Stacks of Wax - April 2017 - Part 11

My last post of April will be the last post covering the latest COMC Credit --> Blowout credit exchange, as I wrap up Opening Day 2017.

And to start off, a case hit. Actually, this is more than a case hit, as these fall at a rate of 1 every 1169 packs. Autographs and relics are actually easier pulls in this than this card. Yay?

Mr. Met!

And despite twitter handles disappearing from the back of the base cards, you can still find them on the back of selected mascot cards. Considering the bio describes his 40K (now 43K + 1) followers, it is appropriate here.

Of the remaining mascot cards I pulled, only the generic "Mascot" and Fredbird lack a twitter presence. I wonder how many of them get asked the Strong Baddish question about typing with boxing gloves on. These are among the more common per box, as I got 11 of them in this, counting Hank's appearance yesterday.

I liked the food cards from last year's Champ's better than this. Mainly because they don't try to make the unhealthy greatness that is poutine even somewhat healthy by adding cauliflower to the mix.

The Superstar Celebrations inserts. Just like with Mascots, I landed 11 of these (the Edwin from yesterday's post, and a dupe of Adam Eaton from a Walmart hanger). This likely marks the last appearance of David Ortiz in an Opening Day release. While a lot of the photos are the same, that Baez is really nice and stands out as such.

I guess there can be such a thing as too much text on the front of the card.

Blue parallels! At least I landed a Mets card.

And finally, a 1 per box insert. Not only are they still moving away from the Sportsflicsish backgrounds they used in the past, these actually feel thinner than the regular base cards in the set.

But, I got all I expected from the break. It is kinda depressing that a corny insert turns out to be the card that should be the one to take a bite out of the cost of the box, but that's the way things went this time.

Stacks of Wax - April 2017 - Part 10

As the month draws to a close, time for some Opening Day. I'm not bothering with the base cards as you've probably seen them already, and I landed the entire base set from the box, as expected. Plus, I've busted so little Series 1, I really don't want to go through it noting which cards are S1 and which ones to look for in S2.

So, you get the inserts. Starting with the two on the checklist I wanted to pull, and did.

Because, AWWWWWWW!

Seriously, AWWWWWWW!

This was the other one I was hoping for. While I might have preferred to see this in the former of the 2015 Gypsy Queen insert Walk-Off Winners, but I'll take what I can get. Especially since the odds of there being any sort of Jays card like this in 2018 releases is probably nil.

A more detailed look at the inserts tomorrow. 

Stacks of Wax - April 2017 - Part 9

5 more packs, and then time for my box of Opening Day.

Pack 6:

I'd hinted at this yesterday, but that Jamaal Charles was my favourite card from this portion of the break. The cracked ice look can take away from a photo, but it makes this smoky entrance photo even more dramatic. A sure keeper, and I can see myself at least looking to pick up a parallel or two of it should I find them at a reasonable price.

And at least I pulled this card a Bears QB without trading a bunch of other packs to get it.

Pack 7:

The McManus was another dupe from the group break in which they were bonus cards. The Dez is the base version of the Panini Collection inserts.

Pack 8:

And there's my second hit. The Salute to Service usually feature a swatch from a camouflage towel used in a photo shoot. I'm not sure what this is from, but at least it feels like a towel.

Pack 9:

Probably the worst of the packs, as the Bell, although a nice looking card, was a dupe, and RG3 really isn't a desired pull anymore.

Pack 10:

And a base/parallel pack to end it. The Allen is a thick-stock parallel, which are used as decoys, but these are at least /50.

And there you have it.

Stacks of Wax - April 2017 - Part 8

After a short NOW break, back to the shipment, and a lot of 10 Black Friday Football packs.

2 cards per pack, but a limited checklist make for good odds at some good names.

A base card and a parallel start the packs. Topps flagship wasn't the only product last year to use the smoke effect on the border. The Cutler is an angular parallel.

2 packs. 2 John Elway base cards, That's not how I wanted this to start.

Pack 3 contains my first card from the Panini Collection inserts, which usually feature more interesting photographs. This time we get the pink clad Le'Veon Bell clad in breast cancer pink. My favourite card from this break came from this subset, and that will show up in the next post.

WOO-HOO! Santa Hat relic! Yes, I'm odd enough to love these things.

And here's the final of the first 5. Smallwood will be sent off the Matt @ Bob Walk the Plank at some point. The Kuechley is actually a dupe from a group break that included some packs of this. That makes 2 dupes over 8 packs. Collation!
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5 more to go, including one more non-Santa hat hit and my favourite card from this portion of the break.

You Got Me!

I managed to avoid Topps Now craziness last season, but I couldn't pass on this:

Evil! And you just can't trust a kid who don't follow baseball.

Stacks of Wax - April 2017 - Part 7

Back to Court Kings, this time with this year's version.

I'll start with the box topper. This is part of the Panoramics subset of the box toppers. These are a series of mostly backboard photos in this subset.

Here are the base cards. They've got a nice look this year with a design that allows for a background matches the team colours.

