Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys ... 

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GOING HIGH-END ... 
The Card: Bo Bichette 2020 Bowman Transcendent (/100) -- Rookie Card
The Price: Less than some retail mega boxes ...
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: While this comes from one of the most-expensive brands ever made and he's a past All-Star, a bad season apparently prompts easy sell-offs these days and in this case I was a buyer. While I'd like his RCs from these releases in slabs (the frames and Chome-like surfaces here can show smaller flaws easily) this one was too cheap to pass up in comparison to slabbed cards that weren't even in elite grades. This cost me half or even a third of common asking prices for the graded cards with no obvious, blatant flaw to make it feel like it would check in lower ... though it's not perfect. It's a perfect start for me here -- I'll likely add more if The Big Bo Slide of 2024 keeps going. Why? I collect Bichette.
Grab a box right here: Nothing for this one, but MLB boxes are here.

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Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys ... 

MAMI'S HOME ...
The Card: Rhea Ripley 2020 Topps Transcendent WWE (/50) -- Rookie Card
The Price: Less than some of my others ... and less than a new hobby box.
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: My lucky No. 13th copy of this RC from a super-deluxe release puts me over the 25-percent mark for stockpiling this card's entire print run and while it was still a pricey pick-up it wasn't my highest one, either. How many more will I find? Not sure ... but I do have a price ceiling, even for this top WWE badass and this badass card. I picked up this one awhile back and it got lost in my shuffle of WWE stuff awaiting a slot here, but since she's back from injury and ready to do some mauling she leads things off this month.
Grab a box right here: None for this one ... check out other WWE boxes.

Keep reading for more interesting items ...

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Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys ... 

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WELCOME TO THE COLLECTION 
The Item: Slash autographed Four (2022) CD cover (PSA/DNA authenticated)
The Price: Less than a jumbo box of flagship cards ...
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This is one of my recent additions in the rock autograph realm as, well, that genre can be quite pricey -- too pricey, really -- but the cost was decent here for an autograph of the iconic Guns N' Roses guitarist who's stayed busy with many a project since that band disbanded and then reloaded in recent years. While I'd prefer a signed item showing him -- I have to flip this one over to see an image -- this PSA-slabbed CD cover that was likely among those sold via Newbury Comics back in the day worked for me. It was probably $100 less than it could be at times for a similar slabbed/third-party authenticated item. Meanwhile, it was probably about $50 more than the same thing but without third-party authentication and encapsulation. A signed and authenticated photo can end up around $500 if it looks good (sometimes more, sometimes less) while signed items can soar even higher. Why? Access -- Slash isn't exactly doing signings or conventions -- so the few times he's signed for his own album releases like this in more volume they get gobbled up and become ultimately the entry point (or only addition) for many. Count me right there. I wanted to add Slash to my stash ... but not break the bank.
Grab a box right here: Nothing for this ... hit non-sports on BlowoutCards.com

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Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys ... 

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DOGPOOL'S DEBUT
The Book: Prelude To Deadpool Corps No. 3 -- first Dogpool appearance
The Price: Under $8
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This was an impulse/curiosity buy once I saw Dogpool -- a character that I'm admittedly not that familiar with -- on this cover of Empire in advance of the Deadpool & Wolverine movie to come as well as in a preview trailer. Why? Well, one reason I grabbed this was that the lone graded copy of this book on eBay at that time had an asking price of $400-plus. While I know that's high, you never know what people might grab if the that pup steals the show or at least picks up some headlines alongside Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds when this one hits. (Weird thing have happened with Baby Yoda and Star Wars' Porgs in recent years.) This comic cover isn't exactly the same as what we're getting on the big screen dog-wise, but with the movie figuring to generate a lot of buzz and perhaps include a lot of cameos I've been looking at stuff here and there ... and I really need to go find that magazine, too. It's actually got higher asking prices on eBay than this book and has sold for more than $20. (It's a UK mag ... so it's perhaps not as easily found just yet.) The comic has had CGC 9.8 sales of $85 and $299 in recent months, too, so there's definitely some speculating ... and there should be. This movie will be huge.
Grab a box right here: BlowoutCards.com for non-sports cards

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Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys ... a mix of newer pick-ups and some retro/oddball finds.

