Pikachutwo

Pikachutwo (Japanese: ピカツー Pikatwo), also known as Cloned Pikachu, Mewtwo's Pikachu or Pikatwo, is an Pokémon originally cloned from Ash's Pikachu. His name is never actually referred to in the (other than "Pikachu"), but it has been determined from the pattern of other clone Pokémon names (i.e. 's name is a combination of, the Pokémon it was originally cloned from, and the suffix "two". The same holds true for Bulbasaurtwo, Charmandertwo, and Squirtletwo). He is not to be confused with the Pikachutwo from The Birth of Mewtwo radio drama, who was among Mewtwo's friends that died.

History
Pikachutwo first appeared in the first Pokémon movie Mewtwo Strikes Back as a product of Mewtwo's cloning machine. He was cloned by a DNA sample retrieved from a Poké Ball containing Ash's Pikachu, and was released when the machine was destroyed by Ash Ketchum in his attempts to rescue his Pikachu. He then took part in a large battle, where the clone Pokémon brutally fought their originals for the sake of superiority. Pikachutwo attempted to join, savagely battling Ash's Pikachu to the point of exhaustion. However, Ash's Pikachu refused to fight back, despite Pikachutwo's insistence and attempts to hurt him even when Pikachutwo could only stand when being supported. He was last seen at the end of the movie, flying away with Mewtwo.

Pikachutwo's next appearance was in the anime special Mewtwo Returns, a sequel to the first movie. The clone Pokémon now had sought refuge from humanity at Mount Quena, a large mountain in the Johto region. Here he was shown as a figure of authority in the hierarchy of the group of cloned Pokémon, often standing at Mewtwo's side along with Meowth's clone, questioning Mewtwo's actions and offering his opinion on any future plans. He seemed to handle the more military and practical side of the group, whereas the cloned Meowth tended to handle the spiritual and moral factors. Pikachutwo has a much more significant role in this special than he had in the first movie. When he encountered Ash's Pikachu again he initially reacted violently, blaming him for leading humans to Mount Quena and telling him to "Get out, or [he'll] regret it". Despite Mewtwo's orders to cease, Pikachutwo still launched himself at Ash's Pikachu only to be stopped by Mewtwo just before his attack hit. It was then revealed that Pikachutwo held a lot of resentment towards Ash's Pikachu because he is free to go and do whatever he wants, whereas Pikachutwo and the other clone Pokémon are always forced to hide. He vehemently argued against Mewtwo's proposal of leaving their home and finding somewhere else to hide, and insisted that they must fight for their freedom. The next morning, he lead a breakaway group of clone Pokémon as well as Ash's Pikachu and Meowth to battle the incoming Team Rocket Combat Unit, but all were defeated by a combination of a paralyzing gun from the leader 's helicopter and Poké Balls dropped from blimps from the sky. This was in spite of Ash's Pikachu attempts to save him, blasting away the Poké Ball that was falling towards his clone with his. This action seemed to soften Pikachutwo's feelings towards Ash's Pikachu, and the two were then seen side by side from that point onward. The encounter forced Mewtwo to act and save the clone Pokémon, leaving their island home and others living there exposed to the cruelties of the Grunts who flew there. Later on, Pikachutwo and his original were made example of by Team Rocket's elite agent Domino, and were blasted against a rock by her electrostatic tulip to prove to Mewtwo that they were not afraid to hurt Pokémon in order to force him to bend to their will. The two Pokémon were later seen by Ash and friends, nearly wiped out, bringing up the rear of a pack of captured clone Pokémon. They were then revived by a sample of spring water (taken from the Purity Spring hidden at the center of the island) collected earlier that day by Cullen Calix to examine its properties. This miraculous revival prompted the Pikachu to suggest the Spring to Mewtwo when he was badly injured by Team Rocket's machines. One of these machines was aided to destruction by a combined Thunderbolt from both Pikachu. This was the only time (apart from a brief cut-off shot seen earlier) that Pikachutwo is seen using an Electric attack.

After the moving of the Spring and Clarity Lake under Mount Quena, Pikachutwo and the clone Meowth were the last to leave, staying behind with Mewtwo to say one final goodbye to Ash and friends. He was last seen flying into the distance with Mewtwo and Meowth, crucially seen going their separate ways in the distance. Pikachutwo has not appeared nor been mentioned at any time in any anime episode or special since.

Personality and characteristics
While other clone Pokémon are shown to be almost exactly the same as their originals where character and appearance is concerned, Pikachutwo is in many ways a lot different from his original. His appearance differs from Ash's Pikachu (and other for that matter) by the black fur patterns on his ears, which are shaped in downward-facing spikes as opposed to a smooth curve. It must be noted that these patterns are almost identical to the patterns on a 's ears, despite the fact that Pikachutwo debuted long before the introduction of Pichu in Generation II. Pikachutwo's voice is also distinctly different from Ash's Pikachu, and he tends to slur his words in comparison to his original.

Pikachutwo was often shown to be a lot more aggressive than Ash's Pikachu, and would often elect to use violence to solve a problem rather than reason or diplomacy, qualities that Ash's Pikachu has displayed on a number of similar occasions. He tends to use physical violence against his foes as opposed to his Electric attacks, another key difference. Despite this, however, when trying to beat Pikachu up, he was shown to be on the verge of tears. In Mewtwo Returns, Pikachutwo was shown to be a general figure, whose aggressive strain seemed to have placed him as a natural leader. While Mewtwo himself was shown to be conflicted and not willing to use violence, Pikachutwo was shown to persuade and lead Pokémon into battle. This is perhaps characterized by his speech to the other cloned Pokémon (as translated by ) when their island home was threatened by Team Rocket: "This is more than just a battle, this is war." His negative reaction towards Ash's Pikachu shown both in Mewtwo Strikes Back and Mewtwo Returns perhaps sheds light on this, as he greatly resents the freedom that Ash's Pikachu enjoys. Though towards the end of Mewtwo Returns, Pikachutwo appeared to have mellowed a little, possibly because of the influence of being around Ash's Pikachu for an extended period of time. This was compounded by the fact that he smiled for the first time, whereas previously he was never shown to have smiled. Though still being a strong leader, his resentment towards natural Pokémon seems to have all but disappeared. The reason for these fundamental differences is often suspected by many to be Ash's interference in the original cloning process. While the DNA was seen to be collected, it is possible that not all of it was obtained. The machine was also jammed and destroyed during the cloning process, which could account for the various differences in both appearance and character seen. His aggressive strain could also have been an amplification of Ash's Pikachu's own characteristic stubbornness, catalyzed by his feelings of isolation and resentment to free Pokémon. In reality, his appearance differences were likely to have been made so that viewers did not confuse him and Ash's Pikachu when in the same scene (like Sparky before him).

Moves used

 * Due to him being a clone of Ash's Pikachu, it can be assumed that Pikachutwo knows all of Ash's Pikachu's moves at the time of his cloning.

In the games
Pikachutwo appeared very briefly in a background panel in the final level of Pokémon Puzzle League, along with, Bulbasaurtwo and Squirtletwo. He has no significant role in the game, and appears only to have been used for appearance's sake.

Related articles

 * List of alternately colored Pokémon in the anime
 * Ash's Pikachu
 * Pikachu variants

Pikachutwo Pikachutwo