The rookies portion of the set changes the background as per how common the card is. The Davis is the most common, and the Brown is the second most common.

A portraits insert.

These AKA inserts salute nicknames in NBA history, and fall at a rate of 2 per case. There is a nice mix in this of legends and current players. Who wouldn't want a card saluting a nickname like "Houdini of the Hardwood" or "Stifle Tower"?

Here's Davis again, this time in relic format. He was a second round pick last draft, although he was predicted to go in the lottery portion.

The auto was a pretty good one. Buddy did actually go in the lottery, heading the the Pelicans with 6th overall pick. He was then the key part of the Cousins trade that saw Hield move to Sacramento. A good pull, and one that might pay for the box. That's nice when I landed some nice keepers in the Brown and Maravich.

Next up, a flashback to Black Friday with some football packs.

Stacks of Wax - April 2017 - Part 6

And the rest of the box.

Pack 4:

A good way to start the pack - first card out is a Raptors card. This would be the only Raptors card I pulled from any of the basketball boxes.

As for the rest, the may have over used photos from the backboard in this, but I love that Omar Asik looks absolutely terrified.

The inserts bring my second autograph, and my second Rookie View of a Bucks card. Johnny O'Bryant isn't quite Jabari Parker, but at least he's playing on this side of the Atlantic. These are supposed to fall at a rate of 1 every 13 packs, so I definitely did better than expected landing two of them. Clarkson is another one of those faux-leather feel cards.

Pack 5:

Nothing too amazing among the base cards here.

But the hits bring my final hit of the box with the Jefferson relic. This, like the previous James Young, is /199. Robin Lopez is a red parallel, and a LeBron insert card is still a LeBron card.

Pack 6:

A couple interesting cards here in the final batch of base. That's a lot of blue on Draymond's card, but that allows the hoop itself to really pop in the middle of the card, and make the basketball seem tiny in comparison. And there's a Supersonics card too!

I wasn't expecting a hit here, but a couple HOFers among the inserts make it a satisfying way to wrap things up. A good number of keepers, plus one card that should cover the cost of the box in yesterday's post make this a successful break. Staying with basketball next time, this year's Court Kings is scheduled next.

Stacks of Wax - April 2017 - Part 5

2014-15 Threads was a Target Exclusive that I'll just assume blowout bought unsold inventory of. These boxes have 6 packs with 10 cards each. 7 of them are standard base cards, and the other 3 are inserts/parallels/SPs/whatever. 4 hits are also in each box.

Here's the first base card out. The non-SP portion of the set just mixes legends in with the current players. I do like the faux-patch look on the borders, just because it fits the name of the set perfectly. Nice photo choice too with the length of the court visible behind the HOFer.

And the rest of the base. Not much here, but the alternate Mavs jersey is pretty nice.

Here are the inserts. My first hit of the box goes directly into my secondary team collection of Celtics. An alternate jersey in die-cut form? Why not?

Pack 2 starts with a second legend, with the Human Highlight Film showcasing one of the dunks that helped him earn that nickname. My other favourite here is the Evan Fournier, just for an angle on the photo that one doesn't see much of on basketball cards. Plays around the basket usually get a shot from either the glass or directly underneath.

How can I complain when the inserts include a Bill Russell? The Anderson is a SP'd base card, and has a slight leather-y feel to it. Finally, the Hill is a red parallel to /99.

The base in pack 3 is highlighted by a perfect angle on the Klay Thompson to place the Warriors scoreboard logo almost in the top-middle section of the card. Maybe 3 backboard photos are too many for a single pack.

And your inserts here. The on-acetate auto of #2 pick Jabari Parker should pay for the box. That's always nice to do with a single card. The other inserts are keepers, with the logo in the background on the Gasol, and the Jones is my first Utah Stars card in my collection.

3 more packs next time!

Stacks of Wax - April 2017 - Part 4

Time for some retail stuff. This could also function as a stand-alone set, as all the base cards, parallels and inserts were exclusive to these boxes. In addition to the promised hits, there are 10 base cards, 2 parallels and an insert.

These are the base cards from the 50 card set (subset?). I hope you like that background...

since you see a lot of it. Not too much of interest among the base cards, but at least the Robinson and Stauskas will find a new home. Unfortunately, I just sent out a bubbler last week, so it will likely wait until after the Expo.

Not much different about the parallels. Blue foil and numbered /499.

The only non-rookie card in the box was this flashback to Carmelo's time with the Nuggets. This theme was continued in this seasons release, as this subset returned in box topper form.

Devyn Marble is already out of the league, playing in Europe last season. I can parse all the letters in his last name, though. That's always good. He might be the only person who has a more legible sticker auto than for on-card autos.

The relic does fall into my PCs, since Tyler Ennis is one of the Canadians in the NBA. He's bounced around since this card, with stops in Houston, Milwaukee and LA.

And there you have it. Next up, I stick with the retail theme and a product that was originally Target exclusive: 2014 Threads.