Superstars, Flip Flops, & Pancakes

It's certainly a hot close to summer for Mattel. It feels that there is new product every week, though a trip to the store certainly wouldn't indicate that. If you're wise, you've figured out how to obtain these figures without too much of a drain on your time or your wallet. I will never get the train of thought that "the hunt" is fun. As much as I tell myself that THIS will be the entry where I don't rant about it, each time that I review Mattel product I can't help but go there. It's a crying shame that the hobby is being ruined like this. Nevertheless, here we go with another round of Elite figures.

Mattel WWE Elite 78 is another lineup with a good mix. Unlike in the Elite 77 review, the "Collector's Edition" figure is being included. The reasons for this are that the packaging on this "Collector's Edition" matches the other figures in the case. The other reason is that for me, all seven figures shipped together. I guess an unofficial third reason is how fantastic this "limited" figure is, but we'll get to that in a bit. This time we've got R-Truth, Kofi Kingston, Matt Riddle, Naomi, Drake Maverick, Randy Orton, and Superstar Billy Graham. It should be noted that I've never uttered the name "Drake Maverick" in my life. To me you could not get a more unique wrestling name than "Rockstar Spud," therefore that is who he will always be to me.

The packaging is your current very red-and-white standard window box. Nothing offensive about it, but nothing remarkable either. Again, the full rectangle boxes of the last several years were far superior and honestly gave the line a bit of class. These current ones look dollar store-ish to me. They just do. If I were a carded collector (and I only am in autograph situations which are getting fewer and fewer) I would be very bothered by the extra hands and heads floating around. I understand why it's done. You need to see what you're getting. As a loose collector I certainly appreciate anything extra. But it does cheapen the aesthetic when leaving these things in the box.

I'll get to why I purchased (no free review merch on this blog, pal!) the entire set in a bit, but I do want to say that there isn't a weak figure in the bunch. Even characters with endless releases such as Kofi and Orton have much needed updates here. I believe that the plate of pancakes may have been released with some Basic New Day figures, but this would be the first Elite to include the flying breakfast treat. With the matching Big E and Xavier Woods (the latter will be the sleeper hit of the next wave) coming shortly, it's good to have the former WWE Champion here. I haven't purchased a figure of "The Viper" in years. This one seems to be a bit thicker as far as physique, has a great face scan, and some worthwhile accessories such as the entrance vest and signature pose hands.

Naomi is a fan favorite who has long deserved an Elite. Complete with her green-strapped championship belt, there is also a "chase" version of this figure in different "Feel The Glow" attire. I still feel that they're squandering her marketability by using the name "Naomi" instead of her real name Trinity Fatu, but what do I know? 

"The Original Bro" was certainly made to be a figure and in this case art imitates life. Just as he resembles "KVE" in person, the first Matt Riddle Elite figure takes me right back to the Elite figure of Kevin Von Erich. Some are complaining about the size of the arms used on this figure, but it isn't really bothering me. I love the inclusion of the "hang loose" hands that we're starting to see used more and more with appropriate characters. Riddle probably takes the title for "most accessories" in this wave with an abundance of hands, soft goods jacket, head band, and flip flops. Altogether they really make this an epic Elite. I prefer the yellow color of the Basic, but make no mistake, this is a great figure, bro.

In a cool move by Mattel, the epic battle over the 24/7 Championship finally comes to the figure world with R-Truth and Drake Maverick. The Spudster at last gets an Elite and a ring gear figure all in one release, while Truth was long overdue for an update. The 24/7 title doesn't have the shiny "vac" look, but it's not bothering me here. The tag title with the Kofi in this set had the same issue and if it were the first release of that particular title I would probably be bothered. Maybe it's because the green strap of rhe 24/7 title just pleases me. In any case, these are two solid additions to the lineup. Spud looks a bit tiny in the package, but he's Spud. He's a small guy.

Finally we get to the Collector's Edition. Unlike with Elite 77 where we had three "Flashback" figures, our only wrestler from the past in Elite 78 is right here. The man of the hour. Too sweet to be sour. He eats T-Bone steaks. He lifts barbell plates. He's sweeter than a German chocolate cake. Ok, I'm done. But seriously, who ever thought that we'd get Superstar Billy Graham in the Mattel lineup? The thought is unreal. What else is unreal? The figure itself. The main event should always go on last and here we are. They could've thrown this into their "Ultimate" line becauae this truly is "The Ultimate" Billy Graham.

