Nine main sets in just over two years, a two-piece card type inherited from the era before it, and a subset built to sell mostly to a completely different shopper than the one buying booster boxes. The Japanese Black & White (BW) era sits between two much better-known periods — the LEGEND Era before it and XY after — and it’s often skipped over for exactly that reason.
This guide maps the whole run: when BW1 through BW9 released, what sat on either side of the era’s boundaries, the three side-releases Bulbapedia lists as BW-period subsets, and where the Japanese 1st Edition stamp shows up along the way. We also flag a set that gets misfiled into BW conversations constantly — CP2, “Legendary Shine Collection” — and explain why it isn’t actually a BW-era product. Every card referenced below is tied to a graded PSA 10 single we currently list, shipped from Tokyo.
The BW era ran December 17, 2010 to March 15, 2013 across nine numbered expansions. Our current stock tied to this period is led by a Darkrai & Cresselia LEGEND [LL 035-036/040], currently listed at ¥721,000 (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order), and a confirmed BW6 1st Edition example, Bianca SR :1ED [BW6 063/059], currently listed at ¥175,099 (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order). Both are single listed copies — when one sells, it’s gone until we source another.
JPY prices below are our current listed prices for graded PSA 10 singles.
When the BW Era Ran: BW1 Through BW9
Japan’s BW era opened with BW1, “Black Collection / White Collection,” released December 17, 2010, and closed with BW9, “Megalo Cannon,” released March 15, 2013. That’s nine main-numbered expansions across roughly two years and three months.
| Set | Name | Japan Release |
|---|---|---|
| BW1 | Black Collection / White Collection | 2010-12-17 |
| BW2 | Red Collection | 2011-07-15 |
| BW3 | Psycho Drive / Hail Blizzard | 2011-09-16 |
| BW4 | Dark Rush | 2011-12-16 |
| BW5 | Dragon Blast / Dragon Blade | 2012-03-16 |
| BW6 | Freeze Bolt / Cold Flare | 2012-07-13 |
| BW7 | Plasma Gale | 2012-09-14 |
| BW8 | Spiral Force / Thunder Knuckle | 2012-12-14 |
| BW9 | Megalo Cannon | 2013-03-15 |
The boundaries on either side matter as much as the list itself. On the front end, BW1 landed about five months after the LEGEND Era wound down — more on that below. On the back end, BW9 was followed by one final BW-period subset, EX Battle Boost (July 13, 2013), before the next main-numbered series, XY, began with Collection X / Collection Y on December 13, 2013. Our XY era collector guide picks up exactly where this one ends.
Before BW: The LEGEND Era’s Final Stretch
The set immediately before BW1 wasn’t a BW product at all. Clash at the Summit, released July 8, 2010, is documented as the third and final expansion of the LEGEND Era — the period defined by LEGEND cards, a two-piece card type where a single Pokemon is split across a top half and a bottom half. Both halves have to be benched at the same time before the card can be played, and once it’s in play it’s treated as one card — but if a LEGEND card is knocked out, the opponent takes two prize cards instead of the usual one.
One set earlier, Lost Link (JP: “強化パック ロストリンク”), released April 16, 2010, is recorded as the only subset to come out during the LEGEND Era in Japan — a 40-card release sold in smaller 7-card packs with no energy cards included. It’s where our highest-priced single in this guide comes from:
View Product → (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order)
Darkrai & Cresselia LEGEND is card numbers 035/040 (top half) and 036/040 (bottom half), Rare Holo LEGEND, a Darkness/Psychic-type combination — its English equivalent appears in the Triumphant set as #99/102 and #100/102. Worth being precise here: Lost Link released eight months before BW1, so this card belongs to the LEGEND Era, not the BW era proper. We’re including it in this guide because it’s the product immediately upstream of BW and because it’s a single listed copy — once it sells, it’s gone until we source another. For the full mechanics of LEGEND cards, including how the format changed after this set, see our Pokemon LEGEND cards guide.
The Three BW-Era Subsets
Alongside the nine main-numbered sets, Bulbapedia’s list of Japanese TCG expansions names three subsets released during the BW era: Dragon Selection, Shiny Collection, and EX Battle Boost.
Dragon Selection is the one we can’t add detail to — its release date and card contents weren’t independently verified for this guide, so we’re naming it here for completeness rather than describing it.
Shiny Collection, a concept pack released February 1, 2013, packaged 20 numbered cards plus five secret-rare pulls into 4-card boosters with distinctive artwork and packaging aimed at a different buyer than the main sets. It sits between BW8 (December 14, 2012) and BW9 (March 15, 2013).
EX Battle Boost, released July 13, 2013, is the more consequential of the two dated subsets: its 99-card Japanese lineup is built around the Pokemon-EX subtype, ahead of the international release of its English counterpart, Black & White—Legendary Treasures, on November 6, 2013. EX Battle Boost’s English counterpart, Legendary Treasures, additionally carried a “Radiant Collection” subset drawn from Japan’s Shiny Collection — linking the two Japanese side-releases through the English product.
All three subsets sit chronologically inside the BW window, but they’re side-releases, not part of the BW1–BW9 main-set count. If a listing just says “BW era” without a set code, check whether it’s actually one of these three before assuming it’s a main-numbered set.
