DARK
1Cartoon Shade
ATK:
0
DEF:
2000
View:
338
Cannot be Normal Summoned/Set. Must be Special Summoned (from your hand) while a monster that cannot be Normal Summoned/Set is face-up on the field. You can only Special Summon "Cartoon Shade" once per turn this way. If this card is Special Summoned: You can add 1 monster with 2000 ATK or DEF that cannot be Normal Summoned/Set from your Deck to your hand. If this card on the field is Tributed: You can target 1 card on the field, or target 2 if you control a monster with 2000 ATK or DEF; return them to the hand.
Cartoon Shade — Power Evaluation
Final Score: 58 ± 8 · Confidence: Medium
- Intrinsic: 54.8 · Deck: 59.8 · Meta: provisional
- Primary role: Searcher/Tutor · Secondary: Removal
Why it scores here
Cartoon Shade's value is a one-for-one search: a hand Special Summon (only while a face-up monster that cannot be Normal Summoned/Set is on the field, once per turn) adds a 2000 ATK/DEF non-Normal-Summonable monster from the Deck to hand. Its tribute effect is a targeted bounce that returns one card, or two if you control a 2000 ATK/DEF monster, which is soft interaction rather than removal. The 2000 DEF body and wide deck presence earn only moderate points: no combo evidence exists to show it converting into a larger board, and the hand Special Summon condition limits how often it is live.
Axis scores
| Axis | Score | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Accessibility | 55 | Hand Special Summon needs a face-up non-Normal-Summonable monster on the field, which the 21 decks across 12 archetypes (Toon, Drytron, Yummy) typically provide (observed). |
| Combo & Conversion | 40 | No combos_evidence rows exist, so conversion from the search into a full board is inferred only from the text: one search into one monster (inferred). |
| Resource Economy | 55 | The on-summon search is a +1 card effect, but there is no refuel and the tribute bounce resets rather than gains cards (verified from text). |
| Effect & Interaction | 40 | The tribute effect bounces one targeted card, or two with a 2000 ATK/DEF monster, which is soft interaction and not destruction or negation (verified from text). |
| Material Utility | 40 | Level 1 DARK Illusion without Tuner status is a generic Level 1 body, but no material-usage evidence was supplied (inferred). |
| Resilience & Flexibility | 45 | The summon trigger and search are fully stoppable by a single negation, and the bounce needs a tribute first, so it is fragile across turns (inferred). |
| Deck-Building Efficiency | 75 | Typically one copy (avg 1.14 across 21 decks), no garnet or lock, and it runs alongside staples such as Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring and Maxx "C" (observed). |
Calculation
Weight profile: 0.7 Searcher/Tutor + 0.3 Removal/Negation. Intrinsic ≈ 54.8, Deck ≈ 59.8, Meta = provisional. Modifiers: none. Final formula: 0.40*Intrinsic + 0.60*Deck
Strengths
- Converts a hand Special Summon into a search for a 2000 ATK/DEF non-Normal-Summonable monster
- Runs one copy in most homes, with 12 distinct archetypes in the sample
- Has a second targeted bounce option when a 2000 ATK/DEF monster is controlled
Weaknesses
- Hand Special Summon requires a specific field enabler
- Once per turn for the summon, so the search is limited
- The bounce is soft interaction and needs a tribute first
- No combo or guide evidence supports a stronger combo conversion
Counters / choke points
- Negating the hand Special Summon or the on-summon search trigger (inferred from text; no counter evidence supplied)
- Negating the tribute bounce trigger while the card is on the field (inferred)
Best use
Searcher / Tutor. Decks: Toon, Drytron, Yummy, Tri-Brigade, Charmer. Suggested copies: 1.
Evidence & gaps
- Verified: Hand Special Summon requires a face-up non-Normal-Summonable monster on the field, once per turn; On Special Summon, adds one 2000 ATK/DEF non-Normal-Summonable monster from the Deck to hand; On tribute, returns one targeted field card, or two if you control a 2000 ATK/DEF monster
- Observed: Present in 21 of the 21 recent decks, 12 distinct archetypes, avg 1.14 copies per deck; Co-occurs with Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring and Maxx "C" in 100% of sampled decks; usage_statistics: 100% inclusion in Cyber Angel at 1 typical copy (a single archetype row)
- Inferred: Primary role is a Searcher because the on-summon search is the main value; The tribute bounce works as soft Removal and does not destroy; Summon and search can be stopped by a single negation
- Data gaps: no combos supplied: combo conversion is text-only inference no guides supplied no banlist token: assumed 3 copies (unlimited) usage_statistics holds only one archetype row (Cyber Angel), a thin historical sample no ruling or interaction data for tribute timing with 2000 ATK/DEF checks