What: 2024 Kakawow Cosmos Warner Bros. 100th Anniversary All-Star trading cards
Arrives: Jan. 31, 2025
Box basics: Two to five "limited numbered" cards per 10-pack box (10 boxes per case)
Checklist: TBD
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: The international card-maker turns its focus to everything Warner Bros. once again with a massive collection -- more than 3,200 cards across 31 sets this time -- as part of a release that adds to the mix of possible finds, too.

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Heroes, villains, iconic actors, illustrated legends and more ... much, much more.

There's so much to find in the just-arrived 2024 Kakawow Phantom Warner Bros. 100th Anniversary trading card set -- it's one that spans generations of entertainment all in one spot with heavy doses of icons from film and television. Ripping into a pack can mean landing icons as Superman, Batman and Willy Wonka in film or animated form as well as looks at past landmark releases and franchises such as The Wizard Of Oz, Friends, Tom & Jerry or The Matrix with a ton of modern-day flash and surprise. It's already is generating surprises on eBay early on after its formal arrival this week.

What are some of the variables creating those surprises? Well, for starters, this release is massive -- so big we'd be here all day detailing it but you can see all of the basics and a checklist here -- with literally more than 2,000 cards spread over tiers in a basic set, several numbered parallel versions and then some chase sets with parallels, too. And beyond the depth of who and what can be found here as it takes a look at 100 years of entertainment, it's also important to note that the distribution is global for this one, meaning those rarities are spread out. (There's no separate American Edition box with its own chases, for example, for this one -- the run is 10,000 cases of 500 cards apiece and that's it from Kakawow, which is a Chinese card company.)

Collect 'em all? That will be challenging ... heck, even picking what to collect within this one might be tough. Come with us as we take a look at some finds fresh from eBay via a gallery after the jump.

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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 ...

SNIKT!
The Book: Wolverine No. 50 (newsstand edition)
The Reason Graded: Back in 1992, Little Buzz was probably nearing the end of his comic book days -- or maybe a little after this one arrived -- but with some connections to a local book store I was able to get comics before they hit those spinner racks that resulted in books getting broken spines like they were Batman up against Bane. (Or something.) And with that era being one of mass-produced stuff that was still very creative on both the art front as well as the printing/gimmick front, I and many others were buying ... in quantity. This issue is one exploring Wolverine's origins and it's got a cardboard cover with his claws the source of the big die-cut gashes here revealing the first page of what's in the file (issue). I bought maybe a half-dozen of them as it was cool -- a few at the local comics shop and a few more at the book store -- and that's the key here. These newsstand versions -- same except for the UPC in the corner and not a marvel direct logo (that started in 1981) filling the box -- figure to be much, much rarer in a high grade.
The Grade: CGC 9.8 (Universal)

Reality Check: This one was a win but I expected it as my copies here are razor sharp. How many of those graded might be newsstand copies? It's a mystery right now but asking prices on eBay as I prep this file are as high as $500 for a newsstand copy while a direct has a max asking of $299. Actual sales for 9.8s in recent weeks? About $320 for newsstand and $85 for direct. I'll take that ... I'm in for just $2.50 (though I may have gotten a discount) and my grading fees. Most "serious" collectors bought at comics shops in the boom years, seeing newsstand is inferior with those barcodes ... now those barcodes are gold as long as you're in an elite grade.

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

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