I still get way too excited over Pokemon cards
For those of you who don't know, I used to be hardcore into both the collecting and the gameplay aspects of the Pokemon TCG. I sold most of my Pokemon cards after I went to college, but I kept a small percentage of my collection.
I was going through the remaining cards today, to figure out if there are any more I want to sell, when I came across my "banned art" cards. These are cards that were forced to change the original Japanese art before they were released in English. I thought I'd post about it here because I have nothing better to do on a Friday and I think it's pretty interesting. (Or maybe I'm the only one who finds it interesting. I don't know. I'm kind of a nerd when it comes to the Pokemon TCG.)
Grimer from the original Team Rocket set. His eyes were changed because he was (supposedly) looking up that girl's skirt.
Note: Japanese scans are mine, English scans were taken from Bulbapedia because I no longer own English versions of these cards.
It's really hard to see in this scan, but the Japanese version of Sabrina's Gengar has cross-shaped tombstones sticking out of the ground. I'm guessing they removed it since it's a religious symbol, but I'm kind of annoyed that they edited the tombstones out entirely. They could have at least replaced the crosses with generic tombstones. The English Gengar looks like it's standing in a generic field, not a graveyard.
There were a few slot-machine trainers that received an art revamp before their English release. The art was probably changed to protect kids from the evils of gambling... which is kind of funny, considering the TCG industry's entire business model revolves around making kids think "maybe I will get that secret holo if I just buy one more pack".
For the life of me, I can't figure out why Sabrina's Gaze was changed. My only guess is "maybe it's because her middle finger is kind of sticking up"... but no, that's too stupid, even by WOTC's standards.
Misty's Tears, aka "the naked Misty card". For the record, this is one of the few cards where I like the English version better than the Japanese version. That Squirtle is too adorable.
And the infamous "swastika trainer". Well, okay, technically it's an omote manji and not a swastika. But I can't really blame them for changing it. I doubt many US parents could tell the difference between the two. Pokemon was getting enough negative press from crazy parents without adding something like this to the mix.
And my personal "favorite" (or perhaps I should say "least favorite"):
Moo-Moo Milk. I cannot even begin to list all the things that bother me about the Japanese card. Why is that Sentret drinking from a dismembered cow's udder? Do they even have cows in the Pokemon world? Because that is definitely not a Miltank; for one thing, it's white, not pink. Did they really have to put THAT expression on Sentret's face? And why does that man have a swollen hand? Is he having an allergic reaction to something?
BONUS! Here are 6 cards that were released as holos in Japanese but as non-holos in English (plus a random Chansey that was never released in English, because "why not, it's pretty").
YAY, POKEMON!
I'm debating whether or not I should post some of these images to the comm when I make my TCG collection post. I wonder if people would be interested, or if this is "old news" even to people who don't play/collect the TCG.
Speaking of TCG...
I couldn't help myself. I really like Gardevoir and Eevee, okay? And they were sparkly! I have a weakness for sparkly things. ;__;
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In Fire Emblem Awakening news...
- I am almost done with all the paralogue chapters
- Just when I think I am close to finishing supports, I recruit more characters. These supports are never-ending (which is kind of nice but also kind of overwhelming)
- I just recruited Inigo and Gerome, who are both pretty great
- I also recruited Yarne, who is basically me and therefore I hate him
- I'm planning to buy one or two DLC chapters soon. Any advice on which ones I should start off with? I have tried to remain unspoiled on the DLC chapters (outside of shaking my head over Micaiah and Eirika's DLC outfits), so I don't know which ones are "good" and which are "bad". For the record, my favorite FE game is Path of Radiance... but if I have to choose between PoR cameos or FE:A plot/character development, I'll choose the latter every time.
I was going through the remaining cards today, to figure out if there are any more I want to sell, when I came across my "banned art" cards. These are cards that were forced to change the original Japanese art before they were released in English. I thought I'd post about it here because I have nothing better to do on a Friday and I think it's pretty interesting. (Or maybe I'm the only one who finds it interesting. I don't know. I'm kind of a nerd when it comes to the Pokemon TCG.)
Grimer from the original Team Rocket set. His eyes were changed because he was (supposedly) looking up that girl's skirt.
Note: Japanese scans are mine, English scans were taken from Bulbapedia because I no longer own English versions of these cards.
It's really hard to see in this scan, but the Japanese version of Sabrina's Gengar has cross-shaped tombstones sticking out of the ground. I'm guessing they removed it since it's a religious symbol, but I'm kind of annoyed that they edited the tombstones out entirely. They could have at least replaced the crosses with generic tombstones. The English Gengar looks like it's standing in a generic field, not a graveyard.
There were a few slot-machine trainers that received an art revamp before their English release. The art was probably changed to protect kids from the evils of gambling... which is kind of funny, considering the TCG industry's entire business model revolves around making kids think "maybe I will get that secret holo if I just buy one more pack".
For the life of me, I can't figure out why Sabrina's Gaze was changed. My only guess is "maybe it's because her middle finger is kind of sticking up"... but no, that's too stupid, even by WOTC's standards.
Misty's Tears, aka "the naked Misty card". For the record, this is one of the few cards where I like the English version better than the Japanese version. That Squirtle is too adorable.
And the infamous "swastika trainer". Well, okay, technically it's an omote manji and not a swastika. But I can't really blame them for changing it. I doubt many US parents could tell the difference between the two. Pokemon was getting enough negative press from crazy parents without adding something like this to the mix.
And my personal "favorite" (or perhaps I should say "least favorite"):
Moo-Moo Milk. I cannot even begin to list all the things that bother me about the Japanese card. Why is that Sentret drinking from a dismembered cow's udder? Do they even have cows in the Pokemon world? Because that is definitely not a Miltank; for one thing, it's white, not pink. Did they really have to put THAT expression on Sentret's face? And why does that man have a swollen hand? Is he having an allergic reaction to something?
BONUS! Here are 6 cards that were released as holos in Japanese but as non-holos in English (plus a random Chansey that was never released in English, because "why not, it's pretty").
YAY, POKEMON!
I'm debating whether or not I should post some of these images to the comm when I make my TCG collection post. I wonder if people would be interested, or if this is "old news" even to people who don't play/collect the TCG.
Speaking of TCG...
I couldn't help myself. I really like Gardevoir and Eevee, okay? And they were sparkly! I have a weakness for sparkly things. ;__;
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In Fire Emblem Awakening news...
- I am almost done with all the paralogue chapters
- Just when I think I am close to finishing supports, I recruit more characters. These supports are never-ending (which is kind of nice but also kind of overwhelming)
- I just recruited Inigo and Gerome, who are both pretty great
- I also recruited Yarne, who is basically me and therefore I hate him
- I'm planning to buy one or two DLC chapters soon. Any advice on which ones I should start off with? I have tried to remain unspoiled on the DLC chapters (outside of shaking my head over Micaiah and Eirika's DLC outfits), so I don't know which ones are "good" and which are "bad". For the record, my favorite FE game is Path of Radiance... but if I have to choose between PoR cameos or FE:A plot/character development, I'll choose the latter every time.