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_____'s Pikachu LV.17
_____のピカチュウ _____'s Pikachu
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| For more information on this Pokémon's species, see Pikachu.
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_____'s Pikachu (Japanese: _____のピカチュウ _____'s Pikachu) is a Lightning-type Basic Pokémon card. It was first released as one of the Wizards Black Star Promos.
Card text
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Birthday Surprise
おたんじょうび
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30+
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| If it's not your birthday, this attack does 30 damage. If it is your birthday, flip a coin. If heads, this attack does 30 damage plus 50 more damage; if tails, this attack does 30 damage.
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Pokédex data
Release information
This card was first released in Japan as an Unnumbered Promotional card with artwork by Kagemaru Himeno. It was included in copies of the All Card Calendar, released on November 5, 1998 in celebration of the second anniversary of the Trading Card Game. It was first available in English as a non holofoil Wizards Black Star Promo included in the Pikachu World Collection, available to purchase exclusively at Pokémon Park 2000 held at Sydney University, Sydney, Australia from September 12 to October 4, 2000. This print features a gold foil Pikachu tail stamp opposite the Black Star Promo symbol.
The English print was first available in North America in early 2001 through a Pokémon League "Create-a-Card" campaign.[1] People were invited to fill in a blank TCG card template with an accompanying illustration, which could then be mailed to Wizards of the Coast. Fully completed entrants would then receive the card through the mail. The campaign ran from January to March 2001. This print features a standard holofoil.
It was reprinted as another Japanese Unnumbered Promotional card with different artwork by the same artist and was included with the sixth volume of the manga series, How I Became a Pokémon Card released on September 23, 2001.
The original print was rereleased in the Celebrations expansion's Classic Collection for the Pokémon 25th Anniversary. This print features the 25th Anniversary logo in the bottom right corner of the artwork and lacks Wizards of the Coast from the copyright information. In Japan, it was reprinted as part of the Promo Card Pack 25th Anniversary Edition with a red and gold "25th" logo in the bottom right corner of the artwork. Both prints are Confetti Holofoil and have etching similar to Full Art cards.
Gallery
Trivia
- This card is popularly known as Happy Birthday, Pikachu in reference to the illustration.
- At the height of the Pokémon phenomenon, the original Japanese version was one of the most sought after cards in the world, after a rumor spread by Japanese and American dealers that it had a very limited print run and that within weeks of its initial release, it had sold out. The craze that followed saw the card sell for as much as $500 overseas. The initial demand declined after the rumor was proven false.
- The card was immediately banned by Wizards upon its release, due to the fact that any player could claim it was their birthday in order to gain the potential 50 extra damage on the card's attack. This ban covered both the Unlimited format and the Modified format, one of only two cards to fall under this distinction (Ancient Mew is the other). Both Japanese prints have the clause "(This card cannot be used at official tournaments)" to the right of the illustrator name.
- The Japanese reprint is commonly known as Natta Wake Birthday Pikachu in reference to the publication in which it was distributed.
Origin
References
