Last chance to make use of the MEGA-HUGE, IMPORTANT news of the week

• July is customer appreciation month on Beckett.com (Hint: Only three more days left in July!)

First looks and sneak peeks of the week

• Panini gives us a gander at 2011-12 Score Hockey (now with 100 percent more Santa Claus!)
• Box Busters Preview Gallery: 2011 Rookies & Stars (with post-lockout commentary)
• Upper Deck’s All-Time Greats includes — well, all-time greats of course
• Move over, Miles Davis, Topps Trumpets 2011 Triple Threads Football
• Box Busters Preview Gallery: 2011 In The Game Heroes & Prospects Baseball Hits (Series 2)
• First look: 2010-11 Elite Black Box Basketball

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Box Busters

• 2011 Allen & Ginter Baseball
• 2011 In The Game Heroes & Prospects Baseball Hits (Series 2)
• 2011 Rookies & Stars Football
• 2011 ‘The Avengers: Kree-Skrull Wars‘
• 2010-11 Ultimate Collection Hockey (with a contest)
• 2011 Press Pass Showcase Racing

Q&A of the week

• Upper Deck’s Bubby Johanson talks about “The Avengers: Kree-Skrull War” set

This week in National Sports Collectors Convention news

• Um, FYI, The National is next week
• Panini presents puck-lover prizes for the NSCC
• Topps plans collector Q&A at The National
• Memory Lane showcases million-dollar Mantle collection at the show

Auction action

• 2010 Topps Sterling Honus Wagner cut auto relic 1/1 (Current bid: $2,399.99)
• 2000 Lakers Master Collection Magic Johnson jersey /300(Buy it now for $149)
• 2008 UD  Black Bryant/James patch auto 1/5 (Current bid: $425)
• 2001 Donruss Bat Kings Hank Aaron autograph 1/50 (Current bid: $221.50)

Other videos

• Rippin’ Retail: Olds’ (Oldspiced?) 2011 Topps Diamond Giveaway haul
• Collector Box Busters: 2011 Bowman Platinum
• Box Busters Warmup: 2011 Bowman Platinum

This week in Nickelodeon invasions, card dealer birthdays and more

• Nicktoons invades MLB in upcoming video game
• USA Today examines the loss of a collector and his collection
• Dave and Adam’s Card World throws its own birthday party – Gordie Howe got invited
• Dem Bums take center stage during a Memory Lane auction
• Topps acquires digital currency card publisher What the heck is that?
• Bryce Harper headlines this week’s eTopps MILB cards

Just for fun

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By Andrew Tolentino | BSCM Editor

Riding the wave of recently released (and soon to release) Marvel blockbusters,  Upper Deck is causing a collision between comic books and trading cards.

Another byproduct of Upper Deck’s partnership with Marvel Entertainment, “The Avengers: Kree-Skrull War” set hits hobby stores today. Under normal circumstances, this kind of release could be summed up with a tidy list of per-pack odds and box hits — but this one tells another tale.

In fact, the experimental endeavor spins a whole new Marvel story altogether … card, by card. Departing from hit quantities and checklist finds, the set offers a new experience in comic consumption.

In a phone interview (coming soon, in full) Upper Deck’s Marvel Product Manager Bubby Johanson explained, “We tried to find a way to be innovative and what we wanted to do was try to see if we could merge both the card collector and the comic collector in the same kind of venue.” Thus far, the merger has already made a splash, causing speculation and excitement in the greater superhero hemisphere.

With a classic storyline re-imagined by Marvel writer Sean McKeever, the product is a comic book composed of cards. Much like a traditional comic, the story reads left to right, top to bottom, front to back, page to page. In this case though, each page of  “Sacrifice” — the primary story — consists of nine cards with story components on both sides of the card (90 cards assembled in order for the 20-page adventure).

But wait, there’s more.

In excess of “Sacrifice,” the set also offers an opportunity to assemble four more side stories:

• “The Debt” – An eight-page saga featuring Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch
• “The Fall” – A six-page plot focusing on S.H.I.E.L.D agent Nick Fury
• “Power” - A four-pager showcasing the exploits of Super-Skrull
• “Soldiers’ Honor” - A four-pager with Captain America

Each 24-pack box of “The Avengers: Kree-Skrull War” should yield the cards needed to complete the main story (headlined by Avengers Thor, Iron Man, Captain America and Vision). Packs consist of nine cards in the following formula:

• 4 ”Sacrifice” (main story) cards
• 2-3 character cards
• 1-2 side story cards
• 1 cover card

Since the set’s function as a comic book follows conventional card binder standards (three rows for three cards), Upper Deck is offering a practical promotion. The first 1,000 collectors to fill out included box-topper forms will receive a free “The Avengers: Kree-Skrull War” binder.

Stay tuned to Beckett.com for more images and a forthcoming Q&A with Johanson about the hobby hybrid.