Not only do we get classic WWWF Champion Superstar Billy Graham from the '70s, but with the switch of a head we suddenly have '80s "comeback" SBG. Yes, for the record, Graham did wear these particular tights during both runs. An interesting point, however, was brought up to me by longtime friend and collector extraordinaire Mike Girasia. When exactly did Superstar Billy Graham wear a boa? Of course I flashed back to the first Jakks WWE Classic Superstar release that included a soft goods boa. Then I thought that I definitely had a magazine cover with a boa-clad SBG. Upon a few searches, I simply could not find any evidence of Graham wearing a boa. Could this be something thrust upon us by figure manufacturers? The Superstar was certainly flashy enough to wear one, but did it happen?

Another helluva fun lineup from Mattel. I recently came to a realization regarding these figures as collectors get more and more frustrated trying to find them. I've never been one to give free advertisements, but Ringside Collectibles has truly alleviated some of the issues that were turning me away from this hobby. Yes, you may pay a bit more (though Ringside itself pays more to get the figures in advance), to get the best deal you have to buy complete sets (which isn't always ideal with repaints in the lineups), and it isn't the best option for collectors outside of the U.S., but I've truly found peace in my hobby by ordering from this company. While I've been dealing with them for years, due to the terrible distribution of Mattel and the greed of those who seemingly have nothing better to do with their lives than hop from store to store searching, I've settled on simply pre-ordering. I don't know that I'll review every set, but at least I'll know that I'll have the figures that I want delivered to me without some jobless slob running to the store just to make a few bucks on the 'Bay. Keep your overpriced plastic figure, virus, and backwards baseball cap, but clean your Cheeto fingers before you tip your Uber driver.

I've never been one to mince words, and there you have it with both Elite 78 and the state of the hobby in general. I feel as if there may one more Mattel review this month before we go back to a different direction for a bit, but I pity the fool who would miss a single entry.

Catching Up On Retro

It's been over two years since the review of the first Mattel WWE Retro figure series appeared on this blog. At the time, collectors all over were hopeful that we would get at least a few additional series out of the line that continues the legacy of Hasbro's famous WWF collection. Amid poor distribution, rumors of cancellation, and some overall frustration, here we are with Series 8, 9, and 10. The aforementioned distribution issues are one of the reasons why all three of these series are lumped into one review, but it also saves on spreading them out.

Some of both the most wanted and most creative figures of the entire line show up here, with a few that we'll pay particular attention to. Series 8 has The Iron Sheik, Jeff Hardy, Braun Strowman, and Zack Ryder. Series 9 brings us "Macho Man" Randy Savage, Goldust, Samoa Joe, and Randy Orton. Finally in Series 10 we've got Junkyard Dog, Matt Hardy, Elias, and Diesel. All series are on blue border Hasbro-esque cards that complete the retro feel. Thankfully the distractions that plagued the design in some of the middle series are gone, those being display stands and ads for a digital game that really has no business here. The game ad has been relegated to the back of the cards which bear no resemblance to the Hasbro cards whatsoever. Similarly, the cardboard stock used here is a lot thinner than what Hasbro used. This has been causing it to be quite the chore to find nice examples for carded collectors. This will certainly factor in as the years go by when mint examples are few and far between. Per retailers, the damaged cards have been coming straight from factory cases, furthering frustration.

Series 8 highlights include The Iron Sheik and Braun Strowman. While the character of the Sheik is just out-of-range of the original Hasbro era, Khosrow Vaziri was in the company in 1991 and 1992 as Sgt. Slaughter's aid Colonel Mustafa. Strowman is a sleeper hit as far as I'm concerned, with the figure fitting in with that Hasbro look perfectly. The arm mechanism was a perfect choice and I really appreciate the painted on tanktop. Jeff Hardy is a welcome addition but the figure suffers from the "too real" head syndrome where it looks like a regular Mattel head was plopped onto a Retro figure body.

