Meowth ex
Quick take
- Second-priciest card in Perfect Order behind Mega Zygarde ex chase
- First premium SIR treatment for one of the franchise's most-recognised anime characters
- Day-one English market around $173 with steady upward pressure since release
- Highest GSC traffic of any unwritten /cards/ page on Cardrake (~1,700 impressions / month)
Collector's readWhat it means for your master set
Set landscapeWhere this card sits in Perfect Order
VariantsCard variants
Holofoil 121/88 · $88.46 — the only variant this card was printed in (no reverse holo or special pattern), so a master set needs just this one copy.
The storyThe Anime's Most Famous Pokemon Finally Gets a Premium SIR
Meowth has been the third member of Team Rocket since the Pokemon anime debuted in 1997. Across three decades and 1,200+ episodes, Jessie's Wobbuffet and James's Inkay come and go, but Meowth stays. The talking, scheming, vaguely loveable Normal-type cat who can't quite catch Pikachu. That cultural baggage is unlike any other Pokemon. Charizard has the legendary status. Pikachu has the franchise mascot weight. Meowth has 30 years of memorable anime moments.
“Second-priciest card in Perfect Order behind Mega Zygarde ex chase”
Meowth ex SIR in Perfect Order is the first time the TCG has given Meowth the full chase-card treatment. Earlier Meowth cards exist, including the famous Original Series Promo from 1999, but none with the modern SIR illustration slot at the top of a flagship set. The Mega Evolution era is the right moment. Perfect Order's set hierarchy has Mega Zygarde at the top with all other SIRs dramatically more affordable, which leaves the second-place SIR slot open for a beloved non-legendary like Meowth.
The illustration leans into the mischief, the cat caught mid-pose with the gold charm on its forehead in full focus. Not a battle scene. Closer to a character portrait. That choice fits Meowth's anime-character status more than any battle pose would.
By the numbersMarket analysis
TCGPlayer market around $173 raw at last sync. Confirms the day-one positioning that Perfect Order pre-release coverage flagged. Sits firmly below Mega Zygarde ex SIR (~$300+) and MHR (~$187), but well above every other SIR in the set. Roughly a 5x premium over the next-priciest non-Mega-Zygarde SIR.
Has held steady through release week and the first month of secondary trading. Meowth's permanent collector demand, driven by anime nostalgia rather than set rotation, gives the card a structural floor that purely speculative chase cards lack. Expect slow appreciation over 6-12 months as more collectors finish the set and add this card last.
Strong fundamentals. Meowth's character durability is anime-level (decades, not set cycles). The card is unlikely to be eclipsed by a Mega Meowth in a future set, Meowth doesn't have a Mega form, and the Special Illustration Rare slot for Meowth specifically is closed within Perfect Order's print run. PSA 10 graded copies are the cleanest long hold. The population is growing but the card hasn't been treated as a primary grading target yet relative to Mega Zygarde.
PSA 10 copies expected at 1.6-2.2x raw value once population stabilises. The dark surround palette exposes centering drift. The gold charm detail must remain pristine for a 10 grade. Submit only copies with 55/45 or better centering on both axes.
Roughly 1 in 72 packs across all 6 SIRs in Perfect Order, based on community pull rate data from the set. Per specific card, roughly 1 in 432 packs. Standard SIR rate for the Mega Evolution era.
One of 6 SIRs in Perfect Order. The pricing hierarchy: Mega Zygarde ex SIR (#124, ~$300+) at the top, then Meowth ex SIR at #121 (~$173), then the remaining 4 SIRs dramatically lower in the $20-50 range. Meowth's position as the clear #2 SIR is unusual, most ME-era sets have a single dominant chase with the rest clustered tightly.
ArtworkWhy the art matters
Artist information pending verification from card database updates.
Meowth in a character-portrait pose against a stylised urban-night background. The gold charm on the forehead catches the light prominently, eyes wide, tail flicking. Background suggests city alleyways through silhouette and warm colour gradients without explicit rendering, a nod to Meowth's Team Rocket-adjacent street-cat origins.
