This idea sat in drafts for a bit, but I think it’s time to take a closer look at this set and its potential as a hold for the future. Let’s rip into this one!

Phantasmal Flames was hotly anticipated with what some called one of the best Charizard illustration artworks. But how does the set compare, and how will it stand the test of time?

Let's go through a quick exercise reviewing the Master Set prices, the sealed product, and the chase cards to determine whether you should be buying into Phantasmal Flames as often as possible or not.

Phantasmal Flames is not a large set, consisting of 215 total cards with 36 secret rare cards. This usually correlates to higher chances of a good pull when opening packs, making rare cards slightly easier to get, bolstering the available stock on the secondary market.

But despite how rare the gold Mega Charizard X card is, the king of the set is the SIR.

Aside from those two cards, the set falls off significantly, with those two top chase cards making up 75% of the entire master set's value. This set is carried entirely by its chase cards, and it's not even close. When you can master the set for close to $200 but have to spend over $800 for the last two cards, I mean, what defines "carry" better than that?

Obsidian Flames is brought up when finding an analogous set to compare Phantasmal Flames to. And although Obsidian Flames has had more time to settle into its value, the chase cards do not command nearly as high a premium compared to the rest of the Obsidian Flames cards:

We'll see where the two Mega Charizard X cards eventually land in terms of price. Considering the set came out while the market was still super hot for Pokemon cards, Phantasmal Flames may take a while to cool off and settle in price. But this disparity in price between the top chase cards and the rest of the set definitely bodes well for the future value of the set.

There's no doubt in my mind that the sealed product could keep falling in price. Booster bundles are already close to retail, and we're still waiting on a huge Pokemon Center ETB restock after they allegedly cancelled a massive amount of bot orders. So it's only a matter of time before we get reprints on booster boxes, and a flood of PC ETBs that will bolster the continuous trickle of booster bundles to big-box retail, bringing these prices down to retail or below.

I love PC ETBs, and although the promos have fallen short of my expectations, I will always buy these exclusive products to hold onto as part of my sealed collection. But if we ever get booster boxes close to MSRP or below, I will shift all my focus and attention toward those. There's no doubt that people are not as bullish on this set because Pokemon is releasing product and flooding the market with new sets so quickly. It's easy to glaze over Phantasmal Flames with so much to look forward to and the desperation to pick up Prismatic Evolutions and Destined Rivals. But I could see a world in the near future where Phantasmal Flames becomes a throw-in and somewhat forgotten set that swells in hype again.

Think about Paldea Evolved. A similarly constructed set with a featured chase card in the Magikarp (albeit an IR, not an SIR) and a solid range of collectible cards, nestled early in the Scarlet and Violet era. As hyped as the chase card is, the products mostly sat until it was clear that they weren't going to be reprinted as heavily as before. And despite all the rumors that the market was going to be flooded with ETBs and booster boxes again, it never happened.

Phantasmal Flames could follow a similar trend here, where the prices dip for a period of time before they swell to 2x, 3x, or even 4x territory. Of course, it's a different market now, and there's no telling what the future holds for Pokemon TCG collecting, but considering Phantasmal Flames is a Charizard-centric set and the chase card is a fan favorite, I'd feel pretty confident that it could outpace Paldea Evolved sealed product as an investment hold.

The Mega Charizard X ex Special Illustration Rare

Sure, it's technically harder to pull the gold version of this card. But with brushstroke art and each of the three previous evolutions nestled into the corner of the card, it's as awe-inspiring as it gets.

If you look at the current card prices, they've held pretty steady over the last month or so, with the TCGPlayer price holding at around $582 and the PSA 10 price at just under $2K. As more product releases, I would think the price will continue to dip on this card, with the card realistically hitting close to the $300 mark in a raw copy.

The card comp that comes to mind here is the Umbreon ex Special Illustration Rare from Prismatic Evolution. Similar hype and excitement, with the card shooting to the moon right out of the gate. The Umbreon ex lost about 40% in value over the last year, settling into that $900-$1,000 mark over the last six months. The climb for raw prices will be steady, but it's the PSA 10 price that I'm more focused on.

The market hasn't quite decided yet whether this Umbreon card should be treated similarly to the VMAX rendition from Evolving Skies or not. Both Umbreons are era-defining cards and will, without a doubt, continue their rise in notoriety, even if the Pokemon hobby craters and people stop buying into the market as heavily as they do now.

It's too early to tell whether the Mega Charizard X ex SIR will define the Mega Evolution era. It would honestly be a shame if this Mega Charizard X card was the best they could produce, and I'm sure The Pokemon Company has another ace up their sleeve coming later in this era. We can only hope for further innovation and a continued commitment to delivering not just the best they can produce for their fans, but the best-in-class designs and collectible gimmicks to keep our wallets as empty as possible.

Phantasmal Flames has a lot of upward trajectory potential. It's still early, and we have no clue what the rest of Mega Evolution holds for us. Plus, considering we're getting a new generation of Pokemon mainline games this year for the 30th anniversary, you can almost guarantee that the Mega Evolution block is going to be a short run.

I'm planning on grabbing as much sealed product of Phantasmal Flames as I can get my hands on, with the hopes that the Mega Charizard X ex card drops low enough in raw form so I can stash at least one copy for the binder.

Keep your eye out for restocks of booster boxes, PC ETBs, and booster bundles, and let scalpers and kids get their hands on the regular ETBs and sleeved boosters. I'm ripping a booster bundle or two any chance I get just to get a hit of a rip again, but other than that, we're keeping it all sealed.

Catch deals. Pull grails.