Series 9 showcases two legends, those being Goldust and Randy Savage. This is the second inclusion of "The Macho Man" in the Retro line, the first being in his nWo attire. This one is a homage to an unreleased prototype of the first Hasbro Savage figure that was shown in advertisements wearing green trunks. It's nice to see a more classic looking Savage in the line. Joe and Orton are solid modern figures for the line. Some have issue with Joe being produced in his shirt, but we must remember that many original Hasbro figures were in shirts and entrance attire as well. The star here is "The Bizarre One," Goldust, in what could prove to be his final figure for some time. Appropriately, he is produced in his early look complete with black-painted ears and removable wig. Should the Hasbro line have carried on another year, Goldust would have at least been in the planning stages.

Finally we have Series 10, starring a man who was planned for the Hasbro line twenty-five years ago. That man is "Big Daddy Cool" Diesel. The former WWF Champion appears as he did in 1994, which is the look that the original figure would've reflected had it been produced. Like Strowman in Series 8, Diesel is a tad taller just as Andre the Giant and Giant Gonzalez were in the Hasbro line. For the second series in a row we get a second legend, that being the Junkyard Dog. JYD is clad in his classic white tights, complete with "THUMP" emblazoned on the back. Matt Hardy's head is more stylized than brother Jeff in Series 8, though I could've pictured both of The Hardy Boyz with the old "jumping" mechanism. Elias hasn't caught on with me, personally, but the figure includes a guitar as the first Retro accessory. This is the same breakaway guitar included with Mattel's figures of The Honky Tonk Man.

Ten series of Retro. This is the first review of the line that, as of press time, has no future announced releases to discuss at the end. While many collectors finally got what they wanted out of the line in Diesel, there's room for more. Of that fabled unreleased final Hasbro series, Mattel could produce Mabel, Jeff Jarrett, and "All-American" Lex Luger. I wouldn't mind seeing Dusty Rhodes (like that's a surprise...), "surfer" Sting, and Nikolai Volkoff added if at possible. Since females and managers weren't part of the Hasbro line I won't say that I'm expecting any, though it's hard to fathom that the new line would end without at least one woman in the era of the women's revolution. How about Elizabeth, Sherri, Ronda, and Becky? At least two Retro-styled women's bodies should be produced to give us an idea of what could have been...and what now still could be.

Kill the distribution issues, Mattel, and bring us ten more series...

WWE Eraseez Are Here To Build...& Erase!

When a new WWE licensed product hits stores, I will usually always take a look. You never know when some company will come up with an item that just begs to be added to the collection. When the item is fully enclosed in the packaging to the point where the consumer isn't fully sure what they're getting, my interest is piqued. When something is "blind bagged" (the industry term), it usually means that there is a collectibility aspect to the product. The manufacturer wants you to buy more and more packages until you "collect them all." Or until you get so many of the same ones that you give up.

Such was the case in a recent jaunt through Target. Near the trading card section was a peghook full of an interesting new bagged WWE product. The bag, illustrated with John Cena, The Big Show, and The Rock proclaimed that inside was a WWE Eraseez Collectible Puzzle Eraser. Nine different WWE Superstars were depicted on the back. The price, $3.99, seemed a bit steep for what appeared to be a disassembled eraser, but I had to see what these things looked like. Nowhere on the outer package is a description truly given.

Upon opening the bag, I pulled out a fold-out brochure depicting all nine wrestlers. Next out was a clear plastic baggie containing the pieces of everyone's favorite "Yes" man, Daniel Bryan. But wait, there was more to come. The final "lump" in the baggie was the disassembled body of "The Viper," Randy Orton. Now it made sense! Two of these eraser figures for $4. Not a bad deal in today's market.

Apparently I'm late to the party, but a quick Google search reveals that Eraseez puzzle erasers from Bulls-i-toy (sound it out) are made for licenses ranging from Angry Birds to My Little Pony. It's not shocking that WWE got in on such a collectible during a prime era for kids to be watching. Nonetheless, the kid in me was thrilled as soon as I caught a glimpse of these figures and realized, once again, that it was essentially a "Two For $4" type deal in each package.

The erasers are easy to assemble. The parts pop on fairly easily, although I don't think that I would take them apart very often. After all, these are made of eraser rubber. The likenesses themselves are realistic, but have just a tad of a cartoonish quality to them. Although the scale isn't quite the same, they remind me very much of the figures from the sorely-missed Mattel WWE Rumblers line.

