Collect 151 is the only Simplified Chinese series where the chase card is the same Pokémon four times over. Four editions, four Pikachu Art Rares, one illustrator — and one of them costs several times what the others do.
The series is the Chinese release of the 151 set: all 151 Kanto Pokémon, printed in Simplified Chinese, rolled out across four separate editions through 2025. It was the first time the set had been printed in Simplified Chinese at all, and it arrived with something the Japanese and English versions do not have — four commissioned Pikachu Art Rares, one per edition, all drawn by the same artist.
That is what makes the series worth understanding rather than just collecting. If you want one Pikachu from Collect 151, there are four answers to which one, and they are not interchangeable in price. Here is the whole set of them.
What Collect 151 actually is
Collect 151 is a four-part Simplified Chinese series covering the original 151 Kanto Pokémon. The first edition, Collect 151: Journey, was unveiled at Pokémon Shenzhen Masters 2024 and released in mainland China on 17 January 2025. Three more editions followed later in the same year. [1][2]
There is one structural idea running through the whole series, and it is worth knowing before you buy anything from it: the packaging artwork connects across the four releases. The promotional banner reveals its full image gradually as the editions arrive, and the same design carries onto the Slim and Jumbo booster packs — so the four releases are designed to be read as one sequence rather than four unrelated sets. [2]
The four Pikachu Art Rares follow the same logic at card level. They are one commission, not four separate ones: the same Pokémon in four different moods and four different settings, drawn end to end by illustrator Oswaldo KATO. [1][3]
The four Pikachu Art Rares
Each edition’s chase card is a Pikachu Art Rare, and the printed numbers run in sequence across the series. All four sit above 151 in the numerator, which is the secret-rare numbering convention rather than an error — see how to read a set code if the fractions look wrong at first.
| Edition | Printed number | The scene |
|---|---|---|
| Journey | 151C 170/151 AR |
A flying Pikachu, mid-air |
| Hope | 151C 171/151 AR |
Sunlit grassland, Pikachu beside a sleeping Psyduck |
| Surprise | 151C 172/151 AR |
Moonlit forest, Gengar filling the frame behind it |
| Gathering | 151C 173/151 AR |
An open clearing, full of Pikachu |
Read the four descriptions together and the names do most of the work. Journey is movement, Hope is calm, Surprise is the crowded and unsettling one, Gathering is the group scene. KATO drew them in one soft, painterly register, so they read as a set even though each stands on its own. [3]
Why the Art Rares are the chase
The pull rate is the reason. Collect 151 boxes yield roughly one Art Rare per booster box, which means a box is a single attempt at one of the four Pikachu cards — not a partial step towards a set. [2]
Two consequences follow, and both shape what the cards cost.
First, demand concentrates on a chase that a box cannot reliably deliver four of. Collectors buying the four Pikachu as a group are competing for the same per-box supply, and the editions that have been open longest are the ones where the singles market is thinnest.
Second, the price spread between the four is real and it is not explained by the artwork alone. When Collect 151 first landed, singles offers opened between roughly €500 and €900 depending on the panel. Today the four trade at very different levels, and the ordering has held: Surprise and Hope lead, with Surprise the one most lists name first. [3]
Hope vs Surprise, directly
If you are choosing one of the two, the difference is not subtlety. It is what the card is doing.
Hope — 171/151 |
Surprise — 172/151 |
|
|---|---|---|
| Setting | Sunlit grassland, open sky | Moonlit forest, enclosed |
| Supporting cast | One sleeping Psyduck | Gengar, plus Ekans and Parasect |
| Mood | The gentlest of the four | The one collectors argue about |
| Released | 18 April 2025 | 18 July 2025 |
| Why it is chased | The quiet one — least noise, cleanest composition | Pairs the two most collected Pokémon in the game on a single card |
Surprise carries the premium, and the reason is the pairing rather than the Pikachu. It is the only card in the series where Pikachu shares a frame with a second headline Pokémon, and Gengar is a perennial dark-horse favourite in a way Psyduck is not. Graded copies of Surprise have traded in the low four figures. [3]
Hope’s argument is the opposite one. It is the calmest composition of the four and the one where the commission reads most clearly as a painting rather than a scene — which is exactly why it holds up beside cards that are busier.
Jumbo or Slim: the format question
Collect 151 shipped in two product formats, and the difference matters more than the packaging suggests. [2]
| Format | Cards per pack | Packs per box |
|---|---|---|
| Jumbo | 20 | 6 |
| Slim | 5 | 15 |
Both formats carry the set, and the Art Rare pull rate is quoted per box rather than per format. The practical difference is the number of cards you handle to open a box, and that matters if you are opening for a chase rather than for a collection: Jumbo gives you more cards per pack and fewer packs, Slim the reverse. Neither format changes what the four Pikachu cost on the secondary market, because that price is set by the cards people have already pulled.
