Making the Grade (Aug.): Iconic comics, NFL newcomers, Drew, WWE stars, rookie LeBron, Joe Montana's RC & plenty more

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.

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

THIS IS WHY YOU GRADE ...
The Book: The Amazing Spider-Man #361 -- first full appearance of Carnage (Marvel cards here)
The Reason Graded: As you probably read in a past piece where I previously graded my other newsstand copy of this iconic issue, I have a stash of early 1990s books that are all quite clean as I was picking off stuff from a bookstore without rack damage. I was more of an art fan/collector than a reader -- it was all about art and condition -- and this cover-price pickup came at a time where cards were starting to get too expensive to me in 1992 so I dabbled. I have had this stashed all this time and while the pop report here is heavy for sure ... how many of them can be newsstand 9.8s? I suspect it's a definite minority of that 5,000-some books.
The Grade: CGC 9.8 (Universal)

Reality Check: When I graded my other copy of this its pop was at 20,179 and there have been big gains at 9.4, 9.6 and 9.8. The eBay asking prices on this one for newsstand include $6,999 (not getting hit), $2,500 for a pair, just under $2,200, $2,000 and a bunch down to $750. Not that helpful. Actual eBay sales? Highs around $1,200 down to around $600 ... so definitely still a little all over the place. Recent sales are also still in that range for this key issue. No matter the timing or the price paid ... this is an example of why you grade good stuff. All it cost me $1.25 and grading fees.

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

AND NEW ...
The Card: Liv Morgan 2018 Topps WWE Then Now Forever (Series 2) autographs #147
The Reason Graded: She's been in the WWE ranks for some time now with her NXT debut coming back in 2015 and she's been part of a number of storylines with hits and misses as part of, for example, The Riott Squad and then the infamous Lana-Lashley wedding. But it was her latest moment that is the big one as she knocked off Ronda Rousey to become the Smackdown! women's champ in a surprising underdog kind of moment at Money In The Bank and defended it again this weekend. The former UFC champ and Hall of Famer was taken out by a 5-foot-3 energetic star who hadn't actually ever held any kind of WWE belt at all. I've picked off a number of her cards and autos through the years but I actually think I pulled this from a discounted hobby box back in the day.
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: This one looked like it might grade well and it's a card from earlier in her run but not super-early as she's seen here as a member of the Squad, which was arguably her most-memorable work leading up to now. I'm a big fan of this design and the two sets it was used for because it showcases some good photographs. This isn't her best card on that front but it's a fun one -- and "fun" is a big part of what makes Morgan work.

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SO FRESH & SO CLEAN ...
The Card: LeBron James 2003-04 Upper Deck LeBron's Diary #LJ11
The Reason Graded: Back when James was a rookie, I dabbled more with NBA than I perhaps ever had -- or at least as much as when 1989-90 Hoops arrived and then the 1996-97 year that showcased Allen Iverson and Kobe Bryant. The difference? Cost and big potential. I ripped single boxes of Glass, SPx, SP Signature and others with no luck -- unless you think Jason Kapono was lucky -- but I did open a lot of the cheap retail stuff, too, and held onto a number of these inserts as they showcased good photos. Even I had too many for them to be all that valuable -- but since they were ultimately all I ever landed they survived my purging of a lot of cards over the years. I recently found my stash and thought this one looked very clean ... so I threw it in a bulk sub.
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: I was right, though it does seem like this card grades pretty well with almost half of the slabs equaling mine. I need to revisit the rest of my stash and see if others might make the grade. This set isn't rare but it is findable and with 15 cards it could be a simple project to collect. I also don't think high-grade copies are necessarily a gimme with the stock that was used here and all that dark ink. The demand of recent years also has put a dent in any boxes and packs of this out there, too, so prices have risen some.

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THIS BRAVE IS BACK
The Card: Ronald Acuña Jr. 2018 Bowman's Best Refractor #51 -- Rookie Card parallel
The Reason Graded: Before Acuña was hurt last season I had a ton of his stuff I wanted to grade in a bulk sub ... but I went the prudent route and only did a few, figuring other people would probably be grading him due to his overall popularity. As you probably know from PSA's volume, the more popular a guy is can mean a ton of slabs -- and more volatile prices if there's a lot up for sale. Since this one was a Refractor parallel of a RC I sent it ... it looked clean and I figured his base RC might be graded more and be easier to land.
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: The relatively low volume here is a good thing ... but nearly everything has checked in at Gem Mint, which is now a 10 with their new slabs. (No worries for me as I'm not grading to flip.) There are a lot of parallels in this release and it's definitely not as popular as others ... but I like the feel of this one vs. a PSA slab where it's presently at 867 copies graded (773 at a 10).

