Chapter Text
This gorgeous piece was made for me by Megan Kearney, a.k.a. SpookyMeggie. She agreed to let me use it for the headers of this essay. Thank you again, Megan!
INTRODUCTION
A few months ago, I posted a set of questions about shipping to my followers. Among these questions was one they could direct at me: why do I ship the pairings I ship? Kenocka was the first to respond to this post, asking me:
I would like to know how your Mewtwo/Sabrina (Natsume) came about though. I tend to avoid shipping those two because some writers only stick them together because “OMG PSCHICKs!!11!1”. You don’t and I’m incredibly happy for that.
First, I should point out that writers, with a few exceptions, by and large don’t actually write Mewtwo and Sabrina together. There are probably less than a dozen stories on Fanfiction.net and Archive of Our Own that concern the couple. There is even less fanart, whether you scroll through DeviantArt or Pixiv. In fact, besides myself, I can only think of two writers who have written stories for them: Kayasuri-n and Meriah, and they did so mostly at my –begging– prompting. Despite that, the concept of Mewtwo and Sabrina as a couple has been around for years (perhaps due to their interactions in ChesireKat24’s “Damaged”). I first came across the idea of it myself on a post about Mewtwo pairings on FFN sometime in the early 2000s. In fact, I even tracked it down for you all: MEWTWO SHIPPING! by Sabertooth Kitty.
It currently only has sections on Mewtwo/Ai, Mewtwo/Mew, and Mewtwo/Nurse Joy, but at one point there was a section on Mewtwo/Sabrina as well, which fell under the name of psishipping or psychoshipping. One of the pros given for it, as I recall, was that they could use their telekinesis to pass things to each other over the dining room table. At the time, I remember being amused by the idea, but I didn’t entertain it for long. After all, I was perfectly content with my Mewtwo/OC stories!
On a whim, though, I decided to write a one-shot to experiment with the concept: “Cherry Wine,” which I released in 2008 (which is now being revised to, um, give it more flesh). It was a struggle, since I had never written Sabrina before, but the dynamic they shared – albeit one born in my own brain – intrigued me. In the five years after I wrote “Cherry Wine,” it has been joined by four more one-shots and two multi-chapter stories – and I have even more partially completed stories in the works. In half a decade, Mewtwo/Sabrina became my reigning OTP – because the more I thought about it, the more sense it made to me.
Before I go into my arguments as to why that is (and fair warning, these arguments will be lengthy and will weld multiple Pokémon canons), you should note that this is a subjective essay. Much of it is based on my personal interpretations and characterizations of Mewtwo and Sabrina, which may well differ from yours. For the record, I understand that this pairing is also a crackship – there is no basis for it in any Pokémon canon – but I suppose I find the potential they have to be more interesting than the reality. Please also note that I will be using the dub names for everyone for the sake of clarity. The only exceptions to this will be Dr. Fuji and Ai (Amber in the dub), since their Japanese names are much more meaningful to their characters.
Now, without further ado, here is the first part as to my reasons why:
PART 1: ON SIMILAR CHARACTER TRAITS
As Kenocka pointed out in her response, the primary reason why people ship Mewtwo/Sabrina tends to be them both having strong psychic powers. Whether you look at the anime, the films, the manga versions, the games, or the five-part The Birth of Mewtwo: Pokémon Radio Drama, both characters are forces to be reckoned with. Mewtwo tends to be the more forceful of the two, with his emphasis being on telekinesis, energy blasts, force-redirecting shields, and mental manipulation. Sabrina tends to be more subtle, with her emphasis being on foresight, empathy, and teleportation—though she, too, uses telekinesis. In the anime, she also has to ability to transform people into dolls, which relates to her powers somehow (let’s call it matter manipulation, even though we know it’s playing on the idea of her being a witch).
Mewtwo, with the possible exception of Mew, was presented as having no rival (as it is, Mew can learn more moves in the games, but Mewtwo has much better stats). Sabrina was certainly the most powerful human psychic we saw to that point; whether the other psychic gym leaders turned out to be more impressive, I can’t say. Whatever the case might be, as far as the original series was concerned, Mewtwo was the strongest pokémon psychic (sans Mew) and Sabrina was the strongest human psychic. As such, pairing them together could make one of the most badass couples in the franchise!
Also, they are intimidating as hell.
However, this is not my main reason for shipping them. Certainly, it plays a part in why – it adds a lot of potential to their interactions – but how their psychic powers affect their characters is ultimately more important to me. Namely, those powers led them to being isolated from those around them. In Sabrina’s case, her interest in developing her powers made her shun human contact. And even among her students, the extent of her powers is a source of fear. A common trope for psychics – particularly among female psychics – is that they are ostracized for being “different” or “unnatural” due to that fear (in Japanese animation, these characters tend to be associated with witches, as seen in series like Karuho Shiina’s Kimi no Todoke or Natsuki Takaya’s Fruits Basket). To think something similar might have happened to the anime’s Sabrina would not be much of a stretch. After all, much of her psychological frustration comes from the fact that no one will “play with her.” As a child, she wished to be accepted and have fun – but at the same time, she wanted to embrace her psychic powers. The fact that these were seen as exclusive options is, I think, telling of how others might have treated her. Plus, Sabrina is an only child, so she didn’t have the option of playing with any siblings, who might have shared her psychic gift.
