There are a lot of things one can collect that aren't cards -- sometimes they can even come in packs or repackaged memorabilia boxes and sometimes they don't. Buzz has been exploring the world a little bit in different directions but with many of them still being paper items -- stacking paper but not in that ol' green (money) kind of way. Here's a look at a few items that entered my collection in recent months that can all fall under this department, which will be found here roughly once a month. 

TODAY'S THE GREATEST
The Item: The Smashing Pumpkins concert poster -- Melbourne, Australia, April 22 & 27, 2023 (announced /175)
What It Cost Me: $35
What's It Worth: Original cost $35 ... recent eBay sold $45 ... recent eBay asking $115
The Buzz: If you know and like the song and video for "Today," then this 18-by-24 piece from illustrator Pat Fox might appeal to you like this did for me. It's a nod to the 1993 video that arguably launched this band into the mainstream and this retro take for a more-recent show just seemed different and cool from the genre in my eyes. I've recently started dabbling around in this realm -- but only on the relative cheap -- after finding a seller/collector with a vast stock with nearly everything so fresh that the prints have never even been rolled ... so damage is almost non-existent. I've picked off a few dozen prints in recent months and you'll see concert posters like this pop up here regularly and perhaps elsewhere from time to time as unique buys come my way. Why? I'm hooked, amazing stuff can be found cheaply and I'm just collecting something a little different while they are also, in essence, bigger cards but made in far-lower volumes. The only drawback? Storage -- top-loaders for stuff like this doesn't come cheap -- but I'll adapt.
Find Cards At: Non-sports boxes at BlowoutCards.com

Check out even more items after the jump.

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Simply put, this one is all about the best of the best.

Baseball's global icon and living legend Ichiro Suzuki takes his spot in the National Baseball Hall of Fame later this month in Cooperstown, N.Y., and just one piece of all that's to come with his history-making day is Baseball America's special issue that's precision-crafted with a little bit of everything inside when it comes to Japan's greatest player and an icon among the elite in MLB history.

The Ichiro Baseball America Hall of Fame Commemorative is 50 pages of full-bleed retrospective splendor that showcases all of the memorable moments, rarely seen photographs, historic analysis, other memories and stories from yesteryear, thoughts from opposing pitchers and, of course, it's even got some baseball cards inside.

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The biggest weekend in pro wrestling is here with WrestleMania 41 set for this Saturday and Sunday from Las Vegas. We'll make today a big one for wrestling collectors right here on The Buzz with #BuzzMania8, a marathon of wrestling breaks all day long.

This one is the finale for today ... and it's a high-end, hobby-only box from near the end of Panini America's WWE run and it arrived around this time just last year. Will it deliver big on the big stage?

The Brand: 2023 Panini Impeccable WWE  box

Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (when available)

What's inside this one? Keep reading ...

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2023 Bushiroad ReBirth For You New Japan Pro Wrestling & World Wonder Ring Stardom wrestling gaming cards
Where to buy: Will take some looking ... BlowoutCards.com for WWE & AEW

Keep reading to see a breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2022 Bushiroad ReBirth For You X Stardom Trial Deck (Donna Del Mondo version)
Where to buy: Will take some looking ... BlowoutCards.com for WWE & AEW

Keep reading to see a breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

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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 ...

LEGENDARY INK
The Card: Undertaker 2022 Panini Revolution WWE Sunburst Autographs (/99)
The Reason Graded: This cost me less than what two boxes would have when I bought it raw -- and then I submitted it to grade after seeing that some typical problem spots for cards from this brand weren't really issues. (In my view, the back corners and edges can be funky for both years.) Why grab this? Undertaker was not a regular signer for a long time and even when has signed cards in recent years he's been more limited since his signing fees are always high -- seemingly far higher than others -- based on public signing prices. I have his ink on a few items sold direct from WWE in the past, but I hadn't rally bothered with anything for cards and figured this could make for a nice slab -- even with sticker ink -- as the photo is as iconic as it gets for a legendary character in WWE history. This would be a perfect kind of auto card if it had an on-card sig ... and it's still not far off as it is with that photo. It's also a perhaps-overlooked brand in the Panini WWE portfolio.
The Grade: CGC 9

Reality Check: A nine I'm fine with -- so no worries here -- but anything less than that I would have been kind of mad at myself for trying it. Why? Generally, I don't like pricey surprises with grading, so I don't slab as much ink as I should as I own plenty of them raw. I need to do more slabs like this, but a miss on cheaper, oddball cards that are interesting aren't as risky in my book.

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

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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 ...

A FIRST FOR ME ...
The Card: Bo Bichette 2022 Topps Chrome Logofractor Edition Blue Refractor (/150)
The Reason Graded: If you're a regular reader, then you know that Bichette is perhaps my leading active player who I collect (casually ... as he's expensive). That means I dabble merely with what I like, what's a bargain and so on. In some cases, I'll grab a striking color of parallel or an appropriate shade from a certain brand that stands out from the rest and this Blue parallel fits right there along with this being a Logofractor parallel. Why did I grab this and then slab it? Well, the price was right (under $10 during the season) and it was one of few centered copies I saw and it was one that avoided a possible pattern gap in the logos that seemed to land on his cards often. When I grabbed this, it also became my first COMC pick-up to go directly to CGC for grading while all in their hands rather than starting out in mine.
The Grade: CSG 10

Reality Check: It came back with an ideal mark, which is what I had hoped for, though you never know with surfaces of cards ... that's about the only big risk of buying/subbing stuff there at the moment other than corners, which should be a smidge more obvious on screen -- but not always. My total cost for card and grading here? Under $24 and it only took about a month to get it back. That's a move I've actually done a few times late last year as my goal of sending in some new stuff for slabbing didn't happen on the card side of things before 2023 had ended. There will be plenty more in 2024 -- cards, comics, coins magazines ... and more.

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

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What: 2023 Pieces of the Past Asia Edition
Arrives: Nov. 20
Box basics: Two relics per six-pack box (10 boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: This brand returns by "celebrating over 2,000 years of Asia's rich history with subjects from China, Japan, Korea, Indonesia" and elsewhere in a release packed with history, hits, modern-day pop culture icons and more.

Keep reading for more info and a selection of images.

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2021-22 Topps Bundesliga Japan Edition soccer cards
First Buzz preview (regular release): Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (when available)

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of images.

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2021-22 Topps UEFA Champions League Japan Edition soccer cards
First Buzz preview (regular release): Click here
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (when available)

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of images.

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From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 2021 Topps Japan Edition baseball cards
Where to buy: BlowoutCards.com (when available)

Keep reading for a full breakdown and gallery of what was in this one.

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A new MLB season is officially here with the Opening Series in Japan and the star of the show is the focus of the first Topps Now cards reflecting that regular season offered this year.

A total of 14 cards -- including autographs and game-used memorabilia -- make up the first day's offerings and 11 of them are for future Hall of Famer Ichiro Suzuki.

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The international all-star action of the World Baseball Classic is here with teams from 16 countries taking the field and appearing on Topps baseball cards, too.

The gear?

It's in the plans to be coming to game-used cards, too, but for now fans will have to settle on buying their own caps and they're available for 15 teams from New Era. 

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