Ok.

Let’s just get this out of the way. I liked The Last Jedi.

Was it a little different? Sure it was. But did some of those quirks ruin the franchise for me? Not at all. If the prequels didn’t ruin the franchise, then the things people love to hate about The Last Jedi aren’t going to ruin the franchise either.

So why are we discussing a seven month old movie?

Because I made my first ever non-sports purchase! A hobby box of Topps Star Wars: The Last Jedi Series 2 found it’s way into my home.

I have never in my collecting years bought any sealed packs of a non-sports product. I’ve come into some Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and Garbage Pail Kids cards over the years through various collections, but I’ve never purchased any directly. Sports cards have always been my thing, that’s what I know, that’s what I’m comfortable with. Even though I am familiar with the content most non-sports stuff is based on, there are some unique collecting aspects that I don’t know much about, and the “not knowing” kept me from being comfortable with buying any.

I have to give the credit to one of my friends for getting me out of my comfort zone and trying something new. He had been telling me about how great the new Star Wars release was and how excited he was to get his order in, so I decided to jump in a bust a box. I have to say, after one box I’m kind of hooked!

Hobby boxes released on June 2, 2018 and contain 8 cards per pack/24 packs per box.

Each box has two hits, one of which will be an autograph or sketch card.

It seems sketch cards are a much bigger product feature in non-sports. Several other Entertainment releases I’ve researched over the last couple weeks all seem to highlight them as key hits.

Similarly to sports, there are also different colored parallels of the base cards with varying levels of scarcity and a variety of inserts. Relics can be found with actual samples of movie materials as well as a set of manufactured relics that get the same love (or lack thereof) as the sports side of things.

The 100 card base set features shots from the movie, while the insert sets are more focused on characters, ships, and other items found in the movie. My favorite insert set features images of a variety of the movie posters used to promote the theatrical release.

Watch my break below!

My Praetorian Guard's Ceremonial Battle Skirt relic was pretty cool and seems to be a pretty in-demand item. Even thought it was not from one of the actual costumes used in the filming of the movie, it was the same material used to make the costumes.

My auto was nothing special, but you can’t win them all. The Rey continuity set and movie poster cards both seems to be popular, which boost the overall box value a collector can expect to receive.

I was able to sell my parallels and hits and cover the cost of my box, so the complete base set was a “free” addition to my PC. This box opened my eyes to the world of non-sports, and since I find excitement in learning something new, I’m planning to go to school on this segment of the collecting world over the next couple months.