Recap: The Mastermind of Mirage Pokémon

First I shall address the Donphan in the room: the voice acting. This special was made in the transition to the Pokémon Company international; hence why the whole cast is hit with a case of dull surprise; in the words of MST3K. Thankfully, they’ve gotten better with each passing season; much like the original actors. If I didn’t address this right off; the recap would be 30 pages long. I’ll also try to keep mentioning it to a minimum for that same reason unless it’s REALLY egregious. 

Anyway, Ash has been invited to test a new battle system from Dr. Young; with May, Max, and Brock in tow.

We then get the song “Pokémon Go,” which I find to be delightfully cheesy; much like the special itself.

So, this special was made to commemorate 10 years of Pokémon; though it had only been stateside for 8 at the time of release. Don’t you just love loopholes?

To their dull surprise, Misty and Professor Oak are there as well! They were invited to test the system too! So, we have; however briefly, a reunion of the original cast. They even gleefully say they’re friendly rivals once again. We once again have our Avengers, Justice League, Guardians of the Kanto Region; Mighty Morphin Poké Rangers, what have you.

Apparently, Dr. Young is an old friend of Professor Oak’s. One thing I must point out is that this is the first time the animation was handled by someone other than OLM, beating Origins by at least 7 years. It’s decent on the whole; save for shots like this. 

Looks like something I would doodle in the margins of my notebook on downtime.

So, his battle system contains fully interactive holographs; which can materialize any Pokémon to battle with! This even includes many legendaries in the technology Dr. Young touts as his Mirage system!

Everyone is impressed with the technology of the Mirage Pokémon! Forget Oculus Rift, THIS is technology I want to play this on.

With this, Ash and Misty are the first to challenge the Mirage Pokémon; an Aggron! Call me old-fashioned, but I really love that.

Naturally, after 10 years, Team Rocket is still trying to nip all the Pokémon they can for their own ends. Of course!

They remark that “it prints money;” much like that image macro of Iwata and Miyamoto, and this is also the start of Meowth’s Watto-like Yiddish, I think.

Misty sends out Staryu; and the battle begins! Misty leads with Bubblebeam in some fairly decent CGI; but Aggron is unscathed! Aggron counters with sandstorm; and Staryu is buffeted by the sandstorm! 

Everyone remarks how Mirage Pokémon are “nothing to mess with.” 

Then, Pikachu notices a holographic Mew over the side of the castle as the battle continues.

Staryu fires back with Water Gun; but Aggron proves to be more than a match despite a type disadvantage!

Aggron wins the match with a barrage of Bullet Seeds! Max points out Aggron can’t learn that attack! The Mirage system probably has Action Replay in it.

Ash claims he’s “psyched”; but his VA hasn’t quite reached her peak yet. Give it till at least a season or two into Diamond and Pearl; folks.

Ash sends out Pikachu against Aggron. Just like him to stake his buddy against a ground/steel type despite the disadvantage.

The system starts bugging out; and Dr. Young’s controller breaks as Aggron dissolves into raw code!

The system then summons more Pokémon, including Aerodactyl; who are being controlled by the Mirage Master. For some reason, he sounds like Zordon. “Get me a team of teenagers with attitude!”

They’re outmatched as Dr. Young is kidnapped and the others make a run for it! They try to escape; and Professor Oak is kidnapped as well! Yet, they won’t leave their friend; and the Mirage Master then punches in a few more buttons on his controller. 10 minutes into this special; and it’s already better than the first 10 minutes of The Legend of Thunder. Then again, most stuff is.

Professor Oak is taken hostage; and the Mirage Master demands the password to his research. He won’t give in; and everyone decides to do the first logical thing: call Officer Jenny. This bit with Brock and the rotary dial is odd; since they’ve had touchtone phones since before I was born. He is all too eager to get her, stop the Mirage Master; and then have dinner with Jenny! Yep, still a horny teenager who never gets any after 10 years!

So, everyone else goes to face the Mirage Master; but Ash and Misty are leading while May and Max hang back in case they need help.

The Mirage Master intends to eliminate the differences in their types to determine their perfection. While Professor Oak says the differences are what make them who they are, the Mirage Master will have none of it.

Meanwhile, Ash and Misty infiltrate the compound through the waterways; and I just get a kick out of seeing two of my favorite trainers back together after such a long time.

Team Rocket gets hit by the door; just as the Mirage Master is surprisingly pleased by their presence. Professor Oak is surprised by Mew. This is yet another movie where he plays a large part, along with the first and eighth ones. 

The Mirage Master dismisses Mew as a “flawed specimen.” Oh, screw you! Mew is more than worthy of being number 151; and you’re gonna get it back for that!

