Posted in: Card Games, Games, Pokémon TCG, Tabletop | Tagged: Obsidian Flames, pokemon, pokemon cards, Scarlet & Violet

Cards Of Pokémon TCG: Obsidian Flames – Top 5 Cards

Our spotlight on the artwork of Pokémon TCG's third Scarlet & Violet-era set, Obsidian Flames, counts down the top five cards.

With Sword & Shield officially concluded, the Scarlet & Violet era of the Pokémon TCG kicked off in March 2023 with a focus on the ninth generation of Pokémon games and the new region: Paldea. It all began with the Scarlet & Violet base set, which introduced major, lasting changes to the hobby. Now, the borders of the cards have become silver, matching the Japanese releases. Another major change is that now, each pack culminates in at least a holo-rare and two reverse holos. The major mechanic of this era is the lowercase ex, which features a double holographic pattern of a horizontal shine and a starry sparkle. Full Art exs now use a green, foil outline around the Pokémon. The Secret Rare section of expansions going forward features Full Arts, Illustration Rares and Special Illustration Rare exs, Full Art Trainers, Special Illustration Rare Trainers, and Gold Hyper Rares. On August 11, 2023, the Pokémon TCG released the third set of this era, Scarlet & Violet – Obsidian Flames, which introduced Tera Pokémon with a Tera type differing from their base type. The chase card is a Dark-type Tera Charizard ex. In today's installment of this Scarlet & Violet – Obsidian Flames art spotlight, we count down the top five cards of the set. This is my personal opinion, so be sure to chime in with your top picks in the comments section.

• 5 – Litwick: Sometimes, a classic Common card stands out. Such is the case for this vibrant Litwick. Litwick is rendered in a distinct and cartoony style, as it leaps for joy outside of what appears to be a haunted house with gorgeous, colorful artwork by Nagomi Nijo.
• 4 – Tera Eiscue ex Special Illustration Rare: Eiscue features on a hilarious Tera ex Special Illustration Rare, which shows the Terastallized Pokémon blasting fire from its Fire-type Tera Crown Jewel. This card is illustrated by Toshinao Aoki, who has been contributing to the TCG as far back as the Neo era. After a hiatus of many years, Aoki returned with the Unown V Alternate Art from Sword & Shield – Silver Tempest. Aoki is once again a regular contributor, and what a welcome return his time since then has been.
• 3 – Ninetails Illustration Rare: One of the fan-favorite Illustration Rares in the set features a Kanto Fire-type… but it's not Charizard. Ninetails looks regal and glorious in this warmly lit Illustration Rare by SIE NANAHARA. NANAHARA debuted with a stunner first card early this year with Crown Zenith's Hisuian Zoroark VSTAR Special Illustration Rare. They went on to illustrate the Gothorita Illustration Rare from Scarlet & Violet – Palda Evolved with a slightly different style, but now we see them return to this delicate and intricate style with a card that lives up to the hype of that amazing debut.

• 2 – Tera Charizard ex Special Illustration Rare: This is the chase card of Sword & Shield – Obsidian Flames. This is the Special Illustration Rare of the Tera Charizard ex, illustrated in a gorgeous painterly style by AKIRA EGAWA. EGAWA came to the Pokémon TCG with the intention of being bold. That has certainly been the case, as EGAWA's art style is immediately visually distinct, even though they have only contributed for a few years. EGAWA's first-ever credit was in Sun & Moon – Unified Minds. This gorgeous and painterly Charizard is currently one of the least expensive chase cards to pick up, which is surprising to me, considering it features this fan-favorite species. It could be the lukewarm reaction to the Tera Crown Jewel depicted on these Pokémon during the Scarlet & Violet era, but I can't help but compare this beautiful illustration positively to the more computer-generated style Charizard chase cards of the past.
• 1 – Cleffa Illustration Rare: It might be controversial not to choose the Charizard Special Illustration Rare, which I love… but the Scarlet & Violet era is memorable because of cards like this. This era gives major Secret Rares to unevolved species, letting us see Pokémon art like we never have before. Artist HYOGONOSUKE takes on the minimalist Cleffa card, which shows it standing on a perfectly clear sheet of ice that reflects a shooting star in the sky.

Stay tuned for the journey through this special set as we continue to spotlight the cards and artwork of Pokémon TCG: Scarlet & Violet – Obsidian Flames. Next time, the spotlight continues a final review of the set. You can read more about this iconic trading card game right here at Bleeding Cool.

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