Gwynn
Quick take
- Special Illustration Rare Supporter, card 119/084, a full-art character card rather than a Pokemon
- Finished as the second most valuable card in Japan's Abyss Eye, behind only Mega Darkrai
- Unusual result for a Supporter SIR, which normally trail Pokemon SIRs in demand
- Also printed as a standard Ultra Rare at 109; the 119 SIR is the chase version
Collector's readWhat it means for your master set
Set landscapeWhere this card sits in Pitch Black
VariantsCard variants
Holofoil 119/84 · $25.92 — the only variant this card was printed in (no reverse holo or special pattern), so a master set needs just this one copy.
The storyA Supporter SIR that outperformed the Pokemon around it
Pitch Black (ME05) landed July 17, 2026 as the fifth Mega Evolution era set and the English print of Japan's Abyss Eye. Most of the attention, fairly, goes to the Mega Darkrai ex Special Illustration Rare at 116. But the card sitting just behind it is not a Pokemon at all. It is Gwynn, a Supporter, printed as a full-art SIR at 119/084.
“Special Illustration Rare Supporter, card 119/084, a full-art character card rather than a Pokemon”
In Japan the Gwynn Special Art Rare finished as the second most valuable card in Abyss Eye, ahead of the set's other Pokemon SIRs and behind only Mega Darkrai. That is not how these things usually go. Special Illustration Rare Supporters tend to sell for less than their Pokemon counterparts, especially outside Japan, because the character-art audience is smaller than the Pokemon-collector audience. Gwynn bucked that, and the Japanese market is the best read we have on where the English card may land.
Gwynn also appears in the set as a standard Ultra Rare at 109. The 119 SIR is the full-art, chase version of the same character, and it is the print collectors mean when they talk about a Gwynn to own.
By the numbersMarket analysis
Two weeks after launch the SIR trades around $41, and the presale question — would English collectors follow Japan's roughly $165 valuation of a Supporter, or would the usual Western discount reassert itself — got a clear answer: the discount won. Gwynn sits fifth among the six SIRs, ahead of only Gladion's Final Battle ($29), at about a quarter of its Japanese comp. That is the widest Japan-versus-English gap on any card in the set.
Flat is the story: roughly $40 in launch week, a brief tick to $43 in late July, back to $41 now. There was no correction because there was never a premium — the English print opened at a level the Japanese market would consider a floor and has not moved. Japan's 17 percent post-launch fade simply never applied here.
The speculative question resolved fast: the usual Supporter discount reasserted itself outside Japan, and Gwynn trades at about a quarter of its Japanese comp. That turns the bull case into a convergence bet — two mature markets rarely disagree this much on one card, and if English collectors ever move toward the Japanese read, the upside from $41 is real. The Hide 'n' Sneak playability keeps a demand floor under it either way. Treat it as a cheap, interesting hold rather than a proven one.
At $41 raw the grading fee eats most of the card's value, so submissions only make sense on genuine gem candidates — a 9 is money lost at this level. Centering is the usual full-art risk, so only send copies that look strong on both axes, and wait for the English graded market to settle before batching.
TCGPlayer's count of just over 4,000 Pitch Black packs puts any Special Illustration Rare at 1 in 80 packs — a measured ME05 number now, not an era estimate. That figure covers any of the six SIRs; pulling the Gwynn SIR specifically works out to roughly 1 in 480 packs. The sane route to this exact card is buying the single.
Within Pitch Black the SIR slot sits above every Illustration and Ultra Rare and below only the gold Mega Hyper Rare Darkrai. Among the set's SIRs, Gwynn sits fifth of six by English price at about $41 — the inverse of its Japanese result, where it finished second in the whole set. That gap between the two markets is the widest on any Pitch Black card, and it is the thing to watch.
ArtworkWhy the art matters
The illustrator credited on the English 119 print is not confirmed at the time of writing, so we are not going to attach a name to it. Supporter Special Illustration Rares are typically full-scene character pieces, and the credited artist will be printed on the card face once English copies are in hand.
Card 119 is the Special Illustration Rare print of the Gwynn Supporter, a full-art character illustration filling the frame rather than the small character portrait of a standard Supporter. We are keeping this general on purpose, since a printed full-art rewards being seen directly rather than described from memory.
