I'll ignore Series 2, thank you

 

A week ago at this time, Twitter was abuzz with the release of Topps Series 2.

It was comical really. I know Twitter is very ADD by nature and everyone loves a new release, but Series 2 is not something to get that excited about and it's getting more and more terrible.

I've had a conflicted relationship with Series 2 for quite awhile and I've mentioned it on the blog before. It's very anticlimactic if you don't like the set that year (see: 2016, 2017) and this year especially it's almost pointless.

A lot of this is probably not Topps' fault. Supply issues, manpower issues, etc., have likely led to what I've seen in Series 2, which is a complete lack of attention to detail. This is not on the level of 2020 Topps Update but seeing Kenley Jansen and A.J. Pollock still in Dodgers uniforms in Series 2 is not making me want to collect it.

On top of that, I've seen the photos for a lot of the other Series 2 Dodgers, Trea Turner, Max Muncy, etc., because they just showed up in Opening Day.

It's all quite redundant and if it's going to be like this, I'd prefer Topps release the entire set in February like when I was a kid. I don't need to be jazzed every 3 months with a new release, Topps has enough other releases anyway, plenty to get excited about throughout the year if you care about that kind of thing, rather than a bland Series 2.

So anyway, the sellers on Twitter -- there are more and more every day -- don't think or care about that, they just shill product and boast about 'hits' for a few days after Series 2 is released and ask, "have you gotten your Series 2 boxes yet?"

No, I haven't. I'll ignore Series 2, thank you.

And I have. The money that I would use to buy packs of Series 2 (or a box, ha ha) has gone to cards I really want. So let's see what I'm buying with that Series 2 money.

I didn't add a lot of modern stuff, of course, but I do like my Dodger modern cards and this is as modern as it gets. Two online exclusives, a redemption-only card (that completes the 2012 Gold Rush Dodgers for me) and a short-print.

This was the last card from my 1960s ebay binge. I'll get back to it eventually, but I think it's a nice one to finish out this round on.

A pair of crystal-clear cards for my 1979 Kellogg's pursuit. The run on Kellogg's cards over the last few months is about the saddest development for my collection of late. People used to practically give these cards away. Now that I'm trying to finish these wonderful items suddenly everyone wants 'em. (I missed out on a complete '79 set on ebay because the price grew too stupidly).

I also have a story about another Kellogg's card and the weird exorbitant prices, but I think I'll save that for when I get that card.

Here is the latest round of 1977 O-Pee-Che cards for my collection. Lots of great Blue Jays with different looks from the Topps set, including Roy Hartsfield on his very own manager card instead of sharing it with a bunch of lowly coaches.

There is no real difference, outside of the French writing on the back, for the ERA leaders card, I nabbed it because you don't see Fidrych oddballs that cheap very often.

 

I was able to grab all of these for my 1970 set build, including a couple of snipes, for respectable prices. This feels good. Not as good as getting a Bench or Ryan will from this set, but I must pace myself.

 

Buying from ebay always means running the risk of receiving the wrong card, and that's what happened with this one. Fortunately they responded quickly and sent out the right card just as quickly.

 

OK, this is what occurs when you don't mess around with Series 2. You land 1952 Bowman cards!!

That's Cal Abrams and Andy Pafko right there (of course it is, it's not like modern players are signing their illegible signature here). I'm down to needing five Dodgers from the Bowman set. Snider is the big one but the others seem gettable.

Finally, this nifty card -- what an image -- is from the '51 Bowman set, still a lot of work to do there.

I admit this came from a Twitter sale. As much as I just complained about all the selling come-ons, there are lots of fun vintage sale threads and such and you can find some decent deals that won't show up on ebay or COMC. This was an easy $10 purchase. And I have an even nicer one coming soon, can't wait to talk about that.

Of course, I'll get my Series 2 Dodgers eventually. But they won't thrill me like the above cards do. There are a lot of things wrong with the way Series 2 has been trending but the only real complaints that I've seen have been about the lack of rookies, which I don't care about at all.

It would be nice to have a few more people letting Topps know that they're not satisfied, maybe they'd actually do something about it rather than shoveling out the same crap to the syncophants and fan boys/girls.