A New 100

Today, first half of another 100 Magic card pack for sharing...

Not sure if Dollarama's still do this configuration as I know this is a few years old and just now being opened...hock, I think I have in my "to open" pile, a box of 1984 baseball Rub-Down which have been in my possession the better part of a decade, but I digress.

O  tof the first 50 cards, these six are the would be keepers. I did already have 4 Prophet of the Peak cards, so he's out, but the rest are good for the collection. As for the rest...

Definitely not a fan of getting multiple land cards in these packs, let alone in a single half.

Wow - I can't remember the last time I saw 4 lands in an entire pack of these, let alone, one half.

Some cards on the other hand, are in every single one of these. I think I have more than a dozen of the Merfolk cards now.

Not too bad of a first half, and as you can see, the newest cards are from 2020 sets, which is the year I would have picked this up - or maybe early 2021. Second half tomorrow.

A Strike By Myrke

First, it's my wife's birthday, so I know it best to be short here and spend the time with her celebrating. While I am off doing that though, let's see some cards with TCDB member myrke who was able to actually finish off a few smaller insert sets, etc for me in my Jays collecting.

Cerutti wasn't the "no dot after U.S.A" variation I expected, not a big deal as I am still missing a few such micro variations. The Delgado though was the second of two Jays base cards from 2000 Fleer E/X to finish off that team set. Similarly, the two 2013 Finest cards finish the 4 card Jays set there as well.

The centre David is a nice SN to 500 card and the snazzy blue border for Jays cards always looks solid.

As luck has it, the 2022 and 2023 Topps flagship insert sets of the Stars of MLB are both finished off here with the last Vladdy card in the first scan and the Bo dead centre in the above. As I am still sitting on a bunch of 2018-2022 baseball base cards, I wonder how much of those I really need, but the inserts, definitely nice to pick up.

Really appreciate the trade as always!

Random Hockey Pack

 As it says, today we have a single random hockey pack to share, one that I had laying around unopened as I have a copy in my unopened pack collection.

Not a set I am collecting, so we are down to hoping for a nice insert or a Leaf card, so let's see what we get.

Definitely not my favourite colour design for O Pee Chee, but we do have a Bruins card to pass along to a better home than mine. LeClair and Berezin are solid names for the pack, but nothing in the first 8 cards that are for keeps.

The last card salvages the pack. I had one already, but a Leaf pick up is always great and McCabe for 2002-03 is a solid one to get. There was also the 10th card which is an insert, and yes, checklists can count, so that's a good keeper as well.

Not a bad pack, but nothing to write home about. Definitely lower half of the list below because it's not a set I am collecting, but still a neat little rip!

Best Pack Pull So Far

 Just the single last pack of 2021 Topps Gallery baseball today, and I guess it was worth it!

Mark McGwire is a polarizing figure given the obvious issue around steroids at the time, though I would think he is still on the "more liked than not" side of the argument compared to others of the era, so there are still a lot of collectors of his out there. Here we get a serial numbered to 99 (and this one is actually numbered 01/99). These are pulls of one every 1,062 packs so - yeah, this definitely wins so far this year for my best pack pull.

As for the card itself, the blue border does make this card look much better than the basic version, and personally - I was always a McGwire fan (save for when the Jays were needing to get by the A's in the playoffs).

All it takes sometimes is a single card to make a purchase worth it, and definitely the case here - very cool card, and yeah, I'd rate it fairly high too. Hopefully it isn't the last sweet pull I have this year.

Getting Some Rainbow

 Back with a couple more packs of 2021 Topps Gallery baseball, and we finally get something more than just Printer Proof inserts.

What seems to be the second most common insert - rainbow foil parallel cards which stand out in the scan easily enough. With the design of the Gallery cards, I actually prefer the base design, but maybe it's just me.

Honestly - I must prefer the Ty Cobb card than the parallel rainbow foil. Not often you get to add a Ty Cobb card to your trade list, but even if it's a new reprint, still a cool card to see and have in hand. The way they are able to "modernize" the photo as much as they have really works well as it comes across so clean and crisp considering.

Nice! Along with another rainbow foil, we get our first MLB originals insert which fall every 18 packs. Fernando Tatis Jr. doesn't do a whole lot for me personally - not a player I collect or anything, I do appreciate the pull and being able to add it to the collection. The design is alright and reminds me a bit of the hockey Bee Hive designs from the mid 2000s. Definitely helps this blaster which is slugging along as nothing too special.

Same Make Up

 Two more packs of 2021 Topps Gallery baseball cards to share today, and the pack make up looks exactly the same as the last - just a statement, but not necessarily a complaint.

One Printer Proof parallel and three base cards. I do like the base set having some stars of past years, as well as stars of today. I'd rather it be done in a subset type of fashion rather than sprinkling the stars throughout the set, but that's just my like for keeping such players grouped together - just like bunching the rookie cards at the end of a base set (though they don't have to be short printed).

Well, that's a great pack of star power. I mean, current and past, and the weakest in the bunch is either Chipper or Harper, and that's saying something. Definitely an Atlanta hot pack regardless, and a solid pack of cards, though still not much to keep, but hopefully some nice cards for trade!

Enter The Gallery

 I like the look of the Gallery sets, and I liked the price of this blaster so put those together, and here we are. I don't plan on building the set though, so it's going to be harder for this box to come away with a great score, but you never know what's in the packs. First, a look at the box...

Then we can look at the packs....one of which I do need for the unopened pack collection...

Yikes - just 4 cards a pack. I mean, it could be less I guess, but my bottom on cards in a pack is 7, I hate when it's less than that.

SO the design if quite nice as expected. First cards from the set I have had in hand. Add to that the names, and this is a solid pack. No Jays card as this was past his Jays time for the Stro Show, but Pojols is a nice base pick up as well.

