Writer's Block, So Here Is What I'm Reading

The writer’s block is heavy these days. I don’t know if it is work or a sports lull. Maybe it’s the anticipation of warmer weather. Who knows? I don’t have anything to focus on, so I will share what I’m reading. I don’t plan to go too deep; I’m just going to share what I like or don’t like.

The Fallbacks: Bound for Ruin by Jaleigh Johnson

Yeah, this is pure brain candy fun. It is part of the new Dungeons and Dragons novels that I have completely enjoyed. I really like the adventuring crew that Johnson has created for us. Like most D&D games, it is a collection of eclectic characters trying to make their way along the Sword Coast. They visit Baldur’s Gate, Candlekeep, and Waterdeep, where they go to the Yawning Portal to dive deep into the Undermountain. Oh, all the while being chased by a lich. This has been a complete indulgence of the mind.

Duke Volume 1 and The Transformers Volume 1 in The Energon Universe

Yep, that is Duke of G.I. Joe, and yep, that is the Transformers, as in the robots that turn into cars, trucks, jets, etc. These two volumes are collections of the first six issues of these story runs by Image Comics. Wondering why I mention them together? These stories tie in together as part of the Energon Universe, which also includes the title Void Rivals. This series is a ton of fun!

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

The characters are a range of interesting to compelling, the story is good with some nice twists, but the world-building is amazing! The story primarily takes place in one area of the world, but the characters are from all over the world, and those areas and backgrounds are well-developed. This world is fleshed out in the series Shadow and Bone and continues in the duology Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom. I have to lean on my students' recommendations, as they say the duology is the best, and Shadow and Bone is not quite as good as Six of Crows. This is actually a non-Star Wars and non-Forgotten Realms series which I may actually read.

The Amazing Spider-Man

Really brief here, but I have been enjoying this story where Peter Parker is swept (or punched as it may be) into intergalactic adventures to learn how to defeat Hellscape. Norman Osborne takes on the Spider-Man mantle while he rediscovers who he is. The Spider-Team (Miles, Gwen, Spider-Boy, Silk, and others) try to hold down the fort in New York City. 

The World Baseball Classic Gets It Right

As I sit here watching the championship game of the World Baseball Classic between Team USA and Team Venezuela from Miami, Florida, USA, I couldn’t help getting drawn in by the opening ceremony.

In the US, these ceremonies are filled with celebrity performances of national anthems, seventh-inning stretches, and pregame performances. It is all fine, but to me, it distracts from what we are there to watch, a baseball game. This is where the World Baseball Classic (WBC) got it right.

The producers of the WBC had three clear goals. First, they wanted to celebrate baseball and the tournament. They did this with music, dance, and highlights of how we got to this evening’s game. For television viewers, we got graphics and video of each WBC host location, each highlighted with key game moments, accompanied by music fitting to each location. A country music intro for Houston, a Latin drum introduction for Puerto Rico, an Okedo-daiko (drum) with Bachi (wooden sticks) intro for Tokyo, and, of course, a party DJ introduction for Miami. This entire intro celebrated the game, the tournament, and put the “world” in World Baseball Classic.

Goal number two, the WBC celebrated the players as each team marched out from the outfield foul lines, with the team captains each carrying the flag of their country. Aaron Judge led Team USA as Salvador Perez led Team Venezuela. It was a slow march to home plate for each team as the players had their moment celebrating their achievement. Then, each starting lineup was introduced to the delight of the crowd, especially the Venezuelan fans, who American fans could learn a thing or two about baseball passion, myself included.

Finally, after team introductions, goal number three was met. Each national anthem was played to celebrate each country. No celebrity performances, they left that to the fans. It was a spectacular celebration of country pride on both sides.

It was a perfect set-up for what ended up being a great baseball game with Venezuela winning 3-2. I hope more classic sports games, such as the MLB All-Star Game, World Series, Super Bowl, NBA Finals, and others, use this as an inspirational model for celebrating their respective sports. Congratulations to Team Venezuela and the fans and people of Venezuela. They celebrated national pride through the game of baseball.  

