Making the Grade (June): Muhammad Ali, The Crow, Space Jam, Wemby, Spidey, Connor Bedard & Liv Morgan before WWE?

Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ...

GRADE LIKE A BUTTERFLY ...
The Card: Muhammad Ali 2021 Topps Muhammad Ali The People's Champ Collection Black parallel (/56)
The Reason Graded: When I spotted this card (ungraded) at about the price of a blaster, I bit as that was a good number for a parallel from this set that was released week by week for a year on Topps' site. Since it was both a rarer parallel and, if you ask me, one of the better-looking cards in this retro-styled set with that exposure photo, I also opted to slab it. Why? Well that stock and color is a grading challenge -- but it was one I was willing to take as this one looked strong.
The Grade: CGC 10

Reality Check: I was right and it graded actually better than I had hoped (I figured a 9.5)  making this a win atop of a win.

Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.

HOT ON THE ICE
The Sticker: Connor Bedard 2023-24 Topps Now NHL Stickers -- RC-year sticker (announced /29,357)
The Reason Graded: Buzz doesn't do much hockey -- can't collect it all and I really don't have any ties there to make me want to -- but with this No. 1 draft pick's in-demand RCs not being in the early season releases and the demand being high back when these stickers arrived I opted for this debut from Topps' real-time line. I picked up a small lot (see a past Buzz Buys for more info) and I picked out the best of a few slab candidates and recently subbed one.
The Grade: CGC 10 (Pristine)

Reality Check: That'll work ... the top mark. The volume here isn't super-high overall and I like that -- PSA has slabbed almost 3,800 with more than 2,900 as 10s and that's more than half of all PSA slabs for the entire set. They're printed very sharply and cleanly, though some corners with those black edges could show spots on some in my lot. Overall, these stickers aren't rare but could become more popular over time -- especially if he delivers -- and that kind of top mark never hurts ... and people are grading these as the overall pop here jumped by like 75 percent in the last month.

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DABBLING DIFFERENTLY ...
The Disc: Space Jam DVD (2010)
The Reason Graded: As part of my first batch of CGC Home Video subs, I sent in some basics that I thought might be appealing for a few reasons -- but not necessarily rare items. This Michael Jordan classic arrived in 1996 and the first DVD for it was in 1997 ... but this isn't that. It's just a newer edition that I simply picked up among a few discs that looked super-clean for next to nothing. Why? This one because we all know there are few names in slabs more often and in more demand than Jordan ... on almost anything. This looked perfect other than some minor wrinkling in the wrap.
The Grade: CGC 9.4 (Universal)

Reality Check: I don't believe there is a pop report for this stuff just yet* but I was a little surprised I didn't check in a little higher here. Then again, this DVD only cost me $4 plus the cost of grading ... so I think it's fine for a first filler copy.

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BACK IN BLACK
The Card: Victor Wembanyama 2023 Topps Allen & Ginter X -- Rookie Card
The Reason Graded: My Wemby slab stash is a small one and will mostly be non-hoops stuff as, well, that's what I buy more of vs. NBA. This card came from one of two Ginter X boxes I ripped last year and it was slightly cleaner than my mini, so I sent it in. Simple as that.
The Grade: CGC 10

Reality Check: Like the Ali card up top, I had figured this one would check in at a 9.5 but I'll take this -- the best of three subbed so far. On black bordered paper-stock cards, the corners seemingly always show a very minor spec of white -- since it's cardboard -- and if you don't see it on white-bordered cards it's probably still there ... just revealed under a loupe. I won't be chasing a lot of Wemby stuff but there's no doubting that the NBA's Rookie Of The Year will be doing things we have not seen before as long as he stays healthy.