Team Rocket says their motto in some odd CGI effects that would not be out of place on my Wii U.

Everyone’s cornered by Mirage Pokémon; and Team Rocket is sent blasting off through the castle walls!

Ash and Misty face off against the Mirage Pokémon; and even though it wasn’t intentional; they seem very nonchalant about Mew. As Pikachu is hit; Ash very flatly says “Pikachu, no.” I’M IN A GLASS CASE OF EMOTION!

Everyone is taken away; but Ash orders Pikachu to get clear and send a message to the others! He does, and May comes in while she leaves Max. Typical. Like, “so long, kiddo; I’ve got work to do!”

Misty gets knocked off the ledge and Pikachu is taken away; and Ash notes that Mew isn’t like the other Mirage Pokémon. Then, he’s trapped as Ash tries to free him! Easy, it’s not like handling an Infinity Stone!

Mew tries to get Ash to find the others, and Misty thankfully is rescued by May. So, now it’s time for the girl power segment of the special.

The Mirage Master then extracts Pikachu’s memories; showing events from past movies, including some of my favorites.

Professor Oak can’t stand to see Pikachu suffer; and finally decides to give up the password. It’s “Red/Green.” He then uses this to hack through all the Pokémon databases: the Pokémon Center, Oak labs, Birch labs, and Elm labs!

Brock exasperatedly tries to explain what happens; and bits like this always remind me of Die Hard. “This center is for emergencies only.” “WHAT, DO THINK I’M ORDERING A PIZZA?!”

Ultimately, Jenny does agree to help as Nurse Joy tells her that the information is being hacked at a massive scale!

Ash reaches the Mirage Master’s parlor; just as the birth of the strongest Pokémon takes place! Behold: Mewtwo! Whether it’s a supervillain, a tragic villain, or a quasi-Xenomorph, it’s awesome. I also welcome it back to Super Smash Bros. 3D/U after sitting Brawl out. Least his play style was adopted by my favorite Pokémon, Lucario.

Mewtwo awakens; and Mirage Master says this isn’t the Mewtwo you’re familiar with. Neither is the aforementioned quasi-Xenomorph; but I like that one too!

Mewtwo unleashes its power; wiping out the other Mirage Pokémon as a screaming monster seven years before Origins!

The professor sends out Dragonite, and has him use Twister! Yet, it’s useless against him! Professor Oak and the others decide to make a run for it; just as a bunch of missiles start launching from the castle! You must construct additional pylons!

The missiles wedge themselves into the ground; and enabling the Mirage field beyond the reach of the castle!

Entei, Articuno, and Zapdos all take hold as Pikachu comes to; and Team Rocket decides to go after them!

It turns out that the Mirage Master is Dr. Young all along. As he takes off the mask; he reveals that his work was deemed unethical by his superiors, and this is his way of getting back at them. This is actually a pretty good twist; and he also makes a really good villain because of that. He sees Pokémon as little more than means to an end; and wants vengeance because of that. 

The time for the final battle has come; as Pikachu is joined by Misty’s Gyarados and May’s Combusken; but it seems they can’t be stopped! Mewtwo actually punches out Dragonite; and Dr. Young has officially gone off the deep end as the battle rages on!

Mew decides to face off against Mewtwo; but his data is destroyed as Dr. Young again dismisses Mew as a “flawed specimen.” Ash rightfully calls him out on his heinous actions; but Dr. Young then transfers the data to Mewtwo as he goes all one-winged angel on us!

Yet, no one will give up the fight until the end! The attacks collide in a massive shockwave; and Team Rocket is sent blasting off yet again! Some things never change, do they.

Even if this is a tense moment; and there’s a lot of them in this movie; the voice acting is a bit lacking for a scene like this. I may have used my “glass case of emotion” joke too early.

Ash continues to show why I admire him as a trainer: he and Pikachu continue the fight even when they know it’s pointless!

Then, Mewtwo starts resisting the change as Mew emerges from Mewtwo. Dr. Young tries to stop them; but the Mirage System is breaking down as the critical moment comes. Do it. DO IT!

The mirage system is destroyed; and rather than face justice for his crimes, Dr. Young runs into the the burning wreckage of his castle; presumably dying in the process.

Professor Oak ultimately concludes that even data has a soul. So, we close out this special and 10 years of Pokémon with our heroes looking at the sunset as their journey is far from over.

Even when considering how the behind-the-scenes drama overshadowed the special itself at the time of release; and how the voice acting was not up to par with what we were used to, it’s still an enjoyable film. I ultimately concluded after how lousy The Legend of Thunder and Chronicles as a whole were; that any special they made could only improve from there. With a creative premise and some nice animation; this is an ideal way to celebrate 10 years of Pokémon.

See you, space cowboy!