Double J Rides Into The Hall Of Fame

Jeff Jarrett in the WWE Hall of Fame? Talk about a Sammartino-sized surprise entry! Of course it seems as if everyone is eventually welcomed back into the WWE fold, even if posthumously. Still, ol' Double J has been persona non grata in the company for nearly two decades. Now he's back with a bang, or maybe a guitar shot, right into the Hall of Fame. For a long career, a few entertaining personas, and endless work behind the scenes in the pro wrestling industry, Jarrett is a more than Hall of Fame worthy name.

There is already a plethora of Jeff Jarrett merchandise out there, but like in our discussion about Goldust a few weeks ago, a new Double J item could fix a long-standing omission. Jarrett was at the height of his entertaining WWF introductory run during the beloved figure reign of Hasbro. His name is long been said to have been coming in another series that never arrived. Before Jarrett enters any other Mattel series, I would love to see Double J, complete with '90s attire, in the WWE Retro line.

My current favorite Jarrett figure already carries that look and was the rookie release for the Nashville superstar. The figure is still a major highlight of the Jakks "Bone Crunching Action" line and is the only figure to reflect the "electric cowboy" look of Double J. The cowboy hat and glasses are here, but a Mattel Flashback figure could include the complete "lighted" entrance gear that illuminated WWF entry ways in the 1990's.

Of course Jeff Jarrett merchandise spans further than his WWF run. Items from WCCW, WCW, and, Jarrett's baby, TNA all exist en masse. It was during these TNA days that Jarrett became a fantastic signer as he always took part in the autograph sessions and fanfests attached to the events in which he was a part of. And like so many babyfaces out of World Class Championship Wrestling, it's not unusual to come across vintage Jarrett signatures from the glory days in Texas.

Through TNA and later Global Force Wrestling, the signature laser-etched Jeff Jarrett guitars became a popular item. Though somewhat of a chore to store, no Jarrett collection is complete without one. I did cringe at shows seeing them filled up with signatures other than Jarrett's alone, but that was a selling point that TNA pushed. It's like having someone other than Stone Cold Steve Austin sign a Smoking Skull Belt replica. Someone like, say, Kelly Kelly. Yes, I've seen it happen...

WCW is also a prime source for Jeff Jarrett memorabilia, especially during the "Slapnutz" era. Pennants of many stars crept up during this time, but the ones featuring more of the nWo related talent seem to be the most plentiful. Double J's is one that does not show up very often. Jarrett was very surprised to see one himself when he signed mine. Even a bean bag doll, complete with guitar, was produced at this time.

But all of this merch? Just a stepping stone for the world's greatest singer, the world's greatest entertainer, and the world's greatest wrestler! That''s J-E-Double F, J-A-Double R-E-Double T! That's Double J, Jeff Jarrett! Ain't he great?

Glory: The Last Hurrah Of TNA Trading Cards?

You may recall that I wasn't exactly pleased with the last series of TNA trading cards from Tristar.  The design and feel all seemed very rehashed.  To be fair, it's a rut that the Topps WWE trading cards have fell into more than once, so in no way is the blandness confined to one company.  Around the time that I reviewed that set, Tristar announced that their next set, TNA Glory, would contain "On-Card" autographs.  For many collectors, especially those focused exclusively on cards, this was great news.

Most autographed cards from the majority of sports and manufacturers in the past decade or so have utilized stickers.  The talents autograph the clear stickers which are later attached to the cards by the manufacturer.  It's an easier way for the cards to be autographed by stars who are often hard to pin down.  I prefer obtaining my own autographs, but many card collectors will only accept the signed cards that are inserted into the packs and boxes into their collections.  Although it takes a great deal of the personal feel out of collecting, it's still a lot of fun to pull these cards.

With each Tristar TNA product, retailers that actually sell the cards seem to grow fewer and fewer.  Target and many local card dealers do not carry the line anymore despite still being listed on the Tristar site.  For most collectors, buying a hobby box has become the best way to collect the new TNA sets.  With the past few sets, buying a box has insured that you will collect a full base set of cards and obtain a number of "hits" that include various forms of autograph, limited, and relic cards.

