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Links for the Top 25 drops are HERE.

This is why we can’t have nice things

O Dearly Beloved, you may recall when I highlighted a mint called Nodemonkes last month.

In one sentence: This was a PFP collection on Bitcoin that caught my attention when the founders announced that it would be a free mint, a decision that meant choosing vibes over potentially millions of dollars. 

For a minute, it was nice to believe. Who were these anons, to which money meant very little? Were they Uber Wealthy Bitcoin OGs? Religious Satoshi disciples? Mad scientists seeking onchain immortality? 

In the end, it didn’t matter. Before long, as hype grew around the project, the team began to change the parts of the mint structure that attracted people in the first place. 

First, as I mentioned, it started as a free mint. 

Then, it turned into a WL mint based on charitable donations. 

Then, a Dutch Auction with the first $5 million going to charity. 

And finally, just a Dutch Auction for the majority of supply, with maybe some charitable donations (aka the Trust Me Bro). 

Several people, including me, attempted to steer the mint back towards the light, like Elrond begging Isildur to cast the ring into the fire.

The Free Mint (especially a fair one) is one of the best long-term foundations you can give to a brand new meme community. 

It’s how Satoshi would’ve wanted it, wherever they are. 

But alas, the temptation proved too alluring

The team that was seemingly willing to forego millions a month earlier now seems far more interested in the potential profit.

To be clear – there’s nothing wrong with a team being compensated for their work. I don’t think anyone takes issue with that, especially since we’re likely talking about life-changing money here. 

It’s the flip-flop that’s troubling. The feeling that you were hit with the Ol’ Switcheroo at the last minute, after they benefited from the early goodwill. 

Luckily all of this happened pre-mint. Which means people are free to make their decision with all the cards on the table. It seems nothing else has changed about the project, they still make no promises of building anything beyond this set of PFPs, so it really is a case of “what you see is what you get”. 

As for me, I’m out. The whole drama left a bad taste. And given that this collection was a vibes-only meme to begin with, and they just gave a roundhouse kick to said vibes, there’s not much left for me to get excited about. 

But who knows, maybe there are more twists left. Maybe they get visited by three ghosts and change their ways at the last minute and end up buying Tiny Tim the prize turkey hanging in the pavilion before announcing a return to being free. ‘Tis the season. 

For now, I’m removing this from my Favorites and the Top 25.

NOTE: These drops are lightly curated. Our only requirement is that they have recognizable founders. As usual, DYOR. To learn more go here.

THE NOTORIOUS B.I.G Big Poppa Collection

In the year of our lord 2023, Sandbox metaverse is dropping 1,500 in-game skins based on Biggie, East Coast rap legend 26 years dead. This might seem like it doesn’t have much product market fit, but consider this:

It’s 2052, and we all got the Elon brain chip hooked up to our domes watching the new metaverse remix of MTV’s critically acclaimed Celebrity Deathmatch on our Apple Vision 29s.

Today’s match-up is one human-sized Tupac Coachella hologram vs. 1,500 byte-sized Biggie Sandbox avatars. Who you got?

I’m just sayin’.

Courtyard.io Holiday Drop

One last Pokémon card drop to wrap up the year?

The last Courtyard.io drop was the first to not mint out, but that comes after a string of more than ten consecutive sellouts. All in all, a very solid showing from Courtyard since their August debut, which we initially covered here.

A lot of details remain unknown, other than it’s coming this week, it’s possibly their last drop of 2023, and they’ve partnered with OpenSea.

PROOF Grails V

PROOF temporarily paused their Fall/Winter Exhibition series for Mambo #5 Grails #5, another rendition of their gamified art show.

It’s their most accessible one yet, featuring a general access mint if all 1,000+ pieces are not sold out in prior phases.

The curation for these has always been some of the best in the space, just scroll here and I bet you find a few artists you fancy.

Given the mint details, I expect Botto to be included as one of the artists, making this the “Secret Group Show” that was teased last month, and which I spoke about here. I’m taking that guess, so I’ve…

✨ Added to Top 25 ✨