People have been collecting Pokémon cards for nearly 30 years now. But why? Surely these hundred of thousands of people can’t all be interested in actually playing the game and therefore seeking cards with the strongest moves. Surely completionism comes into it somewhere, but completing a master set of a certain TCG expansion is pretty tricky. Personally, a big part of the appeal of Pokémon cards for me is the artwork on the cards. And I’d bet that it’s the same for most other people. You might even be able to spot a certain artists style by now, like Yuka Morii or, on the other end of the scale, the dreaded PLANETA team. With over 150 different illustrators and 17,000 illustrations in the TCGs history, the artwork on the cards always feels so fresh and varied. But which are the most notable? Which illustrator has illustrated the most? Read on if this is your kind of thing. Even if this isn’t your kind of thing, I don’t care, read on anyway. Also, a quick disclaimer: I have no artistic merit whatsoever and I have no idea what I’m talking about when it comes to artwork, so these are all my own personal opinions and preferences. It’s all just a bit of fun.
Firstly, let’s talk about my overall favourite, and I’m probably not alone in this camp. You’ve seen her artwork. You’ve said to yourself “that’s pretty cool”. It’s the one and only Yuka Morii. If you don’t recognise the name, her card illustrations are the photographs of little 3D clay Pokémon models in real world environments. Her art really stands out from the rest as they are actually photographs, a completely different medium from the majority of the other illustrations. The models stay entirely faithful to the original designs and they look like they’re ripped straight from the games. If I were ever to collect a master set of a particular illustrators cards, Yuka Moriis would be on the top of my list. With 215 cards to her name since her debut in Neo Discovery in 2001, I always feel a flutter of excitement when I rip a pack and am met with her adorable little models.
There have been other sculpture illustrations, like those from Sachiko Adachi or Hizuki Misono (who only produced four cards, but there are utterly endearing all the same). A sort of neighbour to these model cards is those made by Asaka Ito, who makes models out of crochet rather than clay. She’s only been producing artwork for the TCG since 2017, but with 35 cards, she’s quickly becoming a fan favourite. I still remember pulling her Tynamo card from Burning Shadows and being instantly charmed by that little knitted fishie. It’s far cooler to have a card where the Pokémon itself doesn’t quite look like its official design. It makes these funky looking guys look even funkier.
One of my favourite card arts of all time is the Snorlax from the original Japanese Vending Series from 1998. Obviously, it was illustrated by a child. But that makes it all the more unique and special. After a bit of research, it turns out that the Pokémon Company held an art contest where the winners drawings would be made into official TCG illustrations. I’d implore them to do something similar nowadays as the idea is pretty cool and results in some super charming cards.
Let’s quickly dip to the other end of the spectrum and talk about some artwork I don’t quite appreciate as much. I’m talking about the artwork produced by graphics companies like 5ban Graphics or PLANETA CG Works. I understand that making 3D CGI models is probably very difficult and commendable, but I just feel like those kinds of cards have no heart or soul. They’re just a bit boring. The newer cards from the Scarlet & Violet era which incorporate Tera type cards especially look kinda ugly. If we compare them to some of the artwork I’ve already talked about, it’s no competition. These graphics companies are largely commissioned for chase cards like exs and full-arts, which just seems like a waste when the illustrations on them have just no personality. Imagine a Yuka Morii ex style card and how much cooler that would look rather than some boring computer model. If I wanted boring computer models I’d just play the video games. Plus, 5ban have that horrendous Wigglytuff (below) to answer for. I’d take that ugly little Shibuza Eevee over anything these CG companies have made.
With all that negativity out of the way, let’s now focus on an artist whose work exudes charm and nostalgia. With a whopping 1020 cards using his artwork, Ken Sugimori is one of the most recognisable names in the Pokémon world. Disregarding the TCG for a sec, Sugimori’s influence on the Pokémon franchise is unmatched. The illustrations for the original 151 Pokémon were all done by Sugimori and, on top of that, he has also produced concept art for the anime. If that’s not enough to prove how much of an OG he is, Sugimori provided the artwork and designs for the proto-Pokémon concept, Capsule Monsters in 1990. His illustrations and designs have affected how we perceive these Pokémon and the franchise might have grown very differently without his impact. With 44/101 cards from the original base set being illustrated by Sugimori, his contribution to the TCG and Pokémon as a whole would be pretty hard to beat. A more than honourable mention should also go to Mitsuhiro Arita, whose similar designs shouldn’t go unnoticed. With unforgettable base set illustrations like that of Charizard and Pikachu (the chonky one), Arita, in my opinion, is definitely on par with Sugimori.
A newer illustrator that I’ve started to enjoy is Akira Egawa, through no other reason than the fact that her art just looks pretty cool. You might recognise her work from the TCG Pocket app, with my personal favourites being the 2 star Alakazam and the gorgeous Solgaleo ex 2 star. She is also responsible for the SIR Charizard ex from Paldean Fates that has seen a lot of popularity recently, selling for around $200 at the moment, and rightly so; her art style is incredible and makes even the silliest looking Pokémon look cool (I’m looking at you, Chi-Yu ex). Illustrating for the TCG since 2019 and with 80 cards already to her name, I very much look forward to seeing what she releases next.
One last illustrator I wanted to give a quick shout out to is Tomokazu Komiya. Illustrating for the Pokémon since way back in 1998, Komiya has provided 267 cards for the TCG and his art style has remained one of the more distinct throughout the series. Knowing next to nothing about art, after a quick Google, I’ve learned that Komiya’s art is part of the Primitivism movement (basically, they look a tad like tribal/caveman-esque art). This makes his art look very much distinct from others which might appear to be a bit more basic and bland in comparison. If we compare, say, Komiya’s full art Drowzee from the Scarlet & Violet base set, which is full of heart and character and properly tells a story, to anything that PLANETA or 5ban have made, it’s an obvious decision as to which one is better. I mean, look at his Doduo from the Vending Series… ( I don’t really have a point here, I just think it’s charming).
To conclude, I think I’ve made my point quite clear. And it’s probably a point that didn’t really need making. I’m sure no one out there prefers cards with boring and bland artwork. The more unique and interesting art, the better, and if I had any say, I’d implore the Pokémon Company to keep up the good work and hire artists with even more distinct styles. It is much more exciting to rip a Yuka Morii than a 5ban. Maybe there wasn’t much point to this article. Maybe I just wanted to give a shoutout to some artists I’ve been appreciating since I started collecting again recently. I could say that I wrote all of this as a way to encourage fans to find deeper appreciation in their hobby, and to even congratulate and further encourage the Pokémon company to branch out and use artists with even more interesting art styles. Or maybe I just wanted to show off some of my favourite artworks in the TCG. Who knows!? (It’s the latter…)