TNA Glory once again promises greatness right on the box.  3 autographed cards are guaranteed, with at least one promised to be one of the new "On-Card" autographs and another card featuring multiple signatures.  Also promised is an authentic Slammiversary 2013 autographed ring mat card or a TNA event-worn clothing card.  I think anyone would prefer the autographed mat in this instance. 

Unlike last time where my pulls were rather lackluster, I was pleasantly surprised.  While it didn't compare to my Hulk Hogan and Sting pulls of the past, anytime you end up with five autographs from a box, it's a good day.  Especially when four of those autographs are from female stars.  The female autographs will almost always be more desired by collectors in the same respect that ex-Knockouts and Divas always do well on the autograph convention circuit.  Whether it's a matter of taste or a sign of some lonely days and nights on the behalf of the collectors, I'll leave for you to decide.

The on-card autographs really do look nice, especially since a blank area was left on the card for the star to sign.  James Storm and Christy Hemme are a good, middle-of-the-road, pair of on-cards to pull, and definitely trump what could've been...see Rockstar Spud.  The double autograph, a dual signed card of Gail Kim and Velvet Sky, is another one that any fan would be pleased with.  These autographs also feature different color foil designs.  Some collectors have been known to try and track down all of one color for sets.

My favorite pull is the Slammiversary 2013 autographed ring mat card.  Taryn Terrell, formerly WWE Diva Tiffany, was the signature and photo on my particular pull.  The card is very thick, and features a large piece of mat to fit the full signature on.  Seeing as that Terrell defeated Gail Kim in a highly touted match that evening makes the card all the cooler.  It certainly beats the days when relics would be inserted into a card and have little or nothing to do with the talent depicted.

The base set consists of 99 cards.  I'm a much bigger fan of this design than the previous set, and the All-American colors remind me very much of what a Great American Bash trading card set may have looked like.  Hogan, Sting, Jeff Hardy, AJ Styles, Kurt Angle, and the Knockouts are all here, as are King Mo, Rampage Jackson, and Tito Ortiz.  The final ten cards are Jeff Hardy art cards that form a mural of sorts when put together.  If Hardy's "Imag-i-nation" gimmick of the past is your thing, these are the cards for you.  The old Topps "sticker back" puzzle pieces these are not.

As always there are countless color parallels as mentioned above as well as other limited cards such as Sam Shaw-drawn caricatures.  Also as mentioned above, you once again pull a full 99 card base set among the twenty packs in the box.  This is a really nice feature that makes buying a box all the more worth it.  A base set itself will usually set a collector back between $15-$20, so in general it's more economical to just buy a box.

I'm much more satisfied with Glory than I was with Live.  I'll admit that it's partially because I obtained better hits this time around, but the fact that there were better guaranteed hits to begin with helped as well.  The design and photo choices are also a factor.  I am concerned for future releases due to changes in TNA.  With Hogan and Sting no longer in the company, the desirability of buying boxes for hits is going to diminish greatly.  Any autograph is nice to have, but the rest of the roster is extremely accessible for autographs in person.  Only the card collectors that demand "authentic" autographs are really going to want endless Bobby Roode autograph hits, and even those collectors are often driven by value.  Hogan and Sting were the reasons for the high secondary market prices of TNA autograph cards that Tristar so often brags about in press materials.  With those two legends gone, it's hard to predict the future of TNA trading cards.  "Cut" autographs of wrestling legends that are purchased by the company and inserted into cards is one avenue that could be explored, but that's purely my own idea.  As with most things TNA-related in 2014, time will tell...

2013 TNA Live Set Feels A Bit Like A Rerun

I've had good luck with the various TNA trading card offerings over the years.  A 1 of 1 Hulk Hogan autograph and a Sting autograph top the list of "hits" that I've pulled, so I have nothing to complain about as far as the past goes.  However, with the newest TNA product from Tristar, I feel that the overall design and feel has just been done too many times.  Are my feelings biased because of a rather unexciting series of hits in this particular box?  It's possible, but let's take a look at what the TNA Live set has to offer the masses and you just might agree.

