| Mawile | |
|---|---|
| Pokémon character | |
 Mawile artwork by Ken Sugimori | |
| First appearance | Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire (2002) |
| Designed by | Ken Sugimori (finalized)[1] |
| In-universe information | |
| Species | Pokémon |
| Type | Steel and Fairy |
Mawile (/ˈmɑːwaɪl/ ), known in Japan as Kucheat (Japanese: クチート), is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon franchise. First introduced in the video games Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, the development team wanted to push the concept of what a Pokémon could look like compared to previous installments. After the design was conceived, it was finalized by Ken Sugimori, who added additional details as he felt necessary. Since Mawile's debut, it has appeared in multiple games including Pokémon Go and the Pokémon Trading Card Game, as well as media related to the franchise.
Originally classified as solely a Steel-type Pokémon, Mawile has a short yellow body, cloven feet, black markings on his hands, and a large horn resembling a crocodile maw protruding from the back of its head. This horn can open and bite targets, though despite resembling a mouth lacks a tongue or throat. With Pokémon X and Y, it was reclassified as a Steel- and Fairy-type Pokémon, and also gained a Mega Evolution, Mega Mawile.
Mawile has been mostly well received since its debut, with comparisons being drawn to the yōkai futakuchi-onna. Despite its large mouth-like horn, it has been praised for its cuteness and cited as a Pokémon popular with players, despite its gameplay capabilities being called niche and dismal. The addition of the Fairy-type and Mega Mawile transformation in X and Y were also praised, with USgamer writer Kat Bailey stating that these changes helped both helped increase its popularity and served as an example of how well Game Freak approached gameplay balance as a company.