Topps Bunt Top 5 of 25

This post finishes up the series of Top 5s of three Topps Digital platforms. The Topps Bunt sets are massive compared to Marvel Collect and Star Wars Card Trader. I found that it is much more challenging to pick a top 5 in Bunt than on the other platforms. Generally, I flip through my sets and add to the favorites that I already marked throughout the year. With Marvel and Star Wars, I usually end up with 8-9 favorites that I need to weed down to the top 5. With Topps Bunt, I had over 20 cards in the favorites that needed to whittle down to a top 5. I left a lot on the cutting room floor, but I hope you agree this is good top 5 list and as a bonus I always include my lowest card count card of the year. So, here we go with my top 5 Topps Bunt of 25.

5. Rickey Henderson, Topps Chrome 25, Series 1 - Ultraviolet All-Stars, Super Rare, Card Count 2515

This groovy card stands out! There isn’t a single player style that I don’t like, but Rickey Henderson is a classic. When a baseball card looks like the next baseball card, this one brings it. I love the classic action shot of Henderson with the circle cut-out with a face image, and his name shooting out of the top of the wavey checkerboard is his name Rickey Henderson.

4. Pete Crow Armstrong, Creature Feature 25, Series 1 - Moonlight, Rare, Card Count 11,355

Holiday cards are a ton of fun, and this creepy motion shot with the broken screen, static view, vampire castle in the background of this PCA card is great. What more is needed for some Halloween spooks?

4. Riley Greene, 12 Days of Topps 25, Special Event - Relic, Super Rare, Card Count 1,419

Seems like I made a mistake and have a tie. I mean, I did say it was hard to narrow down to the top 5. It is fitting however, because they are both special event, holiday cards. Like the Halloween card, this card is a motion with snow falling and every now and then Santa flies by on his sleigh pulled by reindeer. It even comes with a little present uniform patch in the card.

3. Tarik Skubal, Postseason Match-ups 25, Wild Card Round - Gold, Super Rare, Card Count 909

There is so much cool stuff happening on this card. First the text, making it feel like the playoffs with “The Matchups,” “Tigers Vs. Guardians,” and the Wildcard Logo. Yes! This is a playoff card! The feature player, Tarik Skubal, prominently displayed on the front and in the back a Guardians opponent waiting for the pitch. This design does exactly what it is supposed to do, build anticipation in the playoffs.

2. Greg Maddux, Icons of the MLB 25, Series 2 - Bronze, Uncommon, Card Count 25,780

Yes, clearly this top 5 is heavily dominated by Tigers and Cubs (don’t worry, #1 isn’t either). But, it really is more about the design of the card than the subject…until this card. This is all about the subject. I love this entire set that celebrates some of the best from the past like Carlos Delgado, Trevor Hoffman, Larry Walker, and Frank Thomas. I chose the Greg Maddux card because he is one of my top 3 pitchers of all time. I really like the late 1980s uniform and his high kick delivery. This card is also a motion card where the boarders slide in to frame the Icon of the past.

1. Squirrel, Topps Now 25, August - August 22, Uncommon, Card Count 24,041

I promised that the number one card of 2025 would not be a Tiger or Cub, so here you go, it is the cute squirrel that snuck into Yankee Stadium on August 22. I don’t recall if they caught him or he got away, but this Topps photographer caught the whole thing. This has to be one of the most unique cards celebrating the human or natural side of the game. It is my #1 Topps Bunt card of 2025.

Bonus Entry: Lowest Card Count of 2025

Jason Varitek, 1990 Topps Baseball 25, Series One - Gold Signature, Legendary (Super Premium Pack Exclusive), Limited Edition Count 50

Marvel Collect: Top 5 Cards of '25

This is part two of a three-part post highlighting the top insert cards on Topps Digital platforms from 2025. Last week, I took a look at the top cards from Star Wars Card Trader. This week, I look at Marvel Collect.

5. Magik, Gold Label 25, Series 1 - Golden Stars - White, Uncommon, Card Count 25465

This is a really sparkly card for the Queen of Limbo. The action pose Magik keeps is pretty awesome, with the sharp edge of the sword taking center stage. The gold sparkle and lettering on this card really bring it to life.

4. Thor vs. Hercules, Fight of the Week ‘25, Series 1 - Green, Uncommon, Card Count 48,971

I always like the weekly sets, but this card really stood out. Yes, the “Fight of the Week” theme of this card is cool. Yes, the art of these two muscle-bound heroes is awesome. But the win of this card is that it brings back the classic childhood arguments of the “who is tougher” or “who would win if…” conversations with friends on the walk to school or on the bus.

