Here is what we know about Turkey Red:

• Its a set collector’s product in a hit per pack format
• The cards are very similar to the way they were done in previous years, which isnt a bad thing
• The packs sold out faster than a Justin Bieber concert in Japan

So, with that being said, the first results are starting to show up, and the set’s results seem to be structured exactly like we expected. The good autos are really tough pulls, and there are some really BAD autos when you dont hit them. Here are some of the nicer hits:

2012 Turkey Red Andrew Luck RC Auto /5

2012 Turkey Red Alfred Morris Auto /50

2012 Turkey Red Trent Richardson Auto /5

2012 Turkey Red Robert Griffin III Mini Variation

Turkey Red is a set that features really cool looking cards with very challenging odds to get something good in one pack. Breaking a bunch of packs should yeild better results, but the odds are still quite long. In fact, the prices on the packs have started to drop since the breaks have started, and there are some legitimate reasons for that.

The checklist is pretty weak, as it was in Baseball. This is not a product aimed at autograph collectors, but it is oddly packaged as one. That is a huge detriment to the value of the individual unopened packs, and a huge plus for the people that pull one of the Lucks or Griffins in the boxes. The packs were selling considerably above market value at first, due to the fast sale, and that will damage this further.

However, the cards do look very nice, and there are some cool surprises. Base photo variations and minis are included for the people lucky enough to pull them, and I think that if you have the money to spend on the set, its worth a look. I think Topps improved on the way this looks over the last time they did it – putting the sticker over the painting instead of on the border like they did in 2005 and 2006.

Overall, Turkey Red is going to be a blip on the radar for many collectors who are not connected online. Topps obviously invested most of the resources on things OTHER than the autographs, as that wasnt the point of this set. However, when the configuration is what it is, collectors are not going to accept that as a good investment.

Maybe next year we can get a full release with more thought about how packs would perform on a lower end scale. That would be fun, I think.

Over the last few weeks, we have gotten more and more information on the upcoming release of Upper Deck’s Master Collection series. These products are some of the most high end sets ever to be produced, and focus on two specific players – Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods. Both of these guys seem to be the only players that could support a product with this price tag, and it has to do with the sheer number of people who collect them.

Back in 2000, Upper Deck released the first Michael Jordan master collection, with a Bulls uniform and a similar price tag. Content was a bit different because of available technology, but the promise was there.

Here are some of the bigger hits:

2000 Upper Deck Michael Jordan Master Collection Auto /50

2000 Upper Deck Michael Jordan Master Collection Base Card 1/1

2000 Upper Deck Michael Jordan Master Collection GU Shoe BGS 9.5

I honestly was not aware of this being a previous release, mainly because Basketball is not my sport, but I love the idea. I have often wondered how long it would take for a mainstream company to produce a set comprised of super high end chase cards for a ridiculous price, and I am not surprised that UD was behind this original release. We had a  discussion on twitter, regarding which players could honestly make for a release like this, and there just arent many. Lebron, Kobe, Walter Payton, Derek Jeter, Albert Pujols, could all do it with a lesser price tag, but this is rare company.

The Jordan set singles have started to pop up already, and some of them are definitely head turners:

2013 Upper Deck Michael Jordan Master Collection PMG Red /100

2013 Upper Deck Michael Jordan Master Collection Hand Painted Art Auto /30

2013 Upper Deck Michael Jordan Master Collection Tar Heels 20 Card Logo Set

Tiger Woods is one of those outside the box type of guys, as his signatures are easily on the level of a Jordan, only because there arent as many of them. He has had autos before, and they have sold ridiculously well, but he has only been a part of three real high end sets. The first was 2008 Exquisite Football, the second was Exquisite Basketball at the end of its run, and also made an appearance in the Cup a few years ago.

Realistically, its going to take an auto price of 600-800 per card of sustained value to make this work. Outside of that, the company cant sustain a $3000 box price. Upper Deck knows that Jordan’s player collectors are about as rabid as they come, and the international market is sick with Jordan insanity. This isnt a Bulls product, which reduces the potential slightly, but it makes up for it in content from what the previews show. There are also dual autos that should help get people fired up – including the Ali/Jordan booklet that I found to be a great pairing.

Topps has tried to do player specific box content in the latter part of the 2000s with Sterling, and even though I REALLY hated the design and the Triple Threads style approach, the product was extremely popular. The issue is that with Football, each product has to have some level of Rookie themed content, which hamstrings the ability to put together a product like this in a football arena. It would have been cool to have an on card product that features player specific boxes from Luck, Griffin, Wilson, Peterson, Rodgers, Brady, Manning, Emmitt, Montana, etc, but it is severely diminished when stickers are applied, and the cards look like crap. It has to look like Exquisite for it to be relevant, and that is where Upper Deck has this market cornered.

