A record-breaking biopic is moving the memorabilia market in real time. A comic book bought for $8,000 in the 1980s is about to sell for seven figures. And two massive card products launched in the same week to very different receptions. Let's get into it.

This week:

🎬 The "Michael" Jackson biopic is driving a memorabilia surge
📚 Heritage is auctioning 7 of the top-valued comics
🏈 Topps Chrome Football quality control issues have the hobby divided
⚾ 2026 Bowman Baseball is the prospect product of the year
🔥 Heatseekers: Top upcoming releases

Also, send us feedback and ideas on how to improve by replying to this email!

The Michael Jackson biopic opened to a record-shattering $97 million domestically and $217 million globally, obliterating the previous biopic record held by "Straight Outta Compton" ($60 million). And the memorabilia market is responding. Kruse GWS Auctions ran nine MJ pieces from Prince Lorenzo de' Medici's collection, including crystal-studded gloves starting at $25,000, a signed fedora at $7,500, and autographed loafers. Gotta Have Rock and Roll is running its own MJ lots through May 15.

For context on where the ceiling lives: the iconic Thriller jacket sold for $1.8 million at Julien's in 2011, and a Motown 25 rhinestone glove brought $420,000 in 2009. The biopic effect is proven. When "Bohemian Rhapsody" opened in 2018, Queen memorabilia prices surged and the Freddie Mercury estate auction generated $15.4 million. If "Michael" follows the same playbook, the current auction wave is just the opening act.

Sponsored by Masterworks

Apple just secretly added Starlink satellite support to iPhones through iOS 18.3.

One of the biggest potential winners? Mode Mobile.

Mode’s EarnPhone already reaches 490M+ users that have earned over $1B, and that’s before global satellite coverage. With SpaceX eliminating "dead zones," Mode's earning technology can now reach billions more in unbanked and rural populations worldwide.

Their global expansion is perfectly timed, and investors like you still have a chance to invest in their pre-IPO offering at $0.50/share.

With their recent 32,481% revenue growth and newly reserved Nasdaq ticker, Mode is one step closer to a potential IPO.

Tap into a $1T opportunity — invest now at just $0.50/share and get up to 20% bonus.

^{Please read the offering circular and related risks at invest.modemobile.com. This is a paid advertisement for Mode Mobile’s Regulation A+ Offering.}

^{Mode Mobile recently received their ticker reservation with Nasdaq ($MODE), indicating an intent to IPO in the next 24 months. An intent to IPO is no guarantee that an actual IPO will occur.}

^{The Deloitte rankings are based on submitted applications and public company database research, with winners selected based on their fiscal-year revenue growth percentage over a three-year period.}

Please support our sponsors!

Heritage's May 7-10 Comics & Comic Art Signature Auction features the top seven most valuable comics according to the Overstreet Price Guide and 20 of the top 30 Golden Age books. The headliner is an Action Comics #1 CGC 7.0 Conserved, purchased for roughly $8,000 in the 1980s by a collector who used a lowball bidding strategy on catalog auctions. Forty years later, it's at $712,000 with bidding still open.

The lineup reads like a museum exhibit: Detective Comics #27 CGC 6.5, Amazing Fantasy #15 CGC 8.5, Superman #1, Marvel Comics #1, Batman #1, All-American Comics #16, and Captain America Comics #1. The companion Comic Art auction includes Joe Shuster's Action Comics #24 cover and four John Romita Sr. Amazing Spider-Man covers. A portion of the Action Comics #1 commission is going to the Hero Initiative, BINC, and ComicsPro.

Sponsored by FinanceBuzz:

If you have outstanding credit card debt, getting a new 0% intro APR credit card could help ease the pressure while you pay down your balances. Our credit card experts identified top credit cards for balance transfers that are perfect for anyone looking to pay down debt and not add to it! Click through to see what all the hype is about.

Please support our sponsors!

Topps is back in the NFL for the first time since 2015, and 2025 Topps Chrome Football was supposed to be the triumphant return. The design is sharp. The insert lineup has real variety. Secondary market prices have doubled, with hobby boxes originally $349.99 now selling for $800 to $1,000. But The Hobby Wire's detailed rip review tells a different story on the cards themselves.

Surface dimples. Scratches. Edge peeling. Soft corners. These weren't isolated pulls. They showed up consistently across both Mega Boxes and Value Boxes. The most glaring example: a Jackson Dart rookie that "isn't even gradable due to surface dimpling." Print lines plagued RayWave parallels and X-Fractors.

The verdict from The Hobby Wire was blunt: buy singles, not wax. Chrome is supposed to be the gold standard for card quality. Right now, for a product at these prices, the hobby expected better.

The world of collectibles is wide and deep, and there’s a constant stream of new releases. Here are some of the big ones that are coming up:

A biopic shatters records and suddenly crystal gloves are worth $25,000. A comic book bought for $8,000 in the Reagan era is about to sell for more than most houses. Topps returns to football after a decade and the first reaction is about surface dimples, not the design.

What connects all of it is timing. The "Michael" biopic arrived at the exact moment MJ memorabilia supply was already in motion. Heritage stacked the most valuable comic auction in years into a single weekend. Bowman drops the same week as Chrome Football, giving the hobby a direct comparison between a product that overdelivers on checklist and one that underdelivers on quality.

Some weeks the hobby moves slowly. This one felt like it moved all at once.

See you next week!