One of the huge problems with ordering an event case, is the possibility of getting one that's been gone through by the employees. This was the main thing I didn't like about the Kmart events. Thankfully, that doesn't seem to be a problem with this retail store, and I hope it continues to be that way. I really can't stand when a company advertises a product as being new, but they let their employees get what they want first before sending it out to the customer. If you think about it, that's actually false advertisement.
Now, if you were one of the ones that read my GameStop event post, then you already know how there were nineteen releases that I didn't care for. And you also know how I didn't get all of the colors. Well... things are completely different with this event's case. Unlike my GameStop case, this one was packed with lots of great releases, and there were multiples of all four exclusive colors.
Before you get to the pictures, I would also like to mention that the releases I got, are from case H and case J. So there isn't going to be a My Want List post for either of those two cases. Additionally, there are still a few things I missing from both. I will most likely feature them in a Today On The Boulevard post once I'm able to find them. Now then, let's move onto what was in my case.
Up first, are the four exclusive colors.
I'm going to start with the '17 Nissan GT-R (R35). For obvious reasons, this is the one everyone is going to want, and I can totally see why. Black with a red stripe is a cool color scheme for the R35. As cool as this release is though, I still very much like how this car looks finished in yellow. So I don't prefer one over the other.
For it's wheels, the decision was made to use MC5s. At first, I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about them being used for this casting. Now that I have this release in hand, I think it looks just fine with them.
Recently, I wrote a Today On The Boulevard post where I talked about why I ended up getting the Erikenstein Rod. If you read that post, then you already know how I initially wasn't too into this casting. That all changed with this year's release. Anyway, this Kroger exclusive one is actually not bad at all. I love how they decided to finish in purple, which is a color I came to really like in recent years.
Hot Wheels must be really proud of their Big-Air Bel-Air casting, because it's the next exclusive color from this event. Don't get me wrong, I have no issue with it being one of the exclusives, I just think it's interesting how they decided to release another exclusive color of it right after the GameStop one.
I actually like this one more than the one that was released earlier this year, and it has to do with the fact that it's blue. As you already know, BFGoodrich is the biggest aftermarket decal on this release. In my opinion, the shade of blue that was picked, is a much better color for a BFGoodrich sponsored vehicle.
My least favorite among the four, is the '10 Pro Stock Camaro that's representing Pictionary Junior. Personally, this year's release of this casting is not the best. Thankfully, I have a lot of it's other releases. So I'm not upset about this one's theme.
Although I don't care too much for the theme, I do like it's metallic green exterior. So I've decided to leave one closed, and put one towards the mail-in.
Earlier in the year, Hot Wheels gave us some cool "Now" releases in the Then And Now mainline set. Since Hot Wheels decided to include a few of the "Then" releases into this case, some of the pairings are now complete.
The first pair completed, is the GT-R. All I can say is YES! In my opinion, the Nissan Skyline 2000 GT-R looks absolutely fantastic finished in yellow. How it looks, is further complemented by the black stripe design that was applied to it's sides.
One of the other design decision that I like, is how they gave it a black base. The reason I'm pointing this out, is because this casting's base is also it's front lip and bumpers. The card art shows it with yellow front lip. Due to how far up the design is along it's sides, I feel this release looks much better with a black front lip and black bumpers.
Like the last release of this casting, this too was given the DD8s, and I have no issue with this. I don't know about you, but I think they is a pretty good wheel for this car. I also like how the rim is chrome.
The Ford Bronco is the next completed pair. I was eagerly awaiting this one. I knew it would look great finished in the blue that was used for the "Now" Bronco. It's also cool how they chose to give it a simple stripe design. And the three colors that were picked for it, go great with blue.
The Ford GT is the third pair that was completed. I'll be honest, I don't completely like this release. I feel the stripe design looks much better on the "Then" GT. Furthermore, they decided to not add Gumball 3000 decal to it. I don't want to speculate as to why they didn't. All I know, is that I might have liked it a little more if it completely matched the "Then" GT.
My case also featured four new licensed castings.
