Gary Haase, who refers to himself as King Pokemon, has whipped up quite a frenzy in the Pokemon TCG community after he insulted one of the collection's original artists.
In case you hadn't noticed, Pokemon cards have once again become big business in the past few years. Original cards in good condition are selling for tens, sometimes even hundreds of thousands of dollars. One of the community's most famous collectors is a man called Gary Haase who refers to himself as King Pokemon.
Haase caused quite a stir recently via a YouTube video in which he showed off his impressive collection of Charizard cards. While most of the video isn't all that newsworthy, one snippet has been doing the rounds online. Haase presents a Charizard card in a case signed by Mitsuhiro Arita. Arita is the artist responsible for the design of the very first Charizard card, as well as a number of other designs you'll be familiar with from the TCG's base set.
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In the clip, Haase states that the signature adds no value to the card. In a short space of time, he speaks of his relief that the signature is on the case and not on the card itself multiple times, adding that he may remove the signed case altogether. Haase saying the signature is worth nothing and labeling it worthless has irked a lot of Pokemon fans, resulting in something of an online war between them and King Pokemon's fans.
This is the last straw
I've never seen someone be so blatantly disrespectful
This person has the nerve to call themselves "King Pokémon," and is continuously idolized by this community. pic.twitter.com/W6S54ynhFk— Bou ? (@FrostedCaribou) July 4, 2021
Shortly after the clip was lifted from the longer video and shared, some sprang to Haase's defense claiming it had been taken out of context. That what he was saying was technically true as the card is a BGS 10, the highest grade combination a Pokemon card can receive. However, rather than clarify that himself, Kotaku reports that Haase has been sending those loyal fans after his critics instead.
High-priced Charizard cards are by far the most valuable and the most popular in the TCG community. A first edition set of Pokemon cards including a shiny Charizard sold for $666,000 earlier this year. Logan Paul also flaunted his wealth Pokemon-style on his way to the ring for a boxing match last month, wearing a 10-graded card around his neck for all to see.
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