Takeshi Shudo (首藤 剛志, Shudō Takeshi, was a Japanese scriptwriter and novelist. His major works include anime Space Warrior Baldios, the Magical Princess Minky Momo series, and Pokémon, of which he created the Pokémon Lugia. He had a reputation for his witty dialogue and was known for the unusual next episode previews in the series he served as chief writer for. In Pokémon, he coined Team Rocket's iconic motto. He was also a member of the Writers Guild of Japan.

Pokémon: Mewtwo Returns, is a special episode of the Pokémon anime series and a direct sequel to Pokémon: The First Movie (1998). It was first broadcast in Japan on December 30, 2000 and was released on VHS and DVD in Japan on March 21, 2001. It went direct-to-video in Australia on August 17, 2001, then in the United States and Canada on December 4, 2001, and in the UK on February 11, 2002.