Special Illustration Rare Supporter (Trainer) card with a textured holo finish and art running edge to edge, card number 119/084 in the ME05 set numbering. The same character is also printed as an Ultra Rare at 109.
Supporter full arts are chased for character art and scarcity rather than for a Pokemon on the front, and that narrower appeal usually means a lower price. Gwynn is the exception that proves the rule: the SIR frame gives the character a full-scene treatment, and Japanese collectors valued it enough to make it the set's number two card. That combination, a genuinely wanted Supporter SIR, is rare enough to be the card's whole story.
BackgroundAbout Gwynn
Gwynn is a character rather than a Pokemon, so there is no species history to trace here. On the card she is a Supporter, the Trainer subtype you play one of per turn, and the 119 print elevates her from the ordinary Supporter slot to a full-art collectible. Character Supporters occupy an odd space in the market: they are functional deck cards first and character art second, which is exactly why a Supporter climbing to a set's number two price is worth flagging.
- ›Character appeal, which drives full-art Supporter demand the way Pokemon appeal drives Pokemon SIRs
- ›Scarcity as a Special Illustration Rare within Pitch Black
- ›Playability in the Hide 'n' Sneak archetype, which keeps real demand under the card
- ›A standout Japanese result that gave the character unusual attention for a Supporter
- ›Standard Ultra Rare print of the same character at 109 in the same set
- ›Full-art Special Illustration Rare print at 119, the chase version
As a Supporter, Gwynn's value on the table is its effect rather than an attack. It sees play in the Hide 'n' Sneak archetype, an anti-Dragapult deck built around Sinistcha, Spiritomb and Banette with Dhelmise as the attacker, where it helps fill the discard pile to power up those attackers. That role gives the playable copies a demand floor most art-only SIRs lack, even if it is a support piece rather than a format-defining card.
Own it wellCollector guide
Special Illustration Rares show edge whitening and surface scratches easily because the art runs to the border and the holo layer catches light. Inspect corners and the holo surface under good lighting, watch for the faint print lines common to modern full-art stock, and check for bowing — curled cards are Pitch Black's most-reported quality issue.
Only on real gem candidates — at $41 raw the fee is most of the card's value, so the math is far less forgiving than on the Darkrai SIR. Centering is the make-or-break factor on full-art SIRs, so only send copies that look strong on both axes, and wait for the English graded market to stabilize before batching. Read the grading guide →
Penny sleeve plus a top loader or a semi-rigid holder, kept out of direct sunlight to protect the holo, and stored flat since full-art cards are prone to bowing. If you are holding for grading, handle by the edges only from the moment it leaves the pack. See the storage guide →
Buy the single rather than chasing it in sealed product — this exact SIR runs about 1 in 480 packs against a $41 price tag. A flat two-week trend means no timing pressure in either direction, and the Japanese comp of about $165 is no longer a useful reality check for English pricing; the two markets have simply disagreed. Confirm you are buying the 119 SIR and not the cheaper 109 Ultra Rare. See the singles buying guide →
Confirm the 119/084 numbering, the correct ME05 set marks, sharp text and holo pattern, and consistent full-art registration. Buy from reputable sellers with clear photos of front, back, and corners, and be cautious with listings priced well below the Japanese comp while the English market is still thin.
Protect your card
High Chase Score — protect and consider grading. · Amazon affiliate links · Storage guideWord on the streetCommunity sentiment
Sentiment on Pitch Black overall is muted, with collectors tired of a third small single-headliner set in a row. Against that backdrop Gwynn is a quiet bright spot rather than a hype card: the surprise is how well the Supporter held up in Japan, which has kept it in the conversation even as the broader set draws a lukewarm response.
Most of the set's chatter is about Mega Darkrai and about fatigue with the run of small sets. Where Gwynn comes up, it is usually as the it-did-what note, a Supporter finishing as the set's number two card in Japan, which is the kind of detail collectors flag because it goes against the usual pattern.
Good to knowFrequently asked questions
Keep collectingRelated cards
Plan your Mega Evolution Pitch Black master set
Track every card, see what you're missing, and lay out your binder page by page.
