The Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution post-credits scene isn’t the same one that was included with the original movie - but it does manage to set up a sequel that Netflix could make in the future. The post-credits scene shows what happens in the aftermath of the big fight with Mewtwo and his army of Pokémon clones at the end of the CGI remake. Originally released in Japan last year, Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution is now available on Netflix. The movie is a remake of the first-ever Pokémon film, Pokemon: The Movie - Mewtwo Strikes Back, which is one of the most beloved installments in the Pokémon franchise.
Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution gives it a full CGI makeover and makes minimal changes to the story. The original movie tells the story of Mewtwo, a genetically-engineered clone of the legendary Pokémon known as Mew. Mewtwo, who believes himself to be unstoppable, begins cloning Pokémon and earns the attention of the main protagonist of the Pokémon anime, Ash, along with Pikachu, Misty, and Brock. After cloning the Pokémon of Ash and all the trainers present, a battle breaks out between the clones and the original, and a fight between Mew and Mewtwo follows. Ash is wounded in the conflict, but is revived by the tears of Pikachu and the other Pokémon.
After seeing their genuine affection for a human, Mewtwo realizes he was wrong and puts an end to the fighting. Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution ends with Ash and his friends standing on the dock when he spots Mew flying through the clouds. After the credits, the movie teases what’s next for Mewtwo in a Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution post-credits scene.
Mewtwo Strikes Back Evolution Credits: Mewtwo’s Clone Army
After the fight, Mewtwo uses his powers to lift all of his clones into the air. When Ash asks Mewtwo where he will go, he replies, “Where my heart can learn what yours knows so well”. He goes on to say that he will always remember what he learned from their encounter, but that everyone else will forget the events that transpired. Mewtwo also resets time to a much earlier moment in the movie. Mewtwo isn’t seen again until the credits are almost over.
The Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution credits are interrupted five minutes-in by a brief scene of Mewtwo flying through the sky. Carried in the air by his telekinetic powers are all the clones he created of the six trainers’ Pokémon. No words are spoken as the large group of Pokémon sails across the sky. Mewtwo takes a quick look over his shoulder at the Pokémon who he is now acting as the caretaker of. The final shot of the scene lingers on an island with a large cliff. The implication of this scene is that this will be the new home of Mewtwo and his clone army.
How Mewtwo Strikes Back Evolution Credits Scene’s Sets Up A Sequel
What is this mysterious place that Mewtwo discovers in the Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution post-credits scene? The cliff is such a distinguishing feature that this new region can easily be identified as Mount Quena, a place that has never been explored in any of the Pokémon video games or movies. Its only appearance prior to Pokémon Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution was in the anime special, “Mewtwo Returns”.
“Mewtwo Returns” aired on TV in Japan in 2000 and in the United States in 2001. Though considered to be a direct sequel to Mewtwo Strikes Back, it isn’t necessarily a movie. Instead, it’s an extended episode of the Pokémon animated series. “Mewtwo Returns” explains what happened after Mewtwo left. Mewtwo looked for an isolated place where he and the Pokémon clones could live in peace. The place they settled on was Mount Quena. Sometime later, Giovanni - the Team Rocket leader who wanted to use Mewtwo as a weapon in Mewtwo Strikes Back - refuses to give up on Mewtwo. He has his people scouring the world for the Pokémon until he eventually discovers its location. Ash and his friends happen to be the area when Team Rocket begins the hunt for Mewtwo, leading to a team-up between the heroes and the legendary creature.
By including this scene, the Pokémon franchise is implying that the events of “Mewtwo Returns” will happen next, even if it doesn’t occur onscreen. The inclusion of Mount Quena could just be a way of revealing Mewtwo’s future. Or, it’s possible that the next Pokémon remake won’t involve any of the previous films, and will instead turn this particular episode into a full-blown CGI movie. Either way, the Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution post-credits scene does indeed set up a sequel. Whether or not this tease will ever be followed up on, however, remains to be seen, and it may very well hinge on the success and popularity of Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution.
How Netflix’s Pokémon Remake Changes Mewtwo Strikes Back’s Credits Scene
Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution doesn’t change much at all about the original story, but the post-credits scene is one thing that it did change. Pokémon: The Movie - Mewtwo Strikes Back had a post-credits scene as well, but it wasn’t about Mewtwo and his clones. It simply showed Mew flying in the sky, racing toward the mountains - and it didn’t actually mean anything for the franchise’s future.
Of all the things that Netflix’s Pokémon remake could have altered, why did it pick this moment? One difference between the two movies is that the remake had something it could tease. When Pokémon: The Movie hit theaters in July 1998, “Mewtwo Returns” was still over two years away, so it’s unlikely that Mewtwo’s future had been plotted out at that point. There wasn’t much the movie could have revealed about the next step in the character’s journey. And even if his future was somehow planned, it may have seemed unnecessary for a feature film to tease an episode of the anime series.
Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution, on the other hand, did in fact have something to tease. Over 20 years have passed since the original movie. Mewtwo’s future after Pokémon: The Movie is already known, making it easy for the remake to drop a reference to it. Knowing what’s next for Mewtwo gave the movie the opportunity to suggest to audiences that Mewtwo has found a new home for himself and his new family of clones. Unlike the original post-credits scene, this one amounts to a fun tease that has the potential to be explored in a remake of “Mewtwo Returns”.
More: Why Netflix Is Releasing Pokémon Original Movies Now