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THE CHAMP IS HERE ... TWICE!
The Cards: Gionna Daddio (aka WWE's Liv Morgan) 2014 Hooters Calendar playing cards
The Reason Graded: This popular WWE veteran and new champ who you probably know with a different name appeared along with a number of other models in the restaurant chain's annual calendar and also in this playing card deck a year before she signed with WWE and well before she had her first Topps cards in 2016. I had known about these for a couple years now but they had stayed off my writing radar for the most part as I waited to find one -- they just never popped up online unlike the many other decks the company created for years. I landed my first of these last year but didn't slab as much stuff as I had needed to ... so they sat. I initially found two sealed decks and opened one. After that, I found two more (one opened, one sealed) as part of a small lot for a an absolute steal of a price. In recent months on eBay, these cards -- and they're just simple cards -- sold for $300-plus twice, one sealed deck for $255 (typo in listing) and another sealed deck went for $400. My four decks came for less than half of that price combined -- throw in grading fees and I'm still under that halfway mark. Who knows what they might command graded ... and now she's a champ again.
The Grades: CGC 10 & CGC 9

Reality Check: I was pleasantly surprised to get these back, though the label isn't as specific as it should be. (I sent in printouts of what the box looked like on all sides so they'd know the exact year with my submission but that didn't make it to the set info person. There's also one minor error on that label but it's not a huge deal. I'll survive.) This card really blew up just as I was getting mine graded and I may grade at least one more (though it wasn't as clean on the back as it was from the opened deck). Plus I'm still pondering a slab on the one still untouched. I might ... I might not ... watch me here in the coming months. Playing cards are a fertile ground for cards from celebs, movies, musicians, shows and more -- you can find a lot of names on them who don't have traditional card sets -- and they can all have unique appeal in slabs. Why? You may not be able to find them as easily as, say, flagship stuff.

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GREATEST GPK EVER?
The Card: Deranged Doug (aka Arnold Schwarzenegger in Total Recall) 2023 Topps Garbage Pail Kids Intergoolactic Mayhem Black Hole parallel
The Reason Graded: I landed this one raw for only $5 (that might be high but I liked it) and it was an easy buy as this GPK is a take on this scene, which is memorable from that 1990 film but hasn't really stood up all that well over the years. (Still a sci-fi classic, though.) This might be among the best GPKs ever and I instantly knew I was slabbing one when I saw it.
The Grade: CGC 9

Reality Check: I prefer the parallels over basic base for slabs here (a smidge rarer as this shade is one per pack) though they can sometimes be busy. This grade is fine, though I had hoped for a notch or two higher. Given the skinny stock it wasn't surprising.

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BADASSERY CARDBOARD
The Card: Brandon Lee (checklist) 1994 Kitchen Sink Press The Crow
The Reason Graded: Sure, this is "just" a checklist but it's a badass portrait of the star who was accidentally killed during the making of this enigmatic film from 1993. The son of martial artist and pop culture icon Bruce Lee was still a rising star and just 28 years old and the film, which was based on a comic book and is now a franchise that's been revived a few times over since with a new chapter on the way, arrived a year later. This card set was among the options for fans, though I never saw or opened any of these packs back then ... but I did see the film in the theater -- and I did remember seeing this image as a poster way back in the day, too, though I hadn't thought about it at all until finding this card on a recent deep non-sports dive.
The Grade: CGC 9.5

Reality Check: I knew the black border would be a grading challenge here -- the stock seems to be a little soft and not very glossy, too, so surfaces can be an issue -- but I did it anyway as this is one badass card and that makes it a badass slab if you ask me. The centering is just a smidge off -- that probably cost me a 10 -- but if I find another that looks like a top candidate I'm slabbing it, too.

