Overview
- Resellers bought large quantities of Weekly Shonen Jump issue 33, causing widespread sellouts at bookstores across Japan and preventing many fans from purchasing the magazine.
- The purchases were driven by an exclusive One Piece Trading Card Game '29th Anniversary Edition' promo card bundled with the issue, which scalpers then listed for high markups on resale sites.
- Bandai Namco had opened separate preorders for a set that includes the same promo card, meaning the card could be bought apart from the magazine.
- Market checks and Oricon reporting show secondhand shops paid up to ¥1,000 (about $6) for single cards while some resellers asked around ¥10,000 (about $60) for whole issues, which limits clear arbitrage for scalpers.
- Creators and readers felt the impact: Blue Box author Kouji Miura apologized after fans missed the print finale, and publishers and retailers now face pressure to curb trading‑card driven shortages that push speculation into mainstream retail.