| Mawile | |
|---|---|
| Pokémon character | |
 Mawile artwork byKen Sugimori | |
| First appearance | Pokémon Ruby andSapphire (2002) |
| Designed by | Ken Sugimori (finalized)[1] |
| In-universe information | |
| Species | Pokémon |
| Type | Steel and Fairy |
Mawile (/ˈmɑːwaɪl/ ⓘ), known in Japan asKucheat (Japanese:クチート,Hepburn:Kuchīto), is aPokémon species inNintendo andGame Freak'sPokémon franchise. First introduced in the video gamesPokémon Ruby andSapphire, the development team wanted to push the concept of what a Pokémon could look like compared to previous installments. After the design was conceived, it was finalized byKen Sugimori, who added additional details as he felt necessary. Since Mawile's debut, it has appeared in multiple games includingPokémon Go and thePokémon Trading Card Game, as well as media related to the franchise.
Originally classified as solely a Steel-type Pokémon, Mawile has a short yellow body, cloven feet, black markings on its hands, and a large horn resembling a crocodile maw protruding from the back of its head. This horn can open and bite targets, though despite resembling a mouth lacks a tongue or throat. WithPokémon X andY, it was reclassified as a Steel- and Fairy-type Pokémon, and also gained a Mega Evolution,Mega Mawile.
Mawile has been mostly well received since its debut, with comparisons being drawn to theyōkaifutakuchi-onna. Despite its large mouth-like horn, it has been praised for its cuteness and cited as a Pokémon popular with players, despite its gameplay capabilities being called niche and dismal. The addition of the Fairy-type and Mega Mawile transformation inX andY were also praised, withUSgamer writer Kat Bailey stating that these changes helped both increase its popularity and served as an example of how well Game Freak approached gameplay balance as a company.
Mawile is a species of fictional creatures called Pokémon created for thePokémon media franchise. Developed byGame Freak and published byNintendo, the Japanese franchise began in 1996 with the video gamesPokémon Red andGreen for theGame Boy, which were later released in North America asPokémon Red andBlue in 1998.[2] In these games and their sequels, the player assumes the role of a Trainer whose goal is to capture and use the creatures' special abilities to combat other Pokémon. Some Pokémon can transform into stronger species through a process calledevolution via various means, such as exposure to specific items.[3] Each Pokémon has one or two elemental types, which define its advantages and disadvantages when battling other Pokémon.[4] A major goal in each game is to complete thePokédex, a comprehensive Pokémon encyclopedia, by capturing, evolving, and trading with other Trainers to obtain individuals from all Pokémon species.[3]
Originally called Kucheat in Japan,[5] it was introduced in the 2002 sequelsPokémon Ruby andSapphire. When designing the games, Game Freak initially wanted to not include any of the Pokémon from the previous games, with lead artistKen Sugimori using this as an opportunity to push the concept of what a Pokémon could look like. To this end, he wanted to try more "humanoid" designs and also emphasize "cooler" ones, due to feedback the team had received that Pokémon was seen as too "babyish". Additionally, while the previousPokémon Gold andSilver species were bound to simplistic designs for the sake of the related anime and toy manufacturing, Sugimori stated in an interview he said "screw it" and focused on more complex and fleshed out designs with these games. As the art team developed the Pokémon species, Sugimori would finalize their work and draw the promotional art, altering details as he felt necessary.[1]
Standing 2 ft (61 cm) tall, Mawile is abipedal creature with a yellow body, with its legs flaring outward and stopping just before its feet. It has three-digit black hands with the coloration extending up to the elbows, while its feet arecloven hooves. It has large pink eyes, while the hair on its head resembles abowl cut hairstyle with two tufts of hair extending downward on each side of its brow. A large black horn extends from the back of its head resembling acrocodile maw, with visible white teeth and a yellow spot on the upper middle. Mawile is able to open and close the horn revealing a pink interior; in this manner, the horn can act as a secondary mouth to bite objects.[6][7] Despite its appearance, this horn is not a real mouth, with the developers clarifying in production notes it lacks a throat, tongue, and spittle.[8] When introduced inRuby andSapphire, Mawile was originally classified as a Steel-type Pokémon.[9] With the later gamesPokémon X andY it gained a secondary typing, now classified as a Steel- and Fairy-type Pokémon.[10] Despite having a feminine appearance, Mawile is a gendered species and subjects of it can either be male or female.[5]
X andY also introduced Mega Evolutions that allow certain Pokémon to temporarily transform through the use of in-game items. In Mawile's case, it can become Mega Mawile,[11] which gains additional height and now stands 3 ft 3 in (99 cm) tall while gaining considerable attack power.[12][6] It gains an additional horn maw, each now protruding from the sides of its head and having a more rugged appearance. Mega Mawile's body also gains a secondary coloration, with pink coloring now extending up its legs to just above its waist, while its arms now flare out just before its hands like sleeves and gain a pink coloration.[13]
