So i have this debate for a long time now. I’m a really sucke for book guides and pokemon strategy guides in general for games that i like and especially pokemon.
first of all i want to say im really jealous in japan they got so many different book guides specially for gen 1-2 if you see the amount of different guides compared to the english language.
so i guess my question and what i want to hear with you guys what do you think about grading guides/comic/books.
i on the one hand want 1 copy ungraded but still in good condition and preserve it like my coro coro magazines with ziplock bags. there is much enjoyment for me specially japanese book guides about the photos and what is written as well.
so for me i guess i got to a conclusion i would like for each guide i would like also a graded copy but i will get raw in good condition copies first that i can actually open and read/see. for the pokemon manga like pokemon adventures fourtently i also have the box set which i can read besides the graded copies i got.
so let me guys know what is your opinion and in general at all are you fond of the old guides and especially the varied guides the japanese have.
3 Likes
Im not at the level of needing or wanting graded copies of them but I really like all the guides. Whether its a guide for the game or the tcg, I love when they have unique art or odd factoids about the pokemon world. Currently I dont have a lot but Ive picked up guides for both gameboy tcg games, both pokemon pinball games, and i have a couple of the tcg set guides that were published in English. I am still looking for the Pokemon Gym Challenge Strategy Guide by Teeuwynn Woodruff, specifically the book bound version, for my collection but its difficult to find.
Anyways, I think your collection is amazing with all the magazines and enjoy seeing and understanding more about the non-english ones.
5 Likes
People are grading comics for a long time. Also, like all things subjective, there is no right or wrong about the way to go about collecting something. Do what feels best. I feel you have a superb collection already and a lot of people are not aware of a lot of the books you have which is really great in terms of exposure and preservation of some of the earliest media within the Pokemon hobby. For that reason having a graded copy would be great for preservation and an ungraded one for browsing and scans etc
On a personal note, I also collect some comic books. I do not have any graded nor plan to grade them, but even with the comics itself, I find it challenging to organize and store. Also like Pokemon cards, it is easy to just buy very cheap stuff in bulk but unlike cards, they need a lot of space. Some of the Japanese books and guides are very thick and can get cumbersome to store atleast. Not to mention the added cost of grading. I also don’t know if grading is needed to actually preserve the books or just having them in zip lock bags is good enough. Personally, I would only consider grading if there are rare copies which need grading as a means of preservation. Else I will just have them as is.
Cheers!
5 Likes
First of all thank you for the kid words. i feel i do want them preserved in a capsule but do want to look in the inside too so decided to get 2 copies of each in good condition and 1 of them to grade but i will first purchase the raws. only for gen 1 there is literally lots of guides in the japanese language and lots of kinds too
4 Likes
yes i alo thought of it that way so will get 2 copies each. not to mention some of them cant get graded because of size.
about the thickness of the books as someone who has lots of corocoro magazines i know what you mean. i do store and preserve them in plastic ziplock bag for years and their condition keeps being great. just nice to have something you like also in the graded form as well.
3 Likes
I love the guides but my enjoyment comes from thumbing through them/reading them so acquiring a graded copy has never appealed to me. I liken it to having a binder full of cards but only being able to view the first and the last page.
I also can’t get past the premiums associated with high grade books considering a portion the grade is based on the contents inside which you can’t see once it’s encapsulated.
That’s just me though. I can certainly appreciate how one might find enjoyment from buying graded books even though I don’t. My closest friend is a comic collector and he probably doesn’t understand why I find enjoyment from buying graded cards.
To each his own. Collect what you enjoy 
3 Likes
I love guides! I still have the ones from my childhood (Gold and Silver is missing its cover for some reason? No idea why).
I also buy used ones because I like to flip through them a lot.
3 Likes
the biggest problem for me is i like the appeal of the graded ones as well as liking to look through the pages as well 
so i guess it’ll have to be both
2 Likes