Pikachu has fronted plenty of booster-pack promos over the years. These two didn’t come from a pack at all.
One shipped inside a one-off “Special BOX” built around a joke about Team Skull, the delinquent faction from the Sun & Moon games. The other shipped inside a Japan Post retail box built around two centuries-old ukiyo-e prints, sold at post offices. Five years apart, completely different partners, and the only thing they share is the character on the card and the fact that neither one ever came near a normal Pokémon TCG booster.
This guide covers both: what box each card came from, how to tell them apart from their box-mates, and what a PSA10 copy of each is currently listed at. We source and ship Japanese sealed product and singles out of Tokyo, and both cards below are graded copies from our own stock.
Two Japanese Pikachu promos, two unrelated novelty boxes: Pretend Team Skull Pikachu (SM-P Promo 013, 17 December 2016) from the Sun & Moon Special Box, currently listed at ¥2,358,700 (~$14,835) PSA10 (업데이트: 현재 품절 — Quick Order로 재입고 요청), and Pikachu (S-P Promo 227, 25 August 2021) from Japan Post’s Pokémon Stamp Box, currently listed at ¥636,856 (~$4,005) PSA10 (업데이트: 현재 품절 — Quick Order로 재입고 요청). Neither card was ever sold in a booster pack, and neither has an English-language release.
Prices are this store’s current listed prices as of September 2026, converted at ¥159/USD.
Two Unrelated Boxes, One Character
Both cards below are Japanese-exclusive Pikachu promos, and both came inside a physical retail “box” product rather than a themed TCG booster set. Past that, they don’t share a release wave, a set code, or even a category of partner — one is an anime in-joke, the other is a stamp-collecting crossover. We’re covering them together because “novelty Special-BOX Pikachu” is a recognisable collecting lane in its own right, not because the two cards are connected.
| 카드 | 박스 | Released | Illustrator | Market |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pretend Team Skull Pikachu SM-P 013 | Sun & Moon Special Box “Pretend Grunt Pikachu” | 17 Dec 2016 | Kouki Saitou | Japan only |
| Pikachu S-P 227 | Pokémon Stamp Box (Japan Post) | 25 Aug 2021 | Mitsuhiro Arita | Japan only |
Neither card has been officially released in English. Both are Holographic Full Art prints, and both are the kind of card that only shows up when a collector already knows the specific box to look for — there’s no set list or booster code pointing you toward either one.
Pretend Team Skull Pikachu: The 2016 Sun & Moon Special Box
Pretend Team Skull Pikachu (JP: スカル团ごっこピカチュウ, SM-P Promo 013) released 17 December 2016, Japan only, as one of two cards packed inside the “Sun & Moon Special Box Pretend Grunt Pikachu.” It’s a Holographic Full Art print, illustrated by Kouki Saitou, and it leans into the Sun & Moon games’ Team Skull faction — Pikachu dressed up in the gang’s look rather than a straight character render.
The box’s name is a common source of confusion. Pretend Grunt Pikachu (SM-P 014) — the Team Skull grunt cosplay — is the box’s other card. It is not the same card as Pretend Team Skull Pikachu (SM-P 013), and it is not currently in this store’s stock. Check the promo number in the corner before assuming which one you’re holding.
A copy graded PSA10 is currently listed at ¥2,358,700 (~$14,835) (업데이트: 현재 품절 — Quick Order로 재입고 요청). For the full identification breakdown and print history on this exact card, our Team Skull Pikachu Promo Card Guide: The SM-P 013 Pretend Grunt Full Art goes deeper than we will here.
Pikachu S-P 227: Japan Post’s Ukiyo-e Stamp Box
Pikachu (S-P Promo 227) released 25 August 2021, Japan only, packed inside the “Pokémon Stamp Box — Pokémon Card Game Beauty Looking Back / Geese Flying Over the Moon Set” (JP: ポケモン切手BOX「ポケモンカードゲーム 見返り美人・月に零セット「). It is a Japan Post philately product — a stamp-collecting box, not a card game product — built around two well-known Edo-period ukiyo-e prints, “Beauty Looking Back” and “Geese Flying Over the Moon.” Illustrator: Mitsuhiro Arita.
The box was sold through participating Japanese post offices and could also be pre-ordered on the Japan Post Service website from 26 July 2021. It was additionally made available at the 2021 Japan World Stamp Championship Exhibition in Yokohama, held 25–30 August 2021 — putting the card’s distribution at the intersection of a national postal service and an international philately event, about as far from a card shop as a Pikachu promo gets.