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FINALLY SLABBED A FAVORITE THROWBACK
The Card: Jay Buhner (with Chase Buhner) 1996 Upper Deck V.J. Lovero Showcase
The Reason Graded: This classic is one that I have written about before -- it's from a photo shoot that has had a few cardboard appearances and spawned a Sports Illustrated cover -- so check in the archives for more details and thoughts. I finally bit (pun intended) on a copy to grade and got about what I'd expect from a lot of stuff back then in terms of the grade result. It, too, is a badass card ... in any condition. In an elite grade it would be even stronger.
The Grade: CGC 8

Reality Check: The stock and full-bleed colors here -- along with the packaging -- definitely didn't do a lot of favors for cards back then when you consider grading standards, but this is still the kind of cool card I'm cool with as a slab in any grade. (I'd prefer nine or higher ... and just like that Lee if I happen upon one that looks it I'd probably grab and grade again.)

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BACK IN BLACK II
The Book: Web Of Spider-Man No. 8 -- newsstand edition
The Reason Graded: The barcode here made me do it -- the logic on that is something I've mentioned in past months here -- but what makes this interesting is that I wasn't the first owner here where I picked it out of a stack of new issues at a bookstore. Instead it was one I found at a comics shop and paid somewhere around $1 for as it's a really clean look at the then relatively new black Spider-man suit. It's not that rare, it's just older and top-grade copies of this one have strong asking prices -- even for the direct edition -- probably since 1985 print runs are much smaller than those from some later years to follow. But newsstand? Not sure ... I didn't see any slabbed ones.
The Grade: CGC 9.6 (Universal)

Reality Check: I came up short of a top mark -- that actually did surprise me here but I could've missed something -- but since it's got that barcode the drop-off might not be as dramatic as a direct edition ($150 for 9.8 down to $50 for 9.6). Why? There just can't be as many of these in good shape if they lived in the newsstand wild that long.

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GOING GREEN
The Cards: Shotzi Blackheart 2020 Topps WWE NXT Roster (RC-year insert)
The Reason Bought: I picked off this run of first-generation slabs awhile back since the prices were right and I wanted to amass all the green I could here -- it's just her color -- and they're not happening again. (Green CSG labels have since been replaced by cleaner black CSG and then CGC labels.) I collect this high-energy star -- though I'm not rich enough to chase the rare stuff -- but this simple RC-year insert always got my attention when I pulled it. It's a favorite for sure.
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10) & CSG 10

Reality Check: Between these and ones I previously graded and presented here, I think I am the owner of 10 of the 11 cards that now check in as 10s. I think the one I don't have is a green-label 10 but I'd need to re-check the serial-numbers to the site again to be 100-percent sure. (I'm not organized even for my slabs.) After a quick search, I do know I own the only 9.5 (new label) ... so, yeah, 11 of the 14 slabs here are mine. I swore I might have a nine, too, but I was thinking of my autos from this set ... I have slabbed a few there, too. (Insert the shrug emoji here ... and then some horns and an Army helmet. Or something.)

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BEFORE BEING TIMELESS ...
The Card: Toni Storm 2019 Topps WWE Women's Division -- "Rookie Card" (has previous Stardom cards in Japan)
The Reason Bought: I slabbed one of these back when it was her first card and got a top mark -- seems like years ago now and it kind of was -- but now that she's "Timeless" in AEW I've been looking back at her cards a little more once again. Her current schtick -- I say that respectfully but it's a definite over-the-top schtick -- is something that, well, will end up being timeless despite being a throwback. Just watch that evolution at that link. This is her first card from WWE -- a Rookie Card -- though she had quite a few cards in Stardom sets from Japan that came before these. (Reconcile the international RC debate for yourself ... I'm leaning toward this.) The price was very right here, so I snagged it.
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: The 9.5 really throws people off -- hence the scale change -- but you can find some solid bargains like this in comparison to prices of heavy-pop cards slabbed from elsewhere.

