life has no meaning. Throughout the movie, Mewtwo tries to get revenge on those who made him and tried to enslave him, and more importantly, to prove his worth as a living being by beating his original, Mew.

The American version simply has Mewtwo trying to take over the world and destroying everything.

The original has an introduction that depicts Mewtwo as somewhat of a confused child, not knowing who he is, what he is, or why he is there, a theme that is emphasized throughout the movie. He is told that he was made by humans and is a clone, which upset him, to say the least. Mewtwo only teams up with Sakaki because the crime boss offers to give some value to Mewtwo's life.

In the American version, It starts off with a really bad speech about the meaning of life, then a short little bit of the scientists explaining to Mewtwo that he was a experiment, Mewtwo getting ticked, and blowing up the place. Giovanni comes along, and they agree to destroy stuff together.

I won't go into all that much detail about the rest of the movie, but I will point out some major changes.

First, the intro song is different, of course, and is in fact, worse.

A lot of the dialogue is different, aside from the everyday stuff, like Ash saying, "I said I was too tired to work, not battle!" as opposed to "Just one or two battles before lunch!" For example, every single line Team Rocket says is different. I am not kidding. The scene about Jessie holding up a frying pan is originally about them having no food to cook, as opposed to Jessie's horrible cooking. Also, not once in the original did Team Rocket make a bad pun. In the American version, that was the only thing they did.

The pier master in the original says that one can tell what the conditions are in the ocean by asking the seagulls, while in the American version, she speaks of a legend of magical tears that can revive living things. (Gotta explain the ending to us dumb Americans)

Also, the American version says nothing about the fossilized eyelash of Mew that was created to form Mewtwo. Heck, the entire computer speech was different. In the original, it was a third, unnamed, person who spoke, not the scientist.

The speech Mewtwo gives to the trainers when they first meet him is completely different, as well. In the original, Mewtwo says that humans are weak and cruel, and the world will fall into ruin because they control it. He also says that Pokemon are no better off, since they choose to associate with humans. Not once did he say anything about taking over the world, but it is vaguely suggested. Also, it is Mewtwo who says that they should battle pokemon to see who is the strongest, the clones verses the originals.

In the American Version, Mewtwo basically says he'll destroy all humans and take over the world.

This is a key change in the movie: In the original when Mew appears, it says that originals will never be defeated by their copies when they fight without special powers. Thus, Mew is partially responsible for the big battle that follows. The battle itself is about pokemon fighting for the meaning of their lives, since, (as Mewtwo sees it) clones have no value, and whomever wins will be the 'real' one, not the worthless clone.

In the American, Mew is free of all sin, and says that pokemon's greatest strength is their heart, or some corny thing like that, and the battle is basically the clones trying to destroy the originals for no reason.

I'd also like to point out that the original had a pretty good music score in this scene, while the American version had a really bad teeny bopper song playing inappropriately in the background.

Also, the original have the humans who are watching says a whole heck of a lot more about how Mewtwo and all the clones are living beings with value, while in the American, that was touched on briefly, followed by people crying out how bad it is that everyone's fighting.

And as little other thing, when the two Nayasus meet, in the original, the copy says that Nayasu is not fair because he is not fighting with him, and also they talk about philosophy and the moon, and how tasteful it is to be talking about the moon at a time like this. The American version simply has Meowth saying that fighting is bad.

The ending is different by quite a bit too, naturally. In both the original and American version, it appears that the humans forgive Mewtwo for what he has done. This is *much* more implied in the original as opposed to the American version. Also, in the original, Mewtwo states that it does not matter who is more powerful, that the clones and originals both have value, and nothing else about the matter. He also says that it would be best if no one knew about what happened. The American version tacks on some stuff about how he realizes fighting is wrong, and that he shouldn't have made things just

to destroy them, and other forced moralisms. When Mewtwo flies off in the end in the original, he says that he will find a place where clones can live in peace, while the American version goes on trying to shove morals in a movie that originally did not have one.

I guess to put it bluntly, WB seriously dumbed down the movie and simplified it. In the original, Mewtwo is battling for revenge, but more importantly to add meaning to his life. That is why he wants to prove he is the most powerful pokemon, so that he can prove to the world, and most importantly to himself, that he is in fact a living being with value, since he relates power with value. Mewtwo is not evil in this film, just confused, misguided, and really ticked off.

The American version takes that element out, and portrays Mewtwo as an evil pokemon who wants to destroy the world. That is why I got sick when seeing the American version. (Did I mention that the voice acting in the American version was really bad also?)