First found inPokémon Ruby andSapphire,[9] Mawile appears in several other entries. In multiple games in thePokémon franchise, Mawile is only capturable in one version of the paired entries, includingRuby,Sword, andBrilliant Diamond.[9][14][15] InPokémon X andY and onward until the release ofSword andShield, Mawile can transform into a form called Mega Mawile while it is holding a Mawilite in-game item.[11][16] InSword andShield, it is used by Gym Leader Opal,[17] a Trainer that acts as aboss the player must defeat to proceed.[18] InPokémon Scarlet andViolet, it is one of many previously introduced Pokémon excluded.[19] Mawile also appears in spin-off games in the franchise, including titles such asNew Pokémon Snap, thePokémon Mystery Dungeon series, andPokémon Go, with Mega Mawile available in the latter two.[20][21][22] In physical media, both Mawile and Mega Mawile have appeared in thePokémon Trading Card Game.[23]
Mawile also appears in the relatedanime. In particular it appears in the episodeOnce in a Mawile, where it is enamored withLombre, a Pokémon belonging to recurring characterBrock. Lombre initially shows no interest in Mawile until it evolves intoLudicolo. However, Mawile now has no interest in it and moves on to give another Pokémon its affections, much to Ludicolo's surprise.[24]
Mawile has been mostly well received since its debut. The staff ofInside cited Mawile alongside the PokémonGardevoir as examples of Pokémon that stood out amongst theRuby andSapphire's cast for how cute they were, something they felt took players by surprise especially after the realization they were not strictly female.[5] While they emphasized its cute appearance was meant as a trap for it to get food, calling its nature "truly frightening" and "unbearable", they observed Mawile was still one of the most popular and desired Pokémon by players.[25] Carolyn Gudmundson in apodcast forGamesRadar+ meanwhile praised it as "one of those Pokémon that's more interesting from a design and story perspective than from [...] a battling perspective". She felt it was a fan favorite despite what she considered "dismal" gameplay, and enjoyed its presentation in the anime. Co-host Henry Gilbert offered his own input, enjoying the contrast between Mawile's creepy "jaw ponytail" and more cute front.[24] Cian Maher in articles forUSA Today meanwhile expressed that the character's strengths were in its design, stating that "it's still extremely cool" that for decades people had assumed the snout-like horn on the back of its head was its true face, while its real face was "actually really lovely", and praised how its lore-based design helped make it believable as something people could encounter in the real world.[26]
IGN in their "Pokémon of the Day" series of articles expressed that Mawile had become one of their favorite Pokémon, calling it "adorable yet exceedingly tough, evil", and "reminiscent" ofCubone, due to both "sporting a large and bulky headpiece". They were surprised that it did not have more fans at the time due to its Steel typing, something that had been requested for some time by players. They stated that while it was not one of the strongest Pokémon in the franchise, they felt it was underappreciated and added it "has a certain specific role to fill", and that it "fills it exceptionally well".[9]Kotaku's Zack Zwiezen was critical of its design, calling it "terrible looking". Though he praised the design of its rear mouth, he felt that its "little, weird body" was uninteresting and felt that it was as if another character design had been spliced to the larger maw. Despite his criticisms, he felt its gimmick was cool and appreciated the lore aspects, though expressed that for the size of its horn he expected Mawile to have a more muscular design due to how easily it carried around its weight. He discussed the fandom surrounding the character, includingfan art, which he remarked made it hard to find an image due to the propensity ofnot safe for work content.[6]
Kat Bailey in an article forUSgamer cited Mawile as an example of the improvementsPokémon X andY brought to the games and refreshed the feel of older Pokémon. Calling it "once a bit of filler" fromRuby andSapphire "with the misfortune of having a set of jaws straight out ofThe Little Shop of Horrors", she felt the addition of its Fairy typing and Mega Evolution helped increase its popularity. She also emphasized how the improvements felt tailored to the character, stating that Mawile was "emblematic" of a "nuanced" approach Game Freak appeared to be taking to balance its games, one focusing on giving the characters the tools they need rather than sweepingbuffs or debuffs. She further felt that Mega Mawile "represents everythingPokémon X andY is trying to accomplish."[13] Cian Maher in his own articles meanwhile stated that despite the improvements, offering his own praise for its Mega Evolution as one of the best of the franchise and its "fascinatingly niche strategic values", he felt Mawile had become forgotten, even in light of its usage in titles such asMystery Dungeon andNew Pokémon Snap. He attributed some of this to the discrepancy between its design and its Steel- and Fairy-typing, and argued that its "earthy colouration and weird snout with too many teeth" made it appear more in line with the appearance of Ground- and Dark-type Pokémon in the franchise.[26][27]
Mawile's basis has been suggested to be that of theFutakuchi-onna, a mythical Japaneseyōkai described as a woman who has a second mouth on the back of her head beneath her hair.[28] Lucas Sullivan ofGamesRadar+ observed this correlation, describing Mawile's design as "as macabre as it gets [...] somehow balanced between nightmarish and adorable", and questioned how such a design seemingly based on the yōkai made it into the Nintendo-produced game.[7] Author Kate Hodges in the bookWarriors, Witches, Women praised how well Mawile illustrated the concept in thePokémon franchise, stating that "even her name echoes that of a gaping orifice."[29]
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