Category: Trading Cards

Ten More Treasures

I’m in the middle of a lengthy reorganization of our ‘library’ room, which contains 6 bookshelves and loads of books, toys and other stuff. I spend a lot of time in this room doing my crafting and hobbie stuff and I’ve wanted to reorganize it for years.

This has entailed throwing away some books (and magazines, of which I had scads), putting others in storage, and generally moving stuff around. It’s taken ages, been harder than I thought, but has at the same time been a lot of fun since I’ve ‘rediscovered’ so much stuff I had almost forgotten I owned or simply hasn’t had the attention it deserved.

This then is a post containing ten items that live in the room. All unusual, all treasured, and all still getting a featured position in the reorganized library πŸ™‚

PS2 Slime controller (2005). This is a fully functional PlayStation 2 controller modeled after the famous slime from the Dragon Quest series. I bought it when it came out but never used it much since it’s uncomfortable to hold. Over the years it’s become a bit sticky since it has a rubber surface and while it’s appreciated in value it’ll just sit smiling on my shelf for ever πŸ™‚

Viewtiful Joe bobblehead (2003). This was a promotional item given away with early purchases of the game. It’s ceramic, looks like a bootleg and the head is a bit too heavy for the spring. It’s weird and has been a shelf fixture for over a decade. Amusingly this item is now ‘worth’ more than the game on eBay!

Darth Maul cookie jar (1999). I’ve mentioned this before on the blog; it was my first (and last? ever QVC purchase and is still my favourite piece of Phantom Menace merchandise. It’s fairly large (about 20 cm tall) but impractical for storage so for me it’s always been decorative. Another item that has appreciated in value.

A tiny castle (?). I don’t know where or when I got this but it may very well date to my teenage years. Items like this (and little dragons) were somewhat common decades ago and I always liked them and used to own a few. Alas this is my only one now and I love it. Incidentally if you ever see anything like this (the very small size is important) it may make a good gift…

Bootleg R2 droid figure (?). I got this in England last year, specifically by trading tickets for it in an arcade in Margate. I like R2 figures, and something about this one – with its wrong colours and mismatched leg lengths – is endearing. Although 100% bootleg, this is a key item in my Star Wars collection πŸ™‚

Burger King bobblehead (2006). These were sold at Burger King to promote the Super Bowl over a decade ago! It’s so weird I love it. Another item that is ‘worth’ (on eBay) several times what I paid for it.

R2-D2 plastic mug (2012). This was sold (and may still be today) at the Disney movie park in Florida. It’s gigantic, and yes I found space for it in my suitcase when we visited 5 years ago πŸ™‚

Dragonlance stained glass (1997). These were sold for $90 exclusively at the Gen-Con convention in 1997. I bought this a couple of years ago for much less at a local shop, and the seller had had it since she bought it at Gen Con back when they were sold! It’s quite pretty, made of painted glass with real metal lines between the colours. I’d like to hang it but it’s quite heavy and I don’t have an appropriate window so it rests against the wall. It’s tough to find these (there were three designs) for sale now but they seem to go for a premium.

Darth Maul glass ornament (2010?). It’s hard to find info on this online. I’m pretty sure I bought it at Target, which means it should have been fairly common, but I can’t find any on auction or sold online so I’m not exactly sure when it came out. It’s a highly detailed blown glass Christmas ornament modeled (again) after Darth Maul from Star Wars. It’s super creepy but also lovely and another treasure in my SW collection. No I’ve never put it in the Christmas tree!

This Doctor Who trading card (1996). This is card #26 from the 1996 Cornerstone Doctor Who card set. I’ll admit my memories of how I obtained this are clouded… can one of you fill me in? (No I didn’t write that outrageous slander on the card!)

My next goal is to organize the attic. Lord knows what I may find up there! If I ever get around to it, you can expect to see some very unusual ‘treasures’ here once I’m done!

Birthday Aquisitions #2: Trading Cards

As you know, I’m a bit of a fan of (non sports) trading cards. And since hardly anyone releases any of worth these days, I occasionally pick up old boxes. Or five at the same time, as I did for my birthday!

