Talk:Mimikyu (Pokémon)

Why is this removed from the Major Appearance?

 ====Mimikyu Unmasked!====

 In Mimikyu Unmasked!, Mimikyu's disguise was torn, and Jessie tried to find new fashion for Mimikyu. But Mimikyu wanted its old disguise, which was stolen by Murkrow.

I dunno but

Could it somehow come from "Mimic you"? I may be pronouncing it wrong, but I say it "Mimikk-yu" which sounds remarkably similar. Nutter Butter (talk) 16:39, 13 July 2016 (UTC)

So do I and I'm sure the name will be kept that way as it just feels right.

"It seems that this Pokémon disguises as a Pikachu because it wants to become friends with humans."

I hope it IS friendly...

Jaylaw (talk) 21:37, 13 July 2016 (UTC)

"Mimic you" seems very likely. JordanTH (talk) 08:30, 16 July 2016 (UTC)

Original pokemon

I could be based on or at least draw inspiration from a Bedsheet Ghost Random Chaos (talk) 11:58, 16 July 2016 (UTC)

I agree that it's likely based on the stereotypical "lazy" ghost costume.

Could some admin-type add this and the Mimic You reference to the page please? Nutter Butter (talk) 18:58, 17 July 2016 (UTC)

I'd be hesitant to trust the "mimic you" theory until someone who actually speaks Japanese chimes in. It seems unlikely to me as an English speaker — not impossible, but unlikely — that the Japanese developers would base a Japanese name on a phonetic respelling of a frankly random English phrase that is neither iconic nor has any special meaning more specific than just the word "mimic" with a random pronoun attached. It seems incredibly more likely to me that kyu would represent a Japanese onomatopoeia for squeaking. Pumpkinking0192 (talk) 19:11, 17 July 2016 (UTC)

The "mimic you" theory seems more solid now as it's English name is also Mimikyu. Jigglypoof21 (talk) 14:19, 19 July 2016 (UTC)

Except that it's still spelled kyu, not you. They just reused the Japanese name, like Pikachu, Pachirisu, Dedenne, etc. Again, please let someone who actually speaks Japanese come and give their opinion before you bandwagon on something you know nothing about. Pumpkinking0192 (talk) 17:08, 19 July 2016 (UTC)

The Japanese language incorporates other languages' words into its own all the time, especially for things they do not have words for or that don't come from Japan. It's very possible that they meant for the name to come from the words "mimic you". Litwick96 17:15, 19 July 2016 (UTC)

I thought the end of its name was chu, like in Pikachu. Still, it does rhyme, but I don't know if that was intentional. Unowninator (talk) 17:18, 19 July 2016 (UTC)

Litwick96, I know that. It's possible, but like I said, it's extremely unlikely. Why would anyone decide the best name for a Pokemon is a verb with a random pronoun attached? What is the significance of "mimic you" versus any other word they could have tacked on after "mimic"? What does the "you" have anything to do with this Pokemon? Pokemon names are not simply random, they are puns or truncated descriptive phrases that are designed specifically to describe the Pokemon. I'm just saying, the "mimic you" theory is not logical whatsoever if you pay attention to how Pokemon names are created. Pumpkinking0192 (talk) 17:21, 19 July 2016 (UTC)

It "mimics you", with "you" being Pikachu, describing what it is and does. ミミッキュ is exactly how they would phonetically translate "mimic you" into Japanese, and would be pronounced virtually exactly as the English words "mimic you". Given that this Pokémon disguises itself as Pikachu, a name that both says exactly what it does and has a similar sound to Pikachu makes perfect sense. Litwick96 17:36, 19 July 2016 (UTC)

I think 旧 kyū as in "something old" is another likely possibility, since it's said to have made its costume from 20-year-old merchandise. Coolest (talk) 22:45, 19 July 2016 (UTC)

That black hand-thing

Mimikyu has a black hand-thing. I have mentioned it. - unsigned comment from Jaylaw (talk • contribs)

Will one of you please include a mention of the black feeler with three fingers that is a part of Mimikyu. Jaylaw (talk) 20:47, 19 July 2016 (UTC)

Mimic + Q

I'd like to float this as a solution, kind of just see how other people like this for the name origin...

Personally, I'm really not satisfied by the explanation of "mimic you" for ミミッキュ. (It's not mimicing "you".) But the French and German names kind of suggest a question, a mystery (about what Mimikyu is)... Mimic + "q".

If we're (I'm) really lucky, maybe they'll romanize the Japanese name as Mimiq or Mimiqyu or something. (I'm not entirely holding my breath, though, since the English name went "Mimikyu"...) Anyway, who likes it? Tiddlywinks (talk) 00:54, 20 July 2016 (UTC)

Sorry but it does seem to come from "Mimic you" which is likely referring to how it disguises itself as a Pikachu for attention.Flain (talk) 02:42, 20 July 2016 (UTC)

In your theory, what is the relevance of the letter Q? I'm not aware of anything significant about it. Litwick96 02:51, 20 July 2016 (UTC)

Pikachu is not "you". It's a terrible rationalization of ミミッキュ.