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A SIMPLE VARIATION
The Card: Bryce Young 2023 Panini Prizm Draft Picks Variations Silver parallel
The Price: $9.99
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This one caught my attention out there in the world with it being the antithesis of a lot of draft cards these days -- a helmet-less studio portrait -- so I bit. It looked clean and potentially slab-worthy but after how his rookie season went I might wait and see if others go the slab route and I'll pick theirs off rather than sub this one. Or, over the long haul, maybe this will make its way into my submissions -- but it's not a priority at the moment. We'll see. Either way, I like this card and no matter what he does in the NFL he's always got a spot of some sort in the school ties part of my collection.
Grab a box right here: BlowoutCards.com

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Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys ...

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THANKS TO OLD EL PASO ... 
The Card: Shotzi Blackheart autographed 2021 Topps Chrome WWE card (Fanatics witnessed)
The Price: $18.13 shipped (after $50 off promo)
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: If you hit that link above and follow the instructions on the can when you hit a grocery store, you should be able to land a code for $50 off your order over yonder and it should be good on anything. While I pondered using this on some other things, I went back to my collecting well for a simple item that I would probably not buy at its original price as it's an aftermarket signed card but one that was witnessed and then slabbed and it says so right there on the label, which I like. It's not the best card per se for an added auto and her certified auto from this set can probably be found for less than this card's original price ... but for the delivery price here I didn't mind it. Plus, I made some tacos. I opted to stick closer to one of my collection cores with more Shotzi ink ... and as you'll see in the rest of this edition I'm still all over the place -- this is a Buzz Buys with some oddball and interesting pick-ups for this collector these days.
Grab a box right here: Chase the certified version in packs here

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Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys ... 

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BIG AUTO, BIG PHOTO ... SMALLER PRICE
The Photo: Michael Harris II autographed 16-by-20 photo (Fanatics Authentic)
The Price: Under $65 ... Note: this large-size item isn't easy to photograph all that well without a lot of glare on its top-loader, so the image above is their Photoshopped sales mock.
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: I have this one batting lead-off as it's an item I wanted last year -- when he won the National League Rookie Of The Year award -- but I had my same-day order canceled by the company. Why? Perhaps it was my use of an extra sale code via a site that sells their stuff (it worked and the order was processed) but there was no reason given. I picked this up more recently -- with a rewards code atop a sale price -- from that same place, though, after he had a tough start to this season. No cancellation this time and no worries -- I just wanted his auto in my stash and I like the feel of a nice display piece (though I display nothing) with a large signature vs. a card that's likely going to cost more. In fact, the cheapest auto for him on a non-MLB card on one site where I buy singles is higher than what I paid for this. I'm probably a one-and-done on his autos unless they get cheaper over time, anyway, though. Why? His signature is a bit oversimplified as he's been in demand. It does look better than the mock but is still quite simple for my taste -- I'll start here and play the waiting game on any more.
Grab a box right here: Michael Harris RCs in 2023 releases

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What: 2023 TRISTAR Signature Series Entertainment
Arrives: Sept. 8
Box basics: Five autographed memorabilia pieces per case
Pre-order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: TRISTAR's Signature Series line turns its focus to the entertainment world after a few years away with a release that includes a pretty good volume of items per case -- just 50 cases will be made -- and has plenty of star power to potentially be found.

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Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys ... a mix of recent finds and some from throughout last year.

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LEADING OFF WITH A BARGAIN ... 
The Item: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. autographed 2019 MLB All-Star Home Run Derby 8-by-1o photo (Topps Authentics)
The Price: Around $80 (regularly $130)
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: This autograph is one I've never bothered with on cardboard mostly for how it typically looks (it's not the greatest sig) but also because the stock-pilers have stayed busy grabbing them up as he's one of MLB's better young hitters today and he's not cheap. I landed this with a sale combined with some discount certificates on one of the sites that Fanatics populates and went here since that price was strong and the image isn't bad -- it's from his dominating Derby showing where he didn't win but wowed many. This was cheaper than most if not all autos from where I typically buy most often ... and those were sticker autos. I'll probably go this route for ink of notables (or singles in some instances) vs. ripping to chase 'em with pack prices these days. Pro tip: Just because a box is old doesn't mean the autographs just vanish ... hunt him from 2016 prospect stuff forward and Rookie Cards/ink in 2019 forward.
Grab a box right here: Nothing for this one but MLB cards are here.

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Fast Five is a quick list that might offer a basic starting point for a themed collection or new focus -- five things that could be fun for a beginner or a new way to add something to your stash if you're a grizzled veteran.

