1996 Marvel Masterpieces Double Impact Wolverine/Venom - Graded BGS 9.5 Gem Mint

Set: 1996 Marvel Masterpieces

Company: Fleer/Skybox
Type: Insert/Chase - Double Impact
Character: Wolverine/Venom
Grading Company: BGS (Beckett Grading Services)
Grade: 9.5 Gem Mint
Status: Personal Collection

I've been eyeing this card for a while but it was owned by a private collector who had no intent on selling.  So I did my best to buy the card raw and have it graded by Beckett...to no avail.  I had three different cards graded BGS 9.0 and each one either had slight corner wear or chipping issues on the edges.  Besides the three that were sent to Beckett, there were countless more that didn't make the cut.

The Wolverine/Venom Double Impact card is one of the most common of the insert set, with the other being Storm/Spider-Man.  About two years ago, it was easy to find one for under $30, sometimes even under $25.  However, prices have jumped in the last 6 months.  Even in the last 4 months, Wolverine/Venom Double Impact cards have regularly sold between $50-$70, even as high as $80!

So because of the price increase, I had to rethink my strategy.   In addition, sellers on EBay have been less likely to provide me with close-up pictures of their cards.  I even had to return two cards that were described as Mint/Near-Mint but had creases and other major flaws.  It was very disappointing.

Luckily, I didn't have to think very hard (or at all).  The same private collector ended up having to sell his collection due to personal reasons.  I missed out on some other graded cards I had been coveting but snagged his Wolverine/Venom card for a price reasonable to the both of us.  Three down...three more to go!

1992 Marvel Masterpieces Lost Cards Typhoid Mary (Tin Exclusive) - Graded BGS 9.5 Gem Mint

Set: 1992 Marvel Masterpieces
Company: Skybox
Type: Insert/Chase - Lost Marvel Cards
Character: Typhoid Mary
Grading Company: BGS (Beckett Grading Services)
Grade: 9.5 Gem Mint
Status: SOLD

Instead of making these Lost Cards available through packs, they were only found in "limited" tin sets numbered to 35,000.  Each of the 5 cards, which included Scarlet Witch, Feral, Deathbird, Typhoid Mary, and Jubilee, were also drawn by Joe Jusko.  I sold the entire Lost Marvel card set graded Gem Mint by Beckett three years ago to a collector in Florida.  At the time, it was the only complete set graded BGS 9.5 or better.

1996 Marvel Masterpieces Double Impact Rogue/Human Torch - Graded BGS 9.5 Gem Mint

Set: 1996 Marvel Masterpieces
Company: Fleer/Skybox
Type: Insert/Chase - Double Impact
Character: Rogue/Human Torch
Grading Company: BGS (Beckett Grading Services)
Grade: 9.5 Gem Mint
Status: Personal Collection

Another one of my favorite graded Marvel cards is the Rogue/Human Torch Double Impact insert card from the 1996 Marvel Masterpieces set.  Beckett graded this card 9.5 Gem Mint and similar to the Punisher/Psylocke Double Impact card I highlighted earlier, it is the only one in the world graded Gem Mint based on Beckett's population report.

I purchased two unopened 1996 Marvel Masterpieces packs among which one included this exact card.  The edges are prone to flaking and chipping as they are extremely condition sensitive.  So far I have two out of the six Double Impact cards graded Gem Mint.  The remaining are graded BGS 9 Mint so it'll be awhile until my quest is complete.

The only thing I need to get Beckett to fix is the label as they printed "Rogue/Human Torch/Rogue."  To some, this may not be a big deal but considering how much I'm OCD to this kind of stuff, I'll be sending this card back to Beckett in the near future for a correction. 