The relevance is like I said... A question. A question mark. Mystery. (...Given how Mimikyu hides itself.) Tiddlywinks (talk) 03:10, 20 July 2016 (UTC)

Do you mean that "Q" is just short for "question"? If that is what you mean, I guess it's possibly the origin, although to me that sounds a little out there. The main reason I personally consider "mimic you" to be a likely source is that it is literally right there in the phonetics of the name. As for the Pikachu comment, do we really know for sure that Pikachu is the only thing it can mimic, or can it mimic other things as well? If it can mimic other things, than it could in fact "mimic you". Litwick96 03:36, 20 July 2016 (UTC)

Right now...yeah, that's kinda all we know as far as mimicry: it mimicked Pikachu. It's not necessarily a general talent, just a single point of its backstory. If you want to hang your hat on new info like that, all you can do is wait. I don't really forsee any surprises like that, though, personally. Phonetics are all well and good...but they have to make some sense. (Eleboo phonetically contains "boo", but "boo!" hardly makes sense. Numeil can sound like "new mail", but that's basically nonsense.) Tiddlywinks (talk) 03:59, 20 July 2016 (UTC)

Q is definitely possible, at the very least it seems much more likely than "mimic you". I think it's either Q, the onomatopoeia for squeaking, or kyu as in 'old'. Until we find out for sure (if we ever do), unless anyone has a huge problem with any one of those, I'd say we might as well list all three as "possible" name origins if nothing else. Coolest (talk) 09:53, 20 July 2016 (UTC)

Maybe the Kyu comes from Amamikyu the sun goddess, which would be very ironic given that it hides from the sun. I'm just throwing this out there since the games are sun and moon.Yamitora1 (talk) 07:46, 20 July 2016 (UTC)

Saying it out loud makes me doubt that it's supposed to be anything but "mimic you". The second-person just seems to portray how it's always living in Pikachu's shadow. Technickal (talk) 15:55, 21 July 2016 (UTC)

It's not Q, that makes no sense. Considering the obvious "Mimic you", as well as the idea of it being a corruption or alternate way to say chu like Pikachu, Q should not be added in the Name Origin until some official source says otherwise, as it's a wild guess at best. Best case scenario for that idea, when they were making the name they noticed that and added it in for reasons to call it Mimikyu, but it's not the deciding factor or a main part of the process. TsukikoKoizumi (talk) 01:50, 18 August 2017 (UTC)

First things first: if it were supposed to be "mimic you", Japanese can parallel that much more closely than how it writes Mimikyu's name. The only reason you're seeing "mimic you" so strongly is because you're seeing it through an English filter. Second: there's simply no logic that discounts what I said above: "mimic you" just doesn't make any right sense. Thirdly: other languages include "Q", especially Chinese (as well as Korean).

It's all opinion. When everything is a reach, it's just hubris to declare that it can't be one—especially to act like your own wild guess that they only added it as an afterthought or whatever must be right.

Take a step back and try to be reasonable for a second. I think your interpretation is a huge stretch. You think mine is. Why is either of us right except that, of course I'm right? (I'm not gonna leave that open: the answer is, we're not, not for sure; the only fair/reasonable action is to allow both.) Tiddlywinks (talk) 02:16, 18 August 2017 (UTC)

Couple things, one, my mistake, I did not see that Chinese uses the actual letter Q instead of a symbol for kyu. Second, I see where you are coming from, but please understand, it is very strange to think the original was going for question. Third, it's a pokemon name, it's not going to be an exact replica of a phrase. Personally, upon thinking about it, the most logical one is "Mimic kyu"/"Mimic chu" with others being guesses. I do agree calmly then, that saying it could have such a concept in there, but then, should we not explain why it's believed to be Q?--TsukikoKoizumi (talk) 05:02, 18 August 2017 (UTC)

It's hard to give an explanation, but aince the Korean and Chinese (and to an extent French) make "Q" a plain(er) option, it deserves noting when it isn't plain in "Mimikyu". Tiddlywinks (talk) 15:46, 18 August 2017 (UTC)

Kodama origin

Could it be based off a Kodama which is a tree spirit? It does use a stick for its tail. Also, it may draw inspiration from Tsukumogami. Yamitora1 (talk) 10:06, 20 July 2016 (UTC)

Both seem unlikely, to be honest. It's not mentioned to have anything to do with trees other than using a stick for its tail, which really isn't enough to assume a connection to kodama. And a tsukumogami is an old object which itself became alive, whereas the old merchandise in question here was simply used as basis for a costume for an already-living creature. Coolest (talk) 10:21, 20 July 2016 (UTC)

Mimikyu speaks human?

At least in the English version, the Totem says see me and a random overworld Mimikyu says "Me curse you". Can anybody with the ability to read other languages confirm if this is just a quirk in the English translation or if it is intentional? --Shadowater (talk) 18:07, 1 December 2016 (UTC)

Is Busted Form really a form?

That's kind of like saying that if Serperior coils up that's a different form. All Busted Form is is when Mimikyu's "head" droops backward.TheDoctorPotter (talk) 00:35, 10 January 2017 (UTC)

Busted Form is properly identified by the Rotom Pokédex and several other official sources as a separate form with a separate appearance. - Chosen of Mana 00:42, 10 January 2017 (UTC)

Gotcha.TheDoctorPotter (talk) 00:47, 10 January 2017 (UTC)

Is it worth mentioning that Mimikyu's cry is similar to Pikachu's old one?