3. Symbiote Spider-Man, Web of Heroes - ‘25 Season 1, Series 1 Base - Free Pass, Card Count 25,273

There are three things I love about this card. 1. The perspective looking down from above on Spidey, with the lines of the buildings and street below giving us a sense of danger that he faces every day. 2. The color theme highlights the colors of Spider-Man but it seems off and misplaced in some way with the symbiote suit. 3. This card highlights Spider-Man.

2. Galactus, Midnight ‘25, Seres 1 - Horizon, Base - Uncommon, Card Count 33,736

I don’t have much to say about this card because it speaks for itself. Galactus, power, cosmic, goliath. The coloring with what appears to be a star shining on him as he sizes up a planet that is likely to be the next victim of his insatiable hunger really pops on this card.

1. Warlock, Convention Collection, NYCC ‘25, Series 1 - Black, Uncommon, Card Count 28,807

This is a special card. I love the look of this convention set with the star field border. The subject of Warlock is pretty rare. I only have 4 other Warlock cards other than this one. Warlock is such a unique character and creates a very dramatic image in this card making it my favorite Marvel Collect card of 2025.

Bonus Entry: Lowest Card Count of the Year

Spider-Man #12, Spider-Man: Beyond Amazing! Series 1 - Homage - Red, Epic, Card Count 265

Star Wars Card Trader: Top 5 of '25

Every year since 2020, I have been reviewing the Topps Digital Card Trading apps, digital cards, and offering up my top 5 favorite insert and award cards from my own collection. This is Part 1 of a series where I will review the top 5 cards from the Star Wars Card Trader (SWCT), Topps Bunt (Bunt), and Marvel Collect digital card platforms. Since I am only reviewing the cards I personally collected, my list may be vastly different from another’s list. Also, we have different appreciation which is what makes these lists so much fun to share and discuss.

In Part 1, I will share my favorite SWCT cards from 2025. Here we go! May the Force Be with You!

5. Fourth Place, Boonta Eve Classic 2025, Award Card, Card Count 14,140

Yeah, let’s get over the fact that my team got 4th place! It was well worth the ridicule if this is the card I got. This is a seriously colorful and imaginative card. For 4th place, I’ll take this award any day.

4. Skeleton Crew - 2, Cards Watch Party, Uncommon, Card Count 22,877

First, I love the watch parties that SWCT hosts from time-to-time. It is fun to watch the show/movie, check the app to see others’ comments and to collect cards along the way. I love this “film poster” style card for one of my biggest shows that shocked me with how great it was. Don’t judge, I just didn’t think it would be such a hit; however, this card was a no doubt winner.

3. The Death Star Destroys Jedha City, Season 16 Moments, Uncommon, Card Count 30,103

I have always loved the cards from the “Moments” series from the other 15 seasons, but in 2025, this particular card is a top 5 for me. It is a horribly beautiful image of the Death Star demonstrating its awesome power. This is one of the most dramatic moments in Star Wars films, and therefore, it is one of my favorite cards from 2025.

2. Too Strong for Blasters, 2024 Topps Star Wars Chrome Galaxy, Uncommon, Card Count 56,261

The look of this card is spectacular and takes me right back to the tension and excitement of The Empire Strikes Back. Luke is facing down the goliath AT-AT. I love how this card tells a story with the hazy snowy atmosphere and the second AT-AT looming in the background. This card is gold.

1. Victory! Vintage - 2025, Uncommon, Card Count 14,930

I went classic with my top card of 2025. We all know the scene, and I can hear the music building to the award ceremony. I chose this card because I enjoy the art style, the border, the font type, and the coloring. It is also a unique image for a card and really captures this moment from the film.

Bonus 2025 Card Highlight:

The Song of Four Wings - 2, Visions Season 3 premier, Epic, Card Count 115

I always like to add as a bonus the highest-tier card with the lowest card count from the year. If you note the card count from the cards above, the count of 115 is remarkably small. I also really enjoy the look of this Visions Season 3 card. It is really striking with the black background, orange horizontal paint swipes backing a feature character in season 3 of Visions. I even like the design of the Visions logo on the bottom left of the card.

I have a double copy of two of these cards that I am always willing to trade for an equal value trade. Follow me, JEDIGROSS, in the app to expand your collection with a trade.