A few days ago, I typed a long, essay-length analysis on a character I've felt is highly underrated due to the Smash fanbase looking at the wrong things.
Today, I'm here for the opposite. And to practice my persuasive writing skills, but...you get the idea.
Brace yourselves.
Mimikyu, Eldritch Doppelganger
So to start, let no one say Mimikyu isn't popular. The whole angle of wanting to be loved to the point of actively mimicking a series icon pulled at people's heartstrings from the start. There's been an outpouring of support for the little guy from the moment that first image from Corocoro leaked, and when Smash speculation started anew, it carried right over. While much of the fanbase is still just penciling in Decidueye and not bothering to look further--you saw my thoughts on
that in my Lycanroc analysis--many of those who do look past the surface have seen Mimikyu's popularity and taken notice. Surely, being the fan darling would propel it into the roster and beyond, right?
Well...thing is,
fan popularity ain't all it's cracked up to be when it comes to newcomers. For proof, just look back to every previous Smash game--several fan favorites have always been left out, and characters we'd never thought to consider found their way in. I know, it feels comforting and a little empowering to feel like we the fans have some final say in who matters and who doesn't, but it grossly misunderstands the intent of the roster to begin with: Sakurai isn't some almighty judge nor some renegade we must browbeat into submitting to our demands, he's just looking for the most compelling new additions.
Truth is,
popularity is fickle, ever-changing, and unreliable, something we've
also seen repeatedly in Smash's history. Wolf went from resented at Brawl's release for "stealing a slot" from more interesting options (even within his own series!) to a prodigal son several years later who was "more deserving" than other DLC picks you may or may not have felt less of a connection to. Bayonetta went from being seen as the fans' champion in early 2016 to an unstoppable harbinger of death whose players were fated to break the metagame over their knees and steamroll everything without the need to exert any effort whatsoever. Seriously, think of how many people want Bayo gone in Smash Switch, even though the grim fate that half the competitive side of the fandom foretold
never actually happened.
The fans' stance on characters can change at the drop of a hat, and Sakurai and the Smash devs know this.
They keep an eye on who is popular at the moment, but it's merely one of many factors they consider, and unlike what so much of this community believes, it's far from the most important. Think of who we'd have missed out on if popularity was such a hardline requirement. What if Ness and his strange psychic powers never got people interested in the Mother series? What if Captain Falcon was still just some guy from some niche racer, and never became Nintendo's premier memetic badass?
This is why I don't buy the hype surrounding Mimikyu. While popularity factors into other characters' chances to an extent,
it feels like so much of the argument for Mimkyu is reliant on its popularity, as if being popular enough renders any flaws and issues irrelevant. It doesn't, and that's something we saw firsthand just a few years ago with Chrom's shelving and the Ice Climbers' absence...so why do so many still assume enough popularity can fix a character's problems now?
That said...I won't deny that Mimikyu is prominent, potentially enough to have been among the Gen 7 'mons considered for Smash Switch. But from there comes
another obstacle:
But it’s not just that – going back to just what we talked about, what’s unique about them? Where do they fit in with the rest of everything else? What do they have? It’s a combination of those things.
As we've seen several times before,
character concepts are an integral part of the selection process. No one gets the all clear unless the Smash team has a finished concept in mind for them and
knows they will both function well and stand out. Its contemporaries Decidueye and Lycanroc shine here, but this is where Mimikyu begins to falter.
Being a Ghost/Fairy type, Mimikyu tends toward supernatural and occult abilities with a small amount of magic and trickery mixed in. Ghost moves in Smash so far have been portrayed using darkness, and so it stands to think Mimikyu would have a strong affinity for that...which is a problem, since we already have characters like Ganondorf and Mewtwo who dabble in that element.
While that isn't a deal breaker on its own, when you have two rivals who both focus on elements that are completely untouched on the current roster...it's not a good look, and it doesn't help you feel as unique in comparison.
Moreover, there's the matter of Mimikyu's body...or the thing it wears...or...well, you get the idea. While non-bipedal builds aren't unheard of in Smash, it can make things less practical, and there needs to be assurance that the character in question can interact with all aspects of the game in ways believable enough that you can at least handwave the minutiae. I've personally addressed this issue with Lycanroc before, how the Dusk form's quadrupedal build could still viably interact with items, but Mimikyu's doll covering that must stay on and reliance on two shadowy appendages and a wooden false tail it has limited control over present a great deal more difficulty building around to ensure it can move, emote, perform all 23 or so attacks that make up a moveset, and roll with anything that can happen in the chaos of a free-for-all. I've seen a few moveset ideas here and there, but...none have really had that spark that made me think the character would truly
work, and several of them felt overly...contrived, for lack of a better word. Sure, the Disguise ability could make for an interesting mechanic that'd protect it from a hit occasionally, but
one gimmick does not a moveset make.
But what
really frustrates me is how I've seen people note these issues and just...wave them off, convinced that Mimikyu is popular enough that "Sakurai will make it work". Thing is, we've never seen this in action--we even saw it notably
not happen during Smash 4 development when the Ice Climbers' popularity wasn't able to save them from performance issues in the 3DS version. That's what I think a lot of the people who notice Mimikyu are overlooking:
being very popular does not solve or remove the obstacles in its path. While that's not an immediate deal breaker, it presents a great deal of question marks that are much less numerous for Decidueye and Lycanroc.
In summary, we have a character whose popularity cannot be relied on, who is prominent
enough to have probably been considered, but who doesn't quite offer
as much uniqueness as two of its counterparts while also presenting more hurdles to jump than either. I wouldn't rule out the chance that the Smash devs came up with something truly inspiring that sold them, but...as it stands, Mimikyu seems more destined to be a Poké Ball summon and trophy. Which is still a decent consolation prize, all things considered.
Chance: 25%
If you couldn't tell by the tone up above, I have a chip on my shoulder when it comes to this one.
You already know I don't like it when characters are written off by speculators who don't bother to look past the surface, but it actually frustrates me more when fan popularity is presented as this grand deciding factor in who "deserves" a chance in the spotlight. As someone who's almost never had a bandwagon backing me ever, someone who was more often the target of the "popularity" talk growing up than its benefactor, it raises my hackles to see it keep happening in so many other places. Because of that...seeing the "Fan Approved Choice™️" get in right now would feel like a punch to the gut, especially if I end up wrong about the chance of two Gen 7 mons getting in and it
does directly come at the expense of the literal underdog I've been personally pulling for who has only recently started getting noticed.
Am I taking this too personally? Probably. But as it stands, seeing this one join the fight would just leave a bad taste in my mouth.
Want: 20%
Nominations: FE Heroes Summoner (aka Kiran) x5
Wyoming
gets 5 extra noms today for their Spyro prediction.
retake, but Gen 7 is getting old now, and it also suffers from other likely candidates like Decidueye.
Ze Diglett
might be right in thinking that Mimikyu’s popularity will fade, so if he’s not in the base roster, then I don’t think he’ll be DLC.
