Posted in: Card Games, Games, Pokémon TCG, Tabletop | Tagged: pokemon, pokemon cards, Pokemon TCG, Sword & Shield, VMAX Climax

Pokémon TCG 2022 End-Of-Year List: Top Character Rares Of SWSH Era

Character Rares are a special card type that illustrates the bond between a Pokémon and its Trainer that first arrived in the Pokémon TCG with Sun & Moon – Cosmic Eclipse. These cards were rendered in a texture-less Full Art style with a clean, simple, rainbow foil that allowed the art to shine. Character Rares were absent from sets for years before reemerging in early 2022 with Sword & Shield – Brilliant Stars which brought back this card type as well as introducing Character Super Rares. Character Super Rares take the concept of Character Rares combine them with an Ultra Rare mechanic like Pokémon V or Pokémon VMAX, adding light texturing. These cards, similar to Alternate Arts, are fan-favorites. Let's look back at the best Character Rares introduced in Pokémon TCG sets that released in 2022.

• Braixen Character Rare from Sword & Shield – Silver Tempest: This is the perfect example of how this card style showcases the cute bond between Trainer and Pokémon. I like the use of Braixen here rather than Delphox as well, which adds to the overall cuteness.
• Charizard Character Rare from Sword & Shield – Lost Origin: I appreciate this card for being both a wholesome Charizard card and a very obtainable Charizard chase card in contrast to the Charizard Secret Rares and Alternate Arts of the era.
• Starmie V Character Super Rare from Sword & Shield – Astral Radiance: Iconic Trainer Misty appears on this card which is the one Trainer Gallery card from Sword & Shield – Astral Radiance in this set, making it a standout in that expansion.

• Vaporeon Character Rare from Sword & Shield – Brilliant Stars: This card stands in as my choice to represent all of the Eevee, Jolteon, Flareon, and Vaporeon Character Rares from this set, which largely defined and set the theme for this Trainer Gallery.
• Umbreon VMAX Character Rare from Sword & Shield – Brilliant Stars: Umbreon VMAX Character Super Rare stands out due to its obtainability in comparison to the Alternate Art version of this card which is currently set at over $500.
• Pikachu Character Rare from Sword & Shield – Lost Origin: The Pikachu Character Rare from Sun & Moon – Cosmic Eclipse was the top Character Rare in that set, and I'd go as far as to say that this new one is even stronger.

• Rayquaza VMAX Character Rare from Sword & Shield – Silver Tempest: While I don't dislike the Rayquaza VMAX Alternate Art from Sword & Shield – Evolving Skies, I think that this card is far stronger due to a pairing with the incredibly designed Trainer Zinnia and brilliant artwork.
• Mimikyu VMAX Character Rare from Sword & Shield – Brilliant Stars: My personal favorite Character Rare ever! It doesn't get cuter than Acerola treating her Dynamax Mimikyu like a huge stuffed animal.
• Pikachu VMAX Character Rare from Sword & Shield – Lost Origin: The most iconic Character Super Rare is clearly the Pikachu VMAX which was also the one that revealed this card type. From the stunning artwork to Red's memorable pose, this will be remembered as a perfect example of the Trainer Gallery subsets of 2022.

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