1982 Donruss M*A*S*H

1982 Donruss M*A*S*H:  Klinger and Colonel Potter, two of the mainstays of the M*A*S*H TV series that ran for 11 seasons.  

I'm a big fan of this series.  I grew up watching the series during its run as well as reruns that were on TV after school.  And it was rerun a lot, as it seemed to be one of the first television series that dominated that cable market.  But I never got tired of it.  I even purchased the M*A*S*H - Martinis and Medicine Complete Collection (DVD) while serving in Korea and watched a good part of it again there.

The design on this set is pretty simple and fine to me.  I really thought they would have gone with an army green color for the borders and the yellow lettering synonymous with the opening credits.  The backs are parts of puzzles which we see a lot with non-sport cards from the era.   

Looks like M*A*S*H is streaming on Hulu.  It's on my list of series I want to rewatch beginning to end.  So many memories.  I really enjoyed this show and when I see episodes on MeTV it feels like it's still relevant.  Lots of adult content which went right over my head as a kid but I got more and more the more I watched.  It was just fun while balancing some heavy messages.  Good memories.  

BREAKDOWN:
6 - Total Cards

Random Wax: 2024 Donruss NASCAR Hobby Box - 6 Packs

2024 NASCAR:  Kyle Larson is in the midst of a mid-season slump, but he already has three wins this year and is probably still looked at as the best all-around driver in NASCAR.  He's also the 2021 NASCAR Champion.

Bubba is fighting for his playoff life right.  He's one of my favorite drivers.  Jeff Burton is retired and an announcer now but having retired greats in these sets is something I really enjoy.  Chastain has won a race and is in the playoffs.  I'm not a fan of the '91 Donruss design but I do like it better on parallels like the Blue Parallel.

Denny Hamlin is having a great year with three wins, and many are hoping he'll get his first championship.  I'd be fine with that.  I think he's one of the few great personalities in the sport which it is lacking right now.  The photo is too small here but overall, I like the design on Burning Rubber.

The Retro Series inserts are fun and od have a retro vibe to them.  Bill Elliott (retired legend) drove with McDonald's as his sponsor for a really long time.  I like the 2024 Race Kings.  Plenty of color and while the driver is really prominent, we also get to see his car.

These Picture-Perfect Victory cards are a fun way to highlight wins by the drivers.

Here we see the standard 2024 Donruss design utilized. It's okay but again the extra color on the Purple Parallel #/99 looks better.  I really like the Cole Custer photo.

I like how the Production Line inserts highlight how many times a driver has won the championship and overall is a good-looking card.

One optic card per pack.  That Erik Jones card is a Black Velocity Parallel #/39.

These car photo cards are good.  I like them but I do wish we could see them in other spots other than just on the track alone.  I know it's limited what they can do when taking photos of cars but I think there is room for variety.

Dominators inserts don't scream dominator to me.  Feels like they could have done more.

I like Unleashed.  As always, I wish there was more variety in the animals behind the driver.  They are the same on every card.

Fun packs of cards.  I still haven't decided if I'll pick up a 2025 hobby box this year.  I'm reevaluating my collecting so it's still TBD.  We'll end it with my favorite driver in NASCAR, Kyle Busch in a nice photo.

BREAKDOWN:
48 – Total Cards
15 – Retro ‘91
8 – Retired Greats
6 – Optic
4 – Red and Blue Parallel
3 – Cars
2 – Retro Series
1 - Unleashed
1 – Race Kings
1 – Dominators
1 – Rated Rookie
1 – Base Variation
1 – Burning Rubber
1 – Production Line
1 - Red Xplosion #/99
1 – Blue Parallel #/199
1 – Purple Parallel #/99
1 – Black Velocity Parallel #/39

1996 Topps DragonHeart Widevision

1996 Topps Dragonheart:  The movie Dragonheart was one I really enjoyed back in the day.  This movie got the widevision treatment in 1996 and I'm glad it did.  This is a great shot of Draco.

Here we have Dennis Quaid who played the main character, Bowen.  The fronts are great.  It's very simple and plenty of room for screen grabs.  I really like this photo.

Hard to tell but these are the scales of Draco, voiced by Sean Connery.  Really good cast in this movie.

In 1996, the graphics were a big win.  We hadn't seen dragons look this good and he was a main character you saw plenty of whether it was in the distance or close up.

