This set needs to be split into 2 parts. Hell, if you count the horribly unsuccessful college product, maybe 3. So lets approach this horribly named product in the part that is pretty damn good and the part that should be piled in a large barrel and set ablaze. Considering all the plastic, that blaze would smell pretty terrible, much like most of the design work for that part of this set.

Part 1 – The Hard Signed Content

I am a HUGE fan of this part of Black Gold. The on card autograph designs are really good looking, including the Sizeable Signatures that have been a staple here for a number of years. These cards feature action photos, great design work to highlight a jumbo patch and a signature area, and it works extremely well all around.

Here are some good examples.

2016 Black Gold Peyton Manning Auto /25

2016 Black Gold Andrew Luck Jumbo Patch Auto

2016 Black Gold Dak Prescott Sizeable Signature Auto /225

My favorite cards are the veteran jumbo patch autos, which have a nice checklist along side the good looking cards. Panini even separated out the signature area like they have done in vomit worthy designs in the past, but for this it works. It works because the separated areas are not disruptive and the player photos arent sliced abruptly like Panini loves to do. The results are quite stunning. The whole thing pops.

Part 2 – Everything Else

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Phew, now that my stomach is empty, I can submit myself to how terrible this part of the product is. We are talking about the worst of the worst player photos, terrible design work, and shitty themes and concepts that never work well in any of the sets Panini does.

These are just a fucking train wreck:

2016 Black Gold Ezekiel Elliott Metal Auto RC

2016 Black Gold Quad Relic Dak Prescott and Rookie QBs

2016 Black Gold Quad Relic Carson Wentz

2016 Black Gold Paxton Lynch Gold Mine

As we saw with Infinity, which was most likely the front runner for the worst performance of the year, the metal signatures A) looked like shit, B) sold like shit and C) are shit. That didnt stop Panini from using the concept again, despite the fact that these main hits put the previous product into the bargain bin AS SOON as it was off MAPP. Im certain that Panini has no fucking clue how bad these cards are, because if they did, we wouldnt have seen identical versions used in two separate terrible sets.

I cant go without mentioning Panini trotting out the Optic/Donruss rated rookie photos not once, but twice in Black Gold, something that has become a running joke to me more than anything. Only Panini would use the same horrendously hilarious photo FOUR fucking times during a calendar year, and it makes me happy when collectors start to question their intelligence for doing so. WE NEED MOAR DANCE BATTLE JOEY BOSA DAMMIT!

Lastly, the configuration of Black Gold wax is worse than Triple Threads, which takes talent. For 240 fucking dollars you get 2 autos per box, one of which may be points. Yes, you are not reading that wrong, Panini uses points in a product that costs this much. So, that means you could pull two autographs in your box (if you are lucky enough to avoid the points), and one may be a sticker scrub. Fuck you Panini, fuck you in your dumb face.

This product isnt even worth ripping at 150 bucks let alone almost 100 dollars more, and its why so few hits have made it onto eBay yet. Everyone is going through group breakers to shoulder the ridiculous burden of expense for this stuff, and its sad that Panini has built their product this way. Its one to spend for technology used in this product, its another to deliver absolute shit at a huge price. Not only absolute shit at a huge price, but horribly overproduced shit.

Panini should be ashamed of themselves, bottom line.