This set is actually already about six months old.  Since I had a rather "ho hum" feeling from previews of the set, I decided to wait until boxes were reduced in price a tad until I acquired one.  Although Tristar makes no claims to it, recent boxes of their TNA product have contained a complete set amongst the packs.  TNA Live is no different, so at the very least you should be able to build the 99 card base set with the purchase of a hobby box, in addition to seven hits.  Those hits include three autograph cards (one will be a multi-autograph), one memorabilia relic, one short-print card, and two parallel cards.

As I mentioned above, I was less than thrilled with the hits in this particular box break.  To be fair, I'm also hard to please.  If there isn't a Hogan or Sting autograph in the box, I'm going to be more toward the disappointed side.  They're the autographs that everyone wants.  They're the ones that, for those who care, will bring the value in the future.  While the Bobby Roode's, Gail Kim's, and even Jeff Hardy's of the world are out scribbling thousands of signatures each weekend at TNA Live events, Hogan and Sting are not.  That isn't to say that myself and tons of other collectors are starving for Hogan and Sting autographs, but those are simply the ones that you are mainly looking to pull from a TNA box.

I'm not one to believe in internal "power plays" over merchandising, but it is rather funny that the first three cards in the base set are Hogan, Hogan, and Hogan.  Yes, the Hulkster, Brooke, and Hulk and Brooke together are cards #1, #2, and #3, respectively.  If you've read this blog before, you should automatically know that I don't have a problem with that.  I'm a fan of the Hulkster, although not necessarily in his current role, and I don't even have much of a problem with Brooke.  She may not have much business being a focal point of storylines, but she's a more believable promo than Ziggler, the Internet darling.

The whole roster, as of a few months ago, is nicely represented here.  Similar to Tristar's previous offering, TNA TENacious, the base set has a bit of an identity crisis.  Some cards are studio shots while others are action shots.  I've always been a fan of in-ring posed shots, and there are actually quite a few here.  Folks who have not seen a card release in awhile such as D'Lo Brown and Al Snow return in this set, and there are cool "group" cards for the TNA referees and Aces & Eights.  Even Tommy Dreamer makes a cameo receiving a beatdown at the ill-fated Brooke Hogan-Bully Ray wedding.

As usual, we're presented with some nice rookie cards including some Gut Check competitors.  A personal favorite of mine, Taeler Hendrix, makes her debut as do Kenny King, King Mo, Joey Ryan, and Sam Shaw.  Sam who?  I must've missed that week of Impact Wrestling.  I could forgive Tristar for giving a card to someone who totally fell below my radar, but then I noticed that Jessie Godderz has two cards in the set.  If it weren't for his brief association with a talent like Tara, I wouldn't have a clue as to his identity either. 

In addition to Gut Check, several other subsets are featured within the base set including "TNA Then & Now."  This subset features several Impact Wrestling stars pictured as children.  These cards can produce some amusing comments and actions at signings.  This time around Gail Kim and Tara's cards are sure to produce some "ooh's and aah's," but the TNA Parents Association didn't seem to dig too deep when fishing for early photos of Brooke Tessmacher, Robbie E, and Mickie James.  No "Beautiful Baby" contest winners amongst those three, folks.

Overall, I'd recommend to wait until the price drops even further on these cards.  While there are some cool rookie cards, all could be obtained individually.  Tristar is very big on autograph cards and other "hits," and that is definitely the market that they try to focus on.  They know that many are, sadly, buying the boxes just to score a big "hit" and make some money.  This has caused the company to get very complacent on the base cards.  I'm still begging for a "Heritage" style set.  Obviously they couldn't use classic designs like Topps does, but I'm sure that they could produce a very vintage looking set, without gloss, for the many fans who prefer such styles.