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AN ICONIC LINEUP
The Mag: The Blues Brothers (aka John Belushi as "Joliet" Jake Blues & Dan Aykroyd as his brother, Elwood), The J. Geils Band's Peter Wolf, KISS' Gene Simmons & Blondie's Debbie Harry -- Creem, April 1979
The Reason Bought: This is an older magazine with a boatload of black ink on that cover -- things that should prevent even this high mark but didn't ... and when I saw a cheap price I snagged it because, well, this is the kind of thing that, given its genre, shouldn't exist. Cheap music mags got read and posters and one-page pin-ups routinely got ripped out -- maybe not as much here as younger genres but you get the point. Three of the four subjects here are absolute 1970s/80s (and probably beyond) icons, so that also made this an easy addition. I'd like to explore graded music mags more but there's definite interest in stuff that' ungraded, too, where prices aren't that good ... and conditions aren't, either.
The Grade: CGC 9.4 (Universal)

Reality Check: I was a little surprised to see more than one graded here but the divide between mine -- the best one -- and the next one shows how there will be challenges grading unless there's some cache of stuff from this realm out there awaiting collectors that I don't know about. (It's possible ... print pubs definitely made more copies of everything back in the day vs. today. That is if they even still exist.)

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A LITTLE BO
The Card: Bo Bichette 2022 Topps Rip mini parallel (/75)
The Reason Graded: I'm a sucker for minis and instead of dabble with a rip of this one -- a release where everything is a Rip Card with a mini inside -- I opted for a sure thing and just picked off this base card that I probably didn't think was a base card given that low-ish volume ... but it is.
The Grade: CGC 9

Reality Check: Lone one graded ... works for me. This won't be my last time slabbing a Bichette from this brand ... or minis in general.

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ICONIC INK
The Book: X-Men (1991) No. 7
The Reason Graded: I have previously dabbled with some of my newsstand copies for the Jim Lee reboot (per se) of the iconic Marvel team here, but I still haven't done some of the earliest issues (Nos. 1-2) that are easy to find in slabs. Instead, I have graded a few here and there from a little bit after that arrival where my copies aren't directs (think hobby for card people) and instead are retail copies that have a UPC on the front. Since retail books don't get a "don't touch that" treatment as often as perhaps in comics shop (simplistically speaking) the logic is that they are rarer finds in top marks. Since nothing is all that rare ungraded really from this quality era, I've done my crisp newsstands. I always liked this cover quite a bit, too, with it being a split-screen between Wolverine and a foe making an earlier appearance, Omega Red.
The Grade: CGC 9.6 (Universal)

Reality Check: How many of those are UPC copies? We'll never know but actual eBay sales show there's a slight premium here at times -- though everything from this time can be volatile -- with a 9.6 direct copy low-price sale at just $35 or so while a 9.8 newsstand did around $150. The only other newsstand CGC sale recently was a lowly 9.0 at $35 ... so still more than a 9.6 direct. That makes me comfortable with this one's potential, though obviously a 9.8 would have been stronger.

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TWICE AS NICE
The Card: Heather Graham & Will Ferrell ("I Will Kill You!") -- 1999 Cornerstone Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me
The Reason Graded: Non-sports is, without question, my most-looked-at realm as a collector so far in 2024 with a lot of card sets out there that many people may not really know about -- so they're not that overpriced in set or box form. There might some gems to be found for a few good names on early card appearances. There are instances where a cheap set can be had, a couple of key cards can be pulled out and they can sell for more raw or even more graded. Now, I'm not a dabbling seller but I'm more of a dabbling buyer and slabber as I like the appeal of big names over time -- or at least I like them -- and here's a card that fits that. Both Ferrell and Graham have plenty of past roles but this, for example, is among the earliest cards one can find for both. (I'm not saying first but it's close on at least one.) Ferrell has a lot of cards from later while Graham has quite a few from this film alone as a main character while he was closer to a cameo kind of spot. Both have main character cards from this set but I went with a cleaner combo card for them both.
The Grade: CGC 9

Reality Check: My copy is the lone graded and checked in at the minimum I'd prefer to see (preferably higher) but that's not a big deal as I landed the set for only $5, making this a cheap experimental slab. A smidge higher would be better but it is what it is. I'll grade more from this set and one other that can be found.

