What are your unpopular opinions in pokemon?

[cooltrainertony]

@enigma

@cooltrainertony

The whole point behind grading cards is for condition. Turns out some people have different ideas of what nm, lp, and other conditions are. Grading a card allows for a non biased third party to say what the condition of a card is. This eliminates the guesswork for both the seller and buyer. This might be a hard concept to wrap your smooth brain around

I guess my brain must have so many wrinkles, because I use listing pictures, description, and my own two eyes to determine if a card meets my own made-up standards.

Your mom must be very proud

[aritafan]

@enigma

@cooltrainertony

The whole point behind grading cards is for condition. Turns out some people have different ideas of what nm, lp, and other conditions are. Grading a card allows for a non biased third party to say what the condition of a card is. This eliminates the guesswork for both the seller and buyer. This might be a hard concept to wrap your smooth brain around

I guess my brain must have so many wrinkles, because I use listing pictures, description, and my own two eyes to determine if a card meets my own made-up standards.

I mean, same here for the most part, but I understand the downside of this as well. Some sellers just don’t reply to questions or requests for more photos, some sellers don’t take good photos, other sellers can be deceptive etc, which makes a 3rd party grader very useful here. Personally I buy raw only because I’m just not willing to pay 2-5x for the condition guarantee. For the most part I’ve done pretty well though - but I do have to put in a bit of effort sometimes.

[dev]

@KingPokemon

Oh, @dev ,

Prior to 1999 I graded for value (this was the Shop At Home period).
——-
From 1999 thru 2002 I graded for fun.
——-
From 2003-2005 me and Ebirdman graded as a way to bring back some interest in the hobby during a down time. We felt it would make it fun for others in a new and innovative way.
——-
From 2006-present I’ve graded for designation. At my age I felt it was only responsible to have a cards condition and origin be a part of it to make it easier on my heirs.
——-
Of course there’s some exceptions in all the categories but I’m speaking mostly.
So @dev , …as a strategy, for fun, for value, and finally for designation has been my road. Surely more reasons can be added to it by others. I trust you can now see that your statement , “people stating that they grade their cards for any other reason (other than increasing value) are simply lying” is not only shortsighted but insulting:(

I was speaking bluntly with that statement, but yes, I see after posting here that there are many reasons to grade cards. On instagram, the replies haven’t been nearly as thought out, which is why I posted the take on here. I honestly think the point you made about grading simply being fun is the strongest I’ve heard.

I do personally find grading fun myself, too. Guessing the grade of cards, trying to get certain grades, etc. Plus, I think they do look nice (especially BGS).

[dev]

@parkermrparker

Does it count as “grading” if you choose authentic only for the label?

No, that would be authentication with no grade. Self explanatory.

Also really? Banned for having a hot take in the unpopular opinions thread? I’ve been having good discussions with people, I don’t think I’m the sour one here to be honest.

[alchemyst]

@squirtle1000

I also have had many cards graded without any consideration of value, and with no intention of selling.

I enjoy collecting master sets. Yet I also enjoy having graded cards. A lot. So much so that I broke apart my binders last year and I submitted many cards for grading. I like the protection, aesthetic, and yes, the non-biased grade that the slab provides. The added value and increased liquidity applies to some but certainly not all cards that I get graded.

If it wasn’t for the cost I would gladly slab entire sets, commons and all. If PSA grading ever returns to $10 I may in fact do just that for some of my favorite sets.

Case in point: When I was (very) bored I went through ~7000 bulk Evolutions cards and I identified my 4 best examples of every unique card. For instance, out of the ~100 Evolutions Charmanders I own, I’ve already set aside my 4 best examples, the ones most likely to get PSA 10. I did that for every non-holo in the set. When/if grading returns to $10 I am prepared to send that stack of “perfect” Evolutions non-holo cards to PSA.

I mention that only because it is a concrete example of having cards graded for absolutely no practical monetary benefits. It would be ludicrous to grade regular Evolutions Rattatas. Yet as a set collector I may do it for the sake of obtaining a fully-graded set.

Is there really no monetary benefit in grading those cards though? I ask, because what’s going to happen with them down the line? Are you going to destroy them when you’re about to die, that way no one can make money off them?

[smpratte]

Another value is registration. That isn’t offered in any retail option.

