In my previous post, I shared a few thoughts on the Topps merger with Mudrick Capital Acquisition Corp. II (more specifically the digitization of trading cards) and promised to deliver the goods in a subsequent post. Here it is, I've dug up a sealed Wax Pack from 1987, to share what collectible cards were like in a time before blockchain and NFTs. Of course, it actually wasn't that long ago and physical cards still exist. Though I do prefer the smooth waxy encasings to the new crinkly foil packs, I digress. Here it is, 34 years young, the Harry and the Hendersons trading cards:
It felt great to open it up, like a time machine back to my childhood. I can remember opening packs of Topps baseball cards that were a few years old back then and the gum being "a bit crunchy" but I wasn't exactly in the adventurous eating mood with this particular stick of bubble gum. Though, I have to admit, it did age pretty well for being 34 years old. Despite it being cracked in half, the small brown discoloration and having the consistency of a brick.
The pack includes nine cards and one sticker. For a one hour, 50 minute movie this warranted a whole set of 77 cards as far as Topps was concerned. Here are the nine that I got:
As I wrote about concerning NFTs, I'm the kind of person that would much rather have the physical cards. In the case of the Harry and the Hendersons movie cards, the cards themselves don't present much value: sealed packs are abundant, readily available, and cheap. However, for me, the nostalgic experience of unwrapping a fresh pack and seeing what I got was well worth it for me. To have that feeling of being an excited seven year old, hoping to get his favorite player (or in the case of movie cards, character), was where I found the value.
Of course, I'd be remiss to not include the sticker (which unfortunately no longer retains its adhesive qualities):
My hope for the future is that the physical trading cards do not completely disappear and will stick with us. I think it's great they are finding new life via blockchain and new technologies, but for me there just ain't nothing like the real thing.
Ernie Henderson: [whispering] Hey, Dad, what if it's him?
George Henderson: Who?
Ernie Henderson: [whispering] Bigfoot.
George Henderson: Bigfoot...?
Ernie Henderson: Holy shit! Sorry, Dad.
George Henderson: That's okay, I was looking for the right words.
