Posted in: Card Games, Games, Pokémon TCG, Tabletop | Tagged: drifloon, Paldean Fates, pokemon, pokemon cards, Pokemon TCG

Pokémon TCG Japan's Shiny Treasure Ex: Shiny Drifloon

Shiny Drifloon appears for the first time in Pokémon TCG since Diamond & Pearl -Stormfront in the latest Japanese set, Shiny Treasure ex.

At the end of every calendar year, the Pokémon TCG Japan releases what is called a "high class" set. These sets are characterized by featuring mostly reprinted cards in the main numbered section of the set, allowing those who may have missed important cards from previous sets that year to catch up. These sets are also known for featuring a large number of Secret Rares, which are generally all-new cards. These high-class sets are usually the most anticipated sets of the year for fans of the Japanese Pokémon TCG. English fans are often keyed in as well because these are sometimes the source material for our "special" expansions. In other cases, they are integrated into main expansions or sometimes never released in English. Examples in the past are GX Ultra Shiny, which was adapted into Hidden Fates, Tag Team GX All-Stars, which was never adapted, Shiny Star V, which was adapted into Shining Fates, VMAX Climax, which was adapted into the Trainer Gallery subsets in main-line Sword & Shield-era sets, and VSTAR Universe which was adapted into Crown Zenith. Now, the Pokémon TCG Japan has released its next high-class set: Shiny Treasure ex. This expansion is like GX Ultra Shiny and Shiny Star V, in that its expansive Secret Rare section will focus on Shiny Pokémon. Like those previous sets, it features "Baby" Shinies (a popular fan phrase for non-Full Art Shiny cards) and Full Art ex Shinies. It has already been confirmed that the English-language Pokémon TCG will adapt this high-class Japanese set into an early 2024 special expansion titled Scarlet & Violet – Paldean Fates. Today, let's take a look at another pair of Shiny Pokémon from Shiny Treasure ex.

This is a personal favorite. Drifloon is my favorite ghost-type Pokémon and truly one of my favorite species overall. This is in no small part due to the strength of the Shiny's design. The standard Drifloon is purple with yellow accents. The Shiny version of Drifloon takes on a soft color palette with a base of yellow with blue accents. This carries over to its evolution, Drifblim, but I think it looks much better on Drifloon itself.

This actually isn't the first time that we have seen Shiny Drifloon in the Pokémon TCG. It last appeared in Diamond & Pearl – Stormfront, released in 2008. Back then, Shiny Pokémon were included in a special Shiny Subset that ran through multiple Diamond & Pearl era sets with a reverse holofoil print.

Japanese sets often give us early ideas of what the English-language sets may include, so be sure to keep an eye on our coverage. You can stay tuned for previews of Scarlet & Violet cards as well as updates on everything Pokémon TCG right here at Bleeding Cool.

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