1992 Marvel Masterpieces Battle Spectra Etch Wolverine vs Sabretooth - Graded BGS 9.5 Gem Mint

Set: 1992 Marvel Masterpieces
Company: Skybox
Type: Insert/Chase - Battle Spectra Etch
Character: Wolverine vs Sabretooth
Grading Company: BGS (Beckett Grading Services)
Grade: 9.5 Gem Mint
Status: SOLD

In 1992, Skybox came out with a "premium" line of comic trading cards with artwork done by Joe Jusko.  The beautiful art captivated many non-sport collectors and had them seeking the spectra-etched chase cards inserted randomly in packs.  The set, however, was over-produced although gem mint quality cards are still hard to come by.  The battle spectra cards were prone to edge wear and corner dents during the production process although surface and centering issues were rare.  This card was pulled from an unopened box I purchased in the early 2000's.  I submitted it to Beckett in the fall of 2012 and the card was graded gem mint.  It was then sold to a collector a month later.

1992 Impel Marvel Universe Hologram Promo Venom - Graded BGS 9.5 Gem Mint

Set: 1992 Marvel Universe Series 3
Company: Impel
Type: Promo Hologram
Character: Venom
Grading Company: BGS (Beckett Grading Services)
Grade: 9.5 Gem Mint
Status: SOLD

Spider-Man's popular arch-enemy Venom got his own hologram card when Impel released their Series 3 Marvel Universe cards in 1992.  In addition, Advance Comics included a promo hologram of Venom in many of their magazine issues, to help promote their company as well as the new comic cards.  The 1992 holograms were printed in different colors, which included green, blue, orange, pink/red, and purple.  This promo hologram card was purchased raw and submitted to Beckett Grading Services.

1995 Fleer Ultra X-Men Lethal Weapons Psylocke - Graded BGS 9.5 Gem Mint

Set: 1995 Fleer Ultra X-Men All Chromium
Company: Fleer
Type: Insert/Chase - Lethal Weapons
Character: Psylocke
Grading Company: BGS (Beckett Grading Services)
Grade: 9.5 Gem Mint
Status: For Sale Sold (Updated 7/15/2015)

I obtained this card ungraded from a collector selling off his collection of non-sports cards.  This holo-flash insert/chase card was only found in the all-chromium set Fleer released in 1995. 

You can see it listed for sale at my EBay store below:

http://stores.ebay.com/mcgradedcardstore?_trksid=p2047675.l2563

Updated 7/15/2015 - This card has been sold and is no longer available

2013 Marvel Fleer Retro Precious Metal Green Silver Surfer - Graded BGS 9.5 Gem Mint

Set: 2013 Marvel Fleer Retro
Company: Upper Deck
Type: Insert/Chase - Precious Metal Gems Green
Character: Silver Surfer
Grading Company: BGS (Beckett Grading Services)
Grade: 9.5 Gem Mint
Status: For Sale Sold (Updated 2/10/15)

In 2013, Upper Deck released its Marvel Fleer Retro card set, modeled after the successful 2011-2012 Fleer Retro Basketball.  Unfortunately, I was late to the party as I didn't purchase my first box until October of 2014.  Even so, the Marvel Fleer Retro has become one of my favorite Marvel card sets since it included the popular Jambalaya and Precious Metal Gems cards.

I purchased a box from Steel City Collectibles since they were running a sale at the time.  The box contained two mini-boxes for a total of 20 packs.  Each pack had 5 cards so a box break would give someone 100 cards.  I had hoped that a Jambalaya was inserted into my box but no such luck.  However, this Silver Surfer Precious Metal Gems (PMG) Green was a nice consolation prize!  The PMG Greens are serial numbered from 1 to 10, meaning Upper Deck only made 10 PMG Green for each character in the set.  Due to its rarity and the card's fantastic condition, I sent the card to Beckett Grading Services so it could be graded.  After a few weeks of waiting, it came back with a grade of 9.5 Gem Mint.  According to Beckett's population report as of 12/19/2014, it is the only Silver Surfer PMG Green card graded 9.5 and none higher.  The PMG Greens from the Marvel Fleer Retro set have been extremely desirable for character collectors since the cards had such limited print runs.

Updated 2/10/2015 - This card has been sold and is no longer available.