Hello, ladies, gentlemen, and un-binary. Welcome to the first edition of OWC with your pal, I, Kaiser Sensei. What is OWC? It's not a backyard wrestling federation or the band that peformed How Bizarre. (That was OMC.) OWC stands for Obsessions With Cardboard. This is the place where I talk about card games. In this edition, I'll be typing about something that I had recently bought. Yup, I've done the crazy and spent $200 on a mystery box full of Pokémon TCG products. What's inside? Click on "Read More" to read the full article and find out.
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| Don't worry! Chaotic Factory didn't pack it like this. |
I've gotten back into collecting Pokémon cards only a few months ago, back before the Team-Up series hit Australian shelves. Now, I've gotten so deep back into that rabbit hole, I've bought this $200 Mystery Box from a place called Chaotic Factory. The description of the item was plain and simple. You pay $200 for a box full random Pokémon card products. You are guaranteed at least $200 worth of products but there's a chance that you could get more.
Now, the way I'm going to grade the value in this box is by putting the RRP (Recommended Retail Price) of the items and also the price that it goes for on the site. I also won't be highlighting all of the card pulls, just the best ones AKA all of the rare and shiny, shiny holo cards. So, lets kick this article off and see what this bad boy has inside.
Product #1: Lost Thunder Booster Pack + Card Folder.
First item isn't very big but it is cool and useful. It's a single booster pack from the Lost Thunder series plus it comes with a mini-card folder to store your cards in. I've opened up a few packs of Lost Thunder before and it's a set that has some pretty decent cards. So, hopefully this pack doesn't disappoint. I also like the design of the mini-card folder, it's simple but effective.
Well, what do you know. I pulled a really good card right off the bat. Yup, I pulled out a Zeraora GX and just take a look at that artwork. The reverse holo I pulled wasn't anything special though, just a Yamask. The artwork and move set on it is okay but there are better cards in this set to pull as a reverse holo.
The RRP on this thing is $10, but Chaotic Factory had them listed for $8. Reason why I say "had" is because they are out of stock as of the time of me posting this article. Still, not a bad little product to be thrown into the box.
Product #2: Lost Thunder 3-Pack ft. Alolan Exeggutor and Ho-Oh Coin.
Things are spicing up quickly with this second item. This blister pack contains not one, not two, not four, but three Lost Thunder booster packs. Also included is a Ho-Oh coin and a neat alternative artwork edition of Alolan Exeggutor. I know, alternative artwork edition sounds a little confusing, so let me quickly explain what they are. There are some cards in sets that contain cards with different artworks but they also have the same move sets. So, you have the regular edition that'll be marked as 1/100 for example, then you have alternate artwork editions marked as 1a/100. Yeah, I don't know why they just don't mark the alternative cards as promos instead.
The first Lost Thunder pack provided me with a rare Azumaril and a reverse holo of Kahili. I like the artwork found on the Azumaril card. The art on the Kahili card is okay but she does have a decent effect.
HELLO! Pulled a rare Ho-Oh card out of the second pack and I'm happy with that. The reverse holo is a Gogoat and it has some really nice artwork. That Solar Beam attack is powerful but dang does it look annoying to charge up.
Nothing all that impressive from the third and final pack. I pulled a rare Tangrowth and a reverse holo of Treecko. They do have some very nice art on them though and that Treecko will look extra nice being on display.
The RRP of this blister pack is $20 but Chaotic Factory are selling it for $18. Let's be honest, you'll only be buying these sets for the special card that comes in these things. Other than that, it's just cheaper to buy three packs by themselves.
Product #3: Pokeball Tin.
Now here's a cool little item that will look awesome on any ones shelf. It's a tin Pokeball and they do come in different designs but I got the regular one. What's also awesome is what's inside. You get three booster packs and a Alolan Ninetails coin. The three packs I got in the ball were Sun and Moon, Guardians Rising, and Steam Siege. Two really good packs and a Steam Siege. Steam Siege isn't a terrible set but you get them in a lot of modern Pokémon special packs.
OOOOOOOO! Did I end up being grateful for having a Steam Siege pack thrown in. I got a rare holo of the legendary Yveltal. You know, the Pokémon that takes out the entire universe when it dies! Yup, that rage quitting Pocket Monster. Sadly, the shine is hard to capture on camera. The other card is also pretty cool, it's a reverse holo of Shieldon from Big Bang Theory. Just look at that shine.
The Guardians Rising pack could've been a bit better though. All I pulled were a rare Oricorio and a rare reverse holo of Garbodor.
The Sun and Moon pulls also could've been better. Got a rare Hariyama and a rare reverse holo of Ribombee. At least the Ribombee looks good as a display card.
Overall, the best thing about this pack is the Pokeball itself. It looks very awesome sitting on my shelf and it is also good for holding things like your Pokémon coins or money. I want to get the rest of them now.
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| The coins! |
The RRP on this is surprisingly expensive with a heafty price of $25. Chaotic Factory are selling it for $19.95. Although, I'd personally wait until it's $10 before you get yourself one.