A PSA10 copy is currently listed at ¥636,856 (~$4,005) (업데이트: 현재 품절 — Quick Order로 재입고 요청). Our Pikachu Stamp Box Promo Card Guide: The S-P 227 Ukiyo-e Full Art covers the artwork and distribution history in full.
Why This Isn’t a Numbered Series
It’s tempting to assume Japan Post has run a recurring line of “Pokémon Stamp Box” promos and that S-P 227 is just one entry in it. That isn’t confirmed. No second Japan Post Stamp Box product with a different Pikachu S-P number has turned up — as far as the record shows, the 2021 ukiyo-e box is a single, one-off release, not part of a numbered or ongoing series. Treat it accordingly rather than expecting a “volume two.”
The Sun & Moon Special Box side of things works the same way: it was a one-time 2016 release tied to a specific in-game faction joke, not a recurring format Nintendo/The Pokémon Company has repeated under that name.
Why Novelty-Box Promos Are Their Own Collecting Lane
Not every Japanese Special BOX promo comes from a partner as specific as Japan Post or a games-only in-joke. For comparison, here’s a third, unrelated Pikachu promo from the same general SM-P block — useful as a reference point for what a “Special-BOX Pikachu” typically looks like, but not part of this store’s featured pair and not from either box above.
The common thread across this whole lane of promos is that the card exists because of a retail partnership or novelty product first, and a TCG release second. There’s no shared set code, no shared release wave, and often no shared illustrator — just a Pikachu made specifically for a box that isn’t a booster box. That’s a meaningfully different collecting target than chasing a secret rare out of a set list: you’re tracking down a specific product tie-in, not a pull rate.
For a wider view of Pikachu’s Team Skull-era cosplay family, see our Ash’s Pikachu card guide — a related but distinct character-cosplay Pikachu line. For Kouki Saitou’s other Pokémon TCG illustration work, our Kouki Saitou illustrator guide is the hub. And for the broader promo eras these two cards sit inside, see our SM-P promo roundup and S-P promo roundup — both cover their era more broadly, while this article stays narrowly on the novelty-box angle.
Where to Buy These Pikachu Promos from Japan
We ship Japanese sealed product and graded singles worldwide from Tokyo with tracked delivery. Both cards in this guide are PSA10-graded copies from our own stock.
View Product → (업데이트: 현재 품절 — Quick Order로 재입고 요청)
The Stamp Box Pikachu is also available: PSA10 Pikachu, S-P Promo 227 (업데이트: 현재 품절 — Quick Order로 재입고 요청), currently listed at ¥636,856 (~$4,005). For other Japanese promo-era Pikachu cards, or to build a mixed order across graded singles and sealed product, our Quick Order page is the fastest route.
자주 묻는 질문
What are “novelty Special-BOX” Pikachu promos?
They’re Japanese-exclusive Pikachu cards distributed inside one-off retail box products tied to a specific non-TCG partner or in-joke — not booster packs. This guide covers two: Pretend Team Skull Pikachu (from a 2016 Sun & Moon anime-tie-in box) and Pikachu S-P 227 (from a 2021 Japan Post stamp box).
Is Pretend Team Skull Pikachu (SM-P 013) the same card as Pretend Grunt Pikachu (SM-P 014)?
No. They are two different cards packed inside the same “Sun & Moon Special Box Pretend Grunt Pikachu.” Pretend Team Skull Pikachu is SM-P Promo 013; Pretend Grunt Pikachu is SM-P Promo 014, and it is not part of this store’s current stock.
What is the Pokémon Stamp Box Pikachu card (S-P 227)?
It’s a Holographic Full Art Pikachu, illustrated by Mitsuhiro Arita, distributed inside a Japan Post philately product referencing the ukiyo-e prints “Beauty Looking Back” and “Geese Flying Over the Moon.” It released 25 August 2021 through participating post offices, Japan Post’s website, and the 2021 Japan World Stamp Championship Exhibition in Yokohama.
Are there more Japan Post Pokémon Stamp Box promos with Pikachu?
Not that we’ve confirmed. No second Japan Post Stamp Box release with a different Pikachu promo number has turned up, so the 2021 ukiyo-e box should be treated as a single, one-off release rather than an ongoing numbered series.
Where can I buy these Pikachu promos from Japan?
Both cards covered here are PSA10-graded copies currently listed in our own stock, shipping from Tokyo with tracked delivery. Pretend Team Skull Pikachu is listed at ¥2,358,700 (~$14,835); Pikachu S-P 227 is listed at ¥636,856 (~$4,005). Use our Quick Order page to add other Japanese promos to the same order.
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