What are your Top 10 favorite cards?
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idk for sure, but here are 10 of my favorites
maybe throw in RGSB dark dnite instead of ting-lu if we wanted to keep it retro
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Not in any specific order
- Trainer deck b squirtle
- 1st edition base Squirtle
- Shadowless Squirtle
- Base Squirtle
- 1999-2000 Squirtle
- Base 2 Squirtle
- Legendary Collection Squirtle
- Legendary Collection Reverse holo Squirtle
- Classic Collection Squirtle
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This was a really difficult question. My answers change depending on whether I’m considering the story of the card, the art, specific eras, language-specific releases, etc.
I tried to only choose one art per species and an equal number of Japanese and English cards. They are presented in a random order as well.
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Y’know, there are times where x question comes up at least a couple times a year, and may seem overwrought, but this is a good and fun one and can get you to reassess your views as the years go by. I’ll have to go compare it to previous threads.
At quick glance I found two “favorite card” posts: 5 Favorite Pokemon Cards - #33 by brendantheclayboy and MY top 5 favourite cards - keen to hear everyone elses! - #6 by brendantheclayboy. I like that the first was so long ago, in my first few months of belonging to the forum. Clearly my answer then was very sentimental. Those are still some of my most cherished cards for their memories. But being a bit more objective, and for the sake of fun of impossibly actually coming up with a top 10, I’ll try once more with trying to keep the sentimental childhood cards to a minimum. However, Ponyta will always be there. Upon reflection, many still make it. They’ll always be so special to me. And I’ll note here I’ve never actually taken the time to consider my entire collection, having flipped thru the binders quickly to appreciate this answer unlike before, and the real answer is this is impossible. I’d like to list 25, then it would be a fair question. I mean, this leaves out many EX era that I’d love to include, but my sentimentality prevents me from excluding certain must haves from my life. But, again, fun.
Yes, there are 11 12. Better number anyway. Leave me alone. Tie between magcargo and magneton because these 2 launched my acceptance of e reader borders and are responsible for my 10 year tardiness for love of the best era in pokemon, years ago.
Reasoning
Dark Slowbro: If there is one, this is the one. From perhaps the best set ever, peak pokemon conception we never got back, this card always enthralled me beyond words and is probably the reason for slowbro being my favorite before I could even say he is. The color, the concept, it’s just absolute perfection, and as a kid I worshipped this card.
shadowless Ponyta:
This was my first card I ever remember seeing in pokemon. It still strikes me in the same way it did then. I try not to look at it too much, to keep that special feeling protected.
Dark Hypno:
Encompasses everything I value, the dark, the psychadelic, the flair for illusion and carny-ness, the checkerboard, all the aesthetic is there. The other from rocket that made me revere this set above all others for all time.
Shadowless Blastoise:
Ponyta was the first, but blasty was the first holo I remember changing my life forever. I was in kindergarten, visiting my little sisters preschool, accompanying my mom to pick her up. I remember the spot on the ground I stood upon when I first saw this card. It’s the greatest pokemon card ever in many ways.
Misty’s Golduck:
Gym series is in that pantheon… rocket, aquapolis, etc… This one struck me in the same way for these sets that I was by my favorites from rocket or jungle in its heyday.
Light Slowbro:
I love Komiya so much. But if I had to pick a favorite, and no, its a coincidence its slowbro, really… it’s this one. Slowbro looks so happy. So wise, so at peace with the universe.
Vending slow:
This one got me into vending, another of the greatest sets ever. I adore this card, and have written books about it, so I’ll spare the detail.
Grimer:
I could have listed several Kinebuchi cards, but this one is his magnum opus, and it makes me feel profound feelings when I look at it.
Porygon:
Not my most sentimental card, but if I had to pick a favorite artwork ever by sheer artwork and its associations, this is the winner.
Jiggly:
Jk, there are two Kinebuchi’s and this is important being the sentimental one. I still feel like it belongs in banjo kazooie, one of his most n64 looking cards.
Magcargo/magneton: As mentioned above, the reason for getting me into E series along with a few others, most of which are listed below. Magneton would be one of those that is among the best ever cards category.