Such things are cheap these days, and for boxes shown here, almost a song. None of these were over $20, some under $10 πŸ™‚

Fantasy art trading cards were big business in the early 1990s, and it seemed everyone that had ever done a game or novel cover had their own set. Including this guy I’ve never heard of – Lee Macleod – who got his 50 card set released by Cardz in 1994.

The art isn’t great, and the ‘tekchrome bonus card in every pack’ is a bog-standard chrome card. There are no other chase cards in the packs. But the cards have artist commentary which is nice, and with such a small set size I should certainly complete at least one in the box.

I know virtually nothing about Venus Swimwear Model Search (Star, 1994) and apparently neither did they, since nowhere on the box or pack does it list how many cards in the set or if there are chases. I bought it since it was only $7 for the box!

As it turns out, it’s 100 cards (all bikini shots of ‘professional’ models) with no chase. Pretty mundane set, compared to today where at the very least autographs and the like would be included. At least the copy on the backs of the cards is silly πŸ™‚

I’m not really a fan of gambling but I believe the theory that trading cards are successful in part due to the gambling urge. “Will I get that rare chase card in this pack?”  This must be why it can be fun to open even a box of cards for a show I’m not remotely a fan of, like Young Indiana Jones Chronicles (Pro Set, 1992)!

This was another very cheap box and to be honest I was won over by the 3D card in every pack! Spoiler alert: they’re crap πŸ™‚

It seemed that FPG and Comic Images competed in the fantasy art card market and both had many solid licenses (and truth be told, I bought many packs back then). Both produced high quality sets with desirable chase cards but once they had exhausted the ‘big guns’ the sets came from less famous guys like James Warhola (FPG, 1995).

While I’ve not really heard of this guy, the art is high quality, the comments on the back readable and the set includes metallic chase cards! I haven’t opened one yet, but there should be a few in the box and knowing FPG they will be high quality.

Everyone knows Frazetta (II; Comic Images, 1993) and unsurprisingly given his lifetime of work he had multiple sets back in the day.

What needs to be said about his art? He’s one of the kings of fantasy and was very likely an inspiration for every other fantasy artist that ever got a card set. The cards are beautiful, there’s two types of chase card, and I know I’ll have fun tearing into these!

Incidentally as you can see I have lots of packs! If you want some, let me know. 

Con Haul

I’m shamelessly borrowing a post format from AW here; everything I purchased at the local comic con I attended yesterday. I arrived with $106.50 on me, and left with nothing! Here’s the swag…

A pack of Voltron tattoos from 1984. The guy that sold them to me (from a mostly full box) seemed surprised when I said I’d use them. ($2)

Three packs of trading cards. As should be obvious by now, I can’t pass up non-sports cards. At $1/pack these were a bit pricey though. ($3)

A stuffed stegosaurus. I bought this for KLS from the girl who made it. This is actually the second one I’ve bought over the years, although this one is cuter and fatter! ($7)

A Japanese money box ‘sound bank’. I haven’t opened it yet. I think it’s a tiny bank that plays a sound effect from Super Mario Bros. when you put coins in. ($5)

Loads of comics. The average cost was just under $0.50 each. I tend to gravitate to non superhero stuff pre 1990 if possible. That’s the first eleven issues of Indy! ($14.50 in total)

An Avalon Hill fantasy board game from 1979. Yes it’s complete, and yes it will be played. The rules seem delightfully complex! ($10)

A fat Rilakkuma thing. I overpaid for this, but it was my white whale in a UFO catcher in CA early this year. Plus it’s cute! ($40)

Dungeons & Dragons lite-brite set (from 1983). Yes it’s unopened and yes it will remain that way! How could I have passed up such a curiosity! ($15)

Not a bad load of loot is it? For those keeping tabs this totals to only $96.50. What about the other $10 you ask? That was the admission fee.

After a string of disappointing years the con roared back this year and impressed me to no end. Next time I’ll be sure to have more cash with me πŸ™‚