Bandai says that it was released in September 1996 (It was also said that there was no exact release date left.) In summary The answer of title, Pokemon cards printed earliest is the Pokemon card released before Sep 1996
For a period, Skarmory and Magnezone had the best win rate in the entire meta, though that deck has now dropped down to second place, and decks including both Electivire and Cresselia have both carved out their niches
I love it by itself in Treasure matters brews
5 Pidgeot EX Pidgeot ex is a colorless card with the attack Blustery Wind, which deals 120 base damage and has the added effect of discarding any stadium that might be in play (if you so desire)
Furthermore, Arkana used the stripper technique, one of the many card-cheating techniques he learned from his previous profession, and cruelly sacrificed his monsters to win, all the while treating his monsters as dispensable slaves and claiming that ruthlessness to even one's own "slaves" is necessary to victory