Nine WWE Superstars can be "discovered" in the packages including Bryan, Orton, The Big Show, Dolph Ziggler, John Cena, Ryback, Sheamus, The Miz, and The Rock. With two per package, collectors are ideally going to end up with one duplicate when trying to complete the set, but likely will see far more. Surprisingly enough, eBay has not yet been inundated with buyers attempting to sell off their seconds. Either the product is too new or has been largely confined to childrens interests.

Longtime collectors may be reminded of a similar line of wrestling eraser figures from three decades ago. In 1985, Winston Toys produced a line of eraser figures from the Hulk Hogan's Rock N Wrestling cartoon show. This was essentially the only figure line to come from the show, likely due to the WWF's deal for regular figures with LJN. Interestingly enough, the erasers were a blend of designs from the cartoon itself and "shrunken," slightly modified versions of the larger, LJN counterparts. The erasers of Rowdy Roddy Piper, Junkyard Dog, and Wendi Richter have become holy grails.

Will the WWE Eraseez reach that level of collectibility? Most likely not, but you never know. Should sales prove to be poor and the line ends up fading into obscurity, collectors may be paying big bucks for that elusive "unscuffed" Daniel Bryan eraser somewhere down the line. If not, it's no biggie. We have a line of nine WWE Superstars Eraseez to add to the ever-growing lineup of figural wrestlers. No matter the size or intended use, they're fun pieces of wrestling memorabilia, through and through.

Business Is About To Pick Up...At Toys "R" Us

Mattel's "Build-A-Figure" program has been one of my favorite aspects of their WWE line for the past two and a half years.  It's enabled collectors to obtain figures of non-wrestlers that Mattel (often foolishly) feels will not sell packed on their own.  Michael Cole, Ricardo Rodriguez, John Laurinaitis, Teddy Long, Paul Heyman, and commentator/General Manager Booker T are all figures that have seen their debut this way.  In short, a series of four previously released figures (with new attire and accessories) are sold exclusively through Toys "R" Us.  Each of the figures represents the way that the wrestler appeared at a specific pay-per-view event.  The figures also each include separate pieces of the "Build-A-Figure," thus a collector must buy all four of the wrestlers to complete the fifth.

The latest "Build-A-Figure" is none other than "Good 'ol J.R." himself, Jim Ross.  The four figures required to build J.R. are "Elite" versions of CM Punk, Curtis Axel, Randy Orton, and Alberto Del Rio.  Although I've long wished that the figures in these sets were new characters, I've also outlined why they aren't.  It would be against Mattel's better interests to place a never before released character, who sell well all by themselves, in a "gimmick" series where buying all four figures is required regardless.  That being said, it would be nice to see some new faces among the BAF bunch.  This is the third appearances for both Punk and Del Rio in the BAF program.  While I'm fairly positive that we won't see anymore of those two in future sets, it might be fun to see some Divas or tag team members show up.

Although Ross is one of the stronger "fifth figures," this is one of the weaker sets of wrestlers.  Aside from a tweak of the tights or facial hair, every Orton figure is nearly the same.  Punk has a different head/facial design than the last time that he popped up in BAF, but his accessories, a megaphone and "fan" signs, aren't that exciting.  A cloth shirt or hoodie would have worked much better here.  Del Rio might be the best of the bunch with the World Heavyweight Championship and a black monogrammed scarf.  This is Curtis Axel's only "Elite" figure so far, but it comes across as rather bland.  The white-strapped Intercontinental Championship that he is packaged with has already made an appearance in the BAF line.  I would've rather seen Ryback in one of his many colorful singlets in place of Orton, especially.

Ross himself is a very nice figure, and one of the best figures to be collected as a BAF yet.  The pieces are very hidden within the packaging, possibly to avoid another "Al Snow scandal" from 1999.  As the story goes, a busybody mother happened upon an Al Snow figure while shopping in a Wal-Mart.  Snow came packaged with "Head," his female mannequin head sidekick, and the woman mistook it for a disembodied woman's head.  She created a stir that caused an unnecessary recall on the figure.  Going back to Ross, this figure not only has a head, but a trademark black resistol hat to go with it.  The facial likeness is perfect, and while I would have preferred a completely up-to-date J.R. with goatee, I have no complaints.  His "OU" lapel pin honoring J.R.'s beloved Sooners from The University of Oklahoma is even here as a great added detail.  There is an upcoming "announcer" Jerry Lawler figure coming soon that will make a perfect compliment to Ross. 