The next TNA series from Tristar is to be called "Glory."  This set, coming in October 2013, will feature on-card autographs.  Any Topps WWE or Tristar TNA product that has featured autographs have utilized autographed stickers that are then applied to the cards.  On-card autographs, which are obvious right on the card, are popular with collectors across the board and the set should be a hit based on these hits alone.  While they'll definitely be something to look out for, I doubt that we'll get an item quite as amusing as the TNA Live Hector Guerrero card.  Not since the 1988 Wonderama Ole Anderson "Dancing Queen" card have we had such an unintentionally (?) hilarious photo inserted into a set.  "Latino cheesecake?"

#WhereIsDixie? Right Here On The Blog!

It all started with the legendary LJN WWF figures.  They not only gave us rubber representations of the top wrestlers of the era, but also managers, referees, commentators, and even...pets!  Any child worth his or her salt knew that to have successful wrestling matches at playtime, you needed these key non-wrestler figures to accentuate the action.  Thanks to LJN, collectors today almost expect non-wrestler figures to be released in subsequent lines.  Unfortunately, the toy companies usually don't believe that these figures will sell and tend to shy away from producing them.  Jakks has been rather committed to bringing non-wrestler figures to collectors, and their latest effort is no different.  Forget managers, refs, and announcers...how about a president?

Complete with her own Twitter hashtag of "#WhereIsDixie," the newest Jakks exclusive figure is that of TNA President Dixie Carter.  The past few years have been hit or miss as far as frequency of releases for Jakks regarding their TNA line.  While many great figures have been shown and promised from the manufacturer, it seemed for awhile that the line was dead in the water.  Releases were few and far between.  One of the bright points was the release of a new Knockout figure in nearly every series.  Figures of Velvet Sky, Angelina Love, Daffney, and Madison Rayne were all produced with impressive likenesses for all.  How does the President herself match up?

Immediately upon first viewing the figure, the packaging is striking.  It's an all new and very grand design that is somewhat similar to the Jakks TNA Legends of the Ring figure packaging.  The window bubble is a perfect place for an autograph, but we'll get to that in a bit.

The Dixie figure utilizes the standard Knockout figure body.  While not an in-ring competitor herself, Dixie is fit thus making the body an agreeable choice.  Although this and all of the current Jakks TNA figure bodies have the "torso joint" that I so often lament, I've always been fine with it on the Knockout body.  Thanks to the soft goods clothes on this figure, we don't even see it.  The clothes are a really nice touch and necessary since the standard Knockout body was used.  Dixie is clad in an all new "glittery" top and "leather" skirt.  She's all business with a feminine touch.

The facial likeness is dead on, perfectly capturing the classic Dixie smile.  My only qualm is that she does not have a hand that is able to hold a microphone accessory.  Though the figure does not include a microphone, it's always been my belief that non-wrestler figures should be able to hold an accessory.  She can wave to the crowd, punch another Knockout, or break up a fight, but at least she'll be smiling the whole time.  Dixie's hair is sculpted in a style that we've seen Dixie wear many times.  Through all of that Impact Wrestling action, she won't have to worry about having a single hair out of place.

TNA has done an entire commercial campaign around this figure and rightly so.  It's nicely designed, packaged, and presented.  I've been extremely pleased with all of the Knockout figures thus far and Dixie hits the top of the list.  She's not the only new Knockout on the block, though.  After being in the business for over a decade and being one of the original shining lights of the TNA Knockouts division, Gail Kim has finally been immortalized in figure form.  She is part of Jakks regular TNA offerings and will be joined by the debut figure of Brooke Tessmacher this summer.

The Dixie Carter figure is available exclusively through TNA's online store and will most likely be available at select live events as well.  Online you also have the choice of purchasing a version personally signed by Dixie Carter.  The figures are signed in silver which, as I mentioned above, look very nice signed on the plastic bubble.  Although Dixie occasionally appears at the Fan InterAction events held on pay-per-view weekends, I wouldn't pass up this opportunity if signed figures are your thing.  It's a nice authentic signature and you don't have to worry about lugging around a packaged figure.

