Vol. 3, Issue 18 - My Pokémon Collection (Part 8)
In this issue, I share even more items from my personal Pokémon collection. How do I even have room for all of these things? Plus, a recap of the latest Pokémon news, and a new Community Spotlight
Welcome to Vol. 3, issue 18 of Johto Times! This week, I dug deep into my vast treasure chest of assorted Pokémon goods and merchandise, and picked out a few to share with you! This time around,Ii've chosen a range of items that were originally released between 1999–2024, including music, books, toys, games, and collectables. I wonder how many of them you have, or remember? Plus, we’ve got the latest Pokémon news, and we shine another spotlight onto a cool fansite you should definitely check out!
Yesterday, Johto Times reached a significant milestone of 1000 newsletter subscriptions! On behalf of myself and the team, I would like to say a huge thank you to every single person who has subscribed to us since we began in February 2023. While the number of people reading has never been the focus of this project, it is worthy of the acknowledgement.
News
Pokémon TCG Pocket is marking its six-month anniversary with the release of a new expansion, new Drop Event, and special missions. The Celestial Guardians expansion was released yesterday, adding Pokémon from the Alola region into the game, with cards such as Solgaleo and Lunala, and starter Pokémon Rowlet, Litten, and Popplio.
The Drop Event, featuring Rayquayza ex and other new promo cards, is currently underway. A further in-game mission will allow players to receive a different Rayquaza ex promo card, as well as new accessories and other rewards. These missions will be playable until Wednesday, May 28th, 2025.
Source: Pokémon
Plushies of Pokémon from the Alola region introduced in Pokémon Sun & Moon will be released at Pokémon Centers in Japan onThursday, May 8th, 2025. The Pokémon Fit (Sitting Cuties in the West) range will feature 116 Pokémon, including Ultra Beasts. While it hasn’t been confirmed when stores outside of Japan will receive them, six generations of Pokémon from this range are already available in other regions, so it's only a matter of time before we see the Generation VII added to the lineup.
I’ve personally bought a few of these due to their quality and fair price. They make great gifts for friends, so I will absolutely be buying a few of them once they arrive in the United Kingdom store!
Source: Pokémon
Feature: My Pokémon Collection (Part 8)
I’ve rummaged around in my collection to find even more treasures to share with you in this feature! While many of these items were originally released during the very earliest days of Pokémon, others were obtained within the last couple of years and specifically purchased to share with Johto Times readers! Perhaps they’ll rekindle some good memories.
Pokémon Scarlet & Violet, Legends Arceus, and Sword & Shield Soundtracks
As a long-time collector of video game soundtracks, many of which include Pokémon, I was disappointed when Pokémon stopped releasing them after Let's Go Pikachu & Eevee. My assumption was that they had decided to go with digital soundtracks from that point on, so I was pleasantly surprised to see a physical release of Pokémon Scarlet & Violet, Pokémon Legends Arceus, and Pokémon Sword & Shield Super Music Collections, which released on February 27th, 2024 in Japan.
Thankfully, a good friend of mine who lives in Japan purchased all three of them on my behalf from the Pokémon Center website. The special box that they rest inside features silhouettes of key Pokémon from each of their games. When he came to visit me in October 2024, he gave them to me. I have loved listening to them and I hope that someday I can obtain the Pokémon Black & White soundtrack to complete the collection!
Pokémon “I Choose You” Movie Soundtrack
In addition to the video game soundtracks, my friend from Japan also purchased the Pokémon “I Choose You” movie soundtrack, which was a rather thoughtful gift. I wasn’t a huge fan of the original movie, but the soundtrack was an enjoyable listen overall. Perhaps I should start a collection of Pokémon movie soundtracks next?
Classic TCG Theme Deck Boxes (Erika, EX FireRed)
These old theme deck boxes have been with me since their original release. I vaguely remember buying the Erika deck because I liked Vileplume. At the time, they were around six or seven pounds to buy, which was great value for someone who didn’t have a huge amount of money growing up, and would have been purchased in the year 2000. The EX FireRed theme deck was a gift from a friend from around the time of its original release. Both of them still have their damage counters, and the EX FireRed deck has all of the instructions that came with it. I wish I had kept my Fossil theme decks (BodyGuard and Lockdown) from those days.
Pokémon Magazines (Beckett Pokémon Collector Price Guide, Pokémon World)
When I was a teenager, I loved to read Pokémon magazines. Some of the magazines I still have today are these copies of Beckett Pokémon Collector Price Guide, as well as many copies of Pokémon World magazine. They were an essential source of information during the early days of Pokémon, especially because I didn’t have an internet connection at home until late 2002. These magazines cut through the boredom and gave me an update on all the recent Pokémon news.
