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Recently, I ripped a hobby box of 2022 Topps Gypsy Queen for my ongoing Breaker's Club group break. No reason not to double-dip on that box and also use the box for a box review here at Nachos Grande!
I learned the hard way (after staring at the tiny numbers on the card back for the entire stack of base cards) that Topps didn't use the tiny numbers to differentiate the base variations (the base short prints do have a different code but variations like the team logo swap do not - another annoyance with this year's Gypsy Queen)!
Each hobby box contains 24 packs with 8 cards per pack. Gypsy Queen is known for its rather distinctive base card designs and this year might take the cake for distinctive (in a good way)!
I actually like the look of these cards a lot...other than the name plate - that's too hard to read, especially quickly (such as when going through packs live on video for a group break)!
The backs of the cards, on the other hand, leave quite a bit to be desired.
Yeah, that's standard Gypsy Queen fare (i.e. low-effort stuff from Topps). For as nice as the card fronts are, the backs are so bad that my overall impression of the base set can help but suffer some.
For our box, we ended up with 179 different base cards plus one base card variation (a team logo swap seeded 1:61 packs) of Tyler Stephenson.
Each box of Gypsy Queen should also include a single base short print (seeded 1:24 packs). We did quite well with our lone short print - Derek Jeter!
The base short prints are cards #301-320. At one-per-box, you'd need to crack 20 boxes with perfect luck to land the full short print set...Yikes!
As for other base card things, we found three different base parallels:
- Indigo: Vidal Brujan #170/250
- Sepia: Yordan Alvarez #74/99
- Black and White: Carlos Carrasco #31/50 (hobby exclusive)
Not bad for a single box!
In 2022 Gypsy Queen, there's also a refractor insert set. This is a 100 card, partial parallel set of the full base set. Our box produced two such refractors:
The refractors are not numbered but you are supposed to get three per hobby box (obviously we got shorted one). That being said, technically we did get a third refractor...it just so happened to be a parallel refractor!
That's a Blue parallel #94/99! It's a pretty looking card, that's for certain!
Moving on to the inserts...
Gypsy Queen isn't a set that's chock full of inserts but from what we did pull I must admit that I'm impressed. For starters, we pulled two of the "See the Future" die-cut inserts including a coveted Wander Franco!
I love the crystal ball die-cut motif here, perfect for the Gypsy Queen brand! These are beautiful inserts - too bad they are seeded 1:12 packs and the set size is 22 cards! Even so, we got the much discussed Wander Franco so I can't complain (or rather, the owner of the Rays in the group break can't complain)!
We also found four of the GQ Gems mini inserts:
These didn't scan well so you'll have to trust me that they are actually quite gorgeous (and shiny)! This is a set I could see myself building if I were to collect this year's Gypsy Queen (don't worry, I'm not doing that). Still, I'm a sucker for minis and shiny...put it together and keep the insert on theme with the brand? I'm sold! There are 30 of these in total (seeded 1:6 packs).
Finally, our two promised autographs in the box:
Yeah, two guys I know very little about. It should be noted that both autographs are on-card (yay!) and that the Geraldo Perdoma is an Idigo parallel #134/150 (seeded 1:192 packs)!
Overall, I give the 2022 Topps Gypsy Queen (hobby) box the following rating:
Set Design: B-
Collation: A
Opening Thrill: B
Overall: B
The 2022 edition of Gypsy Queen is a solid addition to the brand. Personally, I like the distinctive look of this year's base card design - but the entire set is taken down a full notch for the lackluster card backs (no team logos, no stats, difficult-to-read card numbers, etc.). I also wish that Topps would make it easier to determine whether or not a card is a base variation of some type (I easily could have missed other variations within our box). Finally, while I like getting multiple autographs in a box it's always a bit of a bummer to get two rookies you know nothing about (though in our case at least one was a fairly rare parallel of a rookie I know nothing about). With all of that said, I maintain that 2022 Gypsy Queen is a solid rip (especially if you dig the insert sets like I do)!
I just pulled the Pete Alonso Gem Mini in a hanger box yesterday. I'll have to see what else I can add with it and maybe pry that Seabold auto from you...
ReplyDeleteThis was a group break box and the Red Sox were a claimed team, sorry!
DeleteI like the "See the Future" die-cuts quite a bit. Overall, the set looks much nicer than it did the last few years.
ReplyDeleteIt looks like the RC logo is at an angle? Thanks for showing off the cards!
ReplyDeleteAs the owner of the Rays, I can ALWAYS find something to complain about.
ReplyDeleteBut that has more to do with the lack of Rockies on the GQ checklist. 4 Rockies in a 320 card set just makes me want to not even try anymore. That being said, I am happy about the Wander and the Indigo Brujan which I think I may like better. I almost always prefer parallels over inserts.