This is yet another Knockout figure that I have to give my highest recommendation.  Seeing as that it is indeed a "non-wrestler" figure, it gets even more points with me.  When a company like Jakks puts forth a quality effort like this, everyone wins.  Dixie seems thrilled with having a figure and rightly so.  In meeting and corresponding with her several times, she has always been an extremely friendly and accommodating individual and also one that I believe has been underrated as of yet for her contributions to the company that she strives to grow.  She is a hands-on business woman, and one that you can now have in the palm of your hands thanks to Jakks!

The 2012 J\/\/ Awards

 It feels like only yesterday that I was writing about the 2011 J\/\/ Awards.  A fun way to end the calendar year, the awards are chosen by a strict committee--myself.  The same committee also decides the look of the "Joshie" award which has changed each year since its inception.  While the coveted trophy has appeared "classy" and "immortal" in the past, this year the committee decided to get the "attention" of you "maggots," but I'd really like you to be "at ease" while taking in all of the awards.

With all of the cliches aside, it's time to get to the awards themselves.  Although tweaked after the first year, I think that the five categories are now firmly established and shall be for years to come.  A few surprises?  A few upsets?  A little bit of bias?  Of course!  That's why they're the J\/\/ Awards!

2012 Best Figure

The most controversial J\/\/ Award is always Best Figure.  Although the list of companies from which the figures are licensed is shorter than ever, the quality of product is still very high.  Uniqueness is as big of a deciding factor here as design.

Mattel's WWE Elite Jerry "The King" Lawler wins "The Joshie" for 2012 Best Figure.  Seeing as that I was not a fan of the initial prototype pictures, this could be considered somewhat of an upset.  The figure, just released in the past several weeks, is a perfect blend of design.  The figure captures "The King" in his WrestleMania XXVII attire, a look that already blended the Lawler of yesterday and today.  This is the first Mattel representation of Lawler and is part of their Elite line which comes packaged in a very attractive "window" box.  Add it all up and you can only come to one verdict: "Long Live The King!"

2012 Best Publication

A lot can fall into this category.  Books.  Magazines.  Pamphlets (yes, Tito Santana, I'm looking at you).  If it's printed material about wrestling, it's up for consideration.  

Inside Wrestling/The Wrestler Magazine wins "The Joshie" for 2012 Best Publication.  The award becomes more of a "Lifetime Achievement" this year as 2012 is sadly the final full year for the publication.  Beginning as individual titles more than forty years ago, countless fans grew up quenching their thirst for the sport of wrestling through these magazines.  Bloody covers, top ten ratings, and several generations of professional wrestlers made these titles unforgettable for almost six decades.

2012 Best Buy (Non-Figure/Publication)

What in the world of wrestling gave fans the most bang for their buck?  In 2012 that buck had to be stretched further than ever.  The best result from that is what we're looking at here.

The 2012 TNA Lockdown Fanfest wins "The Joshie" for 2012 Best Buy.  Autographs and photo ops from dozens of Impact Wrestling's greatest, not to mention the two biggest names in wrestling history, all for around $200?  Sold.  Hogan.  Flair.  Angle.  Hardy.  RVD.  Roode.  Storm.  Bully Ray.  Devon.  I could go on.  TNA truly knows how to put on a "Meet & Greet."  For those of you familiar with the world of fanfests and conventions, you know that the value is phenomenal.  The only competitor for this year's award would've been a 2012 version of Greg Price's annual Legends Fanfest.  Sadly, this year's version was canceled, but I'm sure the 2013 edition in Charlotte will make next year's running.

2012 Best Product Line

Anything that has continual releases throughout the year can be considered here.  That being said, I can see the most repeat wins taking place in this category in the future.