One day, we are going to have Topps Diamond Edition, where every card is a 1/1, and features a logo, or some crazy patch in every example from the set. It might only appeal to a very small portion of collectors, but man, the possibilities are crazy and exciting.

Five Years is a long time. A really long time. I cant even wrap my mind around it.

As of March 2013, SCU is five years old, and for the majority of that time, it has been a wonderful outlet for me to voice opinions, commentary, box breaks, and god knows what else, for others to read and enjoy. Okay, enjoy maybe isnt the best word – digest? I have poured my feelings, emotions, desires, successes and failures onto these pages, and even I am surprised how far I have come. Over 1,000,000 hits later, I am still here.

I started SCU as a response to a situation in the hobby that I felt deserved some major attention. For the longest time, much of the news reporting surrounding cards was gumdrops and rainbows, as I felt that no one took it upon themselves to really psyche themselves up and dislike something. I wanted to put an end to that, not just to be a hotbed of that missing negativity, but provide one person’s opinion that is by nature different than anything else that was out there. I didnt have advertisers, I didnt have mag space to sell, I just wanted to write.

To be honest, I never expected it to last this long. How could I? I had never had any experience doing this sort of thing, but as an english major in college, I loved to write. By nature, as many of my friends can attest to, I am an opinionated person who will never shut up when I love or hate something. I am also EXTREMELY snobbish and picky, much to the detriment of my personality. People have often questioned how I can be so opinionated and not be a critic by trade, so this site may have just been that venue.

When I think that this blog is older than my marriage and my son, its incredible how much a part of my life this hobby has become. I have received mountains of vitriol regarding my writing over the years, with a common thread being “if you hate everything so much, why are you still here?” That is not the way I look at it. I dont hate everything, I just know what I like, and I actually care more about this hobby than I do about any non-personal thing in my life. One does not dedicate the tens of thousands of words and man hours to write like I do, if they hate something. Im not that kind of person. I want this hobby to be great so much, that I will voice my commentary as a method of improvement.

Funny enough, we have made a lot of improvements. Whether its educating the masses on fake autos and patches, or getting the companies to change the way they design cards, the hobby’s voice has inspired a lot over the last five years. When I started on board, there werent many people dedicating time to writing or voicing their opinions on how they feel. Since that time, hundreds of sites have come and gone, and each one of them (no matter how small), have used their voice to disseminate the type of commentary that is always a GOOD thing.

This is where I have taken my stand. Even if we dont agree – which is often, I have never used my site as a way to snuff out any unprofessional voice that has entered the fray. Its not right, and I feel as though it isnt the way this should be. I want MORE people to voice their opinions, and I want more people to get involved. We ALWAYS need more people saying what they feel – positive or negative.

Its crazy how much I have changed along the course of this journey, even as I have changed locations, started a family, and most importantly established a foothold on a place of prominence for the voice that we all represent. That voice is part of my legacy, but it is not something I created or even brought to the forefront the way that it is now. That’s all of you. The readers and the people who love and hate this site. You may not identify with my way of doing things, but you are here and you are participating. As part of the Fifth Anniversary Celebration, its time to reward you.

Here is the way this MEGA CONTEST is going to work:

In the comments – please put down your contribution to the hobby voice. It can be an opinion, a card, a box break, it doesnt matter. Some sort of contribution that you have participated in. Winners will be randomly selected from those participating to win the prizes below. Because of my limitations of where I can ship to, I can only offer this contest to the USA residents. My apologies.

I would like to thank Mark Sapir at Topps and Chris Carlin at Upper Deck for supplying these prizes, as well as for their support over the last few years. The willingness to answer questions and deliver information to the people like me have been a huge help to everyone. They both understand the importance of the service you provide to their company’s direction, and have donated these prizes for your reward. A huge thank you is in line, and I think you will be VERY excited to see what they are both offering!

Here is what has been generously donated from Upper Deck:

- A sealed box of 2012 Upper Deck SP Authentic Football
- A limited edition Upper Deck auto card of Doug Martin from the 2013 industry summit

Here is what has been generously donated from Topps:

- A full sized 2007 Rookie Premiere Helmet, signed by Adrian Peterson, Calvin Johnson, Patrick Willis and Joe Thomas among others
- A football signed by the class of the 2012 Rookie Premiere (RGIII, Luck, Wilson, etc)
- A football signed by the 2003 rookie premiere class
- A Limited Edition Topps auto card of Andy Dalton from the 2013 Industry Summit

FOLLOW @SCUncensored on twitter for running contests through this week – Today’s contest is a Michael Floyd Patch Auto from Panini Black, courtesy of Busting Packs.com!

