Like almost every child born in the 1990s, Justin Bieber considers himself to be a fan of Japan’s most famous export.
The Pokémon franchise has millions of fans spread across six continents, of course, with many having initially found their way into the fandom via the Trading Card Game. The quintessential overnight craze, Wizards of the Coast’s original printing of Generation 1 Pokémon are now considered to be collector’s items, with some, such as a pristine 1st Edition Charizard, being worth upwards of $55,000.
Bieber, of course, has that very same card in his personal collection, alongside what appears to be complete versions of subsequent expansions. Pokéfans who remember trading with their friends in the playground will undoubtedly recognize some of the ‘Mons framed on the wall of Bieber’s home, and you can check out the collection for yourself down below.
Justin via Instagram Stories pic.twitter.com/WIHAClVlmI
— Justin Bieber News (@yourbiebernews) September 20, 2019
An impressive display, no doubt, but there are definitely a few sought-after vintage cards not present in Bieber’s haul. Then again, that’s hardly surprising.
Original printings of Japanese-only cards such as Pikachu Illustrator and No. 1 Trainer are exceedingly rare, to to the extent that only a single-digit number of mint condition copies are believed to still exist. Both recently went up for auction, in fact, and fetched an absurd amount of money to boot. Think you’ve got a few hidden gems tucked away in storage somewhere? It might be worth fetching them and taking a look. Who knows what you might find?
As for the world of Pokémon outside of cardboard, Switch exclusive games Sword and Shield recently received their first slice of DLC. See here for everything you need to know about the Isle of Armor.