I heard Pratt talking about not to get into Japanese no rarity cards.
What is he referring to…
Maybe I missed it…
That’s his preference and opinion… it does not mean it does not have value. I do not recall him saying they were worthless, but he prefers something more recognizable like first edition base. I think they way he compared the two was that you easily recognize a big stamp compared to a small star in the corner that someone may have trouble identifying.
A pokemon collector may see it from a mile away, but to a collector of collectables, which is going to be more appealing in the long term?
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Apparently the cards were really hyped a few years back and the prices for holos have dropped ever since.
Nevertheless I think it’s one of the most important sets in the hobby and I personally don’t care if the absence of something is not as recognisable. I was not around for the hype and I just really liked them ever since I knew what they represented. I wish the holos would cool off even more so I could afford a set. 
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www.elitefourum.com/t/a-guide-explaining-why-no-rarity-comes-from-packs-and-decks/16617/1
Here is a thread about the cards if your query is about what they actually are.
I think Scotty is mostly talking about the investment perspective when he says not to get into them. I’d probably agree. The problem is at a certain price and grade, you can get a decent 1st ed base set for a comparable price. Most English-speaking people will naturally opt for the 1st ed set over a no rarity set, so the cards are in a kind of awkward position where despite being hard to find, people don’t want to pay out that much for them since they would rather put the money elsewhere. But there’s nothing wrong with the cards if you like them as a collectable, I have a couple myself.
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I haven’t been paying attention to the no rarity market, but the prices seem to be the same as they were in the past. The PSA 10s have really shot up in their listing prices, has anyone seen sold listings besides this auction: link? I’d be interested in knowing if there’s a surge in the PSA 10s, which is where I thought the most potential was in the set.
Side note: never auction niche items unless they’re in a massive auction block. The poliwrath went for around the same price I was selling them years ago, but I wouldn’t dare put an auction for something with so little search volume.
I think there was been some growth for the Charizard at least around the mid-range of grades, I have a PSA 7 copy that has tripled in value to what I paid in 2016. Obviously Charizard is a different beast compared to alot of the other set cards though.
What I find crazy is the PSA 10 copies are listed for as much as a PSA 1st base Charizard. I know which one of the two I’m picking all day, every day.
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Where is Syndicate when we need him? xD
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Yes true, however there are currently only 5 no rarity Charizards registered in the pop report at PSA 10 and 120 1st Edition English at PSA 10. There may still be some buyers that prefer the no rarity option with the view that it was the ‘first of the first’.
My preference would still be the English 1st edition but everyone is different.
I hear all points, I’ll also add pop reports means nothing if there is no demand. Obviously 1st edition English base will always have more organic demand, I just haven’t seen anything organically to hype no rarity outside of the holders/sellers of the highest graded copies.
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PSA stopped grading them a while ago, because the card# on some No Rarity prints do not match the WotC print. There are probably way more PS10-worthy No Raritans out there just no slaps on them.
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This is only true for Raichu and Venusaur afaik. It’s because the set/pokemon number is wrong
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Pros of No Rarities:
- They *probably* were the very first Base Set cards ever to be printed
- I personally like the look of the Japanese Base Set cards quite a lot
Cons of No Rarities:
- Very little organic interest
- Only discovered a few years ago
- Nothing to distinguish them from regular Japanese Base Set cards except for a lack of rarity symbol (unlike 1st edition Base Set that not only has the stamps but also all the other subtle differences that come with Shadowless cards)
- They’re not English (duh)
At the end of the day, I don’t really care for Japanese set cards that were also printed in English. My interest in Japanese cards is exclusively for the Japanese cards that weren’t produced in English, like certain promo cards and the Vending Series cards.
There definitely is demand since a PSA 10 no rarity charizord has one of the highest sales of all charizords
www.pwccmarketplace.com/items/1755918
Obviously if there were 120 no rarity charizords in PSA 10 it would be nowhere near that price. But the real truth is that there are people out there that would pay alot of money for the nr charizord and the demand is real, albeit small. Outside of PSA 10 and outside of charizords, the demand is even less though, which is reflected in the price difference.
No rarity cards are notoriously OC. Getting a well centered one is an achievement.
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They were known for a long time. They just weren’t talked about. @japanime wrote a pojo article back in 2000 about them link. They were definatly known in Japan before that too.
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Japanese set collector here!
No rarity still cost a small fortune, not nearly as much as English 1st edition but they offer a low cost alternative for being the “true first edition” - Chumlee (Pawn Stars)
If you’re in it for the artwork buy Japanese!
In terms of investment growth, who knows what the future holds for Japanese. The question is how much Base was printed in Japan? Is it as much as English?
With PSA opening up in Japan I think the next 2 years will be key in revealing how “rare” these Japanese cards are, and how many people have been hoarding these next to their precious samurai swords…
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For the first nearly 20 years NOBODY cared about them. We all knew about them though.
Then suddenly one very smart dude relentlessly started to hype them and created a market for them. Like the sheep we are, many followed,
The way I see it, in the future nobody will care about them again because they are not only a Japanese card but they are a niche Japanese card. Just because of the Charizard, don’t mistake them for early english releases. Personally I’d love to be wrong because I could have a boatload in my collection storage, but I’ve read this book before…including the endings.
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Always a pleasure see the envious that people have!
More time i read this forum and more time i see is full of manipulation and falsehood.
Advice people: you must think with your brain.