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- #1
One of the most baffling Galarian variants to me is Mr. Mime. Now I actually really like the design of the new form, and Mr. Rime for that matter. But how they perform in battle is just very strange to me. This is going to be a bit long, so hang on tight while I explain my case...
These are Kantonian Mr. Mime's stats:
It's always been a pretty useful Pokémon, especially in game. It hits hard, is moderately fast, has a huge movepool, and can take special hits like a tank. Though it is highly versatile, its moveset largely suggests it's a supportive Pokémon, bolstering your teams defenses with screens, safeguard, quick and wide guard, power and guard swap, etc.
Then this is what they gave Galarian Mr. Mime to work with:
So typically if a regional variant has different stats than the original form, the changes reflect the physiological changes to the Pokémon and the role they play on a team. In many cases, the changes also improve on the original to a degree. For example, Alolan Sandslash is bulkier in both physical and special defense, but has lower special attack, which it would never make use of anyway.
Galarian Mr. Mime has possibly the most dramatic changes of any regional variant, with only its defense staying the same. The end result is, in my opinion, an awkward balance without any real standout stats. The extra speed is nice, but the Pokémon that benefit most from this tend to be strong sweeper Pokémon, which this Pokémon is not thanks to that diminished Special Attack. Its special defense also took a huge hit, though the increased HP helps... a little. But then the strangest part is that 20 point buff to attack. While Mr. Mime has some decent physical attack options, even with a buff that stat is downright pitiful. And perhaps the most baffling part is its new ability Screen Cleaner actually works opposite to the original defensive gimmick of Mr. Mime. G-Mime still learns most of those defensive moves, but if you switch it out and in again after setting up your screens, then they immediately end. This ability doesn't seem to be inspired by its new design or role in battle, it's just a gimmick to set it apart from the original somewhat awkwardly slapped on to this Pokémon.
So while Kantonian Mr. Mime was a versatile toolbox that could do many things well, Galarian Mr. Mime seems overly balanced and doesn't do any one thing any better than its predecessor. Well, except for one thing. Because G-Mime can evolve, it can be a very effective user of the Eviolite item. I suspect this is the reason they felt it necessary to cut its special defense so much, it may have been nearly indestructible while still being a fast, effective attacker otherwise. While it does make good use of this strategy, I don't think access to a single item should make or break a Pokémon. G-Mime just feels underdeveloped without it, at least to me.
Now let's see how its evolution manages without access to this powerful item:
The way I see it, Game Freak took an already slightly overbalanced Pokémon and made it even more overbalanced through evolution. Despite being an evolved form, I would argue that Mr. Rime is only on par, if not worse, than the original Mr. Mime. Its special attack is only slightly higher, so it has some trouble competing with other powerful Ice or Psychic type offensive Pokémon. All that extra speed that G-Mime got is now gone, leaving Mr. Rime with only 10 points faster than Mime Jr. To compare it to Pokémon outside its evolutionary tree, its Ice/Psychic counterpart Jynx has higher special attack, significantly higher speed, and nearly as high special defense.
As I said at the very beginning of this post, I really do like this Pokémon conceptually. I'm just failing to see what this Pokémon is supposed to actually do.
Was this post just an excuse for me to rant about some weird Pokémon for a while? Maybe a bit. But now I am very curious what other people think about these oddballs. Do you agree with me that their stat distribution and roles are strange? Have you found a way to make this fully-evolved and talented tapdancer the star of your team? Does Mr. Rime give you the creeps more than Mr. Mime ever did? Please share your thoughts in this thread!
These are Kantonian Mr. Mime's stats:
It's always been a pretty useful Pokémon, especially in game. It hits hard, is moderately fast, has a huge movepool, and can take special hits like a tank. Though it is highly versatile, its moveset largely suggests it's a supportive Pokémon, bolstering your teams defenses with screens, safeguard, quick and wide guard, power and guard swap, etc.
Then this is what they gave Galarian Mr. Mime to work with:
So typically if a regional variant has different stats than the original form, the changes reflect the physiological changes to the Pokémon and the role they play on a team. In many cases, the changes also improve on the original to a degree. For example, Alolan Sandslash is bulkier in both physical and special defense, but has lower special attack, which it would never make use of anyway.
Galarian Mr. Mime has possibly the most dramatic changes of any regional variant, with only its defense staying the same. The end result is, in my opinion, an awkward balance without any real standout stats. The extra speed is nice, but the Pokémon that benefit most from this tend to be strong sweeper Pokémon, which this Pokémon is not thanks to that diminished Special Attack. Its special defense also took a huge hit, though the increased HP helps... a little. But then the strangest part is that 20 point buff to attack. While Mr. Mime has some decent physical attack options, even with a buff that stat is downright pitiful. And perhaps the most baffling part is its new ability Screen Cleaner actually works opposite to the original defensive gimmick of Mr. Mime. G-Mime still learns most of those defensive moves, but if you switch it out and in again after setting up your screens, then they immediately end. This ability doesn't seem to be inspired by its new design or role in battle, it's just a gimmick to set it apart from the original somewhat awkwardly slapped on to this Pokémon.
So while Kantonian Mr. Mime was a versatile toolbox that could do many things well, Galarian Mr. Mime seems overly balanced and doesn't do any one thing any better than its predecessor. Well, except for one thing. Because G-Mime can evolve, it can be a very effective user of the Eviolite item. I suspect this is the reason they felt it necessary to cut its special defense so much, it may have been nearly indestructible while still being a fast, effective attacker otherwise. While it does make good use of this strategy, I don't think access to a single item should make or break a Pokémon. G-Mime just feels underdeveloped without it, at least to me.
Now let's see how its evolution manages without access to this powerful item:
The way I see it, Game Freak took an already slightly overbalanced Pokémon and made it even more overbalanced through evolution. Despite being an evolved form, I would argue that Mr. Rime is only on par, if not worse, than the original Mr. Mime. Its special attack is only slightly higher, so it has some trouble competing with other powerful Ice or Psychic type offensive Pokémon. All that extra speed that G-Mime got is now gone, leaving Mr. Rime with only 10 points faster than Mime Jr. To compare it to Pokémon outside its evolutionary tree, its Ice/Psychic counterpart Jynx has higher special attack, significantly higher speed, and nearly as high special defense.
As I said at the very beginning of this post, I really do like this Pokémon conceptually. I'm just failing to see what this Pokémon is supposed to actually do.
Was this post just an excuse for me to rant about some weird Pokémon for a while? Maybe a bit. But now I am very curious what other people think about these oddballs. Do you agree with me that their stat distribution and roles are strange? Have you found a way to make this fully-evolved and talented tapdancer the star of your team? Does Mr. Rime give you the creeps more than Mr. Mime ever did? Please share your thoughts in this thread!