There were a total of 6 cards in this pack.

I really like the backs which give us a storyboard and details on the photo we see.

I like this card even though I'm not sure why it's so blurry.  Maybe it was on promo materials?  Don't know.  But these were still a fun trip down memory lane.
  

Random Wax: 2023 Topps Baseball

2023 Topps:  Mike Trout isn't having a typical Mike Trout year but he has been fairly healthy, knock on wood, and still has his power.

I've posted plenty of packs and blasters of this set, but I really do like the design.  The head shot, colorful team logo, and position look great all the while leaving plenty of room for a nice photo.

Plenty of youngsters.  Pasquantino is having another good season for KC.

Checklist cards are fun.

A couple Stars of MLB inserts as well as a Holo Foil Parallel.

We do need numbers on the fronts of these League Leader cards but otherwise I like them.

We get a Nolan Gorman 1988 Topps card.  Needs a logo but otherwise okay.

I like the Team Cards.

Excellent photo on this horizontal Josh Donaldson card.

Fun cards and more great photos.  Won't be the last of them you'll see on the blog.

BREAKDOWN:
36 – Total Cards
7 – RC
3 – Leaders
2 - Checklist
2 – Stars of MLB
1 – 1988
1 – Holo Foil
1 – Team Card
1 – RC/ Rookie Cup

2021-2022 NBA Stickers

 21-22 NBA Stickers: Purchased this pack over three years ago and I'll share for the first time today.  Usually found these at Dollar Tree or Target.  I like these Playoffs cards.  This photo is really good too.  So many good players.  Maybe Donovan Mitchell is trying to get a rebound or a get a crazy shot up.

Hawks hot pack with 3X 6th Man of the Year Lou Williams as well as De'Andre Hunter who was traded to the Cavs at the deadline this last season.

Nice caricature card of NBA Champion Luguentz Dort.  He's also a really good defender making the 2024-2025 All-Defensive team and has become an excellent three-point shooter.  Stickers are always fun even if they are bit of an outlier with my collecting.

BREAKDOWN:
5 – Stickers
1 – Card
1 – Playoffs
1 – Caricature

Superman (NO SPOILERS)

Superman was really good.  A friend describes it as a comic book movie, and I think that's a great way to describe it.  So much fun.  I enjoyed all the characters and Lex Luthor was a good villain.  The other DC characters were great including Guy Gardner (Green Lantern) and Mr. Terrific.  The movie didn't bog us down with an origin story though it's touched on throughout the movie.  You jump right into the action, and they do a good job of letting the plot and characters explain where things stand.  Just very few qualms.  It's very enjoyable and it feels like it can setup so much more.

And Krypto is done really well and a fun character.

Gladiator II

 

Gladiator II: I finally got around to watching this one with pop.  We really enjoyed it.  The movie does a good job tying in what came before while allowing us to enjoy the new characters and story.  Gladiator II has the same tone as the original movie which I'm a huge fan of.  This one does a good job keeping the story going.  I'll keep it short and sweet but obviously I recommend this one.

Random Wax: 1991 Fleer Baseball (4 Packs)

1991 Fleer:   Bo Jackson needs no introduction no matter where he goes.  When I think of him, I think about how much fun it was to watch him play whether it be in baseball, football or in commercials.

It is a gawdy set but one I really like.  Even if I have to wear sunglasses to properly enjoy it.  Really nice Mike Scioscia photo.

Who doesn't love Fleer's stickers and the backs?  Great large Red Sox logo sticker for me and on the back the all-time stat leaders in four categories.  Stats weren't that easily available back in the day so seeing things like this on cards was something I really love.

My Superstar Special pull.  We enjoy thinking of The Hawk as a Montreal Expo but the did play six season as a Cubbie.

I always liked Brett Butler and his speed as and the way Benito Santiago setup as a catcher when nobody was on base.

The backs are good with lots and lots of stats including the minor leagues and a headshot.

Really good Bert Blyleven photo.  He was born in Zeist, Nederlands and won two world championships with the '79 Pirates and the '87 Twins.

Fun pack of cards and so many good players including Luis Gonzalez who played his first full season with Houston in 1991.

BREAKDOWN:

60 – Total Cards

4 – Stickers

1 – Super Star Specials