I can understand how designers of a new genre of game wouldnt fully grasp the power of card advantage, but still Ancestral Recall has always been outrageously good
If you havent tried Jumpstart yet, I encourage you to give it a go
If you are a "kitchen table" player with a group of friends, try buying a complete playset of commons/uncommons for each set that comes out (4x of each card.) This will typically run around $20-30 on ebay and yet greatly expand your collection
When buying or selling Gyarados EX and VMAX cards, always check multiple marketplaces and consider getting valuable cards professionally graded
In contrast, the commander decks offer decent value to players looking for an entry point into commander, but arent anything special from previous commander offerings.
Considering that Pikachu is the most iconic Pokemon of all time, Ken Sugimoris Pikachu cards are the perfect representation of the series growth and change over time