Hands-on with Pokémon Black Bolt and White Flare TCG sets – Here’s what you should know

Fernando Silva | Jul 17 2025 - 6:00 am PT

Bolt/White Flare/New TCG

For the final set of the Scarlet and Violet TCG era, Pokémon went all out. They decided to bring Unova Pokémon from Pokémon Black and White, and they did not disappoint. We got our hands on a few of the awesome products set to release this Friday July 18th. Here is what you should know.

A split expansion set

For the first time in years, Pokémon is releasing a split expansion. I was personally a bit unsure of what exactly that meant. The set will revisit all 156 of the original Unova Pokémon. But they are split in half. So White Flare has 86 Pokémon designated specifically for White Flare products, and Black Bolt has another 86 Pokémon in its set. Then, each of those Pokémon has a regular card and an illustrated rare version. There are even Pokeball and Master Ball versions of some cards, too, so completing a master set of this will be challenging! It reminds me a bit of Crown Zenith and its Galaraian Gallery set.

What we got our hands on

Here’s a breakdown of the early-release products we’ve opened.

Black Bolt Elite Trainer Box (ETB)

You get:

9 Black Bolt booster packs
Promo: Thundurus illustration rare
Accessories: Themed sleeves, energy cards, dice, condition markers, and player guide

Initial Impressions: The Thundurus promo pops with lightning energy and the shimmer of the rainbow Poké Ball foil. The booster pack hits were exciting—lots of Unova classics, including a surprise special illustration rare Zoroark. The ETB is great for both collectors and players gearing up for organized play. Below is our hands on video!

Binder Collection

5 Black Bolt booster packs
Zekrom-themed 9-pocket album

Initial impressions: The binder quality is surprisingly good, with thick pages and bold Zekrom artwork on the cover. What’s great is that the binder has 22 pages that hold 18 in each page (front and back), so its enough to complete the set (not including the Pokeball and Master variations)

Unova Poster Collection

2 Black Bolt packs
2 White Flare packs
Promos: Snivy, Tepig, and Oshawott
Bonus: Two-sided Unova region poster

Initial impressions: This one nails the nostalgia. The starter promos have that classic early-2010s energy, and the poster looks really nice. It maps out the new set’s chase cards and includes gorgeous art of Zekrom and Reshiram. It reminded me of the Pokemon 151 poster collection.

Victini Illustration Collection

2 Black Bolt packs, 2 White Flare packs
Promo: Illustration rare Victini
Extras: Oversized foil card + premium Poké Ball parallel foil
Releases August 1

Initial impressions: This is one of my favorites because of the Victini Illustration rare promo. So even if you don’t get any great pulls from the 4 packs, you at least know that you get an awesome promo to add to your collection.

Be sure to catch our video below of us opening all of these!

Final thoughts

I think Pokémon did a great job of ending the Scarlet and Violet era with an absolute bang. All the different card variations and the rare illustration of all the cards will make for a great experience for collectors and players alike. One thing that I noticed is that the pull rates seemed higher compared to Destined Rivals, and I think that’s because there are so many illustration rares, and then also the Pokeball and Masterball variations. Let me know what you think of this set. Were you able to get your hands on any? Let’s discuss!