Logan Paul has found his next collector flex, and this time it is not Pokémon cards. The influencer, boxer, WWE personality, and very visible collectibles guy recently posted that he now owns a Beckett-graded copy of Weekly Shonen Jump #34 — the issue famous for publishing the first official chapter of Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece.
For anime and manga fans, that is not some random old magazine. Weekly Shonen Jump #34 is a serious grail because it contains the first canon appearance of Monkey D. Luffy, the rubber-powered idiot king who went on to headline one of the biggest entertainment franchises on the planet. Paul described his copy as a One Piece Chapter One graded 9.0, calling it the “second highest grade in existence” with a population of three. He also pointed out that One Piece has sold more than 600 million copies worldwide.
On paper, yes, that is a monster collectible. But the reaction from fans has been less “wow, respect” and more “bro, please don’t do this to manga.”
The frustration comes from Paul’s history with high-profile collecting and speculative hype. His Pokémon card purchases became part of a wider moment where vintage cards turned from childhood nostalgia into investment assets, with prices climbing hard enough that ordinary fans felt priced out. So when he suddenly posts a rare One Piece item and says “the manga journey has begun,” many manga readers immediately read it as another hobby getting dragged into the investor economy.
That matters in Malaysia and SEA too. A lot of us already know the pain of trying to collect manga affordably. Imported English volumes are not cheap, Japanese editions require niche shops or online orders, and special editions can disappear fast on Shopee, Kinokuniya, local anime stores, or convention booths. If big influencer money starts treating manga like the next Pokémon card market, the fear is simple: prices naik, fans suffer.
One Piece is especially sensitive because it is not just “content” for a lot of people here. It is one of those series that crosses generations — from Animax and scanlation-era fans to Netflix live-action newcomers and manga readers chasing the final saga. SEA anime fans are very used to collecting slowly: one volume at a time, one figure after payday, one convention haul when budget allows. Seeing a famous investor-style personality jump into a beloved series naturally triggers the “don’t ruin our hobby” alarm.
The funniest hit came from IShowSpeed, who replied to Paul with: “You don’t even know shit about One Piece.” Speed’s reply reportedly pulled far more likes than Paul’s original post, which says a lot about where fan sentiment is sitting. Speed has also been openly into One Piece for ages, even using Luffy as his profile picture, so the roast landed because it felt like a fan calling out a tourist.
There is also a potentially expensive twist. Some users pointed out that Paul’s graded magazine may resemble reprinted versions of Weekly Shonen Jump #34 that have sold before. Beckett usually labels reprints when grading items, so this is not confirmed. But if it somehow turns out to be a reprint, that would be a massive difference in value. According to Kotaku, graded reprints have sold around US$700, while an original ungraded copy reportedly sold for US$6,875 in late 2025.
For now, the whole thing is mostly internet drama with a side of collector anxiety. But it does highlight a real tension in anime culture: when beloved series become financial assets, the fans who actually love the stories can get pushed aside.
And honestly? One Piece is about freedom, dreams, and found family. Turning Luffy’s first appearance into another speculative trophy feels very not nakama.
Source: Kotaku