Mattel wins "The Joshie" for 2012 Best Product Line.  This perhaps could be the biggest surprise for frequent readers as I'm often very critical of Mattel's handling of the WWE license.  Not everything that they do pleases me, although it isn't always their fault.  Other issues such as distribution most certainly are.  When looking at 2012 as a whole, Mattel has put out some pretty impressive product.  From creating a very appealing new package design template that was rolled out line-wide to some fun and unique exclusives such as Build-A-Figure, the Mattel/WWE tag team had a helluva year.  Seeing some of the product that will be hitting in the first quarter of next year, Mattel may capture yet another "Joshie" to match their 2010 and 2012 wins.

2012 Future Holy Grail

This is the item or line that people will be enjoying for years to come.  Wrestling memorabilia from this year that will stand the test of time...

Topps WWE Heritage 2012 Trading Cards win "The Joshie" for 2012 Future Holy Grail.  I've been talking about this set for months and when it finally hit my hands, I was more than impressed.  Nearly everything here blew me away, and I'm not the only collector who felt that way.  I've already put together several base sets and yet I still find myself tempted to pick up more packs for subsets and hits.  I'm addicted, and I think that feeling will carry on for years over this set.  I will admit that this is one "Holy Grail" award that I'd like to be proven wrong about.  If Topps can come up with another Heritage set in the future that would top this, I'm all for it.

The envelopes are open.  The world now knows just what the gold in wrestling memorabilia was for 2012.  Agree?  Disagree?  "Like" our Facebook Fanpage and send some feedback!  You can also see every J\/\/ Award winner from each year in a special gallery!

It's been a fast paced and fun year.  Thank you all for reading, enjoying, and maybe even learning over the past twelve months.  We'll be back next week for the final entry of the year, but until then...

A Decade Of Wrestling In TNA's TENacious Card Set

With a decade now under their belt, I think it is safe to say that one of the areas in which TNA Wrestling has excelled is in merchandising.  Although two action figure lines have fizzled (seemingly through the fault of the manufacturers and not TNA itself), other items have been going strong for the majority of the decade of the company's existence.  Aside from a very nice series in 2004 from Pacific Trading Cards Inc., Tristar has been the company that has continually produced a quality card product under the TNA banner.

The latest series celebrates that full decade of TNA and Impact Wrestling with a fitting title--TENacious.  The Tristar company claims that this set will have the lowest number of cards produced of any of their previous TNA products.  Although slated to have a release date of 8/15/12, some hobby retailers were selling them at least a week earlier.

Breaking a hobby box of Tristar's TNA product is always a good time.  This is because most of their recent boxes have guaranteed a certain amount of "hits."  In card collecting lingo, hits are special cards that are either numbered, include a relic or autograph, or any combo of the above.  What both myself and another collector found when opening a hobby box of TENacious cards is that in the 20 packs of 6 cards we both received a complete 99 card base set.  While this is not guaranteed on the box nor is it usually the case, it's a welcome bonus that we don't have to go searching for the couple of cards that usually prevents collectors from a complete basic set in a box break.

I was immediately drawn to the actual box itself.  It's longer and thinner than the normal card hobby boxes.  With the shrink wrap still on, it honestly reminded me more of a box of chocolates than trading cards.  Like a few of the other Tristar TNA sets, even the boxes are numbered.  For the record, this box is numbered 1242 out of 1800.  Upon opening the box, on top of the 20 packs is a color-coded checklist of the 99 base cards and 20 short print cards.  Kudos to Tristar not only for including the checklist but for NOT including it in the packs where it would take the place of a regular card.

If you subscribe to our Facebook Fanpage, you've already gotten a sneak preview of the hits pulled from this box, but how about the 99 card base set?  Beginning with a card of TNA Founder Jeff Jarrett, the set is 99% current stars.  The ten year anniversary is tackled with memories from stars who have been there for much of that time as well as screengrabs of various events throughout the years. 

Although I'm a huge fan of the concept of picturing past moments such as Ken Shamrock winning the NWA championship and Jeff Jarrett attacking Hulk Hogan in Japan, the screengrabs did not work out too well.  The pictures are much too grainy and/or flushed out to produce a quality card.  There must have been a reason that they went in this direction, but it's sort of baffling when it's obvious that so much effort goes into the production of these sets.  The cards actually look a lot better when photographed than they do in person.