This time? Five past movies Buzz wants to see on card sets. New Oscar nominations? No need for me -- I'm not sure I have seen any of the movies up for honors this year. I'm too busy Buzzing with cardboard but I can do a film twist here today. How about some films that I'd want to see on cardboard? I can totally do that ... though it's not easily said and done for card companies to do so with licensing costs and the reality that sets need autographs today -- so Hollywood A-lister ink is a big obstacle.

NEED THIS ONE IN WIDEVISION ...
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
Remember the days when Topps took its "tallboy" card size and flipped it sideways to show off widescreen scenes from Star Wars movies? Fury Road is one of those kinds of movies where landscapes and dramatic visuals would make for some cool cards. Among the cast members are some big names then and some names that are perhaps bigger now, too. Tom Hardy, Charlize Theron, Nicholas Hoult, Zoë Kravitz, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and Riley Keough are of note here. (If you don't know some of them, Google them.) You have seen some of them elsewhere on cardboard already but this one would be far about more than just ink. It's not my flashiest pick here but it's the newest film from my top-of-my-head list ... you know, a fast five.

Keep reading for four 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: Big pulls, last-blaster heat, The National, inside a case of Crown Royale and "the Angels should have traded Mike Trout."

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Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys ... and this time around there's a little bit of everything (but a little more wrestling than usual as WrestleMania is coming soon.

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THE CHAMP IS HERE ...
The Card: John Cena 2005 Topps Heritage WWE autograph
The Price: A lot less than others out there ... whew.
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: I picked this one up sometime last year when I couldn't find a lot of key WWE wax and it's definitely a solid grab and hold for the long term if you ask me. Why? Well my price was a lot cheaper than other copies of this card back then so that helped me finally pull the trigger and grab one ... and it seems that notable debut cards and first autos for a lot of wrestlers are really picking up steam of late (mostly on the guys' side as they were arguably undervalued). This is Cena's first certified auto and also from the first year of Topps' current run of WWE cardboard ... a release where ink wasn't even in every hobby box and those boxes are seemingly long, long gone in unopened form. He's been a signing machine over the years, so he's not necessarily a tough auto -- but many of those autos are on stickers and his sig has definitely devolved into more of a symbol to help him sign a ton of stuff in less time than it took for him to do these. You can see a "Joh CnA" here which is more than normal these days, though he's not signing much now. His only autos that I have seen of late are in Transcendent releases and that means he's not had traditional in-pack ink since 2018. Love 'em or hate 'em, he's been an iconic star for years now but his ring days are definitely winding down, so another thought here ... we'll see him in the next Suicide Squad movie soon. His ink makes sense to go the route of Rock, Austin and others ... though he's got a ton more out there than they do. It all starts with this card.
Grab a box right here: No boxes of this one ... but new WWE boxes are here.

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What: 2020 TRISTAR Signature Series Entertainment Live Edition
Arrives: Feb. 19
Box basics: Seven autographed memorabilia pieces per case
Pre-order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: TRISTAR's Signature Series line turns its focus to the entertainment world with a release that includes a pretty good volume of items per case as part of a product that's rare -- just 50 cases will be made.

Continue reading →

Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention. Would they capture yours? I'd be interested to know -- sometimes they might, sometimes they won't and that's fine. It's a buyer's market out there with plenty of options and bargains as well as high-end gems to chase.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys ... and this time around it's the biggest roundup ever (in volume, not price).

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A UNIQUE SURPRISE 
The Card: Tony Gwynn 2015 Panini Immaculate Collection Collegiate Memorabilia (/99)
The Price: $16.25
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: It took me a while to find one of these (only casually looking), but this card of the Baseball Hall of Famer is one of a few that show him in his other sport, basketball, which he played at San Diego State. His estate auctioned off a number of game-used pieces and other memorabilia in 2015, generating more than $217,000 partly going to the Tony and Alicia Gwynn Foundation to help kids in need. His first Aztecs basketball uniform went for $11,858 in that SCP Auctions sale and the buyer was Panini America. These cards aren't all that plentiful in this release -- and they certainly aren't the only place the swatches went as there are just 99 standard cards and a second one limited to five copies with a much larger prime swatch. The follow-up release to this one had a few more, including prime cards, and he also had posthumous autographed cards (stickers) showing him in his basketball uniform in a National Treasures release. Spoiler alert: you'll see one more of these here at some point.
Grab a box right here: 2015 Panini Immaculate Collection Collegiate (when available)

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There's no crying in baseball ... but there will be Funko Pop! toys.

A League of Their Own -- Penny Marshall's 1992 landmark film about the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League -- will have its first Funko toys soon.

Just two toys make up this first wave as teased by the Everett, Wash.-based company on Monday.