While you can never be certain, this is likely to be the only Mattel figure of Ross for some time.  The figures required to build Ross aren't the best we've seen, but if you want the fifth you absolutely have to purchase them all.  As of now, it seems that Axel is short packed.  This also happened with the Bret Hart figure from the first BAF set that featured Michael Cole.  Whether or not this will be rectified in the future is anyone's guess.  These figures are usually the "bread and butter" of the WWE holiday buying seasons at Toys "R" Us.  Closer to that time, cases of the BAF sets are often stacked to the ceiling.  An upcoming BAF series featuring "Basic" figures and a "fifth figure" of Paul Bearer has already hit overseas.  These two sets could very well be in the Christmas season WWE toy strategy for "The World's Biggest Toy Store" this year.

In any event, if you want J.R. in your Mattel WWE Universe, the time to pick up these figures is now.  Despite what is announced at press conferences and on WWE broadcasts, I doubt anyone truly buys Michael Cole as "The Voice of WWE."  After being off of WWE telecasts regularly for years and officially out of the company for a few months, Ross is still thought of when a WWE call comes to mind.  J.R. seems to be happy in his current ventures where he is once again successful, but even the biggest WrestleMania moments seem just a tad less important with the voices that WWE currently forces on their Universe.

Boomer Sooner!

Holla Holla Holla!

Teddy Long aka Theodore R. Long aka "Peanuthead" has had quite a career.  From referee in Jim Crockett Promotions to manager to announcer then back to referee to manager and finally "General Manager," the resume of Mr. Long is quite impressive.  Now, he has joined the ranks of the popular Build-A-Figure series in Mattel's WWE action figure line.

An idea borrowed from action figure lines of other genres, Mattel began the WWE version around one year ago.  The concept is simple.  Mattel produces a series of four figures that are exclusive to Toys R Us.  Each of the figures come with specific parts of a fifth figure.  When all of the figures are collected, the parts combine to produce a brand new character to the line.  Thus far Mattel has used this route to release figures of non-wrestlers.  The company feels that these characters wouldn't sell well on their own, but still want to appease collectors that desire them.

Michael Cole, Ricardo Rodriguez, and John Laurinaitis were the first three figures to be released this way.  Those sets were comprised of four Elite style figures which are usually around $20 a piece.  This time Mattel has taken pity on our wallets and released the pieces of Teddy with four basic style figures thus being at a slightly lower price point.  Previous Toys R Us exclusive basic sets have included pieces of the interview set and announcers table to build but not a figure.

The four figures to collect this time are Brock Lesnar, Dolph Ziggler, Alberto Del Rio, and Randy Orton.  For those of you who have yet to pick up a Mattel-produced Lesnar, this is the perfect opportunity.  This appears to be the exact same figure that has been released about two or three times already this year.  If you're like me and held off buying any of those, it's a great time to go for the gold.  For those of you who, also like me, vowed to never pick up one of the boring, emaciated Randy Orton figures, this is the time to do that as well.

Mr. Long himself is a very nice figure.  Although this one held a bit less excitement for me since the previous three characters were never produced anywhere as a figure before, the great likeness makes up for it.  The height is perfect as is the long suit jacket.  Similar to the Long figures produced by Jakks, the removable eyeglasses don't do much for me.  They aren't bad, I just think that the face looks a lot better without them.

It isn't always the easiest thing to buy four figures just to get one that you really want, but so far it's worked.  For someone like me who usually holds off on most character repaints until something like this comes along, I'm fine with it every so often.  It's better than repeating Hasbro's blunder and not getting any non-wrestler figures released at all.

The next Build-A-Figure entry is said to be Paul Heyman.  I cannot think of a better option.  If Lesnar and Punk hadn't been in two of the previous sets, I would suggest that they be two of the four figures in the set.  Characters closely associated with the figure being built in the set isn't something that seems to be in Mattel's plans but would a no-brainer to me.  My votes for future Build-A-Figures?  How about Mike Chioda, Tony Chimel, Brad Maddox, and Zeb Colter?

Mattel has their work cut out for them, although I must say that I'm 100% more behind this line than I was just a few years ago.  There are still issues, especially regarding distribution and Legends.  While classic characters like Miss Elizabeth and Honky Tonk Man are being produced, the depth of legends that Jakks went into isn't going to be repeated by Mattel, bottom line.  Female figures are still being released in far fewer numbers as are "First Time In The Line" stars such as Antonio Cesaro and Ryback.  With multiple releases of both men in the coming months, two of WWE's biggest new stars will make their way into your hands without paying premium prices.

