The Pokemon TCG has been exploited on YouTube throughout 2021, with big personalities like Logan Paul leading the trend of opening packs of cards and exaggerating the value to create hype. The entire market almost imploded, with many cards worth a few thousand going for six figures in auctions. 

Most recently, Logan Paul decided to "drop $3.5 million" on a "sealed and authentic" first edition box of Pokemon cards. He added that it's the "only known one in the world." But due to Paul's "expert" being a sketch who lies about costs in past videos, the Pokemon community was very skeptical and decided to look into the shocking purchase. 

Pokebeach, a trusted TCG website, decided to dive deeper into Logan's claims. The conclusion was that the box "may be fake," using evidence from an in-depth video made by YouTuber Rattle. 

"The Base Set case first appeared on Canada’s eBay site on March 29th, 2021. Fans could place their bids for 10 days. The seller 'number1pokemonmaster' had almost no feedback and their listing was riddled with significant grammar errors. The seller also changed their username right before the auction went live as if to hide their history," Pokebeach started. 

At this point, serious Pokemon collectors were unimpressed and refused to bid, mostly because the seller wouldn't allow anyone to inspect the package before buying even though it'd be worth over $2.6 million if authentic. With very little competition, the box sold for around $72,000. The buyer then sold it for $2.7 million to another collector who sold it directly to Paul after it was authenticated. 

The original winner of the box made a video describing the authentication process. But Pokebeach was not confident that the information supported that the box was genuine. 

"According to them, an authentication company named Baseball Card Exchange was present to authenticate the box. While their company has a significant presence and experience in the world of sports collectibles, their reputation is non-existent in the Pokemon community when it comes to authenticating anything other than individual booster packs. Nevertheless, they stated the box was real and then wrapped it in their company’s shrink wrap," Pokebeach wrote, adding that the process was not documented or filmed anywhere. 

Other red flags included the labeling of the box being inconsistent with how Wizards of the Coast has labeled and packaged similar products in the past as well as the original owner of the box coming up with three different questionable stories explaining how he came across this rare item. The box is also not the "only one" in existence, with Pokebeach sharing photos of other similar products opened by other collectors. 

So what's in the box then? 

Pokebeach wrote: "Well, we don’t know. It could be boxes of paper that weigh the same amount as a legitimate case. It could be Base Set booster boxes with some legitimate packs on top and some resealed ones underneath, which is not an uncommon occurrence. It could be a legitimate case of unlimited Base Set boxes, but with a modified label to make them look like they’re 1st edition." 

Unlike the serious collectors who open their boxes to allow authentication companies to see the product within, Logan seems to have no intention of opening the box at this time. 

Unfortunately, scams and fake product reports have never been higher. Resealed products are overrunning the market. Collectors and TCG players are frustrated with the hype surrounding the card game and are hoping it will die down soon. But Paul's behavior isn't helping. 

Concluded Pokebeach: "A note to Logan Paul: Why do you keep consulting these uninformed individuals who don’t know anything about Pokemon? Do you fall for these people because they know how to capitalize on hype and get a bunch of views on social media? Because they’re good at acting confident? These people are only of the moment. The Pokemon TCG community has several members who have been here since the beginning — through Pokemon’s highs and lows — who are passionate about the franchise and can help you (or at least lead you in the right direction). I myself have been running this website every day for 19 years and have been part of the community since day one. So feel free to contact us if you’re serious about collecting! We’re not fair-weather fans or hypers here." 

The Pokemon TCG community is pretty confident that the evidence uncovered by Pokebeach and Rattle have proven that Paul has been scammed — again. But currently this is only speculation. It's impossible to know if Paul's box is authentic or not until he opens it and respected experts in the field (not Paul's gang) are present for the entire process.