Alakazam V – Promo
Date Reviewed: June 1, 2021
Ratings Summary:
Standard: 1.25
Expanded: 1.25
Ratings are based on a 1 to 5 scale. 1 is horrible. 3 is average. 5 is great.
Reviews Below:
Vince
So, while there probably won’t be any baseline Abra, Kadabra, or Alakazam cards, we’ve got Alakazam-V as a workaround similar to Alakazam-EX and Mega Alakazam-EX. The mega barely made the top 10 best cards of XY Fates Collide due to some good tricks they had. Could the promotional card be just as good?
Zen Spoon costs a single Psychic energy and lets you place three damage counters on your opponent’s Pokemon, possibly helping you set up for future KOs or to deny certain effects that would involve having even a single damage counter on it. Mind Ruler costs two Psychic energies and does 30 damage for each card in your opponent’s hand.
Most of the time, your opponent won’t have a large hand to make Mind Ruler worthwhile because they have already played their cards in their specific turn. Mind Ruler, theoretically, can achieve OHKOs, but requires a hefty investment, and is unreliable. To OHKO the maximum printed HP, you need to have your opponent have 12 cards in their hand. There are a few ways to manipulate your opponent’s hand, like Knocking Out your own Pokémon (not a good idea) or using Marnie, which guarantees your opponent have four cards in their hand (unless they have less than that in their deck) to do 120 damage.
Ultimately, there are other Psychic types that can do far more 120 damage without over-reliance of a certain condition, so I can’t see how Alakazam-V would see play currently.
Ratings:
Standard: 1.5
Expanded: 1.5
Otaku
Alakazam V (SW – Black Star Promos SWSH083; SW – Vivid Voltage 172/185) is our first Alakazam card since Alakazam-EX and M Alakazam-EX released five years ago in XY – Fates Collide. While some Pokémon just seem to be neglected by the powers-that-be within the TCG, there’s actually a reason when it comes to Alakazam and its lower Stages. For those unaware, years ago Uri Geller sued because Kadabra seems to be a parody of him that hits a little too close to home. It makes a more sense if you look up the details. Recently, Geller recently apologized for the whole mess via Twitter; maybe Kadabra (not seen since 2003) could finally make a comeback?
As for the actual Alakazam V, it’s stats are half good ([P] typing, Basic, -30 [F] Resistance, Retreat Cost [C]) and half bad (190 HP, [D] Weakness). Wait, how is four versus two half and not two-thirds good? The weight of the stats involved; Resistance and Retreat Cost are often negligible, but Stage and HP are usually the most important stats on a card. Alakazam V is only has 10 more HP than Crobat V, but without a killer Ability… or any Ability at all. Instead it has two attacks, both which require [P] so it isn’t likely to appear outside of Psychic decks.
“Zen Spoon” costs [P] while “Mind Ruler” is priced at [PP]; at least they’re affordable in a Psychic deck. Zen Spoon lets you place three total damage counters on your opponent Pokémon, distributed as you like. Mind Ruler does 30 damage per card in your opponent’s hand. Zen Spoon is mostly filler, as there are better options for spreading damage. Mind Ruler suffers because of the rest of Alakazam V and because forcing your opponent to draw is harder than it looks. Well, that isn’t strictly true; plenty of effects force your opponent to shuffle and draw, or give your opponent the option of drawing. To hit large numbers, you’ll need your opponent to draw while keeping their existing hand size, or just to draw “big” in general…
…and that is something your opponent is like to do just as part of their own setup. It isn’t reliable, though. Not only might your opponent not draw big every game, but even if they did you need their hand to be large when you attack. Typically, you want to draw and then use the cards you can ASAP, so you don’t risk them being shuffled away by disruption, rendered obsolete by the changing field… or feed effects like Mind Ruler. Which leaves Alakazam V as such a niche attacker, I can’t bring myself to bump it up to even a two-out-of-five. Don’t give up all hope, though; it is plausible we could get some solid strategy that results in your opponent having a 7+ card hand during your turn.
Ratings
- Standard: 1/5
- Expanded: 1/5
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