On July 17th, Pokemon fans will finally get their hands on Pokemon TCG: Mega Evolution – Pitch Black. This Mega Darkrai-themed set introduces an impressive list of six new Mega ex cards featuring evolutions first introduced in Pokemon Legends: Z-A. It’s another smaller set, with roughly 118 cards in the main set. That makes it slightly smaller than both Chaos Rising and Perfect Order. However, the variety of cards in the set still feels pretty exciting, and there are some chase-worthy illustrations on offer. If you can get your hands on them.
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I had the opportunity to sample 55 packs from across the Pitch Black lineup for review. This included the Build & Battle Boxes currently available at local card stores for pre-release, an Elite Trainer Box, a Booster Display, and a Booster Bundle. In all, it’s a pretty standard collection of products for an expansion of this size. Across the board, I came away slightly more impressed with Pitch Black than I was with Chaos Rising or Perfect Order. Despite the smaller set size, the variety of new ex cards and some less-loved Pokemon made opening packs from Pitch Black feel exciting. Even if I didn’t pull as many Illustration Rares as I’d have liked, I snagged a few new favorites and plenty of Legends: Z-A Megas.
Rating: 4 out of 5
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Stunning illustrations across the board from commons up to SIRs | Full art pull rates aren’t great for IRs and above |
| Good variety of new Megas ex with decent pull rates | Relatively small expansion means a limited pool of new cards |
| Abilities and items expand potential strategies, especially for decks centered on new Megas | |
| Cardstock feels extra-durable and print quality looks solid |
Pokemon TCG‘s Pitch Black Expansion Wowed Me with Its Legends: Z-A Mega Pull Rates
With this being part of the Mega Evolution run, one thing I’m always looking out for is the pull rate for new Megas. After all, if you’re ripping packs that promise new Megas ex from Legends: Z-A, you want decent odds to get one. While I was sad to pull only 1 full art for a Mega ex this round, I did get a nice representative sample of the new Megas. In fact, I got at least one ex card for each of the newly added Mega Evolutions. That’s not bad odds, and it makes it easier for players to actually try out the new strategies these cards have on offer.
That said, Illustration Rares and above do seem to have modest pull rates in this set. I did pull a total of 10 full art cards, but with two repeats (Dark Bell and Fomantis). The vast majority of them were Illustration Rares, with a handful of Ultra Rares and, once again, no SIRs to speak of. I do think the art for these is overall a step up from the relatively pared-back look of many full arts from Chaos Rising. Depictions of Pokemon in the environment are back in a big way, with a gorgeous Goldeen swimming in the ocean and adorable Slowbro puzzled in the sewers.
Even the art on the common cards in this set feels like a nice variety of some of the best of Pokemon TCG illustrations. We have a few of the fun clay and crochet designs, plus several stunning depictions of Pokemon that aren’t celebrated as often. I’m particularly partial to the common card for Slowpoke in this set, and Inkay has won me over with this depiction, as well. Despite it being a smaller set, the variety of art styles and Pokemon showcased in the common cards made opening packs feel exciting for far longer than with more repetitive sets. I’ll also note that the cardstock for these cards feels especially thick and high quality, something I kept actively noticing as I pulled cards. The print quality looks good as well, with card art well centered.
Though the top-tier chase cards here may once again be hard to come by, there are some good ones on offer. The Hyper Rare of Misty’s Vitality is a fun callback to Kanto, and its ability is straight out of Pokemon TCG Pocket. The Morpeko ex Super Illustration Rare is also a fun depiction of this hangry Pokemon in action. And if your favorites are some of the less celebrated Pokemon, you may well find a new card to covet from this set, even among the lower-tier rarities.
Abilities and Items Offer New Deckbuilding Potential Even in a Small Set
Now, let’s talk playability. This is a smaller set, but it does pack in several new Megas ex for players to test out on the battlefield. Like prior Mega Evolution sets, many of the Trainer and Item cards are designed for good synergy with the new Megas in this expansion. That means we’ve got a few solid Psychic types to round out a deck starring Mega Chandelure ex and/or Mega Slowbro ex, plus some Dark types and item cards to aid with a Darkrai-themed strategy.
In particular, I like the combo of Mega Darkrai ex and the Dark Bell item card, which is a new addition with this set. The Dark Bell renders both Active Pokemon confused, unless they’re a Dark type. The potential for a new Dark-type deck themed around Mega Darkrai is exciting, especially with new cards for Umbreon on the way with 30th Celebration. I also pulled a whopping 3 Morpeko ex cards in this set, so that’s another solid option for a Dark-type deck leveraging the confusion of Dark Bell.
Pitch Black also adds a few fossils into the mix, plus a Fossil Quarry to help you easily find them in your deck. As for trainer cards, there’s a good mix here, with Jett aiding you on the defense against Mega Evolution ex cards and Misty forever helping with those Water-type energies. Though the new options are limited by the expansion’s size, it’s still enough to grab ahold of and get the strategic gears thinking. By and large, though, this set’s stars are its new Mega Evolution ex cards, as fits the name. Each comes with some interesting attack effects that could turn the tide in battle, from Mega Delphox ex’s Trick Portal helping fill the bench to Mega Chandelure’s all-out war on Normal types.
Mega Evolution – Pitch Black hits shelves on July 17th. Build & Battle decks, which include 4 boosters from the expansion, are available in participating pre-release locations as of July 4th.
ComicBook received sample product from the Pitch Black expansion for the purpose of this review.