Super duper honorable mentions would be any of the slow line of aquapolis by Kusube (masterpiece line), giovanni’s person, expedition pidgeot, skyridge steelix, aquapolis mr mime, illustrator mr mime, skyridge sandshrew, golem ex and magcargo ex from ex dragon, and so, so many more. While it pains me to leave out so many, this was indeed fun. But it also took an hour and shit I have things to do. 
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Here is my short essay describing my top 10 in no specific order.
1. Torchic - Darkness Ablaze
I got back into the TCG when Shining Fates came out and I could not find cards anywhere. I ended up at a random overpriced LGS in my old hometown. The owner let me look through his bulk bin. Among them, I found this Torchic from Darkness Ablaze. It unlocked a memory of seeing Yuka Morii cards from the Neo Era as a kid. In particular, I think back to her Kabuto and Omanyte. As a Hoenn Hoe myself, I loved seeing a Generation 3 starter in her style. I became a Yuka Morii collector in that moment. I learned early on to appreciate the common artwork just as much as the higher rarity cards. I plan to own enough copies of this card to fill an entire 9x9 binder.
2. Charmeleon - EX Firered and Leafgreen
I distinctly remember having this card in my old 4x4 binder as a king. Unfortunately I no longer have those cards, but I do have the memories. I think I got this card from the Firered theme deck because I do not remember opening the actual set. Kouki Saitou is a memorable artist because his art looks straight out of the anime. One of my collecting goals is to pick up a mint copy of this card in reverse holo.
3. Phanpy - Pop Series 2
I love Komiya and I love this Phanpy. I pulled this Phanpy when I purchased a Pop Series 2 pack off of eBay or Mercari way back. My main chase was the Yuka Morii Pikachu which I did pull. While Pikachu was my goal this Phanpy was a great bonus. I appreciate how Komiya can draw a Pokemon with so much personality. This is a card I would love for him to sign.
4. Gengar and Mimikyu GX - Tag Team
Tag Teams are cool. I am sad that I came in too late to rip packs for MSRP. Back when I was more wasteful with my money I would spend 30$ per pack of Tag Team at my LGS each week in hopes of pulling a tag team alternate art. One day after getting another dud pack, my friend working in the shop gave me a freebie pack. I pulled this card from that freebie pack. It sounds like a cope but I prefer this artwork to the alternate artwork. As a Mimikyu fan this is one of my favorites.
5. Treecko - EX Crystal Guardians
Here’s another card I found in the bulk bin along with the Darkness Ablaze Torchic. Treecko is my first Pokemon and Crystal Guardians is my favorite set. I love how Treecko is overlooking a beach lined with crystals. Yuka Morii has a great style but Sachiko Adachi’s style is just as good. Although similar to Yuka Morii, Adachi adds a paper craft aesthetic to the clay style to stand out. It reminds me a lot of Paper Mario. It is a shame Sachiko Adachi has not worked on a card in a very long time. I would love to see the artist do a Special Illustration Rare.
6. Venusaur - 151
Venusaur is peak Pokemon. He’s just a plant monster. The SIR captures the idea of Pokemon blending with nature and represents Venusaur well. This was my chase from 151 and I pulled it! I picked up a booster bundle on the way to work after trading my Iono SIR for this card that morning. I don’t mind having two copies. I cannot wait to see what else Ikegami works on. My hope is a Sceptile SIR. Fingers crossed.
7. Starmie V - Astral Radiance
Akira Komayama and Misty are a great combo. I remember buying a lot of Battle Region and trying to pull this card in Japanese. Three full art SR’s later I gave up. During the Prerelease for Astral Radiance I pulled it. . . and again in my booster box two weeks later. Misty is one of my favorite Pokemon characters as well as her Starmie. I am reminded of the noises her Starmie would make in battle. This is a gorgeous card that I am proud to own twice.
8. Flaaffy - Evolving Skies
This is the best artwork in Evolving Skies. Flaaffy is depicted beautifully here under the night sky discharging electricity. The glowing pink on its’ mane contrasts the night sky. Okacheke did a phenomenal job here. I have many copies of this card from my many attempts at pulling a Leafeon Vmax alternate art from evolving skies. Seeing this card in a pack would make me failures sting a lot less.
9. Tyranitar V - Battle Styles
I knew I had to have this card when Battle Styles came out. HYOGONOSUKE draws Tyranitar uncharacteristically relaxed and asleep. This demonstrated to me how Pokemon cards can develop the Pokemon beyond their archetypes. The usually fierce Tyranitar is seen as vulnerable and content in this card. I never pulled the card, but I did grab the single before it got expensive.