Mewtwo’s reasons for being isolated are more complex than hers, but the strength of his powers does not help. While having psychic powers is more acceptable in a pokémon, that strength intimidates others. Certainly, we do not see him interacting with most of his fellow clones, with the exceptions of Pikatwo and Meowthtwo. In addition, his companions choose Meowth as their proxy when they want to express their concerns about their memories being erased. Mewtwo is their leader and their guardian, but none of them feel comfortable confronting him on that matter. There is also a section in “The Official Pokémon Handbook: Deluxe Collector’s Edition” by Maria Barbo which is rather suggestive: when wild pokémon encounter Mew, they run away from it in fear of its power. If they are scared of Mew, then Mewtwo – who has a larger stature and harsher features – would probably be even more intimidating. He is meant to be the monster that other monsters fear – and the games and anime confirm that he is.
And this is only one of the reasons why he’s isolated. Another is his status as a clone. Mewtwo was not born through natural or even supernatural means. Humans created him by manipulating Mew’s genes, making a one-of-a-kind monster through gene splicing. This results in a great deal of anxiety for Mewtwo. Throughout two movies, we listen to him agonizing over how he is different from “normal” or “real” pokémon. That Giovanni says that Mewtwo’s status makes him only useful in serving humans, and that Mew claims he and his kind are inferior, only aggravates this issue. While he comes to terms with his status, his attempts to cope include making more pokémon “copies,” trying to destroy all of the “real” pokémon (in the dub), and finally settling his fellows and himself into a remote area. Even after he accepts his place in the world, he seems to keep himself apart from others, traveling alone under the cover of night.
Another feature that sets him apart is how very human Mewtwo is. Despite having the body of a pokémon (which is still rather humanoid), Mewtwo in the anime and the manga versions has a human mindset. He is the only pokémon in the first generation, Meowth aside, who can speak. He contemplates what his purpose is and wonders why life is worthwhile. Hell, the radio drama and the first movie have Ai point out that only humans weep when they’re sad. Yes, the movie then retracts this idea, but the idea is still there. Plus, there are points where Mewtwo clearly seeks out the company of humans over other pokémon. His best friend, as a child, is Ai. When he needs someone to “take care of him,” he abducts and brainwashes a Nurse Joy (and also dresses her up. Creepily). And when he parts ways with the other clones, where does he choose to live? In a densely populated, human city. For all that Mewtwo might claim to dislike humans, I doubt he would know how to function without them. He walks the line between two worlds and even acknowledges that in the first movie. He is neither a pokémon nor a human; instead, he’s a bit of both. And in the context of the first season, that makes him rather weird. Interesting, yes, but weird.
In short, this makes Sabrina and Mewtwo both outcasts in their respective societies.
As represented by those lonely rays of light.
That Mewtwo and Sabrina are lonely individuals as a result of this, and spend at least part of their time on screen seeking to make friends (literally in the case of Mewtwo), should come as no surprise. It doesn’t help that they look a little freaky. Mind you, Sabrina is canonically supposed to be the most attractive female gym leader in Kanto (that leather suit!), and Mewtwo…well there’s just something about that armor that’s attractive…but I digress. Sabrina is still a woman who carries around a doll which laughs creepily and abducts peoples. Her eyes have also, canonically, been red in one version and have elliptical pupils in another. Meanwhile, Mewtwo is basically a cat-man (who abducts nurses), though I’ve seen and read him described as having rabbit feet and a kangaroo tail. I think my favorite description of him is that he’s a “magic Japanese cat monster who was created as a result of a genetic experiment and therefore has psychic powers that far exceeds those of its fellow pokémon.” Oh Jon Stewart, I adore you. Click here if you missed that moment of awesome in 2011, folks.
Also, here’s another picture to show how freaky these characters sometimes look:
I do have freakier pictures of Sabrina, but Mewtwo, your eyes are going to haunt my nightmares. Thank you for that.
Also this. Why, you two? Why do you insist on abducting people? It’s creepy and it’s a felony, so stop it. Stop it right now. And yes, I did make sure the focus of these shots was on your victims. Feel the shame! Feel the shame of what you’ve done!
Anyway, while both of these two are rather lonely people, I wouldn’t say that they’re—well, they are desperate for company, but they’re also highly selective about of whom that company consists. When they’re on screen, they are usually alone or interacting with very few people. Viewers get the sense that they won’t accept just anyone by their sides. This tendency is common among introverts, being a bit of a dilemma: they want people around them to connect with, but people also wear them out. Being around too many people makes them uncomfortable, and many of those people will probably end up aggravating them. As a result, introverts are picky. If certain people don’t share things in common with them, they usually get chucked out of the friend pool. On the flip side of this, though, introverts feel great affection and loyalty for their companions. If people make it past the walls they raise, then they’re usually welcome to stay.
Alright, so these students had a rough time, but I’m assuming things improve for them after Sabrina takes her turn for the better. I’m assuming she lets them stay around. Mewtwo certainly takes great care with the other clones, in any case.
Now regardless of what people might say about opposites attracting, in my experience, introverts and usually drawn to other introverts. Mewtwo and Sabrina are inward-looking individuals, though are also active characters (rather, they’re very contemplative, but do act on their desires). As we’ve established, they are lonely, powerful psychics and outcasts, who crave company but are also selective about who they befriend. Mewtwo and Sabrina would probably be drawn to each other for these reasons—but what would really make their relationship work are their minds. Both characters are highly intelligent, which is most clearly represented by their formal speech patterns. Sabrina is also a gym leader and an elite member of Team Rocket in the anime and manga versions (let’s assume those positions require educated and strategic minds), while Mewtwo perfects cloning and pokéball technology. As such, Mewtwo and Sabrina not only have many points they can connect on, but can also keep up with each other in everyday conversation. Also, they share similar tastes in home decorating:
You all thought I was kidding, didn’t you?
And you know what the sad part of this is, you guys? I haven’t even started on their character arcs. I hope you’ll all join me in part two, because the similarities between these two are going to continue piling up.