I have to put in a disclaimer:

No purchase is necessary. The prizes offered in this contest are to be provided as is, and will be delivered as such. This contest is open to all USA residents and all communication will be done according to the email address provided in the comment form. This contest will end on Friday 4/19 at midnight, and winners will be drawn randomly. Sports Cards Uncensored reserves sole and final judgment as to all matters concerning contests and interpretation of contest rules. If a winner cannot be reached after a reasonable amount of effort has been made to notify the winner of the prize, the winner forfeits his/her rights to the winning prize. All taxes on any prize won are the sole responsibility of each winner, including, without limitation, any federal, state, or local taxes, which may be deemed applicable in such winner’s jurisdiction of residence. Winner(s) shall be solely responsible for the reporting and payment of all taxes incurred by acceptance and use of the prize(s) (or any portion thereof), if applicable. Anyone using fraudulent means to participate and/or win the contest will be disqualified.

National Treasures officially goes live today, even though there have been a slow trickle up until this point over the last few days. I think that this year’s product is much nicer than we have ever seen in the previous few years of this set, and though there are still some glaring errors that should not have been done, its a great product.

Its likely that the rookie patch auto cards, despite my negative feelings on their design, will be the most expensive cards of the year, and we have already seen huge asking prices start to pop up.

2012 National Treasures Andrew Luck Auto Patch 2 Color /99

2012 National Treasures Robert Griffin III Book Auto Patch w/ Inscription

2012 National Treasures David Wilson Auto Logo Shield 1/1 Colossal

2012 National Treasures Alfred Morris Auto RC 1/1

2012 National Treasures Russell Wilson Rookie Auto Patch /25

2012 National Treasures Aaron Rodgers Virtuoso On Card Auto /25

Overall, my feelings aside, this product is a tough buy at 575 a pop. After making some deals to free up some cash, I was able to get a box from Sports Cards Plus earlier today. I pulled some REALLY nice cards in the box, but even after hitting a Robert Griffin III auto jumbo jersey, I am still likely 150 dollars short of making my complete box price back. That is difficult to stomach for many people out there, especially when you hit one of the best rookies you can, and still come up short.

Dont get me wrong, I am still extremely happy that I came away with what I did, as I did not pull a single card that was as ugly as it has been in the past. The white dominated design this year is right in my wheelhouse, and I am still in the process of searching down some of the Peterson autos that I am chasing.

If I were Panini, I walk away from 2012 NT feeling better than I ever have, but in the same vein, I start making plans for next year to make the design better, and to cut out the stickers that make this product’s potential much less appealing.

Now that we are 2-3 days into the period in which collectors are receiving Blue Wave packs from 2012 Topps Chrome Football redemptions, we are also starting to see completed auctions pop up as well. Oddly enough, the handful of Blue Wave exclusive chrome cards arent the biggest stories, as there are a bunch of the normal cards that are selling for WELL above expectations. They really turned out nicely, and I think that is one of the reasons that so many people want them.

Here are where we are with the first of the exclusives:

2012 Topps Chrome Blue Wave Joseph Morgan BW Exclusive

2012 Topps Chrome Blue Wave Bobby Wagner BW Exclusive

2012 Topps Chrome Blue Wave Brandon Bolden Exclusive BW

2012 Topps Chrome Blue Wave Bryce Brown Exclusive BW

The biggest card in the set might not actually be the Alfred Morris autograph that was likely to be a huge hit. Rather, the big 3 QBs have all been hitting some NICE prices along the way, while other lesser rookies are still selling for a bunch to the player collectors looking to compelte their rainbows. Its pretty incredible, but I guess not that surprising.

Additionally, the Andrew Luck exclusive BW variation is a card I expected to be the most expensive of the entire set. It commemorates the Colts support of Chuck Pagano during his cancer treatment, and many of the fans were definitely invested in that emotion during the season. So far, it hasnt disappointed, as many collectors believe it is more short printed than most of the other blue wave cards.

Guys like Trent Richardson, Doug Martin, and other second tier rookies are selling well into the 20-40 dollar range, and the third tier guys are usually breaking prices that we see for the colored refractor parallels. Of course, these prices will die down eventually, but its unclear how many sets will be out there if not all the packs are mailed out in a reasonable timeframe.

So far, there have been a few Russell Wilson redemptions popping up, quite a few Dwayne Allen redemptions (the main source of the packs), and onsie twosie others that have been fufilled here and there. It is still unconfirmed when the next wave (no pun intended) will be sent out. It could be months if the initial delay is any indication.

This begs the question of picking them up now or later. If we know that waves of these packs could be coming down the pike, but it could be a LONG time before they hit – is it worth buying in so early? I think it might be, as there is no guarantee that more will even come in a reasonable enough timeframe to make a difference. People will buy them and keep them, and with supply at a trickle, new collectors will eventually come on board and buy them as they are released.

That’s just a guess, but they are still a fun add on for the people lucky enough to get a couple of packs. Like I said previously, the whole situation has to do with the communication and news dissemination rather than the actual cards or the timeframe. I think people will happily be patient as long as you give them information as a pacifier.