Tristar seems to take pride in getting "rookie" cards out quickly and has included some in this set.  Brooke Hogan, Joseph Park, Alex Silva, and Jessie Godderz all get the rookie treatment in this set, with Godderz card even including an Ohio Valley Wrestling logo emblazoned on the front.  Look for the Brooke and Park cards to be a bit more sought after than most from the basic set due to the former having crossover appeal and the latter being the best developed comedic character to come out of professional wrestling in years.

The current roster is well represented and I think I would argue that it might be represented just a bit much.  A subset of even just some of the bigger names from the past decade in TNA would've sufficed.  And as always, I must lobby for even just a subset of non-glossy cards.  As accessible as many of the TNA stars are for autographs at their shows, non-glossy cards would come in very handy for quick autographs.  Tristar has not produced a non-gloss set since their Impact '08 release.  For the second week in a row, how about it?

The reason that most collectors will purchase a hobby box isn't for the base cards, but for the hits.  As stated above, Tristar has done a fantastic job over the years with these special cards.  The back of the hobby box for TENacious lays out exactly what you may receive.  Off the top collectors are guaranteed three autograph cards which will be numbered to 100, 10, or even 1.  This particular box yielded autograph cards of Austin Aries and Kaz each numbered 6 of 10, and a dual autograph "Wedded Bliss" card of ODB and Eric Young numbered 91 of 100.  The latter is exceptionally cool and the lovely "bride" even noted on our fanpage that she doesn't even have one.

The next hits are short printed cards which can include anything from Jeff Hardy art to cards celebrating Sting's TNA Hall of Fame induction to a TNA Arrivals subset.  The Hulkamaniac in me was very pleased to receive a Hulk Hogan TNA Arrivals card numbered 28 out of 100.  The next two hits are parallel cards from the basic set stamped with a foil TNA 10 logo and numbered, again, to 100, 10, or 1.  The cards in this box were both of Knockouts, albeit one no longer in the company: an Angelina Love card numbered 6 of 30 and a card of the Killer Queen herself, Madison Rayne, numbered 8 of 10.

We finally come to the 7th hit where you again have a chance of two different card styles.  This hit is either an Impact celebrity signature card (signatures cut from other autographed celebrity items eclectically ranging from Chris Rock to Tom Arnold) or a TNA 10 event-worn clothing card.  This box held the latter, in this case being a dual shirt card from the former Dudley Boyz/Team 3D, Devon and Bully Ray.  A nice card for sure, although the celebrity cards would be more beneficial for someone trying to recoup their investment. 

What we have here is a solid set.  It could've reflected a bit more of the past decade of TNA, although I understand that they're trying to look ahead and there's nothing wrong with that.  I will state that I feel, like the recent WWE card product, that the looks are starting to blend together from set to set.  Reflexxions was a nice change, but in taking a peek at what Tristar has done with other card lines makes me hope for a more retro card look in a future set.  I won't go into another non-gloss rant, but retro is always king in this blog as it is for many collectors.

I would definitely recommend picking up a hobby box as the number of guaranteed hits is worth the retail price.  The aforementioned fact that the two first hobby boxes which I've seen broken have yielded a complete set only adds to that value.  Take a drive down to your local hobby shop and make an "Impact" on your TNA card collection, because when those 1,800 boxes are gone, they're gone!

The State of Wrestling Collecting Address--2012 Edition

"Out with the old, in with the new."

That's one statement that you'll never see promoted in these pages.  Myself, like many collectors, thrive upon the glories, and glorious memorabilia, of the past.  That being said, longtime readers will know that I frequently review new product and am always open to what's coming in the future.  I decided that it might be fun to once again take a look at what's on the horizon in wrestling collectibles. 

