Umbreon ex Prismatic Evolutions: Grading Stats for the Most-Hyped Eeveelution
No modern Pokémon card family moves markets like Umbreon. Evolving Skies' "Moonbreon" (Umbreon VMAX alt art) became the defining chase card of its era, and Prismatic Evolutions' Umbreon ex inherited that gravity the day the set released. Here's how it's actually grading.
The data
- Umbreon ex (Prismatic Evolutions): 44 copies graded in 90 days, average 8.87 — above both the set average (8.81) and the platform average (8.67).
- Umbreon VMAX (Evolving Skies): 28 copies graded in the same window, average 8.13. Older card, more handling history, harder gem.
That 0.74-grade gap between the two Umbreons is the vintage-vs-modern effect in miniature: the ex is being graded pack-fresh, while VMAX copies have four years of circulation behind them — the same dynamic we see at full scale with Base Set grading.
What decides Umbreon ex's grade
From the graded population, the 9.5+ copies separate from the 9s on two things:
- Centering. Prismatic Evolutions prints reasonably straight, but the premium Eeveelution cards get scrutinized hardest — a 60/40 that passes casually still caps the grade. Measure borders square-on before anything else.
- Surface on the dark artwork. Umbreon's dark background is unforgiving: every micro-scratch and print line shows against black under angled light. This is the subgrade to photograph carefully — our angled-light technique exists for exactly this card type.
Corners and edges on fresh pulls have been consistently strong.
Submit or hold?
The market pays serious premiums for gem-grade Umbreons, and an 8.87 population average means a genuinely clean copy has real 9.5+ odds. The sequence:
- AI-grade your copy free — read the centering and surface subgrades first.
- 9.5+ estimate: strong submission candidate; this is a card where the gem premium clearly beats the fee.
- ~9 estimate: still often worth slabbing given demand — compare raw vs graded sold prices on the marketplace first.
- Buying rather than pulling? Umbreon's price gravity attracts counterfeits — run the fake-card checks or get free community authentication before paying raw-card prices.
The Eeveelution effect
Prismatic Evolutions as a whole is grading at 8.81 — tied for the cleanest high-volume set on the platform — and Umbreon ex is beating even that. When the most-hyped card in a set is also one of its best graders, the usual hype discount (every copy submitted regardless of condition) hasn't applied. Collectors are pre-selecting clean copies before submitting. Be one of them.