Editing Mewtwo (SSBU)

Mewtwo is a large, tall fighter with a slew of powerful moves, but it is actually a [[weight|lightweight]] fighter (tied for 7th lightest in the game with {{SSBU|Kirby}}, {{SSBU|Pikachu}}, {{SSBU|Olimar}}, and {{SSBU|Sephiroth}}). Despite its size, Mewtwo's overall mobility is outstanding: it has above-average [[traction]], the 20th fastest [[walk]]ing speed, the 9th fastest [[dash]]ing speed, is tied (with {{SSBU|Bowser}}, {{SSBU|Marth}}, {{SSBU|Lucina}}, and {{SSBU|Lucario}}) for the 6th fastest initial dash, and has the 3rd fastest [[air speed]] in the game. Mewtwo has a low initial [[jump]], but its short hop is rather high and its double jump is the highest in the game (albeit delayed); additionally, Mewtwo has average [[air acceleration]] and [[falling speed]] with below-average [[gravity]]. Given these attributes, Mewtwo falls squarely into the glass cannon category and must use its uniquely fast mobility to land devastating blows while avoiding close-quarters combat where its size – particularly its notoriously vulnerable tail – and light weight can become a liability.

Mewtwo's overall damage output is very high, especially in regard to its grounded moves. [[Neutral attack]] is a fairly disjointed [[neutral infinite]] that can regularly rack up 20% or more damage if the opponent is caught at close range, but it is unsafe on shield. [[Forward tilt]] is a strong tail swipe with good range and a sweetspot that can KO reliably at high percentages while near the edge, but it has moderate start-up and ending lag. In addition to its deceptively high power, it can also be angled to serve as a niche anti-air or ledge-hanging punish option. [[Up tilt]] is an overhead tail swipe with generous range around Mewtwo's entire body and its large but brief sweetspot (located directly in front of Mewtwo) launches opponents up and toward Mewtwo, making it an excellent combo starter in neutral. [[Down tilt]] is a low tail sweep boasting relatively low ending lag, quick start-up, and good grounded range while launching opponents at mostly vertical angles. This makes it a great neutral and combo tool, comboing into all of Mewtwo's aerials and up tilt if the opponent is hit at close range. While down tilt is technically unsafe on shield, its overall quick speed and long range make it difficult to punish if an enemy reacts too slowly. Lastly, Mewtwo’s [[dash attack]] is relatively fast, covers significant distance, and has a long-lasting hitbox. Its clean hit is very powerful and its highly active hitboxes can help punish many common tech options, but it is unsafe on shield and can be heavily punished by opponents with strong out of shield attacks.

On the contrary, [[down smash]] is safe on shield and is notorious for causing immense shield damage if it connects. Nonetheless, it is still a risky move to use in the neutral game, due to it having the most amount of start-up among all of Mewtwo's smash attacks and being one of the few down smashes in the entire game to only hit on one side. In contrast, [[Up smash]] has the quickest start-up of all Mewtwo's smash attacks and is a great anti-air to catch forced landings, but also has the highest ending lag and is generally the most punishable move in Mewtwo's moveset. [[Forward smash]] has decent range, can be angled and is Mewtwo's most powerful smash attack in terms of knockback when spaced (being able to KO at mid percentages while close to the edge) and can potentially allow it to dodge attacks via shifting its hurtbox, since it leans back just before charging it, but has noticeable ending lag and is also not safe on shield if landed at close range. These traits make Mewtwo one of the strongest characters in the game in terms of outright KO power, though it is optimal for players to not play too close to opponents with quick movement, disjointed range, or attacks that are fast enough to punish any mistakes. However, Mewtwo can also use its great ground and air speed to mix up approaches and punish mistakes using these moves, making it necessary for high-level players to recognize when to approach offensively.

Mewtwo's aerials are some of the best in the game, with generally quick start-up, low landing lag, long range and great power. [[Forward aerial]] is a claw swipe that serves as a safe poke when spaced on landing, a useful combo starter at low percentages, and a reliable KO option; it is considered by many to be among the best forward aerials in the game due to its safety, speed, and power. [[Neutral aerial]] consists of Mewtwo emitting electricity from its hands and feet for multiple hits, before launching opponents away with a large electricity discharge surrounding its full body. The move is a capable combo starter at all percentages, and is a safe poke when it is spaced sufficiently; it is also Mewtwo's best out-of-shield option due to his aerial speed allowing it to safely escape pressure (compared to committing to its laggy up smash). Though its forward and neutral aerials are fast and threatening, they are only slightly disjointed and the former lacks range. This makes Mewtwo's approach game with these moves significantly weaker against opponents that have long weapons or strong projectiles.

