Probably worth $5K-$10K

May 12, 2023 8:15 AM

If you're in the mood to feel old, try this story about Pokémon cards appearing on Antiques Roadshow.
posted by Etrigan (28 comments total)

From the episode filmed in Vermont last year!
posted by terrapin at 8:40 AM on May 12, 2023

Reminds me of a couple years ago when a woman brought in a complete set of Beta MTG that her husband had collected. The appraiser went absolutely nuts, saying that this was the best collection of cards he'd ever seen in one place, and that seeing the Beta Power Nine on a single binder sheet was like seeing a Renoir in a museum.
posted by bassooner at 9:02 AM on May 12, 2023 [10 favorites]

How exactly does Antiques Roadshow work? Like how do they seem to have an expert on hand for literally every kind of toy, tool, tchotke, or oddity anyone brings in?
posted by jy4m at 9:12 AM on May 12, 2023 [2 favorites]

"The owner’s mother purchased the full base set of cards..."

*starts crumbling into dust*

"...for her child in 1999."

*crumbling pauses*
posted by May Kasahara at 9:14 AM on May 12, 2023 [6 favorites]

Like how do they seem to have an expert on hand for literally every kind of toy, tool, tchotke, or oddity anyone brings in?

Hate to burst your bubble - but, most likely with planning, pre-vetting of people who call or emailed about their possessions. Almost nothing on TV is 'unscripted/unplanned'...

I had the pleasure of being interviewed for a news segment once... It took 8 hours of filming, before the crew got what they wanted (there was driving around in my vehicle, during the wee hours of the night) - the final segment was under 5m...
posted by rozcakj at 9:43 AM on May 12, 2023 [4 favorites]

This doesn't really make me feel old, because Pokemon came out when I was a teenager and it was for little kids. My six year old daughter on the other hand loves it NOW, but she'd mostly be searching for her favorite, lapras, and not worrying about the value at all.
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 9:45 AM on May 12, 2023

... If "Back to the Future" was set right now, Marty McFly would be travelling back to the distant past of.... 1993 ...
posted by rozcakj at 9:48 AM on May 12, 2023 [10 favorites]

I watched that episode when it aired, and I still can’t get my jaw off the floor. Insanity.

~now wonders what the value might be for an uncut sheet of first-edition Skybox Garfield cards?
posted by Thorzdad at 9:56 AM on May 12, 2023

"It's your cousin Marvin . . . Marvin Cobain!"
posted by cmfletcher at 9:58 AM on May 12, 2023 [31 favorites]

She liked them because her grandparents would play them all the time.

Here comes your (mobility-assisted eight-seat community service pick-up) van
posted by chavenet at 10:01 AM on May 12, 2023 [10 favorites]

Some of the featured items are preselected (they are called "early bird tickets" on the website) but I think most are pulled off the floor. Per this pre-COVID interview they tape about 150 segments per day but only 20 early bird tickets are given.

I read an interview with an appraiser a few years ago and these guys are just really good at their jobs. They've seen a lot of stuff and they can quickly research what they present on TV.

A little more cynically, per the interview, the appraisers (who are volunteers) are the ones who pull items to be filmed so they are going to pull the items that put the appraiser in the best light.
posted by muddgirl at 10:34 AM on May 12, 2023 [4 favorites]

now wonders what the value might be for an uncut sheet of first-edition Skybox Garfield cards?

Rare garfs?!?!? Buddy you're sitting on a gold mine
posted by potrzebie at 10:52 AM on May 12, 2023 [5 favorites]

Reminds me of a couple years ago when a woman brought in a complete set of Beta MTG that her husband had collected.

MTG hit when I was in eighth grade. We played many, many hours at my friend's house. His dad got hooked on it, too. None of us had any money, but he did... and he used it to collect a complete set of alpha cards, four complete sets of beta, unlimited, and the early expansions. I remember leafing through the binders in awe. That collection must be worth a fortune now.
posted by qxntpqbbbqxl at 11:30 AM on May 12, 2023 [2 favorites]

Yes, this did make me feel old when it aired.

