Charizard ex Special Illustration Rare #199

Yup, outside of the lack of Giovanni, and Erika’s lower placing, this was a fairly predictable run of cards. But none more-so than ol’ mister fire-breath being the best-seller. And how. This one will currently cost you $115

Tell you what, though. It’s nice when a ridiculously over-priced Charizard is a card worth a fuss, and that’s certainly the case for Miki Kudo’s piece here.

It’s such an interesting piece, bravely maintaining Kudo’s distinctive style for such an iconic Pokémon, while making the most incredible use of such a tiny space. While the Venusaur goes for cramming in wonderful amounts of tiny detail, and the Blastoise uses deft subtlety to make a large Pokémon stand out dominant, the Charizard SIR instead feels like a landscape. And I just adore the way the tail’s fire has been cut out. It’s so lovely.

Is it over $100 lovely? I think that’s between you and your paycheck.