[[Back aerial]] is Mewtwo's second slowest aerial, primarily being used to wall out offstage opponents who have poor range and/or recoveries. However, it can be beaten out by disjoints easily, cannot reliably hit close to ground at any height, and leaves Mewtwo's tail very vulnerable if it whiffs. Since it swings its tail upwards, it is also less effective when Mewtwo is falling downwards, and is better used while Mewtwo is rising from its midair jump. As a result, it cannot fulfill the role of giving Mewtwo good effective range in the neutral game. [[Up aerial]] is one of Mewtwo’s best moves, as it has decent start up, short end and landing lag, covers a large arc starting directly in front of Mewtwo’s face, and has incredibly strong power. Altogether, these traits make the move relatively safe to use in neutral and excellent for punishing landings or reckless edgeguards. [[Down aerial]] has the most startup of Mewtwo's aerials, but is a very strong [[meteor smash]] when sweetspotted, has a decently disjointed hitbox directly beneath Mewtwo that can [[Edge#2_frame_punish|two frame punish]], and can also serve as a situational combo starter at low to medium percentages.

Mewtwo's [[neutral special]], [[Shadow Ball]], has excellent versatility, as it can combo into virtually any of Mewtwo's quicker moves at any percent depending on the charge of the projectile. When fully charged, it also becomes a reliable KO move at high percents, and deals decent [[shield]] damage for good measure. In midair, it can even be used as a landing mixup, as the recoil from the fully charged variant pushes Mewtwo back a considerable distance. Mewtwo can utilize techs like [[wavebounce]]s, [[B-reverse]]s, Shadow Ball cancels and turnaround specials to make its movement even more tricky, improving its baits and punishes. However, it has a decent amount of startup, making it risky to use at close range. Its [[side special]], [[Confusion]], is a command grab with a very large grabbox that doubles as a somewhat slow but very active [[reflector]] and can be used for combo setups, though alert opponents can react out of it before Mewtwo below a certain amount of damage.

Mewtwo's [[down special]], [[Disable]], is a risky option in most situations due to its start-up, high ending lag and its requirement that the opponent be within a very short distance away while also facing Mewtwo on the ground for it to work. However, if landed at mid to high percentages, it more often than not leads to a guaranteed stock by allowing Mewtwo to punish the opponent with any option that will KO, such as with Down Smash or a charged, upward-angled Forward Smash. It additionally has intangibility frames before the attack comes out, making it easier to beat out poor grounded approaches with while also ensuring that Mewtwo will not stun the opponent while simultaneously taking a hit, and serving as a very niche defensive option in the air.

Mewtwo also possesses a strong [[grab]] game. Its [[up throw]] and [[back throw]] are both among the strongest in the cast, while [[forward throw]] is excellent at racking up damage at low percentages and possibly killing near the ledge at higher percentages. Mewtwo's [[down throw]] has respectable combo potential: it can combo into upward angled forward tilt and up tilt (depending on the opponent's DI) at low percentages, and into forward aerial at medium percentages, with the latter also being a reliable KO combo on the majority of the cast at high percentages if they fail to DI properly. Mewtwo's grab range is only slightly above average which can sometimes hurt the utility of its throws in close-quarters combat or out of shield, but its dash grab is relatively quick and has great range due to Mewtwo's very fast dashing speed, making it useful as a surprise burst option.

Due to Mewtwo's varied attributes and [[special moves]], its [[recovery]] potential is arguably the best in the game. Its combination of having the 3rd fastest air speed, the highest double jump in the game, low gravity and average falling speed give it great longevity and mobility off-stage. [[Teleport]], its primary recovery move, covers a long distance and provides full intangibility and directional mobility, making it nearly impossible to [[edgeguard]] if Mewtwo chooses to teleport to the edge from above. Furthermore, two of its other special moves offer a form of assistance with recovery: a fully charged Shadow Ball's recoil can push Mewtwo back far enough to be a viable horizontal recovery option if aimed away from the stage, and [[Confusion]] can turn it around, temporarily stalls it in the air when used once and can be combined with the momentum from a rising double jump when used twice to go even higher. With these options, Mewtwo has many ways to mix up its recovery and get safely back on-stage, while still being able to punish reckless edgeguarders with its powerful and long ranged up and back aerials without losing recovery distance.