They continue to be an inspiration behind the weekly news section of Johto Times, over twenty years later!
Prior to the creation of Johto Times, I was fortunate enough to review Pokémon Scarlet from Nintendo. As a result, I was unable to obtain the pre-order bonus, as I didn’t purchase it. Thankfully, my friend in France who works at a video game store sent me a spare. I was quite thankful to have it, as I think it looks pretty awesome!
Extreme Pokémon Guide, Pikachu’s Rescue Adventure, Island of the Giant Pokémon Books
When I was younger I recall seeing a book called Extreme Pokémon Guide, which had a full map of the Orange Islands inside it. I enjoyed the Orange Islands arc of the Pokémon anime, and was disappointed when they weren’t canonised in Pokémon FireRed. Years later in December 2022, I decided to pick up a copy of my own.
In 2024, I attended a toy fair and purchased a few Pokémon related items to share in Johto Times. I purchased two books: “Pikachu's Rescue Adventure” and “Island of the Giant Pokémon”. The former is an adaptation of the short that preceded Pokémon The Movie 2000 and the latter is adapted from the Pokémon anime episode of the same name. While they weren’t overly interesting items, they were a mere 50 pence each. My intention is to pass them on to a good home in the future, but they’re a bit of nostalgia for older Pokémon fans who grew up with them!
Pokémon Card Dispenser (Hope Industries)
While I didn’t play the Pokémon Trading Card Game, I somehow came to own this licensed card dispenser created by Hope Industries. A deck of 60 cards would be placed into the machine, and a lever on the side could then be pressed down to dispense a card from the slot in the top. I do recall putting some of my cards in here, which was probably not the best idea as I'm sure it resulted in a few scratches on some of the holographic cards back then!
Pocket Pikachus (Japanese original, and Second Color)
I have previously shared my original Pocket Pikachu Color, which I had many years of enjoyment with during my days with Pokémon Crystal. In addition to that, I own a second Pocket Pikachu Color I bought a few years later, as well as its predecessor, the Pocket Pikachu. The Pocket Pikachu Color was bought from my friend Jesse at some point in the early-to-mid-2000s. My intention was to get the two to connect to one another via their infrared ports, but I don’t recall if I ever got around to it. The Pocket Pikachu was purchased in 2023, and was originally from Japan!
Pokémon TCG coins
Over the years, I seem to have amassed a collection of Pokémon Trading Card Game coins. Many of them are from the earliest days of the Pokémon TCG, with Vileplume, Chansey, Aerodactyl, and more. There’s something rather charming about them, and I did consider collecting a whole set of them at one point. I think my favourite design is Aerodactyl — it really takes me back to collecting cards from the Fossil set.
Pokémon Playset (Tomy)
Pokémon mini play sets were originally released in 1997 in Japan by TOMY and eventually found their way abroad. This one is based on Pinkan Island from the Orange Islands. It folds down into two areas, which can be interacted with. It also came with two Pokémon: a Psyduck and a pink Rhyhorn. Unfortunately, the horn on Rhyhorn's head has broken, but hopefully whoever owned this before me had a lot of fun with it growing up! I originally bought it because I wanted to share it with Johto Times readers. However, I think it’s a neat little toy, and it represents a favourite episode of mine from the anime back when it was first broadcast.
Community Spotlight: Pokémon Aaah!
Pokémon Aaah! is a community which specialises in the creation of fake cards, providing its members with the tools and resources to create their own cards and express their creativity. In addition to this, the site researches obscure Pokémon information. It was first created in April 1999.
I used to visit a community which spun off from Pokémon Aaah! back in the day, called Pokémon Zeo!, but in recent years I have discovered PokéAaah!, and love it. I admire how dedicated Nick15 has been to his website and his motivation to provide resources for his community all these years later. It has a friendly community, and I think anyone who has an interest in creating their own cards, or anyone with an interest in the Pokémon TCG, should check it out.
If you want to learn more about Pokémon Aaah!, you can read our interview with Nick15, the webmaster of the website, which we published back in November 2023!
Visit: Pokémon Aaah!
That’s all for this week’s issue! If you enjoy what Johto Times provides, be sure to share our newsletter with your friends and loved ones to help us reach even more Pokémon fans. For Discord users, you’re welcome to join our server for the latest notifications from our project. We are still open to sharing your mailbag entries, so if you have anything you would like to share with us, drop us a line by visiting this link to contact us directly!
This is so cool! I still have my Pokemon Card Dispenser. I know I had a Pocket Pikachu as well..not sure where that ended up. I had no idea they made CDs of the video game soundtracks, but I love listening to the lofi remixes. Great read, thank you for sharing!
A lot of interesting stuff.