Pulsing Aura: The Best and Worst Art in the New Pokémon Pocket Set

In today's article, we have categorized the art based on our opinions, though we recognize this is a game and all artists put in significant effort. Our goal here is purely for curiosity and speculation regarding the artwork.

Riolu, Lucario, Throh, and Sawk

One thing I really enjoy about the art for these Fighting type Pokémon is how they complement each other.

Lucario and Riolu are both focusing their energy in their fists and share the same cartoonish drawing style.

Meanwhile, Throh and Sawk follow the same premise with a consistent art style and similar backgrounds, making it look as though they are actually facing off against one another.

Tepig, Pignite, and Emboar

These three also follow the same art style and share a setting. It feels as if time has passed while the Pokémon trains and evolves, which provides an extremely satisfying sensation.

Furthermore, the fire, light, and shadow effects are excellent, adding more striking characteristics to the artwork.

Vaporeon ex

This Vaporeon art is very pleasant. It is a simple and delicate Pokémon, and its movement reflects that perfectly.

Additionally, the water effect turned out beautifully, matching Vaporeon’s motion and creating a lovely contrast with the purple background.

Blissey

The fact that Blissey's outline is pink rather than black suits her perfectly and aligns with the caregiver aesthetic she always brings.

The mystical setting with magical and nocturnal elements does great justice to this well known and beloved Pokémon, evoking an aesthetic of fairies, magic, and affection. Simply adorable.

Parasol Lady

The art and sense of movement in the Full Art version of Parasol Lady are incredible. The bluish background with white movement effects and sparkles makes the art even more special, providing a sense of wind and rain that perfectly fits the character.

Meltan

I am not sure if there are many die hard Meltan fans out there. Truthfully, it is a Pokémon that never really caught my attention.

However, when you think about it, Meltan is a mix of a nut and liquid metal. This art makes total sense: Meltan is shown organizing other mechanical components like screws and nails.

This is all captured in a very cute art style. Even though it lacks facial expressions, it seems to be working very hard. I loved the composition.

Carkol

This is another Pokémon that does not usually stand out, but the environment the artist placed it in makes a lot of sense. Additionally, it has the texture of an old oil painting or a pencil drawing, which makes the art very pleasing.

If Pokémon were real and Carkol existed, this would likely be the role it would play.

As a side note, in Pokémon Pokopia, if you build train tracks and Carkol is following you when you hop into a cart, Carkol stays on the tracks just like a little cart behind you!

[h]{Tepig}

Tepig might be the favorite starter for only a few people, although its final evolution looks amazing in its shiny form with blue flames.

But Tepig obviously resembles a pig. And what do pigs do? They eat!

That is exactly what this cute art full of pleasant colors brings us: a moment where Tepig is very happy eating some berries. The more realistic style and lighting give the moment a photographic feel, as if someone was capturing the scene. Adorable!

Seviper

With a style that also leans toward realism, this Seviper art features a great play of light and shadow, along with detailed scales on the snake Pokémon. It looks almost like a photograph taken in the middle of a forest.

The point is that finding a snake in the woods would naturally bring about the slightly uneasy and dark feeling that this art carries. This was handled very harmoniously.

Zoroark ex

This art is incredible, full of lines and movement that reminiscent of Japanese art styles. It is worthy of being a special art and is extremely pleasing to the eye.

The background adds even more elements of Oriental art with the movement of clouds and lights.

Mega Lucario ex

The art for Mega Lucario ex itself is fine. What bothered me is that it looks so similar to previous Mega Lucario ex art in the TCG that I thought it was the same one. Since it is the star of the collection, I expected a bit more unique care.

Numel and Hatenna Evolution Lines

What bothered me about these trios was actually the same thing that won me over in the beautiful art section: these do not follow a consistent art pattern.

Specifically, the shift from Numel’s style with thicker black lines to Camerupt’s style which is lineless and almost 3D but with muted earthy colors, and then to Mega Camerupt ex which is a 3D style with very vivid colors and green effects was quite jarring to me.

Similarly, the Hatenna evolution line has many aesthetic differences. Hatenna has a very different style from the other two and focuses heavily on green with somewhat saturated colors that look like the sun has faded them over time. Meanwhile, the others have a palette that better represents the Pokémon with light pinks and blues.

Mega Lucario ex Immersive Rare

I will even leave a link for you to see the short film of the immersive card:

The point here is that the short film for the immersive card is beautiful and full of action. It is incredible, with a painting style full of detail and cross-hatching effects.

However, in the frame where the card remained static, the close-up felt dull and too tight, missing out on many details. They could have chosen a more encompassing part of the art to make it more eye-catching. This was a bit of a disappointment for me.

To be clear: the immersive art is beautiful! The painting techniques are admirable! What disappointed me was simply the frame chosen for the static card.

And those were our choices for the best and worst art. I hope you enjoyed it! Let us know in the comments which one is your favorite and which is your least favorite in the set.

Until next time!