Char's Journal · Collector Stories
Why Charmander is my Favorite
by @char · June 19, 2026
Why it's Charmander, not Charizard. A story about loyalty, a flood, and the Legendary Collection card I found again with my sister.
His loyalty and bravery to always help his friends out in times of need have always stuck with me, and always will.
My love for this cute little orange salamander started sometime around 1998–99, when a 5-year-old me first saw episode 11 of the Pokémon anime "Charmander – The Stray Pokémon" on WB Kids before I went to school. If you've never seen it, it's a rough one: Charmander's original trainer basically leaves him to die, and that's the exact moment he meets Ash. A beautiful friendship forms out of it.
Charmander would go on to appear in about 30 more episodes, helping Ash, Misty, and Brock battle Team Rocket and get out of the tight scenarios they always found themselves in.
Charmander's loyalty, not only to his original trainer but later to Ash, always stuck with me. I never could get over it as a kid when Charmander evolved into Charmeleon and stopped interacting with Ash the same way. The same thing happened when he evolved again into Charizard. 5-year-old me just couldn't comprehend why that had happened, and honestly, that's exactly why Charizard isn't my favorite Pokémon. Charmander is.
One of my favorite Charmander cards has always been the Reverse Holo Legendary Collection Charmander and yes the art's reused from Base Set, but that fireworks pattern reverse holo just really pops. I actually opened way more Jungle and Fossil than Base as a kid, but I could always grab a few Legendary Collection packs at a flea market near my house, which is how I finally got my first Charmander card.
I don't have that original one I pulled anymore, since a flood destroyed most of my childhood collection. But last year (2025) I was able to find a new one at Collect-a-Con, with my sister. And honestly? This new one carries more memories than the original ever did, because I got to find it with her.
Charmander
No. 070 / 110 · Common
His loyalty and bravery to always help his friends out in times of need has always stuck with me, and always will.
This was our inaugural post on the new app/site, and I'm genuinely excited to be able to continue building this, and to keep publishing my thoughts on the cards and the game we all love. Thank you for taking the time to read this, and I truly wish you all the best!
— Ryan, a.k.a. Char