New Pokemon TCG Terastal Festival Palafin card was created by legendary manga author

It has been revealed that a gorgeous new card from the Pokemon TCGs upcoming Terastal Festival ex set was drawn by an artist who co-created one of the most successful anime and manga franchises of all time.

Terastal Festival ex is a Japan-exclusive set launching on December 6. However, its contents will be part of the Prismatic Evolutions set, which will launch on January 17, 2025. Terastal Festival ex will mostly consist of reprints of existing cards, with some incredible-looking alt arts for people to chase.

One of the cards featured in Terastal Festival ex is a new version of Palafin Hero Form ex. It has been revealed by Famitsu that the card’s artist is Tetsuo Hara: the co-creator of Fist of the North Star, one of the most popular and influential series of all time. Hara posted a full version of the artwork to Twitter/X.

Fist of the North Star was a martial arts manga set in a post-apocalyptic world, where masters of deadly fighting styles battle each other in the ruins of society. It’s one of the best-selling comics of all time and inspired franchises like Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, Naruto, Street Fighter, and countless others.

Palafin’s artwork directly references Kenshiro, the protagonist of Fist of North Star. Kenshiro was known for unleashing a rapid flurry of blows, before striking his enemy’s pressure points and causing them to explode. Chances are, Palafin won’t make another Pokemon blow up, but it can at least punch them.

It’s rare for a popular manga artist to be involved in a crossover like this with the Pokemon Trading Card game. This is a huge shame, as it would be amazing to see artists like One Piece’s Eiichiro Oda, Bleach’s Tite Kubo, or One-Punch Man’s Yusuke Murata iterations of various Pokemon.

Whatever the case, the Palafin Hero Form ex card is stunning to behold, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see it become a major chase card in the Terastal Festival ex or Prismatic Evolutions sets.