10. Espeon V - Eevee Heroes
I love Espeon and I love sowsow. sowsow has a distinct style and their storybook artstyle fits Pokemon perfectly. The sight of Espeon juggling books using psychic powers is very cute. I pulled this card years ago on Christmas Eve at my LGS after losing a loved one. My girlfriend bought me 2 loose packs of Eevee Heroes. I got very lucky pulling the SR. I cherish this card because it takes me back to the emotions I felt then. It helps me remember what I lost and what I have now. I grew up watching the anime as a baby and it has stuck with me ever since thanks to that same family member I lost. This is my favorite card in my collection. I would love to grade the card, but I am scared to lose it in the shipping process to be honest.
Anyways thanks for reading. Pokemon cards rock. As you can tell my list is based on memories associated with the cards as well as the artwork. I really enjoy this hobby and I am happy to be here with you all. Best wishes.
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Sharing top 10 that came to mind ( though some of these can change).
Also thought to share some non-Pokémon cards as there are some awesome cards in other TCGs as well.
Pokémon
Non-Pokémon
Mainly a mix of MTG and WoW
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I will only stick to the cards I have in my collection.
My favourite card in the hobby bar none. If I can only have one card ever, it will be this one for sure. I was really fortunate to have been able to purchase it when I did. This has all of the elements that make a great promo card. Exclusivity, some rarity the whole shebang,
This card is pure vibes for me. Just friends talking about Pokemon.
I absolutely adore this promo. It is super underrated in my opinion. The holo effect is so beautiful in person to look at.
I really like how beautiful and simple this promo is. I also did not know for the longest time that this was a holo but the sky just looks beautiful at the correct angles where the holo pops up.
This one is very special to me since it was my first ever prize card. Lot of nerves while purchasing it but I was very happy I was able to get it at the time. Just amazing. I hope to someday get its much more rarer counterparts.
Dragonite being my favourite, I prefer this version of classic Sugimori artwork over the other promo cards that Dragonite has.
I find the Grand Party to be always underrated for some reason. It did have a rise in popularity a couple of years ago but it does not get talked about enough. I really like the history and distribution behind it. Really great artwork to go with it.
I only own this one among the fan club promos and this looks just brilliant in hand. The background really pops at the right angles and it has such a great history to it. Cant go wrong with this card.
These are my picks for favorites in my collection. All special to me, some for the history and artwork and some because of the collection journey I had to take to be able to get them. Thanks for reading.
Cheers!
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Great choice including Bebe and Mew! They were 11th and 12th on my list, but I had to painfully cut at 10 cards. So thank you for saving them xD
EDIT: I changed my mind and added Bebe to my top 10
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I love that 2nd card its so cute!
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Really hard to pick, as there are so many amazing artworks. Did not want to pick multiple cards per Mon and also wanted to choose one Trainer card. The first 4 cards will likely never change, the rest can change from time to time and is more about how I feel right at the moment I make these lists. The Feraligatr and Espeon from E1/E2 I prefer the Holo versions, I just picked the Non-Holos for the gallery as on pictures online the artworks are better visible.
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Top 10 favourite PKMN TCG cards:
- E5 Delibird
- Masaki Omastar
- Legend Maker Omanyte
- T Promo Dragonite
- Cool Porygon
- Neo Revelation Farfetch’d
- Masaki Gengar
- Unikarp
- P Promo 46 Mewtwo
- P Promo 38 Pikachu
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My list is quite overcrowded with slime and Komiya but that’s the way it is and what gives me the most joy, some cards could be different ones on another day and i hate to leave so many cards out from e-series sets, vs series, neo destiny and og mcdonald’s promos but today the list looked like this
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The only one I don’t own of these above is the Japanese Pikachu Emotions Art Academy card. 
Here some related threads, where I also added info why I choose certain cards. The order has shift a bit, but the reasoning is still similar. 
- Nov. 2020: 5 Favorite Pokémon Cards
- July 2022: What are your top 5 arts of your favorite Pokémon? - Pikachu
- July 2022: What are your top 5 arts of your favorite Pokémon? - Seviper
- October 2023: Let’s see your top 3 favorite cards in your collection
Greetz,
Quuador
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