You betta believe that, playa!

Topps Represents The 2012 WWE Universe

It seems like trading cards have dominated the majority of topics on this blog as of late.  It makes sense.  Past or present, wrestling and trading cards have gone well together with no end in sight.  Some wrestling collectors collect them.  Some sports card collectors collect them.  Even some non-sports card collectors collect them.  They're an ultimate crossover collectible.

Topps has produced two WWE trading card offerings per year over the past several years.  Earlier this year Topps introduced its WWE Classic set, featuring studio photos of the stars set on foil cards.  This month collectors are treated to the release of Topps WWE 2012.  Although a release date was set for the end of September, retailers such as Toys "R" Us and Wal Mart had the cards for sale in the first week of the month.

The normal 90-card base set is supplemented by a TON of subsets.  Hall of Fame.  First Class Champions.  Divas Class of 2012.  CM Punk's Top Class Matches.  There's even a subset entitled World Class Events that features pay-per-view poster art similar to a subset from a Fleer WWF set a decade ago.  Each seven-card pack includes one subset card and most seem to also include an alternate-colored border parallel card.  Cards are also sold in twenty-one-card "jumbo" packs that are similar to the old rack packs.  An alternate-colored border parallel card different from ones you would find in the seven-card packs are included in these jumbo packs and vary depending on where you made your purchase.

There are also the now mandatory "hit" cards featuring special cards such as relics, autographs, printing plates, sketches (by Jerry "The King" Lawler), and even a Triple H signature card limited to one in every 36,000 packs.  Whether or not the latter actually even exists has already been the subject of debate among collectors.  The card is mentioned on the back of each pack as well as the "odds" of pulling one, so we'll just have to wait and see.

Purchasing a full 24 pack hobby box guarantees the buyer two hits: one shirt relic card and one autograph card or a WrestleMania XXVIII mat relic card.  As nice as some of the relic cards are, every buyer is looking for an autograph, so the potential for disappointment is there.

The box that I opened surprisingly had three "hit" cards and a nice assortment at that.  Although the autograph could have been a better name, Diva autographs usually don't disappoint.  I particular liked this Alicia Fox autograph as it was on her Divas Class of 2012 subset card as opposed to her base set card.  The box also contained a shirt relic of Randy Orton.  Finally, a printing plate was pulled.  Although printing plates have been included in both WWE and TNA card sets before, this is the first one that I've pulled.  Unfortunately, the plate was of Tyler Reks.  Still, it's a fun and unique pull.

The base set cards are, well, very basic.  They're the same design as other Topps 2012 sports cards although the color differs as to whether the star is supposed to represent Raw, Smackdown, or NXT.  Though some good photo choices were used (Goldust, Brock Lesnar, and Kaitlyn spring to mind), they're still a very basic set.  The different colored parallel border versions really don't do much to help.

The real gems in this set are the subsets.  If Topps did an entire WWE set full of just subsets, I think I'd be very pleased.  First Class Champions features former WWE Champions with a foil spinner belt at the bottom of the card.  Divas Class of 2012 gives us a chance to see all of our favorite Divas (Natalya, Kaitlyn, A.J.) and ones that most fans couldn't pick out of a crowd (Maxine?!?) for a second time in the set.  Best of all is the Hall of Fame set.  Utilizing the standard WWE Hall of Fame graphics, thirty-five legends are represented ranging from "Mean" Gene Okerlund to Rocky Johnson.  There are even some Hall of Fame autograph cards out there!

John Cena is the sole pack poster child this time around, while the hobby boxes feature Cena, Lawler, Punk, Roddy Piper, Kelly Kelly, and Cactus Jack for a nice mix of new and old.  There are $20 blaster boxes also available at most retailers.  Although you are guaranteed one relic card per box, keep in mind that you will NOT find any autographs or other hits in these boxes.  The blaster boxes themselves are also a bit shorter than usual, which is apparently a growing industry standard.

