All posts by dpatera

2018 Topps Star Wars Black & White Hobby Box

This release snuck up on me.  I didn’t know it was coming until just before it was being released.  I’m not really tied in to the non-movie related releases, so it’s possible I just didn’t know.  I ventured out largely without really knowing what I was getting in to, but thought it could be a fun release.

It’s a pretty bare bones release, with a 140 card base set, and a few insert sets, as well.  The black and white is an interesting imagery

gimmick.  The parallels end up being a slight tint to the cards.  The box’s size really stood out to me.  It’s a box of only seven packs of cards, containing eight cards each.  That’s going to make it a tough set to make from packs.  Each box contains either one autograph or sketch card, as well.  The cards feature great photography, and the base cards do not really waste any space on design, other than the Star Wars logo.  It makes for a different feeling with the cards, to be sure.

It seems a little pricey for what it is, but we’ll see how it holds up.

This box contained:

Continue reading 2018 Topps Star Wars Black & White Hobby Box

2018 Topps Series 1 Jumbo Hobby Box Break

The release of 2018 Topps series 1 heralds the first signs of spring and the coming of spring training.  After a long cold off season, it’s the first sign of return of baseball.  I’m not a big fan of the recent designs, and this year doesn’t do much to change that opinion.  Again, the design, with no borders, doesn’t really feel like a flagship Topps set to me, and I can only see a tongue sticking out by the logo now.


It’s not a bad set by any means, it just doesn’t feel right to me.   Perhaps one of the biggest surprises to me, is the lack of buybacks in the product.  They have become a staple over the last few years, and almost seem to stick out in their absence.

Once again, there are a large number of SP and SSPs mixed in.  The odds for a lot of the numbered inserts seems much tougher than normal, pointing to a large increase in production.  That’s been a concern as the hobby begins recovering from Judgemania last year.

Continue reading 2018 Topps Series 1 Jumbo Hobby Box Break

1991 Topps Rack Pack Box Break

 

We have a throwback break today, in 1991 Topps.  This was the 40th anniversary release for Topps.  It was a simpler time for collecting, as there are no hits or inserts to speak of in the box, but there is a very remote chance at a buyback card from any of the previous releases, before they used to stamp each buyback card.  Topps inserted one of each card ever produced or a redemption for it, if the card was too valuable or large to fit in the pack.  The buybacks were very rare as this is one of the most over produced sets of all times.

Continue reading 1991 Topps Rack Pack Box Break

2017 Topps Star Wars: The Last Jedi Hobby Box Break

Topps released their latest Star Wars set on the day The Last Jedi opened in theaters. It’s a pretty clean design, and seems a lot more straight forward than recent releases. As usual, the release was pretty hush hush before that day, to prevent any spoilers. This set doesn’t seem to have many spoilers as it doesn’t seem to cover the whole movie and really only shows unknown characters. I think it’s safe to assume most people collecting this cards have already seen the movie before they do, however.

The base set is 100 cards, and comes in a variety of parallels. Many of the insert sets also come in various parallel versions. The box advertises 24 packs of 8 cards, with two hits per box.

This box contained:

Continue reading 2017 Topps Star Wars: The Last Jedi Hobby Box Break

2017 Topps Chrome Update Mega Box Break

This is a pretty straight forward, and relatively small release. It contains an additional 100 chrome cards as an update to the original release. The numbering does not continue off the first release, however. The lone insert set features reprints of All Toops Rookie Cards for some of the biggest names in the game. Both the main and insert set offer autographed versions, as well.

Is it worth it? Well, I’d say that depends on if you’re a chrome fan. If not, it’s probably an easy skip.

The Mega Box offers 7 packs of four cards each.

This box contained:

Continue reading 2017 Topps Chrome Update Mega Box Break