Dark Gyarados

Numbered 25 of 83 in Team Rocket, released in April 2000, Dark Gyarados is a Rare, a Stage 1 Water-type carrying 70 HP.

It evolves from Magikarp, so Dark Gyarados is a later-stage card that set-builders usually slot into a full evolution run rather than buy alone.

Team Rocket darkened Gyarados under its control for the set's villain arc, a grittier repaint of the familiar Pokémon with an altered attack profile.

Illustrated by Kagemaru Himeno. Himeno is one of the most-recognized vintage illustrators, with a softer, more textured style that shows up across the Jungle and Neo runs.

Printed on the card, the Gyarados Pokédex entry reads: "Normally found only in the deep ocean, it has recently been seen in shallow waters as well."

The fully evolved Magikarp. A massive serpentine water-flying dragon. Famous for the disproportionate evolution arc. Base Set holo Gyarados is one of the most aesthetically beloved holos in the set. Steady graded demand and appreciation.

Dark Gyarados is a non-holo Rare. In Team Rocket, value concentrates in the holo rares, so a Dark Gyarados trades modestly, though a clean, well-centered 1st Edition copy in PSA 10 is scarcer than the print run suggests and carries a real premium. Check the live price above for the figure by grade.

Team Rocket shipped in 1st Edition and Unlimited, with no Shadowless print. The 1st Edition Dark Gyarados carries the Edition 1 stamp under the artwork and trades above the Unlimited copy in matching grade. The set is also home to Dark Raichu, the first Secret Rare ever printed.

Non-holo Rares like Dark Gyarados are easier on surface but no kinder on centering. Wizards-era cards were less protected than the holos, so high-grade Dark Gyarados survivors can be scarcer than expected, with edge whitening the usual cap.

For Dark Gyarados, check centering by eye, edge whitening on all four sides, and surface under angled light. Non-holo Rares from this era are cheap enough that a PSA 10 submission on a clean Dark Gyarados can make sense.