What else is in the set
Collect 151 is not only four Pikachu. Three details are worth knowing because they are the reason a Chinese 151 card can look unfamiliar to someone who knows the Japanese or English printings. [2]
Shiny Pokémon. The Simplified Chinese release introduced Shiny cards to the set, including Shiny Pidgey in the Jumbo and Slim packs, Shiny Wigglytuff as a Full Art, and Shiny Ditto available only through promo booster packs.
Two reverse holo patterns. Collect 151 introduced Poké Ball and Master Ball reverse holo treatments, applied across 139 cards. That is a different structure from the Japanese and English versions of 151, and it is why ordinary-looking cards from this set can carry a treatment premium.
The Mew ex promo. The Mew ex 003/SV-P was distributed through a membership lottery rather than sold in shops: collectors in mainland China had to complete qualifying activities at official tournament venues across 2025, and 151 winners were drawn on the 15th of each month across ten draws, for a print run of 1,510 copies. It has never appeared in a booster box in any language. [2][4]
Buying a Collect 151 Pikachu graded
Three things decide what you are actually buying, and only the first is about the card.
The edition sets the floor. Journey and Gathering, Hope and Surprise are four different cards that share a character, and the printed number — 170, 171, 172, 173 — is the only reliable way to tell them apart in a text listing. Keep the number with the card.
The grade sets the ceiling. Every card we list is a PSA 10 (Gem Mint), the highest grade PSA awards: a virtually flawless card, centred within PSA’s strict tolerance, with sharp corners, clean edges and a clean surface. Our grading guide covers how that scale works and how to read the label once it arrives.
The case decides how long it stays that way. A slab in direct sunlight is a slab whose acrylic discolours and whose card fades behind it — slab care covers the whole wear sequence.
All four Pikachu Art Rares are in our Chinese Exclusive catalogue as graded PSA 10 copies, and the ten most-chased Simplified Chinese exclusives — four of which come from this series — are ranked in our top 10 list. If a particular edition is not showing, tell us the card number and we will confirm a price and a lead time before you pay anything.
Frequently asked questions
How many Pikachu Art Rares are in Collect 151?
Four — one per edition. They are numbered 170/151 (Journey), 171/151 (Hope), 172/151 (Surprise) and 173/151 (Gathering), and all four were drawn by illustrator Oswaldo KATO as a single commission covering the same Pokémon in four different moods and settings.
What is the difference between Hope and Surprise?
Setting and supporting cast. Hope is the sunlit grassland scene with Pikachu beside a sleeping Psyduck, released 18 April 2025, and it is the calmest of the four. Surprise is the moonlit forest scene with Gengar filling the frame behind Pikachu, released 18 July 2025. Surprise carries the higher price because it is the only card in the series pairing Pikachu with a second headline Pokémon.
What is the Art Rare pull rate in Collect 151?
Roughly one Art Rare per booster box. That rate is why the four Pikachu cards are the series’ chase: a box is a single attempt at one of them rather than a step towards completing a set of four. Collect 151 shipped in two formats — Jumbo boxes of 6 packs at 20 cards per pack, and Slim boxes of 15 packs at 5 cards per pack.
Why are the card numbers above 151?
Because a card numbered above the printed size of its set is a secret rare — it sits past the end of the numbered checklist. Collect 151 numbers its Pikachu Art Rares 170 through 173, above the 151 cards the set is named for. The numerator is the card’s position and the denominator is the size of the numbered set, so a higher numerator is expected.
What is the Mew ex promo from Collect 151?
Mew ex 003/SV-P is a lottery promo rather than a set card. Collectors in mainland China qualified by completing activities at official tournament venues during 2025, and 151 winners were drawn on the 15th of each month across ten monthly draws — a total print run of 1,510 copies. It has never appeared in a booster box in any language and cannot be pulled from sealed product.
Sources
Sources and further reading
- Kai’s Castle — Unique Pikachu Pokémon cards revealed for China’s version of 151. Collect 151 Journey’s 17 January 2025 release date and the four exclusive Pikachu Art Rare variants with their scenes, all illustrated by Oswaldo KATO. blog.kaiscastle.com
- Aquitaz — Collect 151: Journey — Everything you need to know. The four-part series structure, the connecting banner artwork across all four releases, the Jumbo and Slim pack and box configurations, the one-Art-Rare-per-box pull rate, the Shiny cards, the Poké Ball and Master Ball reverse holo treatments across 139 cards, and the 1,510-copy Mew ex promo. aquitaz.se
- CardSpicy — Top 10 Most Popular Simplified Chinese-Exclusive Pokémon Cards. The ranking that places Surprise second and Hope fourth, the release dates of the Hope and Surprise editions, and the €500–€900 opening range for the four Pikachu singles. cardspicy.com
- Pokémon TCG S-Chinese Collection — Mew ex promo 003/SV-P, limited to 1,510. The documented print run and lottery distribution. pokemoncard.com.cn
- Bulbapedia — Pikachu (151 25). Collect 151 numbering, including 170/151, 171/151, 172/151 and 173/151. bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net
Release dates, print-run and product-format figures are cited to the sources above as published. Card names, set membership and printed numbers are as listed in our own catalogue. No price in this guide is a forecast.