The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Victor Wembanyama, Black November deals, Bowman U pulls, Leaf Pickleball, NFL Week 9 and more.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Victor Wembanyama, Allen & Ginter X, Black November deals, NFL Week 9 and more.

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2023 Leaf Metal Pop Century 1/1 Pre-Production Proofs
Where to buy: Click here (when available)

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery for what was in this one.

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What: 2023-24 Panini Origins basketball cards
Arrives: Jan. 31
Box basics: One rookie jersey auto and one other auto or mem card per seven-card box (12 boxes per case)
Order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: Origins hits the NBA court for its fifth season with a new crop of rookies and plenty more to chase.

Keep reading for more info and a full gallery of images released so far.

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What: 2023 TruCreator Jewel Edition trading cards
Arrives: Nov. 24
Box basics: Two hits (at least one autograph) per two-pack pouch
Order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: TruCreator's newest release takes a dazzling look at notable athletes and influencers with perhaps a memorabilia card type that's a first of its kind here -- video game controller relics.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

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What: 2023 Topps Finest Star Wars trading cards
Arrives: Nov. 29
Box basics: Two hits -- one autograph or sketch card guaranteed -- per 12-pack box (TBD boxes per case)
Checklist: TBD
Odds: Click here
Order: Click here (when live)

What's buzz-worthy: Early details are here for another run of Finest for Star Wars fans with a return in the familiar the mini-box format allowing fans to chase autographs, Refractor rainbows and more in a release that touches on the entire galaxy.

Keep reading for more as well as a gallery.

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If you hadn't noticed, there are a number of boxes with discounted prices right now right here as the first wave of Blowout Cards' Black November sales is here

Many of the discounts were dramatic enough that Buzz once again had to ponder the possibilities in many of the boxes and cases -- and here are five that caught this collector’s eye ... and there's far more that just might suit your tastes in the big sale.

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SCHOOL COLORS & MORE
2022 Bowman's Best University Football Hobby
It might be the season talking, but this box jumped out at me among the sales ranks as it's relatively new, includes a bunch of stars playing on Saturdays (thanks to NIL deals they're in here) and some notables who are now playing on Sundays right now, too. There are two Chrome autos per box here as well as quite a bit of insert and parallel potential, too, without breaking the bank. Sure, with a deeper checklist and names who won't be pros until later, there will be some leaner boxes than others -- like anything, really -- but with full logos, NIL guys, Chrome and parallels this one might have a shelf life a little longer than others in terms of popular players emerging on the fields and on collectors' minds. Among autos here? The last two Heisman Trophy winners, Bryce Young and Caleb Williams, along with Jordan Addison, Anthony Richardson, Jahmyr Gibbs, Heisman favorite J.J. McCarthy, Bo Nix, Jordan Addison, C.J. Stroud and more ... and there are multi-player autos to find, too.

Keep reading for a few more boxes you should consider (and are likely to end up in Buzz's cart).

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and break down the results here. Like this and want to see more -- or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2022 Panini WWE NXT wrestling cards (blaster)
First Buzz preview & checklist: Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (for hobby)

Keep reading to see a full breakdown and gallery for this one.

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What: 2023 Leaf Exotic Multi-sport Rookies sports cards
Arrives: December
Box basics: Three autographed cards per box (10 boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Leaf runs through the jungle one more time with a release that's all about rookies -- from several sports -- and only presents autographs that are all rare cards limited to no more than five copies throughout the release.

Keep reading for more info and a full gallery of images.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: The Texas Rangers win it all, Corey Seager cards and Hall of Fame pondering, TacoFractors, Black November and more.

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Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Click for a closer look.

Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ...

TO SEE WHAT CONDITION MY CONDITION IS IN ...
The Album: The Big Lebowski soundtrack (Mercury, 2014 -- first pressing)
The Reason Graded: As you can probably tell, I'm a dabbler with grading in a few -- but not yet all -- directions, but the notion of having a pristine item encased for permanent protection to be appreciated as an artifact of sorts appeals in a lot of ways. Video games, Funko Pop! figures, other toys, VHS, tickets, press photos and more can be graded just like cards, comic books, magazines and coins. I've tried grading VHS and there's a chance I might do more there with a different company that I use for pretty much everything else, but vinyl is one that, well, I jettisoned most of what I had long ago. That means this was more of a first project than just a first try. (I didn't have much vinyl as my early music-buying years were where the Sony Walkman and then CDs were a thing or emerging, not records.) I spotted this soundtrack cheaper than it might have been elsewhere and it's an original, so I grabbed it with an eye for a slab with Texas-based Tuned In Grading as this one is memorable as more than just a soundtrack but a film that's a cult classic with tons of interest and action beyond a couple hours of screen time. And the total package is cool front and back with scenes and even key characters noted.
The Grade: Tuned In Grading 9.0 (sealed)

Reality Check: I did this one to basically to go through the process and see if I liked the results and then to decide how I would approach doing more. It seems based on their grading scale and description that a 10 isn't easy -- that's fine in my book and that took away some of the grade-shock here. (A nine is fine in all realms, really, but we all want perfection and in some genres a nine has a few slots above it on the scale. Not here.) There isn't really a pop report just yet (but I know of at least one copy*) and it appears that the typical overall grade is a meshing of five applicable sub-grades -- record, cover, inner sleeve, labels, shrink -- but since this is a sealed record only two of those are in play. They both clicked at nines for me -- the cover here had a small bend on the back, while the shrinkwrap has a couple minor spots on the right side but I didn't notice one of them previously. I wasn't totally surprised as I knew the small bend would hurt me but everything else seemed strong. Part of me wants to try something vintage that's not sealed next time, but that's easier said than done in terms of balancing condition, an item I like and price -- I know of a few I'd try but I'm a stickler for condition and this kind of grading isn't quite as cheap as others but still less than some so I'd want something with an appealing grade. Plus, if it's not sealed then other things get looked at ... that you can't examine unless you're buying stuff in-person. Part of me also thinks albums without shrink-wrap could look better in the sleeve but I haven't really read up on what the musical devotees prefer. I think, generally, I dig it but I think for storage and size I like the idea of slabs for CD, DVDs and stuff that's more game-sized more ... but the size here also makes all the details you see on the back of this one as well as that main art on the front pop a bit more, too.

Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.

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