Pokémon Illustrator (CoroCoro promo)

TCG Card Back Japanese.jpg This article is about a Pokémon Trading Card Game card which has not yet been officially released in English. As such, this article may contain translated Japanese terms instead of English terms.

Illustrator
Pokémon Illustrator
ポケモンイラストレーター Pokémon Illustrator
PokémonIllustratorCoroCoropromo.jpg
Illus. Atsuko Nishida
Japanese expansion Unnumbered Promotional cards
Japanese Rarity RareRare Holo

Pokémon Illustrator (Japanese: ポケモンイラストレーター Pokémon Illustrator) is a Trainer card. It is one of the Unnumbered Promotional cards.

Card text

All prints
  You can't have more than 1 ACE SPEC card in your deck.
Team Plasma
Team Plasma
  You can't have more than 1 ACE SPEC card in your deck.
  FLARE
  (Prism Star) Rule
You can't have more than 1   card with the same name in your deck. If a   card would go to the discard pile, put it in the Lost Zone instead.
TAG TEAM
 
 
 
 
 
{{{ruletext}}}
VSTAR Power
We certify that your illustration is an excellent entry in the Pokémon Card Game Illust Contest. Therefore, we state that you are an Officially Authorized Pokémon Card Illustrator and admire your skill.
 
Do Nothing  
At the beginning of your turn, flip a coin. If heads, you can do nothing during your turn. If tails, your opponent can do nothing during his or her next turn.
 
Do Nothing
 
At the beginning of your turn, flip a coin. If heads, you can do nothing during your turn. If tails, your opponent can do nothing during his or her next turn.
 
Do Nothing  
At the beginning of your turn, flip a coin. If heads, you can do nothing during your turn. If tails, your opponent can do nothing during his or her next turn.


Release information

This card was awarded to selected winning entrants across three illustration contests publicized in CoroCoro Comic. The Pokémon Card Game Illust Artist Contest was the first, announced in the November 1997 issue of CoroCoro Comic, released on October 15, 1997, with the winning entries announced in the January 1998 issue, released in December 1997. Three entrants received the Best Award, each of them receiving 20 copies of a card featuring their illustration as well as a copy of this card. A further 20 entrants received the Excellence Award, each of them awarded a copy of this card.

Two other contests were held in 1998. The Mewtwo's Counterattack Commemoration Illust Artist Contest was the first, announced in the May 1998 issue of CoroCoro Comic, with a second, the Pikachu's Summer Vacation Commemoration Illust Artist Contest, announced in the June 1998 issue of CoroCoro Comic. Both of these contests invited readers to design their own Pokémon card, in which entries were judged on the most interesting illustrations and the most creative attacks. Winners of the Mewtwo's Counterattack Commemoration Illust Artist Contest were announced in the July 1998 issue of CoroCoro Comic, which included one Best Award for overall illustration and attacks, four instances of the Excellence Award for illustration, and three instances of the Excellence Award for attacks. Each of these winners received a copy of this card, with the Best Award winner also receiving 20 copies of the card featuring their illustration. Winners of the Pikachu's Summer Vacation Commemoration Illust Artist Contest were announced in the August 1998 issue of CoroCoro Comic, which included four instances of the Excellence Award for both illustration and attacks. There was no Best Award for this contest. Each of those earning the Excellence Award received a copy of this card.

Trivia

  • This card currently holds the highest sale price for an individual Pokémon card, at $5,275,000.[1][2]
  • This card is considered to be among the rarest in the world, with only 39 copies officially distributed.
    • When a PSA 9-graded copy of this card sold for a record $100,000 in 2013, it was believed only 12 copies existed.
    • In 2019, it was discovered that extra copies of several early Japanese trophy cards which hadn't been officially awarded had started to appear on Japanese auction websites. As of August 2020, two additional Illustrator cards have appeared, bringing the total known to exist to at least 41. Both of these were put up for sale by Yuichi Konno, one of the four people involved in creating the rules for the trading card game.
  • This card features the word "Illustrator" at the top instead of "Trainer", and is the only card to do so.
    • This card is also the only card with the unique pen symbol in the bottom right corner of the card.
    • This card is one of only a handful of Japanese promotional cards that feature a double-star rarity.
  • This card is commonly known as Pikachu Illustrator or Illustrator Pikachu, in reference to the Pikachu in the illustration.

Origin


  This article is part of Project TCG, a Bulbapedia project that aims to report on every aspect of the Pokémon Trading Card Game.