We get our first insert and it's a Printer Proof which is a blaster only insert which appears in every other pack. I gather we will be seeing more of them since we wouldn't want more unusual inserts that fall less than every other pack....

With so few cards and 6 packs to open, that's just 24 cards, hope to get one Jay card at least.

Brother Hooked Me

 Okay, having a great experience with the Brothers' War bundle, I had to take a look and pick up more of the artifact cards from the set, but a few others which were cheap and available as well.

These would be some of the others first including the dated promo card in the middle. I do have a number of promos now which are cool. They aren't exceptionally rare of a premium price to get, but still nice for the getting. The last few are foils from the new Assassin's Creed MTG set...packs to see below because I had to get those too....

Ah, the retro borders..luckily a bunch of the cards are still fairly cheap as they didn't see high play and don't command a big price, but are still fun and collectible for me.

Some solid extended art versions too - and again, the rare cards have the gold symbol in the middle right of the card, uncommon is silver colours and black is common. As you can see, most of these are rares, and were less than $1 each, mostly 50 cents.

As promised, the Assassin's Creed packs here as well. I may never have played the game, but from seeing what I have, I get the crossover and it works fine with MTG, at least for what it is. THe packs do have less cards than usual though which is a shame as the price is about the same as regular play and collector boosters.

Nothing - Just Nothing

 Yeah, there are the rest of the cards from the blaster which you can see below, but it's a little rant time. I understand the work of collating cards and what you get in a box, but how come I get such bad luck on these? I mean, I bought 2 blaster boxes that I have opened, and those are the only cards I have for the set. Keeping in mind, I didn't even open one of the packs from the first blaster.

From 6 packs in the first blaster, with 35 cards in blaster number 2 - 21 of them were in the first 6 packs in the first blaster. This isn't a 50 card set or anything, and that just seem crazy high. If it was a one-off, I'd chalk it up to a bad experience and move on, but I had this or even worse, when opening a WWE product. I think it was 2016 heritage and similarly, I had 2 blasters, and they were almost identical for the base card make up. I know it can happen, but come on!

Guess what? This ended up not being a great blaster accordingly. Here the list and it's down near the bottom, right where it belongs- I am worried about that third blaster now though....is it going to be the same too?

Not Going Well

 I guess I shouldn't have complained about duplicates since today fot worse...

In this first pack, at least the top two base cards were new to me...but that's it, and for the bottom pack...

Only the Zegras rookie card is new to me, and yes, it's the rose gold parallel. Wait - scratch the complaining because that's a pretty solid hit. I mean, I like the goal of collecting the base set, but if you are going to get a rookie parallel Zegras is about as good as you are going to get for this product, so pretty sweet consolation prize on these ones.

Two more packs to go, and it's about the same make up as the first box. Maybe we can see something other than a rose gold parallel.

Boo To Dupes

 Two more packs of 2021-22 Upper Deck Artifacts today, and one would have hoped I'd be able to avoid getting base dupes in this box since it's only the second blaster box I'm opening, but I don't always have the best of luck on these things.

Well - if I was an Isles fan, this would be a great pack...but I am not. At least they were new to me base cards as the Suzuki and Tolvanen were duplicates.

A reminder of what the backs of the cards look like, which are fine and well in the grand scheme of things.

Unfortunately, a repeat of the first pack, top two are base needs, new for me rose gold parallel, and the bottom two cards are dupes I didn't need.

Not to complain too much I guess though as it likely means, I can trade them for other base cards from the same set, but that does mean stamps I wouldn't have to use if I just got what I needed in the packs...ah well....better luck tomorrow I hope.

A Second Box

 As it says, going to share through a second blaster box of the three I have with hopes of at least getting all new base cards and maybe an interesting insert or two...

No need for keeping an unopened pack since I did with the last box, so maybe we get something neat in the bunch, though nothing out of the usual in feeling the unopened packs, but that doesn't mean anything...

Today, first pack and first five cards.

A positive first pack with all new base additions and a new rose gold parallel. Still liking the design, though the price for 35 cards in a box is only manageable because it was on sale when I purchased so I paid less than $15 including tax instead of about $25.

More packs tomorrow and hopefully more new for me!

Dan Is The Man

Well, a great little trade that I initiated over a recent box opening and lack of a certain card with TCDB member Dantheman.

A few Smackdown Live set cards out of 2019 which were just to even up the trade and make it worthwhile overall. It's a set I am working on, but here is one I am now done...

Finally The Rock base card I was missing. This finishes off the 2017 Topps WWE base set - Yay!

Really appreciate Dan making the trade with me - could have saved $25 and done the trade instead of buying that last box, but either way - all done now!

Trade With Mattasmathias

Was able to make a nice trade with about 90 cards going to, and 90 cards coming from Finland in this trade, and all hockey coming here.

Still some early 90s cards I need for the Leaf collection including the French language 1991-92 Parkhurst Manderville.

A number of Leaf sets get completed too including the Topps Premier one with Foligno being my final need there.

A bunch of Special Edition Parkhurst cards, but the Domi is my fave of these nine.

There are a few set helper cards in the bunch, that's why Linden appears here.

All the Leaf favorites here. As it stands, Sundin is the top represented in my collection with 466 cards. Clark, Gilmour and Potvin are the only others over 200 cards, and none are above 300 yet.

Getting into the Pacific years, plenty of help on sets but none quite completed there.

The Gary Robert Bowman looks as dark in person - not a great presentation for the card. Now, Ultra gold parallels - you aren't going to ever miss!

The Score cards are all glossy versions which doesn't come through in the scans, but that's okay.

We end eith a Reilly on a really great trade. I may do less trades in number, but if I can focus on trades like this, they would still be fantastic!