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A LONG-TIME FAVORITE
The Book: The Uncanny X-Men #213 (Marvel cards here)
The Reason Graded: Art-wise, this cover is legendary in my book. It does not feel like a comic from 1987 with its dramatically tight crop showcasing a battle of these rivals -- Wolverine vs. Sabretooth -- who in the movies are related but in the books are not. (So I'm told ... I bought for the art.) UK-based artist Alan Davis and inker Paul Neary brought this one to life and I picked off a ton of Davis' covers and issues beyond their work on Excalibur, which was a favorite series of mine. This was a copy I picked up in recent years -- it might have been off of COMC, actually, and in a past Buzz Buys piece -- while a second one that I landed way back then I recently also had graded. (It will be seen here soon as it had to be pressed, which takes much longer to return.) That's how much I like this issue.
The Grade: CGC 9.4 (Universal)

Reality Check: I was fine with the grade here as the stuff from before the 1990s seems to be a little more loosey goosey with the print, paper and cutting quality ... so I only really realistically think I'm landing a 9.8 or 9.6 on stuff I picked off brand new back in the early 1990s. Slabbed comics are really growing on me as they present well and are way easier to handle vs. bagged and boarded books. I have graded a lot this year and will grade more -- there's a lot out there to explore. Plus comics grading is harder ... and since they cost more than cards the populations are, generally, lower on big stuff compared to cards, too.

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END OF THE LINE? (OR A NEW MERCEDES?)
The Card: Sasha Banks 2018 Topps WWE Undisputed Blue Autographed Relics (/25)
The Reason Graded: I picked this up long ago at a good price and when I revisited all my buys from the last couple years I noticed that this one was a really clean card for the iconic WWE star -- and a low-volume one to boot. I have mentioned how I like grading this brand many times here and this is another example of that.
The Grade: CSG 10

Reality Check: These cards grade so well ... as long as the corners didn't get a mild pop at some point (most have on-card autos but not the auto Relics). The only thing to worry about beyond that are the back edges that can show wear depending on the color schemes. The top-left corner here is perfect -- that's part of the textured design -- and this sub was, too.

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GRADED SOME GERTIE
The Card: Drew Barrymore ("Gertie kisses E.T.") 1982 Nabisco E.T. The Extra Terrestrial #11
The Reason Graded: I think I have a mild Drew Barrymore problem as I have been picking off cards and other stuff to grade and this is an example from what was essentially her entrance into mainstream pop culture. (Though she did have other roles before.) Why? There's a lot to find with with a life spent in film and the spotlight and I remember this movie being one where I was first exposed to the toys and merch ... I think I was in kindergarten at the time. (Ironically, I remember I fell asleep before the movie ended when I saw it at a drive-in ... yes, a drive-in.) There are Topps cards and stickers for this landmark film -- many with the same images -- but the cards are very hit and miss for the stock and printing quality (it was 1982). Meanwhile, the stickers are on thin paper and are also at times challenges if you're daring pondering a slab. In this case, this oddball food issue -- and it's extra odd as these are smaller almost tobacco-style size cards -- caught my attention as it really looked cleanly made and wasn't expensive considering how these are a lot more obscure than the Topps stuff.
The Grade: SGC 9

Reality Check: Since CSG (or its fellow acronyms) doesn't yet grade non-sports (just gaming), I opted for this slabbing via SGC and I was a little surprised it didn't check in higher. But I still dig the card and generally I'm fine with nines -- I just wanted this one to check in higher because I like the moment and the set. If I find others from this release that I like, I might grade more. If not, I guarantee you'll find more Barrymore here.