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THE BACK IS BETTER!
The Mag: Britt Baker, C.M. Punk, MJF, Jade Cargill & Thunder Rosa on PWI Awards Issue -- Pro Wrestling Illustrated, April 2022
The Reason Graded: If you count the back cover, this annual awards issue just might be a first appearance (at least first appearances of any substance) for three of these stars as AEW cleaned up. Part of me wants to slab up a run of this annual time capsule awards issue, but that wouldn't be that easy (or cheap) to pull of with quality copies, so instead I have done a few general issues from this title and have a few more to go. Why? Well, for one, this is basically the only easily findable wrestling mag left in this country and it's been going since 1979 -- there's a lot to collect here if you choose to continuity-wise.
The Grade: CGC 9.8 (Universal)

Reality Check: Lone copy graded isn't that surprising ... but I suspect there's perhaps potential for more here over time with MJF, Cargill and Rosa being popular. Cargill and Rosa shared a main cover story a little after this (I slabbed it), while MJF hasn't had a main cover at all ... interesting. (Baker had one before this and Punk has appeared on many over the years.)

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STAY IN SCHOOL
The Card: Bo Bichette 2020 Topps Of The Class -- RC-year promo set
The Reason Bought: This one comes from a 100-card release made for hobby shops to reward kids and it's a pretty big one, too, unlike a lot of promo sets made for stuff like this through the years. The only other stuff in this one was a 25-card legends insert set (/299 per card on those) so there's some chase and incentive to open those pack if you see them (I never did).
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: I grabbed this one already slabbed since it's from his RC year. An added bonus is that it's the top-graded copy ... I didn't even check the pop report.

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SO CLEAN ... BUT SO TRIMMED
The Card: Jimmie Foxx 1960 Fleer
The Reason Graded: This card absolutely jumped out at me from the crowd over on COMC with most cards from this past old-timers set looking more like the high mark among the pop seen below. (Note the other one didn't even make the table ... it checked in even lower than a 5.5.) This one looked so bright and so clean that I graded it via them without it in hand with an only worry being a very minor surface line/scuff by his shoulder ... but with everything else so clean on this Hall of Famer slugger's card I did it, anyway.
The Grade: CGC AA (Authentic Altered)

Reality Check: In its case even that surface scratch line doesn't look bad at all so I'll admit I was a little surprised to see his one come back as AA for it being altered and even with a close look I didn't see anything looking way off ... until I realized there was a little too much room between the top of the card and the top bumper inside the case. So the top was likely trimmed just slightly. While a bummer, I still like the looks of this one ... and now I know how they'll handle cards that have allegedly been manipulated when doing submissions via COMC -- and now I know that cards slabbed like this don't show up on the pop report.

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IN THE REAL WORLD
The Card: Judd Winick 2011 Cryptozoic CBLDF Liberty Autographs
The Reason Graded: If you know your early reality TV shows, then you might know this name -- he was on the third season of MTV's The Real World back in 1994, The Real World: San Francisco -- as part of the cast of characters who lived on Lombard Street, aka the crookedest street in the world. Winick was an aspiring artist/animator at the time and met his wife, Pam, who was also among the cast members. It ultimately was his launching point where some of the real-world stuff that happened in the series led him toward comics and other publishing ventures as well as screenwriting projects in both TV and an animated film. He was nominated for an Eisner Award (the top honor in comics) and has worked on DC and Marvel titles while also bringing his own creations to life, too. (This is all over-simplified ... for more details go here.) This card comes from a set made to help the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund that was packed out with autos and sketches as the chases along with some history of the industry on the basic cardboard.
The Grade: CGC 8.5

Reality Check: I wasn't too surprised by the mark here with on-card autos and then the age ... but as the only copy slabbed by CGC it's a starting point. Would I try for a better one? Well, I do have another deep in my stash ... somewhere. I'll see how that one looks when/if I unearth it from one of my many auto boxes.

