Pokémon Charizard Holo — Expedition Base Set 2001, Japanese 1st Edition, PSA 10

Expedition marked the opening of the e-Card era, the transition in which the Japanese TCG moved to a new card back, a new numbering system and a distinct visual identity. The Charizard printed in that 2001 Japanese set belongs to the first wave of the change and is numbered 71/128, with the e-Reader strip and the set symbol that only this generation carries. It is the Charizard of a technical turning point rather than of a nostalgic reprint.

Hiromitsu Sugiyama placed the dragon in flight over open sky and water, a composition that reads as an action scene instead of the static portraiture of earlier sets. In play it was a Stage 2 with 120 HP, the Burning Energy Pokémon Power and Whirlwind of Fire at 120 damage, a package that kept it relevant in competitive decks of the period and made it one of the set's most played cards.

The present example is a 1st Edition, the first printing of the set, authenticated and encapsulated by PSA at 10 GEM MINT: the combination of first printing and maximum grade that collectors pursue on any vintage Charizard, and comparatively rare on a 2001 Japanese card. Sealed in its holder, it documents both the survival of the piece and the period it belongs to.