Although nothing like the '80s "boom" period or the Attitude Era, there is a surprisingly large amount of items on the market today.  With the "PG Era" WWE in full-force, it's no wonder that many of these items are geared towards kids.  WWE branded children's books, apparel, and even linens sit alongside merchandise from SpongeBob, Batman, and other kid-friendly properties.  While I hope that we don't see A.J. pillowcases anytime soon, the childlike characters such as Hornswoggle are very prominently featured.  With "Back-To-School" time (thankfully) coming right around the corner, expect to see WWE backpacks and stationary sets once again at retail.

Even in a somewhat milder WWE world not every item is for the youngsters.  BIC has released large lighters featuring some WWE Superstars who aren't as frequently featured on items such as Layla, The Miz, and Eve while apparel in the adult sizes seems to sell briskly.  WWE seems to finally be grasping the concept of fans wanting to have a "wrestling shirt that doesn't look like a wrestling shirt."

While some fans are insulted by the notion, it does make a lot of sense.  Although fans should be proud of their allegiance to the squared circle, wrestling apparel has often been notoriously garish.  This is, in part, due to the fact that the apparel worn by the wrestlers themselves is loud and eye-grabbing.  For a few years now TNA has seemingly understood the "apparel perils" of wrestling fans by offering t-shirts that are simultaneously stylish and fun.  The promotional t-shirt for TNA Bound For Glory 2011 is one such product.  Another innovative example is a shirt for TNA Knockout Velvet Sky which was specifically designed for men.

"Innovation" could actually be used to describe many of TNA/Impact Wrestling's products, but sadly there isn't much distribution for them outside of their own retail website.  Seeing as how the company's trading card and action figure lines frequently sell out, it may not be a bad time for TNA to explore getting more items into brick and mortar stores.  With Hulk Hogan aboard for nearly two years now, it almost seems like a no-brainer.  "Hulkamania" shirts sell no matter which company's banner they are sold under and TNA has even made a stylish new version of the red and yellow.

It's hard to believe, but there has not been a time in nearly three decades that wrestling action figures have been absent from store shelves.  In fact, I'd wager that many of you are reading this blog because of a love for them.  While Mattel continually floods today's stores with countless re-releases of Randy Orton, fans clamor for figures of new talent, both male and female, as well as legends.

Another blow to collectors was delivered this past week from Mattel.  It seems that the long-awaited Miss Elizabeth figure, slated to be released through their Mattel Collector's site, is now scheduled to be released in one of the standard "Elite" lines.  This ensures that the figure will be next to impossible to find at retail.  The previous Legends figures released through the Collectors site, while around $28 after shipping, were at least easily obtained.

This is just another blunder in what could be a great line if it were not impossible to collect thanks to issues such as these.  While some Jakks figures were harder to find than others, most "limited" figures were at least repaints and not long-awaited characters like Elizabeth.  Hopefully Mattel realizes their mistakes before it is too late.

In a more positive area, WWE Home Video has released another winner with their recent Best of WCW Clash of the Champions DVD and Blu-Ray.  Although full Clash releases would be preferred, WWE whipped up a very enjoyable collection of matches from the entire run of the Clash.  Making it even better is the fact that WWE recently had it, as well as many other DVD and Blu-Ray releases from their library, available at rock bottom prices through their website. $9.99 new release wrestling...err...sports entertainment Blu-Ray discs?  I'm there.  In a related note, it appears that the Blu-Ray release of No Holds Barred recently mentioned here has been delayed or canceled.  The DVD was in fact released, but I have a feeling that we'll be seeing this one for under $5 sooner rather than later.

With events like San Diego Comic Con as well as the holiday buying season coming sooner than anyone would want to admit, more new and exciting products will be flying onto shelves.  Will there be more cool wrestling t-shirts?  More legendary matches on DVD?  Mattel figures that aren't Randy Orton?  Time will tell.  The only thing we know at this juncture is something that we have learned after a painful lesson this past Monday night...

Even Brooke Hogan makes more sense as an authority figure than...Hornswoggle.