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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: 2019 Topps Garbage Pail Kids We Hate the '90s (hobby box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (when available)

Packs per box: 24
Cards per pack: 8
Cards in this box: 192
Base set completion: 
153 of 220 (70 percent)
Duplicates: 0

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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: 2019 Topps Garbage Pail Kids We Hate the '90s (hobby box)
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com

Packs per box: 24
Cards per pack: 8
Cards in this box: 192
Base set completion: 
153 of 220 (70 percent)
Duplicates: 0

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Millions of people probably knew her as "Laverne" from her years on a hit sitcom, but Penny Marshall was a ground-breaking director who hit movie-making plateaus for the first time with Big and then gave baseball fans one of their all-time great films in A League Of Their Own, which helped tell the story of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.

But people might not know that she was also a serious collector of sports memorabilia -- one of the people profiled in a book with lofty standards, Smithsonian Baseball. (Click here to watch a past ESPN video about her stash that's worth a look.) In that piece, she notes that the Baseball Hall of Fame will be getting some of her collection in the future and talks about her fandom, which went beyond just baseball.

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The cultural phenomenon known as Stranger Things is coming to cardboard soon with the supernatural coming-of-age tale getting the Topps treatment beginning in October.

The full final details are still to come for 2018 Topps Stranger Things trading cards -- most notably how many hits per hobby box and which cast members are signing autographs for the set (see all of the early details so far right here) -- we've opted to take a look at the key cast members for the first season of the hit series from Netflix.

It might surprise you to see what some of this series' stars have already done -- and what's to come soon -- and then to ponder the power of this set in the future if the autograph list includes many of them and, atop that, there's widespread demand. (That potential is scarier than a visit from The Demogorgon or a call from Will Byers.)

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Have you seen the latest crazy items on eBay? If not, you just might see some of those here every week as we're launching a weekly version of our eBay Buzz pieces that pop up from time to time. We’ll spotlight some items that have a story or just wow us with how much interest it might have — and we’re not just talking baseball cards, either.

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THE ROYAL WEDDING'S BIGGEST CARD
The Item: 2012 Cryptozoic Fringe Seasons 1-2 Autographs Meghan Markle
The Price: $999 (or best offer)
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: Beginning tomorrow, this American actress will potentially be known as Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Sussex as she's marrying into England's Royal Family. This is one of just a handful of trading card appearances for her in this Fringe set and this once was a relatively inexpensive signature. Now? It's pricey and a number of people will undoubtedly be interested in these cards as the international spotlight will be all over the story of how she's ended up the bride and everything that entails tomorrow. Members of the Royal Family are not permitted to sign autographs, so there won't be more to come on that front.
Similar Pieces: Other copies of this card on eBay
The BlowoutCards.com Hunt: Click here for non-sports cards

Keep reading for four more interesting items in this week's roundup ...

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Legendary actor Tom Hanks, $19.77. Wrestling icon Ric Flair and his WWE star daughter Charlotte, $19.98.

Those are the prices this collector paid for the latest additions to his autograph collection thanks to the signed books section at one major book chain's website -- a new reminder that one of the easiest ways to land autographs from some big names is to watch the new arrival lists.

It's a little oldschool -- you don't have to pay for the autograph just the book?!? -- and a little risky as you have to buy from the right places using some strategy, but it's one way that many collectors have landed ink without forking over big bucks or ripping packs to chase a particular name. (Some names, like Hanks for example, don't even have card appearances.)

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What: 2017 Historic Autographs Fame & Photo Edition
Arrives: Oct. 25
Box basics: One autographed 8-by-10 photo per pack (20 packs per case)

What's buzz-worthy: Historic Autographs takes to Hollywood with this release that includes big names from Hollywood -- you know, ones found in the tabloids and elsewhere.

Keep reading for more information.

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What: 2017 Leaf Pop Century Signed Photograph Update Edition
Arrives: Late September
Box basics: One autographed 8-by-10 photo per box (12 boxes per case)

What's buzz-worthy: Leaf's latest autograph product for pop culture arrives with certified autographed photos from the biggest names in Hollywood as well as big names from elsewhere.

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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 Today: A huge autograph steal that you can get in on, big breaks, quirky cards, unusual autograph items & plenty more.

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If you're a fan of A League of Their Own or a collector of baseball movie memorabilia, you may need to head to a Walmart.

That's where you can find a recently released exclusive 25th anniversary Blu-ray/DVD package of the popular Penny Marshall film and it includes baseball cards as well as other extras.

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