Product #4: Pikachu & Eevee Pokeball Collection
OOOOOOOOOOOO! Something big was placed in the box! This is the Pikachu & Eevee Pokeball Collection. I've bought one of these things before during a shop at Zing. I was not disappointed with it before and I am very glad to have a second one of these in my collection. Included in this set are two exclusive cards, a figurine of Eevee and Pikachu, and a giant plastic pokeball containing five booster packs.
The two exclusive cards included are an alternate artwork edition of Eevee and a promo of Pikachu. That Eevee card is very cute and is also OP AF with its Energy Evolution ability. That Pikachu card is also very cute but seeing Pikachu's neck and chin is a little disturbing. Looks like Pikachu has a weird snake head. The little figurine is also fun to have on display.
The big plastic pokeball is also neat but not as great as the tin one but at least you can store your cards in it. The booster packs that came in my ball were, 2x Lost Thunder, Celestial Storm, Burning Shadows, and a... Steam Siege.
First pack contained a very cool looking rare Armaldo. The reverse holo though is... uh... well... Probopass. Yup.
OOOOOOOO! Another GX pull! This time it's Virizion and personally, not my favorite GX card but it's still a very good looking card. Also pulled a reverse holo of a very cute knitted version of Phanpy.
Wow! A Prism Star edition of Celebi. Love the artwork on this one. That black boarder really gives the artwork that extra pop. That rare Victini looks a little derpy but it has its charm. I do like how it is falling from the sky like Icarus was when he flew too close to the sun.
Nothing much to say about these pulls. It's a reverse holo of Solrock chillin' under the sun and a rare Banette chillin' on a bed.
OOOOOOOOOOOO! A third GX pull! I like the artwork on this Gardevoir GX but that's about it. The reverse holo Eelektrik looks a tad bit weird but I do enjoy the details in the background.
The RRP on this set is $60 but it is sold on Chaotic Factory for $54.99. Either price, this is a set that's worth getting.
Product #5: Sun and Moon Booster Box
The final item in the mystery box was by far the biggest surprise. I got a whole booster box of the Sun and Moon series. A WHOLE BOOSTER BOX! That's 36 packs of Pokémon card fun and it'll be even more fun opening them all. LET'S DO THIS! *Rubs hands*
Not the best start to the booster box. Got a rare Golduck doing a galick gun attack and a very cute reverse holo of a Caterpie.
WHOA! This booster box escalated quickly. It's a GX version of Incineroar, baby! Just take a look at that ultra powerful GX attack. The artwork is pretty cool as well. Also, got a reverse holo Spearow, very cute birdie.
Another very cute reverse holo bird. This time it's Wingull. The rare Decidueye is also a very cool looking card.
HAH! Pulled a reverse holo Datrix. I wasn't too enthusiastic about the rare Bewear though. BLECH!
Like whoa man, a-huh, a-huh, a-huh. It's a holo of a Shiinotic, heh, heh, heh. Don't look into its eyes for too long though, it'll steal your soul. Also got another Hariyama but this time it's a reverse holo.
SQUUEEE! It's a Rotom! Sadly, not the Rotom that I wanted but it's still awesome pulling a reverse holo Rotom Dex. Also, what the heck is up with that rare Bruxish card? Okay, what the heck is up with Bruxish in general and why is it a Pokémon?
The rare Cosmoem card has some neat art but that effect is weird for a card of this rarity. I'm just going to assume that it evolves into something and that something is a GX version of that Pokémon. It'd make sense balancing wise even though you can just use a better Cosmoem from another set. The reverse holo Surskit is also another adorable card to add to my collection.
OOOOOOOOO! This is perhaps the best pull from the booster box, card value wise. Pulled a full art Lillie and these full arts are just great collectors items. I'm too afraid to use these full arts in proper battles though. Also got a reverse holo of the OP AF Eevee card. Yes, I pulled the alternate artwork edition of this card from the Pikachu & Eevee Pokeball Collection earlier on.
Nothing spectacular from this pack but the reverse holo Dratini is a good display card. The rare Masquerain is also okay.
The reverse holo Oranguru is a very nice pull due to its attack and ability. I wasn't really feeling the rare Stoutland though.
Whoa! That rare Alolan Muk is one funky looking card. Also pulled a reverse holo of a Boldore. Nothing much more to say here.
WOO! Pulled a rare Incineroar! That's not a bad card to have in your collection. The reverse holo Trumbeak is no way near as good of a card as that rare Incineroar but it does have some nice art.
Rare Cloyster! Nothing much needs to be said here. The reverse holo is a Switch card and it's pretty neat.
TAUROS GX! Honestly, not that great of attacks but it has a very awesome picture. Just love how Tauros is charging out of the picture like that. If you don't mind those big freaky bug eyes then this reverse holo Paras Hilton is a cute card to have.
Oh, look, another rare of a classic Pokémon. This rare butterfree has a pretty good picture and an okay effect. Seems like a card that'll take too long to charge up though, having to start it off as a Caterpie and such. The other card is a reverse holo Makuhita.
MEOW! A reverse holo of a Torracat and just like Rowlette, I now have a complete evolutionary set of this Sun and Moon fire starter. Yeah, I pulled quite a few Litten as well. That rare Palossand just looks plain freaky though. It's Pokémon like that, that reminds me why I don't like going to the beach.