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A CHEAP ADDITION
The Card: Mac Jones 2021 Panini Chronicles Draft Picks Rookies & Stars -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: This one comes from a cheap lot of Jones slabs -- all costing well under what it would to grade even on a bulk deal -- and that's fine by me as they're just some simple Crimson Tide fillers in my school ties stash.
The Grade: CSG 10

Reality Check: The volume here on this lesser draft pick card shows how there probably were flippers slabbing a lot of stuff for names like Jones for a time, though it's definitely not an obscene volume of cards. Now that he's a reserve (for now ... one way or another) many are bailing and I don't mind a bargain pick-up as, well, he's not in my collection for NFL reasons or future potential, anyway.

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AN UP-AND-COMER?
The Card: Ivy Nile 2022 Panini Prizm WWE Premium Box Set (/199) -- Rookie Card parallel
The Reason Bought: This NXT standout wasn't an obvious name to get promoted to the main roster of WWE -- she went up as part of a group -- but there have been some interesting and compelling moments that show they could have plans for her (and others) when the time is right. That got me to do some affordable speculative pick-ups and this premium-priced parallel set is one that has caught my eye for a few names so far.
The Grade: CGC 9

Reality Check: The centering is a bit too "off" for a higher mark but I still liked it for the price, which was $10. I couldn't grade one for that low of a price if I had one.

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MORE VINTAGE ...
The Card: Andy Pafko 1955 Bowman
The Reason Graded: I picked up a pair of these for perhaps more than they should have cost raw with an eye on slabbing. Why?  They looked really solid and from what I have seen the centering on this set is often more awful than good. The centering looks perfect to me this time, so really it comes down to edges and corners.
The Grade: CGC 6

Reality Check: First, this one is the highest-graded copy here -- that's a little surprising -- but the bigger surprise was how low this one checked in. I didn't re-examine it under a loupe after it was slabbed so I suspect there might just be a spot somewhere that blends in with the wood grain and I whiffed. If all sixes looked like this, that'd be all I'd buy for anything ... this one still looks really, really solid.

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HOUSE OF CARDS
The Card: Brady House 2021 Bowman's Best -- Rookie Card
The Reason Bought: As I've noted a number of times with cards from this release, I picked off a bunch of the notables and then some cheap slabs for guys who are RCs here thanks to a checklist error. Since they are in the base set with MLB veterans the cards are, by definition, Rookie Cards despite being guys who may not have made the majors yet. (That's just as it was before the RC logo arrived back in 2006.)
The Grade: CSG 9.5 (now 10)

Reality Check: His overall MiLB numbers are fine but his 2024 in Class-AA aren't as strong as they probably could be. That might be one reason his stuff can be found cheaply. The good news is that he turns 21 next week ... so there's still plenty of time for adjustments. The price was right for a 10-grade, too.

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TOO CHEAP TO PASS UP
The Card: Pete Dunne 2022 Panini Prizm WWE Silver Prizms parallel
The Reason Bought: I found this one for $4 and change and since it was a popular parallel I bit. His Rookie Cards are from 2018, so it's not really an "early" card but it's just simple filler lab for me as the star briefly known as "Butch" is not really among my core buys.
The Grade: PSA 9

Reality Check: I was surprised to see this was the only card graded here given the volume of use via PSA, especially with the landmark status that this set has. That's also a reason I grabbed this one on the cheap.

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CURIOSITY GOT ME ...
The Card: Mac Jones 2021 Panini Select Silver Prizm Die-cuts
The Reason Bought: How did this check in this low? A line in the surface that looks almost like the etching runs up the top part of the card on one side along and then beyond the etching itself -- perhaps some damage from the die-cutting stage of things is my best guess.
The Grade: PSA 5

Reality Check: This one did not show in the pop report stats, which was odd, so I added it* to the total. The number and bar above shows the right card info but the stats attached are for a different one. Go figure ... like my other Mac Jones card here it was just a filler pick-up.

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