[dev]

@squirtle1000

I also have had many cards graded without any consideration of value, and with no intention of selling.

I enjoy collecting master sets. Yet I also enjoy having graded cards. A lot. So much so that I broke apart my binders last year and I submitted many cards for grading. I like the protection, aesthetic, and yes, the non-biased grade that the slab provides. The added value and increased liquidity applies to some but certainly not all cards that I get graded.

If it wasn’t for the cost I would gladly slab entire sets, commons and all. If PSA grading ever returns to $10 I may in fact do just that for some of my favorite sets.

Case in point: When I was (very) bored I went through ~7000 bulk Evolutions cards and I identified my 4 best examples of every unique card. For instance, out of the ~100 Evolutions Charmanders I own, I’ve already set aside my 4 best examples, the ones most likely to get PSA 10. I did that for every non-holo in the set. When/if grading returns to $10 I am prepared to send that stack of “perfect” Evolutions non-holo cards to PSA.

I mention that only because it is a concrete example of having cards graded for absolutely no practical monetary benefits. It would be ludicrous to grade regular Evolutions Rattatas. Yet as a set collector I may do it for the sake of obtaining a fully-graded set.

I think @garyis2000 , hit the nail on the head here, and what you’re explaining falls under this category too.

Grading is fun, plain and simple. I personally grade for fun partially myself, too. Even if I grade a card I plan on selling, its fun to see what grade they all get.

I feel bad for being so cynical previously about it, especially since something like this is so obvious. However, when I’ve asked people this before, they seem to have had a hard time answering. I still think at the end of the day, value is still an inherent part of grading a card, even if it slowly increases over time and isnt worth it at the moment. Your card could gain future value in a slab, but not in a hard case… but a hard case is no fun compared to trying for a grade.

I’m glad I posted the take here, its interesting hearing everyone’s thoughts

[squirtle1000]

@alchemyst ,

All of my cards will surely be sold someday, whether by myself or by my heirs. However, it’s difficult to imagine a future in which a PSA 10 Evolutions common could ever sustain a price that significantly exceeds the cost of grading. There are far too many copies in existence, relative to the small number of collectors that are actually interested in them for set completion or whatever. Even if every human on Earth suddenly became a Pokemon collector we still might have enough Evolutions Rattatas floating around to satisfy whatever increase in demand that would bring.

The value of these kinds of cards should only ever hover around the cost of grading, plus maybe a small premium for convenience. You’ll have occasional black swan events like 2020, but in the long run the market will always correct, since the raw mint supply is effectively endless.

That’s why I said grading cards like that can’t be done with any expectation of future monetary gain.

[parkermrparker]

@dev

@parkermrparker

Does it count as “grading” if you choose authentic only for the label?

No, that would be authentication with no grade. Self explanatory.

Also really? Banned for having a hot take in the unpopular opinions thread? I’ve been having good discussions with people, I don’t think I’m the sour one here to be honest.

The lack of the ability to take a joke is very very prevalent among tru collectors i find

[alchemyst]

@squirtle1000

@alchemyst ,

All of my cards will surely be sold someday, whether by myself or by my heirs. However, it’s difficult to imagine a future in which a PSA 10 Evolutions common could ever sustain a price that significantly exceeds the cost of grading. There are far too many copies in existence, relative to the small number of collectors that are actually interested in them for set completion or whatever. Even if every human on Earth suddenly became a Pokemon collector we still might have enough Evolutions Rattatas floating around to satisfy whatever increase in demand that would bring.

The value of these kinds of cards should only ever hover around the cost of grading, plus maybe a small premium for convenience. You’ll have occasional black swan events like 2020, but in the long run the market will always correct, since the raw mint supply is effectively endless.

That’s why I said grading cards like that can’t be done with any expectation of future monetary gain.

I agree, it’s difficult to gauge how much those graded evolution cards will be worth. However, I think it’s a very safe bet they will be worth over 10-20 bucks. Especially if you get 10s.

[Josh]

Team Rocket was the worst WOTC set with unexciting cards and I can’t understand why it gets so much love. Even the chase cards like Dark Charizard, Dark Blastoise and Dark Dragonite are “just OK”. I remember the sheer disappointment as a kid if I went to Woolworths at the weekend to spend my pocket money on 2 boosters and Team Rocket was the only packs they had. Bleghh.