Special Illustration Rare with full-bleed textured holofoil. The dark navy and gold palette creates strong contrast. The texture follows Meowth's fur contours and the charm's edge, with the holofoil pattern most visible across the charm itself.
Meowth's design has always relied on the charm, without it, the cat reads as generic. The SIR illustration treats the charm as the focal point and lets everything else compose around it. Smart choice for a card that needs to communicate 'Meowth' instantly to anime fans, TCG players, and casual buyers alike.
BackgroundAbout Meowth ex
Meowth debuted in Pokemon Red and Green (1996) as one of the original 151. National Pokedex #052. Normal-type. Signature ability Pickup. Evolves to Persian via leveling. Got Alolan and Galarian regional forms in Generations VII and VIII. But the in-game Meowth was never the famous Meowth, that title belongs to Team Rocket's Meowth from the anime, who debuted in episode 2 of the original 1997 series and has appeared in 1,000+ subsequent episodes. The talking Meowth taught itself to speak human language out of love for a Meowth named Meowzie (Episode 70, 'Go West Young Meowth') and joined Team Rocket as a quasi-mascot.
- ›Team Rocket's Meowth, single most-recognised non-mascot Pokemon character
- ›Talking Pokemon anomaly, the only Meowth canonically able to speak human language
- ›Three decades of anime presence across every series and most spinoffs
- ›Cultural memes, 'Meowth, that's right!' has become a recognised catchphrase
- ›Bridges casual anime fans with deep TCG collectors via shared character recognition
- ›Original 151 in Pokemon Red/Green (1996)
- ›Team Rocket's talking Meowth in the Pokemon anime since 1997 (still ongoing)
- ›Pokemon: The First Movie (1998) as part of Team Rocket's crew
- ›Detective Pikachu (2019), multiple Meowths feature, including the talking variety
- ›Pokemon Masters EX with multiple sync pair appearances
Meowth has minimal competitive presence, the stats don't support tournament play. The TCG card has playable utility but collectors universally keep SIR copies protected. Meowth's cultural weight is character-driven, not battle-driven.
Own it wellCollector guide
The dark navy background highlights centering drift on the long axis. The gold charm detail must remain pristine, surface marks on the charm grade harshly. The textured SIR finish hides minor border wear but exposes scratches across the foiled surface.
Grade clean copies. PSA 10 premium runs 1.6-2.2x raw, which works to ~$280-380 on a $173 raw. Verify centering at 55/45 or better. Submit alongside Mega Zygarde ex SIR if building the Perfect Order chase pair graded. Read the grading guide →
Sleeve on pull in a perfect fit. Top loader or magnetic case for raw. Graded slabs are the cleanest long hold. Climate-controlled storage matters at this price tier, humidity cycling can affect textured holofoil over 2-3+ years. See the storage guide →
TCGPlayer Direct is the cleanest English channel. eBay works for both raw and graded copies, verify centering photos before bidding. The card is not gambleable via sealed product at 1-in-432 effective pull rates. Buy as a single, period. If pairing with Mega Zygarde ex, consider buying them in the same window, the pair tends to move together. See the singles buying guide →
Protect your card
High Chase Score — protect and consider grading. · Amazon affiliate links · Storage guideWord on the streetCommunity sentiment
Strongly positive. Meowth ex SIR landed as the secondary chase Perfect Order needed, collectors who weren't paying Mega Zygarde money still had a clear target. The illustration's character-portrait approach gets specific praise. Pull-video reactions consistently pause to comment on the gold charm rendering.
- ›Recent TCGPlayer market around $173 raw holofoil
- ›Early PSA 10 graded comps in the $280-340 range as the graded population builds
High. The 30-year anime tie-in gives the card crossover appeal to non-TCG audiences. Reddit's r/PokemonTCG and r/pokemon both pick this card up in 'best non-legendary chase' discussions. Heavy Twitter / YouTube engagement around the card's art.
Good to knowFrequently asked questions
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