BuzzMania: Busting a 2017 Topps WWE NXT box (Hour 5)

The biggest weekend in professional wrestling is here with WrestleMania 34 set for Sunday in New Orleans and events beginning tonight with the WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony, a NXT Takeover on Saturday and then Raw/Smackdown tapings after that. We'll make today a big day for wrestling collectors right here on The Buzz with #BuzzMania, a series of WWE wax box and wax pack breaks all day long.

How long will we go? Stay tuned ...

The box: 2017 Topps WWE NXT (hobby)
The cost: Click here

What's inside this one? Keep reading ...

Packs per box: 10
Cards per pack: 7
Cards in this box: 70
Base set completion: 
28 of 50 (56 percent)
Duplicates: 0

Notables on base cards – Peyton Royce, Bayley, Johnny Gargano, Paul Alluring, Andrade "Cien" Almas, Ember Moon, Ruby Riot, William Regal, Bobby Roode, Shinsuke Nakamura, Mandy Rose, Liv Morgan, Elias Samson

Inserts: 32 (a selection of inserts and base in gallery below)
Bronze parallel (2) – Dasha Fuentes, Angelo Dawkins
Silver parallel (1) – Dash Wilder (/25)
Matches & Moments (25) – Notables include Shinsuke Nakamura, Sami Zayn, Finn Balor, Andrade "Cien" Almas, Asuka, Bobby Roode, Johnny Gargano, Elias Samson
Matches & Moments Bronze parallel (3) – Samoa Joe, American Alpha, Samoa Joe
Matches & Moments Silver parallel (1) – Jason Jordan & Chad Gable (/25)

Autographs/Memorabilia: 10
Autographs (6) – Johnny Gargano, Tucker Knight, Shane Thorne, Angelo Dawkins, No Way Jose, Wesley Blake
Silver Autographs (1) – Shinsuke Nakamura (/25)
Blue Autographs (1) – Mandy Rose (/50)
Bronze Autographs (2) – Tino Sabbatelli, Roderick Strong (/99)

Card That Stole The Show: The rarer Nakamura autograph -- we may see him winning a title on Sunday -- though the Rose auto might give it a run for its money.

What's Buzz-worthy: Don't let the box price fool you, this is a high-end brand in terms of what it delivers but with a crop of NXT newcomers that, on the whole, may not be as strong as the year before and (hopefully) this year's release that could be very impressive. It's also got some super-skinny stock that can be dangerous if you're not handling cards with a delicate touch, but everything else here is solid. In 2016, Topps released the first standalone NXT product as an auto-per-pack-per box online-only release and then this one upped the ante putting 10 of those packs in the same box. (You can buy single packs at the link above -- but the box price should entice you to go all-in when you compare them.) The base card format here is a lot like the Women's Division release you saw a couple of hours ago -- a roster set and a highlights set -- and then parallels and hits. I didn't bite on these at their original $200 price -- too many unknown names to me at that time and price -- but at its present one I took the gamble. And that gamble paid off with the ink for Nakamura and Rose, who are both on the main roster. Throw in a Gargano auto and the novelty of a Sabbatelli (he's a former NFL player) and this box was a fun one to rip. I may do another of these at a later date having won this time, knowing that there's a bit of risk with a lot of names among the signers' list that haven't yet arrived. (And some won't arrive.) There's safety in numbers here, though, with 10 autos per box -- the only other WWE brand that does that is, well, none of them, as WWE Undisputed (the high-end release for WWE) only gives you eight in its 10 packs. (That means two Relics there. Here? They're close to the only hits found in NXT retail blasters.) Also helping this one out? Parallels -- Nakamura has signed a lot and Rose has her fair share of autos already. There could be flashier boxes out there, but I felt like this one delivered at least a four-star kind of result.

Product Grade: B+
Box Grade: A
Fun Grade: B+

What's next? Be back in an hour ...

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