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ALL THAT FOIL ...
The Book: The Amazing Spider-Man #375 (Marvel cards here)
The Reason Graded: This is admittedly a gimmick book in the big scheme of things, but I bit back in the day as it was an anniversary issue, a milestone number and one that showcased Spider-Man and one of his biggest modern enemies, Venom. Plus it was a cardboard/foilboard cover at newsstand ... which meant a lot of them got the obligatory spine bend as people flipped through them to find what they could. (And it was 1993 when I was buying. Stuff like this wasn't as blasé as it would be now.)
The Grade: CGC 9.4 (Universal)

Reality Check: I was a little surprised this one dipped to a 9.4 but the cardboard spine here isn't like the typical paper stuff, plus it was a thicker issue so it may have had a couple small spots. Once again I figured my newsstand copy might be more appealing vs. a direct one -- asking prices on eBay are up to $1,000 for a 9.8 -- with asking on ones more like mine unfortunately around $100. Actual sales of a 9.8 newsstand copy? A sweet $450 with mine between $50 and $150. The grading stats show this isn't that tough of a grade so I must have missed something else that knocked it down a notch. The cover prices of specialty books started picking up around this time, too, and because of that this is from closer to the end of my heavy comic dabbling.

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SOMETHING DIFFERENT
The Card: Tony Curtis 1958 Dutch Gum Serie T #51
The Reason Bought: I definitely know I didn't need this when I grabbed it earlier this year (or maybe it was even last year), but ... it was just $5. I probably did that since it's old and from a type of set that you can find with good names with relative ease but a lot of collectors may not know stuff like this exists. There are a ton of European sets made for American TV and movie stars of the past. Ironically, you can also find his first wife, Janet Leigh, and daughter Jamie Lee Curtis on cards, too, as they also have had many memorable roles and credits in the past ... so maybe this is a small slab set-starter or something. (Probably just some vintage filler ... but we'll see.)
The Grade: PSA 4

Reality Check: Maybe I grabbed this one after I checked the pop report -- this is a little surprising as even this kind of stuff has a modest following for grading fans. This card also looks good beyond that centering for a PSA 4.

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ONE OF MANY BOs IN WAITING ...
The Card: Bo Bichette 2020 Topps #78 -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: The price is right on pretty much all of Bichette's basic RC slabs if you ask me though there are thousands of copies in PSA cases and plenty from elsewhere for this set. I'm a buyer when they drop to a certain point and this one is far from alone as I probably have an entire MTG month's worth of Bichette cards in waiting. He's having a slightly down year and some injury issues at the moment, but I'm a believer for the potential with this second-generation player.
The Grade: BGS 9

Reality Check: This pop is way lower than PSA -- it should cross the 30,000 slabs plateau there soon -- but I think this pick-up was more about cost than anything. Simple as that.

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SCHOOL TIES ...
The Card: Alex Avila 2012 Topps Golden Moments Relics #AA
The Reason Bought: I'm sure price got me here but this one has other reasons ... first, school ties, as he's a former Alabama player and, second, a simple thought. Who grades Relics? I also grabbed it knowing the next obvious point.
The Grade: BGS 9

Reality Check: I knew this was a pop-one when I saw it ... and, well, that's also something that interests me mildly. (I grade a lot of weird stuff ... but basic Relics I still probably wouldn't. But maybe in some cases I should?) Given the size of the product this one comes from and how big the checklists are for Relics sets, you have to wonder how many actual copies are made for some obscure players like this. A couple hundred? Do they dry up over time and become tougher finds? This was less than $6 already slabbed.

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AND NEW ... PART 2?
The Card: Elayna Black (aka WWE's Cora Jade) 2021 AAW Alive Series 1 #5 -- Pre-Rookie Card
The Reason Graded: I own a couple copies of this indy card because this was her only option when she first arrived in WWE's NXT 2.0 and her arrival came in the odd time where Topps was wrapping up a bunch of its delayed releases and Panini was ramping up for its debut. She's been a key player in NXT and appears primed for a larger role soon, so I figured this was a good slab for my stash.
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: The stock and printing quality on indy sets can be hit and miss -- this one isn't super-clean but I definitely have seen worse -- but I'll also probably grade my other copy. (This one's bottom corners aren't as light as they look here -- some of that's just the angle/lightign.) I'll probably grade some of her other cards once I get them in hand as Jade is among three or four names there now who should have big roles later.

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END OF THE LINE ... OR A NEW START?
The Card: Paige 2015 Topps WWE Undisputed Purple (/50) -- Rookie Card parallel
The Reason Graded: Undisputed is a favorite of mine -- I've said that here many times -- and this was from the first release and this, to me, is a key card as I'm a fan of Paige who had plenty of memorable ups and downs in her WWE run that recently came to an end. I'm not 100-percent sure how many cards I have from this parallel rainbow, but I'll eventually slab all I have as this is a RC year card but a release that didn't use the logo. (Her 2014 NXT cards are inserts.)
The Grade: CSG 8.5

Reality Check: The grade here annoyed me -- I didn't expect that -- but it's probably from an issue on the back edges as the backs here are all black and showcase flaws dramatically.