KANGA-KANGA-SKHAN! Everybody loves a Kangaskhan, especially if it's a rare reverse holo. Speaking of holos, the other card is a holo of a Crobat.
UGH! I pulled so many Cutiefly from this booster box that it wasn't funny! It is nice getting it in reverse holo though. OOOO! Another rare of a Sun and Moon starter Pokémon. This time it's the water one, Primarina.
WHOA! WE'RE HALF WAY THERE! WHOOOOAAAHHHH! A PICKLE AND A PARE!
UGH! It's another rare Bewear! On the bright side, I did pull a reverse holo of a Pokémon Catcher.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! I PULLED AN UMBREON GX! YEEEESSS! I also pulled a reverse holo of a creepy old man named Hypno.
Speaking of creepy. Here's a rare Parasect that looks like it is doing a satanic ritual. The other card is far from creepy, it's a reverse holo of a Litten. Pity that I never pulled a reverse holo of that rare Incineroar. (SPOILER!)
Okay. Pulled another rare Hariyama card. Also pulled a reverse holo of a Ilima trainer card. I like the effect on this one.
Another birdie! It's a reverse holo of a Pelipper. Not the best card you can get but still, BIRDIE! The other card is a foil of Vikavolt. I don't have anything special to say about Vikavolt.
Pulled a double of a rare Decidueye. The other card is a very derpy and very cute looking reverse holo Alolan Persian. I don't care what people say about Alolan Persian, it's a cute Pokémon.
During my first run of collecting Pokémon cards back in 1999, I couldn't pull this card. (That collecting run lasted until 2002, when I moved to Dragonball Z TCG.) When I got back into them in 2004, I couldn't pull this card. (That second run lasted until the end of that year. I moved to Yu-Gi-Oh.) 20 years after opening my first pack, I finally get this card. Ohhh yeeahh! It's a Double Colorless Energy card and in reverse holo to boot. The other card is also a nice pull, it's a holo of Tsareena.
Another rare Cosmoem. I do like the reverse holo I got from this pack, it's a Roggenrolla. I like how it looks like a deformed Bob-Omb.
Sigh! Another rare Stoutland. The other card is a reverse holo Crabominable. I do find it a bit of a stretch to make a Pokémon that's part crab and part abominable snowman, but I dig it.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-
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-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! IT'S A ESPEON GX! I've pulled the two best eeveeloution Pokémon in one booster box. It completely overshadows the reverse holo Corsola that I pulled from the same pack.
Another rare Incineroar and I liked that I pulled another one of these. Call me weird but I find this reverse holo Alolan Grimer to be very adorable. It looks like some weird toxic waste baby looking for cuddles from its daddy.
Sweet! A reverse holo of a Rowlet and a rare Lanturn. Both with very cute artwork.
Huh. I did not expect to see Sharpedo as a holo in this set, but I dig it. The reverse holo Hau card has a good effect but doesn't look as great as a reverse holo.
Another rare Vegeta Golduck. Another reverse holo trainer card with a great effect but doesn't look as good as a reverse holo.
Another rare Butterfree. Another reverse holo trainer card but this time it does look great as a reverse holo.
Here's a very odd but awesome pull. Not only do I pull a reverse holo of a Primarina but I also pull a GX version. Nice!
Another Crabominable but this time it's just a regular rare. The reverse holo pull is awesome though, it's an Arcanine and just look at it run in the wind all proud and stuff. That Firestorm attack is really powerful but oh boy does it come with a hefty price.
It's the last pack in the box and AAAAHHHHHHHH! IT'S ANOTHER BLEEPING BRUXISH! That expression found on that reverse holo Shellder sums up my reaction to that rare Bruxish card. It also sums up how I feel opening up a full booster box, with that feeling being hot and tired with my tongue hanging out.
Got quite a few awesome pulls from this booster box and really enjoyed it. The RRP on this thing is a very expensive $190. Chaotic Factory had it for the much better price of $120. It is out of stock as of the time of this article being posted.
So, lets total this whole thing up and see how much I saved by going the Mystery Box option.
Lost Thunder Booster Pack + Card Folder - $10 (RRP)/ $8 (CF Price)
Lost Thinder 3-Pack ft. Alolan Exeggutor Card and Ho-Oh Coin - $20 (RRP)/ $18 (CF Price)
Pokeball Tin - $25 (RRP)/$19.95 (CF Price)
Pikachu & Eevee Pokeball Collection - $60 (RRP)/ $54.99 (CF Price)
Sun & Moon Booster Box - $190 (RRP)/ $120 (CF Price)
Total: $305 (RRP)/ $220.94 (CF Price)
Savings: $105 (RRP)/ $20.94 (CF Price)
Overall, you save quite a lot RRP wise when you buy this bundle but not so much if you are going by their sale prices. Either way, this mystery package does live up to its name. Do I recommend buying one of these? Well, $200 is a lot of money to spend on Pokémon cards, but if you are a hardcore collector and like a bit of fun, this is for you.
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