I’m $2k out of pocket, it was worth a shot 
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I wish you luck
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This is a massive blow to the credibility of CGC, obviously.
I have to imagine this reputation hit could extend beyond the scope of just Pokemon cards. Sports cards, comics, etc.
Especially since PSA advised they were staying away. I’m curious to see what their response will be.
Is there any precedent in situations like this? I imagine you’d have to start with identifying the individuals who submitted the cards and working your way back.
This is bonkers
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Well damn I wake up, and login first thing, and @pfm has astounded me once again! I really liked these cards and was hoping they were real, but there were a ton of red flags surrounding them from the start. Im glad some light was shed on them, and hopefully more in depth research comes from future cards like this. The hobby in general has had too many people come into it with ill intent, but Im grateful we have people who will do their due dilligence. This amongst other things just shows how serious E4 is for newcomers, and I feel for anyone who speculated on these.
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It will likely hurt CGC, but if we learned anything from the baseball card exchance with the Logan Paul 1st ed Base set case is that people don’t care. They will still buy and go grade with CGC. People love to be in an uproar and kick something when it’s down. It makes them feel good about themselves even if they never used CGC. Unless there is a major lawsuit, criminal charges or a documentery (that would be a great series for Netflix, PokeRev or Deep Pocket Monsters), I doubt it will affect them greatly.
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Well we are in FBI investigation territory so you might just see some or all of that.
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Now that I think about it, I wonder what credibility people will have for CGC going forward.
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For me, zero credibility. I’m never going to buy or own a CGC card again. I was hoping to see some real competition for PSA, but I’m pretty much sticking with PSA or just filling my binder with loose cards.
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More evidence that my CGC 10 Rayquaza is cooked
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I wonder how this will all play out
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PSA is king, but they also made a lot of mistakes. I found these two examples in 10 seconds.
With this amount of cards evaluated, there will always be mistakes.
Although of course I do not justify this situation, if these cards are fake then they should face the consequences.
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People already out here giving CGC a pass.
what about the fakes PSA graded.
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Mistakes are inevitable regardless of the grading company as human error can occur at any point, especially when bad actors figure out very convincing ways to replicate alternate versions of cards using a completely authentic card as a base (your 1st ed example).
But I think the main difference here is that CGC have now repeatedly demonstrated that they have a lower standard of what constitutes ‘evidence of authenticity’ than PSA, and generally have a much lower bar of integrity as a business (see: e4 astroturfing and Prerelease Raichu) than PSA. Whereas when the evidence is sketchy at best, PSA will refuse to authenticate, CGC will jump at the opportunity if they believe it will advance their prestige or credibility as a grading house. To unashamedly quote myself: CGC would grade a dog turd if Ishihara told them it came from a Houndour.
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Amazing work @pfm you’re keeping us all safe!
Really hate to see it, curious to see how CGC responds.
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I’ve always wondered about the story on why these were being sold in the first place. I read on this forum that Akabane was quite ill and needed the funds for medical expenses. This never made sense to me because Japan has a good health care system (nearly universal?) and medications are fully covered (please let me know if this incorrect). Or, at least more than the states.
So, why would he need money for non-existent medical bills?
The chart above that attempts to show the providence of the cards has someone listed as a “nephew”, I am thinking that if Akabane has started to mentally decline it could be likely that he was being taken advantage of and given cards to sign, being told they were real. Or perhaps under another story, such as a family member in financial trouble. Elder abuse is unfortunately a very real problem.
Regarding that info graphic, are we meant to read it as Akabane and his nephew Kimura were the only ones selling these, or were there others involved saying they were selling on Akabane’s behalf?
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For the most part, I agree, although their reputation will certainly take a big hit in the short term. They had a much bigger scandal in comics just a few months ago and are basically unscathed today. The playtests are still really really niche, generally speaking.
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Haha it was a full thread and my brain clearly switched off
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59 ain’t that old. Do you know many 59 year olds who are in cognitive decline? This level of baseless speculation isn’t very helpful to the discussion.
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No it’s not old, but it’s not at all impossible to develop a serious affliction. And I’m not the one who is making a baseless accusation, there were many people on this forum who said “illness” was the reason he needed money and began selling in the first place.
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