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RIGHT COLOR, ROUGH GRADE
The Card: Joe Burrow 2020 Panini Prizm Orange Lazer #307 -- Rookie Card parallel
The Reason Graded: I pulled this from a small number of Prizm retail packs I opened for this release and I figured after the Super Bowl run he had I needed to get this in a slab no matter what. To me, it's the right color but I'm also a big fan of the Lazer look ... I only pulled a few other Burrow RCs that year but nothing was as flashy and interesting as this.
The Grade: CSG 8.5

Reality Check: The grade was a bit of a bummer but there's always a lot that can go wrong here as the high volume of Prizm stuff made can lead to condition issues direct from packs. That happened here and this is one where I would have wanted sub-grades to just get a better idea of why it checked in lower than I had hoped. (A nine and I'm fine.)

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HAD THIS ONE STASHED FOR YEARS ...
The Card: Joe Montana 1981 Topps #216 -- Rookie Card
The Reason Graded: I have owned this card literally for decades now -- I got it in an early 1990s trade for some hot-player, new-card stuff when I was a kid -- but have always held it as it's got issues but is still quite clean for an iconic card. It's also, generally speaking, a card that has a lot of problems as you can see in the spread of grades in the pop report below. (Legendary wrestling announcer Jim Ross might call that one a slobberknocker ... it's that ugly. Even landing an 8.5 is a challenge.)
The Grade: CSG 3.5

Reality Check: There were six in my grade and at least 11 in lower marks when I checked. My grade didn't surprise me as it has a couple of smaller creases down low around the nameplate area but they don't really break the color on the front. (They show more on the back.) It's not perfect beyond that, but it was still a card I wanted in a slab. If all 3.5s looked like this, I'd buy them all day long if they were from certain eras. This one looks better than its grade and would probably sell better than that number, too.

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I'M A BELIEVER ...
The Card: Tua Tagovailoa 2020 Panini Playbook #102 -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: I actually prefer Tua in his college colors -- he's an established winner who panned out there -- but this slab was one I had to grab as it was priced at not much more than it cost to grade. (I was buying in-season.) I think he'll have a good year with his new receiving target and his record-setting rookie target back for more. I wish I could have grabbed more on the cheap.
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: I wasn't worried about the "low" grade here -- I just wanted to add some of his slabs. I think that spread is interesting -- only nines and 10s -- but with this kind of a brand I'm not really sweating it. It's plentiful and not the greatest stock (soft) along with all that color.

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BOUNCING BACK?
The Card: Keston Hiura 2020 Topps Now MLB Network Top 100 Players Blue Autographs #MN94B (/49)
The Reason Bought: This was an iffy pick-up on my part but it was still cheap considering the volume made -- and it was an odd card for somebody to slab, too, as it's an auto from a pre-season online release. I grabbed it for less than the price of a typical blaster about a year ago and have had it stashed and passed over as, well, he hasn't looked good in that time.
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: Hiura has had his ups and downs and still isn't looking as good as he did early on ... but I figured a rarer on-card auto wouldn't hurt me. No surprise seeing that it's a pop-one card.

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WE'LL NEVER BE ROYALS
The Card: George Brett 2015 Topps Stadium Club #210
The Reason Graded: Find a copy of the July 1976 issue of National Geographic and flip to the story starting on Page 112 and you'll get the first part of the story that is this baseball card and its image. It's a photo of Kansas City Royals legend and Hall of Famer George Brett absolutely deluged by autograph-seeking fans and this appeared with a story about the city. Part 2? In 2014, pop singer Lorde had a hit song called "Royals" and she said it was inspired in part simply by her seeing the image in the magazine and that word across his chest. The following year, Topps unearthed this image from photographer Ted Spiegel for its annual visual showcase that is Stadium Club.
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: I liked the story here, obviously, as simple stuff like this just makes for more interesting cards ... but this truly is a really good photo, too. I only owned a single copy pulled from a pack back then and it had been bouncing around in boxes all these years -- probably why it came back a nine.