The 1st Edition Stamp During BW
The Japanese 1st Edition (1ED) stamp ran from 2001 through 2016, which means the entire BW era — December 2010 through March 2013 — falls inside that window. What we can confirm from our own stock is narrower than that full window, though: we currently list Bianca SR :1ED [BW6 063/059], from BW6, “Freeze Bolt / Cold Flare” (July 13, 2012), which proves a 1ED print exists for that specific set.
View Product → (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order)
That’s a confirmation for BW6 specifically, not a rule for the whole era. We can’t tell you whether BW1 through BW5 or BW7 through BW9 carry 1ED prints without checking each set individually, so we’re stating this as a limited, stock-backed data point rather than a blanket claim.
CP2: A 2015 Callback, Not a BW-Era Set
One more disambiguation, because it comes up constantly: CP2, “Legendary Shine Collection,” released July 18, 2015 — two and a half years after BW9 closed the main-set run, and well inside the XY era. It’s an all-Rare (R) Concept Pack, not a BW-numbered set, and it has nothing to do with the two-piece LEGEND card type covered above.
What CP2 does share with the BW era is subject matter: several of its cards reprise BW-era Legendary Pokemon in new artwork.
Zekrom, Latias, and both Kyurem forms are all BW-era Legendaries in origin, but the printings pictured here are 2015 XY-era cards, not BW1–BW9 originals. Filing them as “BW era” because of the subject matter is the single most common mix-up we see with this period. For the complete set breakdown — pack structure, full card list, and every chase card — see our CP2 Legendary Shine Collection guide.
Our BW-Era PSA 10 Price Ladder
Every graded single below is currently listed and tied to a set covered in this guide — either a BW-numbered set, the LEGEND Era product immediately upstream of BW, or a CP2 card reprising a BW-era Legendary. Sorted from lowest to highest:
| Card | Set / Number | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Black Kyurem R 1ED | CP2 020/027 | ¥47,380 (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order) |
| White Kyurem R | CP2 021/027 | ¥49,440 (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order) |
| Zekrom R | CP2 009/027 | ¥92,700 (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order) |
| Latias R 1ED | CP2 018/027 | ¥107,589 (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order) |
| Bianca SR 1ED | BW6 063/059 | ¥175,099 (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order) |
| Darkrai & Cresselia LEGEND | LL 035-036/040 | ¥721,000 (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order) |
The gap between the top and bottom of that ladder — roughly ¥47,000 up to ¥721,000 — runs from a 2015 XY-era Concept Pack card depicting a BW Legendary all the way up to the two-piece LEGEND single that predates BW1 itself. Every one of these is a single listed copy — when it sells, it’s out of our listings until we source another.
Where to Buy BW-Era Cards from Japan
We ship graded Japanese singles out of Tokyo with tracked delivery worldwide. For the cards covered in this guide:
- PSA 10 Darkrai & Cresselia LEGEND [LL 035-036/040] (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order) — currently listed at ¥721,000 (a single listed copy)
- PSA 10 Bianca SR :1ED [BW6 063/059] (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order) — currently listed at ¥175,099 (a single listed copy)
- PSA 10 Latias R 1ED [CP2 018/027] (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order) — currently listed at ¥107,589 (a single listed copy)
- PSA 10 Zekrom R [CP2 009/027] (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order) — currently listed at ¥92,700 (a single listed copy)
- Browse the full graded lineup on our PSA 10 collection
Looking for a specific BW-era set, a LEGEND card, or a CP2 single not listed here, or want to build a mixed order across our full catalog? Our Quick Order page is the fastest way to request it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What years does the BW era cover in Japan?
December 17, 2010 through March 15, 2013 — from BW1 “Black Collection / White Collection” through BW9 “Megalo Cannon,” nine numbered expansions across roughly two years and three months.
What came before the BW era in Japan?
The LEGEND Era, which closed with Clash at the Summit on July 8, 2010 — documented as the LEGEND Era’s third and final expansion. BW1 followed about five months later, on December 17, 2010.
What is a LEGEND card, and does the BW era have one?
A LEGEND card splits one Pokemon across a top-half and bottom-half card; both must be benched together before it can be played, and knocking it out gives the opponent two prize cards instead of one. Our Darkrai & Cresselia LEGEND single comes from Lost Link, released April 16, 2010 — that’s the LEGEND Era’s only subset, released before BW1, not a BW-numbered card itself.
Do BW-era cards carry the Japanese 1st Edition stamp?
The 1ED stamp ran 2001 through 2016, so the whole BW window falls inside that period. We can confirm a 1ED print exists for BW6 “Cold Flare” specifically, based on our own stock, but we haven’t verified 1ED status set-by-set for the rest of BW1–BW9.
Is CP2 “Legendary Shine Collection” a BW-era set?
No. CP2 released July 18, 2015, well inside the XY era, and it’s a single-card Concept Pack unrelated to the two-piece LEGEND mechanic. It reprises BW-era Legendaries like Zekrom and both Kyurem forms in new 2015 artwork, which is why it’s easy to mistake for a BW-period product.
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