Mewtwo has surprisingly good range for a lightweight fighter. All of its smash attacks have [[disjointed]] hitboxes that allow them to beat out attacks safely; this is especially evident with up smash, as using it at the right time can prevent any [[stall-then-fall]]s. Forward smash can be angled up or down to catch an airborne opponent or to edgeguard low recoveries, respectively. Mewtwo's tail attacks also offer excellent range, despite not being as disjointed. Its back aerial in particular offers very large coverage behind Mewtwo and can be used in decently quick succession, making it a useful walling tool against opponents with low range attacks. Its tilts also use its tail, so they have good range as well. Tying into this is its aforementioned mobility; Mewtwo's extremely fast horizontal movement speed grants it a very potent punishment game with its range, allowing it to bait approaches and easily punish them with its long-reaching moves.

To compensate for its large size, Mewtwo is granted with  traits and unique defensive options that allow him to escape pressure. Its forward and back rolls have among the longest traveling distances in the game, making them deceptively effective for movement compared to those of other characters of similar size. Its [[edge attack]] has among the longest ranges out of the roster, allowing it to punish ledgetrapping attempts. All of its air dodges render it invisible; combined with its fast air speed and moderate air acceleration, Mewtwo can play mind games with its aerial drift while invisible. Offstage, Mewtwo's incredibly long-distanced recovery enables it to use air dodges and safely recover in situations when many other fighters wouldn't. In addition, using a neutral air dodge immediately after using Mewtwo's double jump causes it to immediately gain height while maintaining intangibility and invisibility, making it useful to mix up opponents in the air. Mewtwo's Teleport travels a significant distance and can be used very quickly out of shield (frame 9 intangibility) as a long-ranged evasive maneuver, allowing it to gain more favorable stage positioning and space from aggressive opponents – especially when teleporting off of platforms to avoid pressure. And though it is brief, Disable provides intangibility frames just before Mewtwo emits the light from its eyes, giving it niche defensive use with good timing even in the air where the projectile cannot be [[Priority|clanked]] with.

Despite Mewtwo's strengths, it has some noticeable weaknesses, the most glaring of which is its infamously poor endurance. Mewtwo's very light weight makes it easy to KO, while its tall frame, average falling speed and below average gravity make it easier to combo compared to other characters of its weight class. Furthermore, Mewtwo lacks an effective aerial move to disrupt combos, and an attempt to Teleport out of a combo can be interrupted due to its startup or punished due to its noticeable ending lag and momentum. And compared to all other characters in the game, Mewtwo is also unable to reliably double jump out of juggling pressure due to it taking a noticeable amount of time for his hurtbox to shift vertically. However, its aerial speed and recovery mix-ups can mitigate some of these shortcomings.

Although Mewtwo has a multitude of KO options, it often has trouble landing them due to it needing to safely approach the enemy. Up and back throw can be risky to attempt because of Mewtwo's aforementioned average grab range. Forward and down smash have slow start-up lag, whereas up smash has minimal horizontal range below its blast of dark energy and high ending lag (it can also unreliably connect due to some jostle animations). Forward aerial and Shadow Ball's KO potentials can be hindered via staleness because of their frequent usage in Mewtwo's combos and neutral game. Lastly, its frame data is slightly below-average, which makes its attacks even more prone to punishment if they are not spaced well and used intentionally. As a result, Mewtwo cannot effectively pressure through offensive means, yet needs to rely on its movement options and special moves to create openings from which it can proceed to punish the opponent. During Mewtwo's disadvantage state, it often cannot depend on its offensive options to relieve pressure, and instead must rely on evading and only attacking when necessary.

Overall, Mewtwo is a non-traditional glass cannon who falls under the category of the zoner archetype; it must play cautiously and aware so the opponent does not capitalize on its large hurtbox and light weight. However, this does not mean Mewtwo is forced to rely on [[turtling]], as its outstanding mobility, excellent air game, and overall powerful moveset make it a force to be reckoned with. Instead, Mewtwo should be played very patiently by controlling space (zoning) as well as baiting and poking with Shadow Ball, its aerials and its movement.