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PITCH PERFECT? (NAH.)
The Card: Jake Gyllenhaal 2016 Topps Update First Pitch #FP-2 -- "Rookie Card?"
The Reason Graded: If you're a regular reader here, then you know I have picked up or graded these inserts that were a thing in Topps MLB sets from 2015-17 a few times as they show pop culture notables you might not expect to see on cards. The scenes are from when celebs or other luminaries were at the ballpark during or after their ceremonial first pitch. Donnie Darko here has a long list of credits that hasn't really led to a lot of cardboard. In fact, all I saw were Mysterio certified autos from a Spider-Man movie set ... and they don't actually show him -- just a round helmet.
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: Not shocked to see this being a pop-one card.

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HAVING A GOLDEN SEASON
The Card: Dansby Swanson 2017 Topps Gold #87 -- Rookie Card parallel (/2,017)
The Reason Graded: This member of the World Series champion Braves has been an overlooked star performer the last two years if you ask me and I say that despite the fact that he was an All-Star this season. He's a guy who seems undervalued considering his production after previously being a high-profile (No. 1 overall) draft pick, too. Doing some deep dives into some of my older boxes I found this card among a bunch of late-2017 top-loaded pulls and did a double-take when I saw how clean it is.
The Grade: CSG 9.5

Reality Check: Three graded and mine's right in the middle. I was a little surprised this didn't get a 10 but I still think it's a really strong-looking card ... and I'd prefer a numbered parallel over a standard RC for sure.

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THIS MONTH IN WWE HISTORY
The Card: The Four Horsewomen of NXT (Sasha Banks, Becky Lynch, Bayley, Charlotte Flair) 2016 Topps WWE Road To WrestleMania Bronze #109
The Reason Graded: This slab's label is all kind of botched as it was in an early CSG sub -- it's missing both the full name of the set as well as its status as a Bronze parallel. (It's not in the pop report* either.) But that's OK as I also own the other copy of this one that was more recently graded. (I'll pop it up here at some point soon.) Why do I have two? I dig it as this is a big moment for WWE's Four Horsewomen who have helped change the game in the last decade. At this point, Bayley got her run with the NXT title -- the last of the four to do so after she beat Banks -- and the others joined them for an in-ring celebration afterward. They all knew at that point they'd all eventually be promoted, helping change the game at the company's highest level. (And they have.) Also, Bayley finally returned from injury this weekend with two newcomers to the main roster, so we may have groups echoing this one in the future.
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: I ripped boatloads of this one when the wax got cheap and even bought some bulk lots of this card looking to grade the base version -- but it's all on skinny stock with all-black borders for the base. (In other words, a big grading challenge.) This parallel is still a challenge as the card backs are still all black and the stock is just as bad -- but it is is a tougher find. (They're one per pack for all cards in the set.) This is one I'd want in a top mark from any company with a tough standard ... it's just an important moment and one of the best cards in a set that's big on photos but a bit lean on flash. (Also of note, hobby boxes have seriously dried up and blasters are also too costly for the typical return to rip more.)

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SLABBED & SUSPENDED
The Card: Calvin Ridley 2018 Score #380 -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: This was a cheap addition from last year for me -- it's an RC from an early season set with the ol' school ties part covered. But it's a dog now as there's a chance Ridley might be done in the NFL after time away for personal issues and now a gambling suspension.
The Grade: CSG 9

Reality Check: Two slabbed and mine is the lowest -- double dud -- but at least it only cost me $8.

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DYNAMIC DUO
The Book: X-Men (Vol. 2) #24 (Marvel cards here)
The Reason Bought: This book arrived around the end of my time religiously buying the rebooted Jim Lee comic back in the day -- and, in fact, this isn't Lee work at all. I picked it up as Rogue (left) and Gambit were popular characters and this art did seem relatively bold in its simplicity compared to a lot of covers that were a lot more complicated at that time. (Remember, I was buying for the art and artists involved.) Over time, this one has gained in popularity for whatever reason with prices for high-grade copies being very strong -- about $500 asking on the high side for a 9.8 and actual eBay sales from $135 and up to $200 ... generally pretty strong for an issue without a character debut or a first issue.
The Grade: CGC 9.6 (Universal)

Reality Check: Mine checks in a notch lower than I had hoped. Sales for this mark? Around $75-$100 ... still not bad, though, considering the cover price.

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