Once you see that neck protrusion there’s no unseeing it. 
4 Likes
The latter part of the Sun and Moon era squandered the chance to have the best tag-team alternate art card by excluding Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee (even Hitmontop as a trio) from having a tag-team card. Could have been epic SMH.
2 Likes
IMO the best card from the entire sun and moon era hands down
1 person says “print to oblivion” … a word no one heard of before. And now everyone says it and there is no other word used.
Influencers don’t provide useful discussion or information that the person prior and after say.
Missing the smpratte public videos
7 Likes
Me too! 
8 Likes
Any Pokemon auto ≠ a valuable/desirable auto
13 Likes
well i didnt wanna say anything but i dont even think any voice actor auto is worth the cost of grading 
and stuff like logan paul, gary, garyvee, that music dude etc should be worth negative money
12 Likes
The new umbreon ex SAR isn’t the new “moonbreon.”
It’s a “sunbreon.”
1 Like
I don’t love any of the newly revealed special art ex from Terastal Festival, especially juxtaposed with Eevee Heroes.
4 Likes
This hobby should have been gatekept more.
18 Likes
Why?
Seeing people say “ThAnks I JuST goT 100 ETBs froM yoUR posT”
The reddit post for Prismatic Evolutions is some people genuinely interested in the cards, but most people are just interested in botting out inventory to sell for a quick buck.
3 Likes
Zukan cards are okay - but I hate how every PSA 10 is shared by saying “cHeCk OuT tHis Pop 3 cArD!1!!1!”.
Like, no shit its low pop… they just started grading them/who is going to submit them.
5 Likes
5 Star hot take there!
4 Likes
I think this is an L take.
This hobby is for everyone. We can lament the shitty behavior in the hobby without being exclusionary to the wonderful folks who have joined in recent years. After all, it’s likely a few bad actors with especially loud voices and online presences that spoil the fun for everyone. I would find it exceptionally sad to gatekeep a hobby that has made me (and probably you) enormously happy and fulfilled.
Gatekeeping serves no sustained purpose. It’s a temporary fix for a broader issue, which is the maturity level in the hobby. Pokemon is very young compared to most hobbies, and as such, it is filled with a lot of young folks who are attempting to use it to “get rich quick” or to farm clout because they are financially insecure and it offers a possible (though unlikely) path out of their current circumstances. It will never be possible to remove all bad actors. Some will move on or mature with time, but others will stick around so long as money can be made or clout can be farmed.
My solution to this broader issue will always be education and positive community support. Educating folks on reasonable expectations of behavior, forming real connections with each other, and holding people accountable can go a long way to change maladaptive and disruptive group behavior. My perspective is to be welcoming and react swiftly to bad behavior rather than to seclude ourselves from outsiders.
11 Likes
I remember when this topic came up during the Logan Paul days. The problem is when you start gatekeeping, you end up just becoming the villain. Also what is the metric? No investment talk is usually the target. However, I know plenty of “pure collectors” who are just as insufferable as stonkers. I also know countless investors who are super chill.
Then again, maybe we can close the gates on non-paying buyers! 
12 Likes
Chumlee or Gary vee…immediate -50% lol
1 Like
This 
Also,
Gatekeeping based on actions is not gatekeeping. It is discipline or simply education in respect. We can make friendly jabs, strong critiques out of intelligent convo, but outright disrespect is not OK, But you CAN’T know a disrespectful member until they’re given the chance to show it. Often it comes from honest misinterpretations, but it also comes from a place of malice, especially today. The bar for self esteem is SO Low today that we should do everything to create a welcoming, positive environment for all, until they show they deserve otherwise (not necessarily sunshine and rainbows, but that’s too far the other way). Let’s get away from extremes, but also punish non-payers. Definitely that. 
7 Likes
Brand their forehead with the mark of the raven so all will know them.
2 Likes
I’ll do a general response to the people who responded to me.
Let me preface by saying I in no way would claim that my opinion on this is purely logical, or even mostly, and is generally an emotional response to how I feel about the atmosphere and vibe of collecting Pokemon cards and the wider Pokemon card community. I welcome responses, but please keep in mind I don’t really have the room or willingness to change my mind on this, and as serious as my response is and how honest my words are here I am happy staying in my lane and enjoying the community here on E4.
When I say that Pokemon cards should have been gatekept more I do not mean that we should have stopped certain people from collecting cards or being allowed to interact with the community. Firstly this is impossible to do, and secondly it is also unreasonable and stupid. People like Little Timmy all the way to Al Bin Hasheed - Saudi Oil Billionaire, should and can freely buy into this hobby by collecting cards, and for whatever reason they deem to be a motivator for them.
I also don’t mean that we should have tried to keep out ‘InvestorBro_113xx’ on Instagram/Reddit, as frustrating as these people are, they are a natural expression of changes within Pokemon card collecting and it would be more weird if these types of people didn’t exist in the way they do today. I buy things for investment, too.
The types of gatekeeping we should have employed is how the community reacts to people who are involved with the intention to egregiously push the envelope and step over the line for bad behaviour, selfishness, and willingly setting out to grift others.
I am talking about people who tried to (and successfully) cut lines when people were lining up for autographs, people who employed groups of others to line up and get autographs for them at signing events making it more difficult for others and more difficult for artists. People who did this didn’t seem to receive any long term community backlash and benefited from the communities willingness to forgive and forget.
I am talking about people who lined up multiple times to secure and hoard worlds merchandise, again making it harder on others, harder on staff, and incentivizing others to do the same because they believed they would miss out if they DIDN’T do this. These people should have been called out and shut out by the community and they weren’t. These are the more specific types of examples I have in mind, but in a general sense I think people here are too willing to let things slide because the reaction is ‘Damn, why didn’t I think of that?’
I do resent how large the Pokemon card collecting community is, I resent how easy it is for people to make money by being a personality in the community rather than someone who shares good information and creates good discussion, or just has a cool collection, and I resent how the wider community validates and lifts up those who would buy a Pokemon card to use it like vapid young millionaire would buy a Tesla Cybertruck because it’s ‘content’.
We should have gatekept by having better standards for inclusion, not access.
25 Likes