I noticed that Mimikyu's cry is similar to Pikachu's old one. Is that worth mentioning some place? ¿¡Unowninator?! (talk) 06:23, 30 May 2017 (UTC)

I really don't think they're all that similar... Not similar enough to be worth mentioning, at least. Coolest (talk) 12:52, 31 May 2017 (UTC)

Really? Because I hear a similar tone. ¿¡Unowninator?! (talk) 00:07, 14 August 2017 (UTC)

Sounds like it is trying to say "Pikachu" or "Me Curse You" although the former is more than likely what Mimikyu is saying during its cry. It's possible its a distorted or filtered Pikachu cry but beyond speculation, there is no confirmation of this from official sources. Frozen Fennec 05:08, 18 August 2017 (UTC)

Possible Origin?

Is it possible Mimikyu draws some inspiration from a mimic, which is a species in D&D that are monstrous entities disguised as welcome objects like chests and such. In this case the disguise is, literally, its disguise, as a Pikachu or Pikachu doll, but with a ghost (which attacks similar to the chest mimic, a hand lunges out to pull them in, like Let's Snuggle Forever). TsukikoKoizumi (talk) 04:09, 10 June 2018 (UTC)

Mimic + Q

Yea, I know there's already a topic about this, but I wasn't sure if it was going to count as a necrobump so I'm making another one.

Really, the Mimic + Q thing is really nonsensical. The raw Q was only used on the chinese games and was probably to keep the pronunciation closer to the original. As far as I know, these dialects do not have the /ˈk/ sound. As you might notice, words romanized as Q sound, in fact, as /ch/ (as pronounced in non-greek derived English words with "ch"). I'd like to ask for this part's removal since it's not relevant to any other languages, and due to the fact it adds nothing in helping to understand the Pokémon concept.

ExLight (talk) 00:55, 19 October 2018 (UTC)

Oh, right. And before anyone mentions the French name. It uses Q because the local word has a q in it, so it's more appropriate; if the Spanish localization, on the other hand, tried to do the same (using mímica instead of mimic) it would be written with a "c", giving it a /si/ sound. Since it would also change the pronunciation, it was probably kept as the English name.

ExLight (talk) 01:00, 19 October 2018 (UTC)

I've said it before so I'll say it again. I think "you" makes equally little sense as you think Q does. I wouldn't entirely mind removing both... Tiddlywinks (talk) 01:31, 19 October 2018 (UTC)

Well, "mimic you" as a whole does sound adequate imo; Pikachu is the main character of the franchise, so even if it's not specifically saying a name the "you" could be referencing it. In games and media it's also implied that Mimikyu is obsessed and stalks Pikachu, so it could be interpreted as if we see from its perspective: "I'm going to mimic you" or something. So I think it's at least a little more coherent than a random letter. ExLight (talk) 01:44, 19 October 2018 (UTC)

Yeah I'm sorry, but I have to agree with ExLight. "You" actually does make some semblance of reasonable sense, whereas Q is just...random and meaningless? I cannot fathom why there's such a war going on surrounding Mimikyu's name. I don't even mind if we include "Q" or "chu" in the potential name origin, but it's beyond absurd to me that whenever someone suggests Mimikyu's name might come from "mimic you", the idea gets immediately quashed out. That literally is what Mimikyu does. It mimics Pikachu. It makes logical sense that its name is a corruption of "mimic you". Ultimately, we cannot know where it comes from, but I just can't get behind the notion that 'Q' and 'you' make "equally little sense". Most people seem to generally agree that Mimikyu is probably from mimic you. It's time its page reflected that. Qwertyo76 (talk) 17:30, 19 October 2018 (UTC)

I can see why you'd think it's "mimic" and "you". But I really don't like the reasoning of "because it's mimicking Pikachu". Because the problem is "you" are not "Pikachu", it's not mimicking "you". "You" is not part of Pikachu's name. I know it's supposed to be phonetic, but still, "chu" and "you" are too different.

I'm with Tiddlywinks in that either they both go or they both stay. Name origins are nothing be speculation anyway unless we have official confirmation.--ForceFire 04:09, 20 October 2018 (UTC)

Then I'd rather remove both. Although I agree with Qwertyo76 that "mimic you" is way more accepted and likely, "mimic + Q" is downright silly and random. Anyway, since two staff members seem to agree with this decision I'll remove both speculations then, please re-add it if it's not the correct procedure. ExLight (talk) 13:21, 20 October 2018 (UTC)

Random note from a youtube video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u909_O6CqYc The pokemon kids channel put out a cartoon where mimikyu is hiding food in its disguise's head. I was considering adding this to the page, but I wasn't sure whether to put it in biology or trivia, or if it was even notable enough to be included at all. Pallukun (talk) 00:59, 10 June 2020 (UTC)

Probably worth a note in the bio section. --Spriteit (talk) 07:06, 13 June 2020 (UTC)