I think everyone is happy with how Mattel has the legal okay to make Toyotas again. I know for a fact that I am, because we are now able to collect the '20 Toyota GR Supra. And what's great, is that it isn't the stock exterior. This one features the Pandem kit, which gives this car a very aggressive look. And I love it! I do like stock looking models, but I also like models with body kits. So I'm glad to see another Hot Wheels casting designed with one.
One of the surprises in my case, was the brand new Ducati Scrambler Hot Wheels Edition. I don't typically talk about them, but I also like motorcycles too. And I'm glad to see a new one from Hot Wheels. Overall, this is a fantastic first release, and I like how it was given a Mooneyes theme. I hope to see many cool future releases of this "cafe racer."
Next up, are the other licensed models that were packed into my case.
The recolor of the '06 Pontiac GTO, is one of the licensed models that was in my case. I do like how this one was finished in blue, but I don't like how the stripe is still black. It's not very noticeable over the shade of blue that was used. I mean... it doesn't look terrible, but I would have made the stripe white instead.
The recolor of the Lancia Delta Integrale, was also packed into my case. In my opinion, this color release is way better than the first one. The exterior color, as well as the wheel color, is what I feel makes it better. White with white wheels, is an okay color scheme for a rally car, but black with yellow wheels is also a great color scheme. And I feel it's perfect for the Michelin livery that's featured on this release.
My case also had the newest release of the Porsche 993 GT2. Perfection! That's all I can say about this one. A nice red exterior color, combined with a black and gold stripe, made this a perfect looking model. The black and gold MC5 wheels, also contributed to how I feel about it. I don't always like wheels with a chrome gold rim, but these ones complement the overall appearance of this release.
One of the ones that I was really excited to get, is the Dodge Rampage. Basically, this casting is new to my collection. This is actually a very nice release of this casting. I really like the orange stripe design that was created for it. I also like how it was given all chrome 5SPs.
My case also had two buses, and no, I'm not talking about the Volkswagen. What I'm talking about, are two public transportation releases that are apart of this year's Hot Wheels Metro mainline set. The first one is new, and it's called Ain't Fare. It's based on a typical city bus, and I think they did a good job with it's overall design. This is another example of a casting that puts the "Hot" in Hot Wheels.
This first release was done nicely, and I love the metallic green that was picked for the top half of it. The sides of it were given some nice tampo details, and one of my favorites is "BUS 52." Yes, it's one of the smaller details, but details like this make a huge difference for me.
I can totally see myself getting a lot of this casting's future releases. In fact, I like it so much, I'm making this the official public transportation for Diecast BLVD. After all, it's the only boulevard where racing is legal, so the public transportation has to be fast too!
I also didn't totally like the first one's wheel color. It would have worked if the top of it was white like this one. Thankfully, the designers chose to go in a different direction with this one's wheels. Instead of the wheels being the same color as the design, they chose to give this one black PR5s with a white rim. You might disagree, but I think this looks much better.
The next release from this case, is another new casting that's called Drafnator. It's making it's debut in this year's X-Racers mainline set. You won't typically see X-Racers releases featured here on the BLVD, however, there are some that I end up getting. It's usually because I like the overall shape of the vehicle, and that just so happens to be the case with this new racing truck.
I also like how decorated this first release is, and it's cool how they gave it three fantasy decals. The only thing I wish, is that the number on the roof was placed within circle like the one on the sides.
Like all Hot Wheels cases, this too was packed with some releases that are geared towards children. I have no problem with this, since Mattel is in the business of making toys for all ages. I'm just glad they kept it to a minimum for this event case. So pictured below, are the seven releases that I would not have gotten.
The last release from this case, is The Batman Batmobile. Earlier this year, Hot Wheels gave us a very cool blue and yellow release of this casting. And I still very much like it, however, this recolor is just as good if not better. In fact, I'd say it's better.
The designers made the decision to make this release chrome and red. A lot of folks out there might not like it, but I think chrome Batmobiles are pretty cool. That's why you'll usually see them featured here on the BLVD. One things for sure, it's nice to see another release of this Batmobile with an exterior color that's not black.
So, what are your thoughts on this event case? Go ahead and let me know down in the comments section. Okay, that's all for this edition of Looking At. Until next time, thanks for reading, and happy collecting.
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