[smokemon]

@Josh

Team Rocket was the worst WOTC set with unexciting cards and I can’t understand why it gets so much love. Even the chase cards like Dark Charizard, Dark Blastoise and Dark Dragonite are “just OK”. I remember the sheer disappointment as a kid if I went to Woolworths at the weekend to spend my pocket money on 2 boosters and Team Rocket was the only packs they had. Bleghh.

I was disagreeing with what you said up until your last sentence, which got me thinking about how I felt about the cards as a kid as opposed to now. It’s hard to remember how I felt about Team Rocket but I can remember always longing for the last set and having to settle for the one that was currently out. Now I’m questioning my nostalgia!

[vampire]

@Josh

Team Rocket was the worst WOTC set with unexciting cards and I can’t understand why it gets so much love. Even the chase cards like Dark Charizard, Dark Blastoise and Dark Dragonite are “just OK”. I remember the sheer disappointment as a kid if I went to Woolworths at the weekend to spend my pocket money on 2 boosters and Team Rocket was the only packs they had. Bleghh.

Interesting but fair take! For me they were and are the one of the most exciting sets. I thought it was cool how there was a dark/Rocket/alternate version. I always loved the villainous sides in series, movies and games.

[Troy]

@Josh

Team Rocket was the worst WOTC set with unexciting cards and I can’t understand why it gets so much love. Even the chase cards like Dark Charizard, Dark Blastoise and Dark Dragonite are “just OK”. I remember the sheer disappointment as a kid if I went to Woolworths at the weekend to spend my pocket money on 2 boosters and Team Rocket was the only packs they had. Bleghh.

I have 0 nostalgia for WOTC and I unironically think Rocket is the first set with more than 5ish cards that look good and there isn’t another one until Discovery. But I understand how your viewpoint can be warped like in your last sentence. I still treat late XY full arts like that because they were just everywhere in the Evolutions supply ramp-up from Pokémon even though there are some cards that look quite nice.

[smpratte]

I enjoy the vibe Rocket delivers. I think its a solid set concept for the 2nd appearances of pokemon.

[Cerulean]

@Josh

Team Rocket was the worst WOTC set with unexciting cards and I can’t understand why it gets so much love. Even the chase cards like Dark Charizard, Dark Blastoise and Dark Dragonite are “just OK”. I remember the sheer disappointment as a kid if I went to Woolworths at the weekend to spend my pocket money on 2 boosters and Team Rocket was the only packs they had. Bleghh.

This is how I feel about Gym Heroes.

[Cerulean]

@smpratte

I enjoy the vibe Rocket delivers. I think its a solid set concept for the 2nd appearances of pokemon.

Agreed. It was the first time Pokemon had to legitimately think outside the box with the TCG (as far as set cards, anyway) because the original 150 all already made their appearances from Base through Fossil. I personally think they knocked it out of the park with what was probably the most detailed art we had seen from the TCG at that time.

It’s not just the holos, either. The non-holos were fantastic:

[Troy]

How are we posting Rocket non-holos without a single Kizuki?

[kingboo64]

@Josh

Team Rocket was the worst WOTC set with unexciting cards and I can’t understand why it gets so much love. Even the chase cards like Dark Charizard, Dark Blastoise and Dark Dragonite are “just OK”. I remember the sheer disappointment as a kid if I went to Woolworths at the weekend to spend my pocket money on 2 boosters and Team Rocket was the only packs they had. Bleghh.

Jungle venomoth/vileplume/electrode vs dark raichu, doesn’t come close.

[c0ll3ct0r]

@Josh

Team Rocket was the worst WOTC set with unexciting cards and I can’t understand why it gets so much love. Even the chase cards like Dark Charizard, Dark Blastoise and Dark Dragonite are “just OK”. I remember the sheer disappointment as a kid if I went to Woolworths at the weekend to spend my pocket money on 2 boosters and Team Rocket was the only packs they had. Bleghh.

It’s like you’re in my head, couldn’t agree more. Dark Dugtrio is the one exception, which I never pulled anyway.

I found discounted team rocket packs at $1 a piece in a bookstore once, only time as a kid I ever got the opportunity to open double digit amount of packs and it still wasn’t enough to make me excited about the set. Same goes for everything that came after Fossil and before Neo Genesis, I didn’t even buy Gym packs just based on the shitty booster art.