But it’s better than all the time they spend on guns.
posted by fruitslinger at 12:39 PM on May 12, 2023 [3 favorites]

My son just took my husband and me on a journey about the worth of MTG cards and we were shocked at how much some of them are worth. I mean, $615,000 for one card? Incredible.
posted by ceejaytee at 12:50 PM on May 12, 2023

Oh god. I gave away a black lotus. Someone out there has a story about a dipshit who just let them have this ultra-rare card for nothing.
posted by maxwelton at 1:11 PM on May 12, 2023 [8 favorites]

I was a little too old for Pokémon cards, so at least the sick creeping-toward-death feeling this gave me didn’t come with the sucker punch of also having thrown treasures away (that would be my Star Wars action figures). But I do think it’s interesting that the people this is hitting hardest are people whose parents’ horror and grief at throwing out their comic books drove them to protect their kids from a similar fate by collecting pristine Beanie Babies.
posted by Mchelly at 1:50 PM on May 12, 2023

I'm literally on my way to UPS to ship 27 lbs of bulk mtg to my friend's kid. It's costing more than they're worth but he gets so excited.
posted by hypnogogue at 1:54 PM on May 12, 2023

Oh god. I gave away a black lotus.

I’m close but not quite as bad - sold mine for $125 after my brief flirtation with the game, back in the day.
posted by nubs at 2:55 PM on May 12, 2023 [1 favorite]

I will only feel old when a softrock version of NIN's "Closer" is played on an elevator, or over the intercom in a department store...
posted by The Power Nap at 3:31 PM on May 12, 2023 [4 favorites]

On the flip side, I gave away a few thousand Magic cards to a beloved youth center 20-some years ago, when I was bored with them at age 15. A mental rundown of that collection's contents (and a pretty good knowledge of what cards are worth these days) suggests they might all be worth $150 today if they were in better condition than I ever kept 'em. No ragrets.
posted by 4th number at 3:36 PM on May 12, 2023 [1 favorite]

I swear I saw a storage Wars where they find some old MTG cards so they do one of the ask an expert segments and go to gaming convention. Of course, there's a Black Lotus and some moxes etc in the binder, barely captured in a camera pan, and the dorky expert who is appraising, "these are interesting...," and gladly values and buys the whole binder for about $500. I swear every nerd in the background was about to explode but they kept it in so they could all screw over the reality show people.
posted by abcanthur at 6:22 PM on May 12, 2023 [1 favorite]

I will only feel old when a softrock version of NIN's "Closer" is played on an elevator, or over the intercom in a department store

How about "Kids" by MGMT? I heard that one already a couple of years ago. Time stops for no-one.
posted by gimonca at 11:04 PM on May 12, 2023

How exactly does Antiques Roadshow work? Like how do they seem to have an expert on hand for literally every kind of toy, tool, tchotke, or oddity anyone brings in?

The British version has been going on for a very long time, and uses the same fairly small set of experts all the time. Sometimes people have clearly been specifically asked to bring something in and that's alluded to. Often you can see that the owner has had an early conversation with someone on the day, and then are repeating bits for the camera. Sometimes the appraiser doesn't actually know anything about the object at all, and draws as much as possible from the person who has brought it in. In those cases, they can still give a ballpark value, because they have a sense of how much "X from little known artist/maker" is likely to be worth. Generally speaking, they have a good sense of the type of objects that are likely to be brought in and there are only so many possible categories if you interpret them broadly - toys/games; ceramics & ornaments; art; furniture; jewellery & silverware; military; maybe tools.

Many years ago, someone I know slightly took the communion set from his church to be valued at the Antiques Roadshow. He went speculatively, they valued it at substantially more than he had anticipated, and he went home mildly concerned about the insurance. His experience appeared on tv and he had made the classic shocked face and said "how much!!!"
posted by plonkee at 6:29 AM on May 13, 2023 [3 favorites]

But also, at least over here, hundreds and hundreds of people go to each roadshow, most of them are never filmed but they do all get to speak to someone about their object. I understand it's a very enjoyable day out.
posted by plonkee at 6:30 AM on May 13, 2023

People who do estate appraisals have an amazing ability to walk through a room and point out what is worth money and what is not.
posted by nestor_makhno at 8:26 AM on May 13, 2023

When ARS filmed in Sarasota FL in 2018 they put out a open call for "interesting items". You had to submit some photos and fill out a form. My Ib Arberg Parrot Cage Swing Chair was chosen and they sent professional movers to come scoop it up and take it to the filming location which was at CA'D'ZAN. I did get a free expert appraisal but did not make the show. I was beat out by this beautiful pair of Daffodil Chairs It was cool not to have to wait in the massive general admission line (they provided an appointed time with an escort of sorts) and not to have to transport the chair back and forth. Overall a very nice experience and would highly recommend.
posted by HappyHippo at 8:51 AM on May 13, 2023 [2 favorites]

Pokemon? Some silly foreign import of a new-fangled game?

GET OFF my lawn!
posted by Goofyy at 12:29 PM on May 13, 2023