By Leonie Herson
Mew, the new species Pokemon, was the first truly rare and elusive Pokemon to catch during the first generation. Known as the 151st Pokemon in the Pokedex, mew was only obtainable through the following sequence of events (named the “Mew Glitch):
1. When facing the gambler near the underground tunnel entrance (from Lavender Town to Celadon City), immediately press the start button before he notices you and select to fly to Cerulean City. He will see you as you fly away.
2. From Cerulean’s Pokemon Center, head towards Bill’s house and run into the boy facing North in the maze (above the Lass). Defeat his slowpoke (lvl 17) then immediately fly to Lavender Town.
3. At Lavender Town, go west towards Route 8 and the menu should pop up. Press “B” and Mew will appear at lvl 5. Mew is a great asset to any team as it has well-balanced stats and can learn every TM and HM available. It’s synchronise ability also comes in handy because if Mew is poisoned, paralysed or burned, so too does its opponent.
Mew made its debut appearance in the anime Pokemon the first movie: Mewtwo strikes back. To all those who saw the movie in cinemas, a small promotional gift was given to each viewer in the form of a card called the ‘ancient mew’ card, featuring a drawing seen in the movie. Mew made another appearance in the special TV movie Mewtwo returns (during mewtwo’s flashback) and again later in Lucario and the mystery of Mew. It has also been shown in the TV series. It has been featured multiple times in the Pokemon franchise: from figures to Pokemon plushies, stationary and much more.
A deeper understanding behind the mystery of mew was revealed through the unveiling of the God Pokemon Arceus. Mew seems to have gained its power through the help of Arceus. As Arceus is the alpha Pokemon, this would explain why mew can learn every kind of attack. However some still believe that because Mew is the ‘ancestor of all Pokemon’ this means it came before Arceus. This has been a topic of great discussion, and will continue until more information is revealed in the near future.