I've long preferred owning Japanese Pokémon cards over their English counterparts, and as prices skyrocket on sets - especially Destined Rivals - that remains true. Not only are Japanese booster boxes cheaper and more readily available, but I find the print quality is usually better, and Pokémon Glory of Team Rocket (the better of Rivals' two Japanese companion sets) still gives you that Mewtwo ex chase without having to spend your life savings. So, why not buy a booster box of it?
You only have to read my 'Japanese cards are better' opinion piece to get a sense of why I prefer them over the English takes. However, if you're as lazy as I am (I get it), my personal reasons are: they release earlier, the print quality is better, and the pull rates are superior - oh, and they're cheaper. Sure, the English versions usually win in terms of resale value for the tippy top chase cards, but that's a minor drawback, compared with a whole load of benefits.
To be fair, this is one of those occasions where multiple Japanese expansions make up one English set: Pokémon Destined Rivals is basically Glory of Team Rocket and Heat Wave Arena combined. So a GoTR box can't get you all the same cards DR can - but it still holds some of the English set's best chases. For instance, one of the best cards that people quest for - Team Rocket's Mewtwo ex - is available in the Japanese version, and the gorgeous Team Rocket's Moltres ex SIR can be found, too.
However, the main reason I recommend going for Glory of Team Rocket is solely price. Sure, Destined Rivals is great, and you can get plenty of brilliant chase cards from the set, but it's also going for ridiculous prices, thanks to Team Rocket nostalgia.
That's not the case with the Japanese version - for example, you can get a booster box for below $100 at TCGPlayer or for £87.95 with our partner, Chaos Cards. Compared to the $400+ market average that Destined Rivals goes for, that's a massive difference. Heck, Heat Wave Arena is even cheaper, so if you really wanted the whole card pool you could get one full box of each Japanese set, and still pay less than half the going rate for one English box of Rivals.
While I'm not a huge fan of Destined Rivals, personally, I definitely prefer to collect Glory of Team Rocket. I find the quality to be much higher and, from my personal experience, issues with poor centering or damage to the cards are less common in Japanese cards. If you're looking to rip open some of those highly sought-after Destined Rivals packs, I'd seriously recommend Glory of Team Rocket instead. You won't be disappointed.
Make sure to share your pulls and your favorite cards with other trainers in our Wargamer Discord. We'd love to see how lucky (or unlucky) you are, but you can also chat about anything from the upcoming Ascended Heroes expansion to your favorite Pokémon. Or your least favorite, we're not fussy.