The Pokémon TCG has been on a long journey since it hit the West in 1999, and veteran voice actor Tara Sands – who voiced classic ‘mon Bulbasaur and several others in the anime – has been along for most of that ride, speaking to fans of the series, videogames, and trading cards alike. “It’s been interesting to see the ebb and flow of the cards’ popularity,” she tells Wargamer in an interview, and “it feels like it’s bigger than ever right now” – but even Poké-celebs can’t miss the scourge of scalpers in the community, grinding up prices for regular fans.
“It’s a shame that it’s happening,” she tells us, “and it’s an issue in all areas of collecting”.
“I miss the days before the internet when I would go to antique shops and flea markets and find treasures,” she adds. “The websites and scalpers make it so much less fun for everyone.”
We’re speaking just a couple of weeks after the newest Pokemon set, Prismatic Evolutions, released in English and sold out online within hours, with thousands of fans unable to get the new cards, and web-based, bulk buying resellers sharing clips of huge stacks of Elite Trainer Boxes (ETBs), which quickly started selling on Ebay for upwards of twice the original $60 retail price.
Sands is right – we certainly are in the midst of a big growth spurt for Pokemon card collecting. Her comments come just before hordes of Pokémon TCG fans descend on the London Card Show this coming weekend – Europe’s largest convention entirely focused around the best trading card games, expecting over 7,000 guests.
The show boasts 400 different vendor tables each day, with the potential for some very big ticket sales of mega valuable rare Pokemon cards. But for Sands, who appeared at the last London Card Show in November 2024, it’s also a chance to connect with fans of all ages.
“I love seeing families who collect together or meet a kid who has cards that their parent passed down,” she tells us. “The hopefulness I see in people’s faces when they have a new pack to open is also so much fun – and watching them freak out when they pull a great card is the best!”
Sands’ extensive voice acting career spans loads of big franchises that are mainly targeted at kids – she’s also starred in the Yugioh anime, three Digimon movies, and even Barbie animated series (not to mention a stack of videogames including Dead Island, Fire Emblem: Heroes, and Nier: Automata). But Pokémon, and especially the TCG, stand out to her for appealing to both kids and adults.
For her, the hobby is booming right now “because it’s multi-generational and because no one ever gets tired of the rush you feel when you open a new pack.”
“The thrill of the chase is something we never tire of,” she adds – “and completing a collection is so satisfying no matter how old you are!”
Sands says she doesn’t have “a proper collection” herself – but she’s still got the card chasing bug. “For a short time, Topps produced Pokémon cards that have scenes from the early episodes and movies,” she explains, “and I have been buying those lately”.
“I like that they depict a specific scene that I worked on. My favorite of those is the Episode 10 card. It was the first episode I worked on and features 3 characters that I voiced: Melanie, Oddish, and, of course, Bulbasaur.”
Sands’ favorite part of appearing at big TCG shows, though? Playing “Who’s that Pokémon” with youngsters. “Normally at events I do a Q&A panel and it’s mostly adults in the audience,” she says – but “this time I got to do something just for the children and I had a blast.”
“And at the end they all got a pack of cards and could not have been happier.” I bet! That reminds me, I still have my Pokemon TCG Pocket packs to open today…
For more daily Pokémon card news, from new set details and gameplay tips and hot deals on the best Pokemon packs to buy, make sure you bookmark our Pokémon TCG news page and follow Wargamer on Google News.
Source: Wargamer