I'm very mixed on this set as a whole.  The subsets are amazing, but if you're going to collect them via pack you're going to end up with a LOT of base cards.  There also seems to be an issue regarding the base cards distribution via pack.  Although it may not be the case with every pack, many packs seem to hold the same sequence of base cards.  For example, if you purchased a pack that contained William Regal, Kane, Aksana, Tensai, Sheamus, Wade Barrett, and Josh Matthews you may pick up another pack with the same lineup. 

I'm rather bored with the base card design.  It's changed very little over the years.  As I say almost every time I tackle cards, I want another Heritage set.  Topps has brought it back Heritage a regular set for other sports, and even jacked up the price a bit.  I would have no problem paying a bit more for Heritage cards.

Ultimately the subsets are the gold here.  Each subset seems to be averaging around $10 per set on the secondary market.  If you're like me and find these to be the most appealing cards in the set, purchasing them separately may be the way to go. If you're strictly out to pull autographs, avoid purchases at the big retail stores.  You have more of a chance to pull them from hobby packs at a hobby store.

Although the recent TNA Tenacious box was about double in price of the Topps 2012 WWE box, I think I enjoyed the former just that much more.  The TNA designs change constantly and seven hits per box was a ton of fun.  Still, a wrestling card with a non-glossy finish would ultimately win me over...

...somebody make it happen!

WWE Cards Are "Topps" Again With Adult Collectors

Nothing like a punny title to start off an entry. It is based off of fact, however.

It's been almost a year since a true, serious, card set has been released for the WWE. With the current direction of the product, it's also completely understandable. Collectible dog tags, poker-style chips, and "Rumble Packs" largely looking like a card version of the WWE Kidz Magazine have dominated the store shelves. Kids who are enthralled with the ring wars of Cena, Orton, and The Miz, among others, have been buying these items up like hot cakes. Adult collectors, looking for everything that serious card collectors look for, haven't had much to look for.

That is, until now.


Within the past month, Topps WWE 2010 cards have hit stores. Featuring 110 cards in the basic set, 6 subsets, 2 autograph subsets, 2 swatch subsets, and 1 autograph/swatch subset, any enthusiasm lost in the other 2010 releases should quickly rebound.

Parallels, a current staple in card collecting, are included as well featuring different colored borders of the basic 110 cards. Blue parallel bordered cards are limited to a run of 2010 each, while gold borders are limited to just 50. Even rarer red bordered cards are limited to just 1.

The unique subsets combine superstars from all facets of WWE including past and present stars and divas. Sets titled "World Championship Material," "National Heroes," and "History of" mix stars such as The Undertaker, Nikolai Volkoff, and Chris Jericho among many others, providing glimpses into title reigns, home counties, and the careers of these stars.

Autograph and event-used item collectors should be equally appeased, as several combinations of each are seeded into the set. Both single and dual-signed cards are included, with the dual autographs featuring some stars known for teaming and others known for heated in-ring rivalries.

The swatch cards, featuring swatches of superstars attire, come in both the "Superstar Swatch" set and the "Superstar Super Swatch" set, the latter of which features an extra large swatch.

Also up for grabs are "Superstar Signature Swatch" cards, which seem to be included via redemption card insertion. Included in this set is "The Game" himself, Triple H, who has not been included in an autograph subset in many years.

For those of you like me, it's the basic cards which are the most fun to collect. Simple, basic, shots of all of your favorites. While the WWE Legends cards, the final 32 cards in the basic set, includes an amazing array of the best of WWE's past, it's the inclusion of the original 8 NXT Rookies that had me truly pleased. Great studio shots cropped with the NXT logo and a yellow sidebar make these cards a fun extra.

For those collectors who like to get the cards signed themselves, photo-wise this is a great set. One drawback is the high gloss on all cards aside from the "ToppsTown" subset. While the gloss has become somewhat of an industry standard, it was nice to have the four WWE Heritage sets for ease of autograph purposes.

All in the all, the set is beautiful and well produced. New ideas for subsets are always welcome, and many show up here. With the parallels, autographs, and swatches, there's truly something for everyone.

Each pack contains 7 cards. I have yet to open a pack that did not include at least a blue parallel card. Blaster Boxes, 10 packs and an additional relic card featuring a piece of the mat from the 2010 Elimination Chamber pay-per-view, are available at most retailers. Hobby boxes featuring 24 packs are available at many card shops. The hobby box that I opened included one swatch card and one autograph card.

Special thanks to Chris Holmes!