Ancient Mew has always been one of my favorites despite being just a common movie promo, so when I learned about the other variants, I decided to hunt them all down. They’ve quickly become a centerpiece in my PC, and I can’t get enough of looking at them all. I’ve included the details for each version below, in case anyone else is crazy enough to want to do this as well lol. They’re in release order from left to right, top then bottom:
Ancient Mew I “Nintedo error” - The first ancient mew promo. Has a speckle holo pattern instead of the traditional cosmos holo, and Nintendo is spelled incorrectly on the copyright line.
Ancient Mew I “Corrected” - After they realized the error, Nintendo reprinted their ancient mew to fix the copyright mispelling. Virtually the same as the Nintedo error card, but side by side, the corrected version is a bit richer in color, with deeper blues, greens & purples. This is to my knowledge (and from experience), the hardest one to come by.
Ancient Mew II - Released after the “corrected” reprint, this version was updated to have the cosmos holo instead of the original speckle holo pattern. Very similar to our US release, aside from a thinner border, less glossy cardstock, and the copyright line ends with “GAMFREAK”, instead of “Wizards”.
Ancient Mew 2000 - The one we’ve all come to recognize, this is the US or “International” release outside of Japan. Significantly thicker border with a much glossier cardstock (just look at the shadow’s reflection), donning the cosmos holo, and distinguishable from the others as it’s the only version that includes “Wizards” on the copyright line.
Ancient Mew 2019 - Released alongside the remake of Mewtwo Strikes Back, this card was exclusive to Japan. It reintroduced the original speckle holo pattern, with slightly smaller speckles than the 1999 versions. Identifiable by the copyright line, as it’s the only variant with the year 2019. I’ve personally also noticed that the mew on this card and the 2020 version are much pinker than all of the other ones.
Ancient Mew 2020 - The final release of the card, this is effectively the exact same as the 2019 version, but the copyright year changed to 2020. This version was also released for the remake of Mewtwo Strikes Back, but was exclusive to Korea only.
Hope this info helps anyone else interested in doing this, I think this card in all its forms is a true piece of pokemon history and will forever hold a place in my top 5 favorite arts of all time.
Which version is your favorite?