Trading card sleevers, zip up your binders and pore over your checklists, for the Topps Finest X-Men 97 trading card set has descended upon card shops and comic book meccas, sweeping through with a gale of nostalgia that smells distinctly of the early ’90s. With a line-up blending old favorites and newcomers to the fold, it’s enough to make any X-Men fan snap their fingers in a perfect Storm-like flourish of excitement—and we’re just getting started with the buzz over this much-antiqued release.
We’re talking about autographs scattered like diamonds across the product, with old-school fans hyperventilating at the thought of recreating their Saturday mornings inside a pack of cards. Those who still possess echoes of the original X-Men: The Animated Series theme in their heads from 1992 are especially in luck. Many iconic voices from that era have returned with their illustrious signatures attached, not just in the sharp corners of cellophane-sealed fortune, but tied to a new generation of animated resurgence via the Disney+ reboot.
A notable sideshow of the launch was no milquetoast affair. An official Rip Night event unfolded at Los Angeles’s famed Golden Apple Comics, a verdant haunt where card and comic enthusiasts often lose track of time. The venue became a playground of marvels as Lenora Zann, who voices the fiery Southern belle Rogue, and Chris Potter, best known for turning Cajun-thief-turned-mutant Gambit into a cult staple, rubbed shoulders with fans, signing autographs and unboxing packs like magic beans.
Chris Potter, who switched from wielding playing cards as Gambit to wielding time and temper as Cable in X-Men ’97, was the evening’s bearded genie. With grainy fingers crossed, he ripped into packs, peering through glossy layers until, lo and behold, out popped an autograph from George Buza. For those unfamiliar, Buza gave life to Beast, the bombastic blue furball of intellect and humor, and his signature card might as well be a golden ticket at a Willy Wonka joint. The room’s energy spiked like Cyclops’ optic blast, resonating with echoes of another Topps Rip Night when WWE titan The Miz cracked open an autograph of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. Moments like these are the sugar that sweetens the brew of collecting.
Buzzing like a swarm of Sentinels, the newly minted Topps Finest X-Men 97 has left wide-eyed collectors stamping through the secondary market, many virtually wrestling for prized cards that debuted only mere moments ago. Their fever is driven by signature lineups that echo the golden tones of the original series’ cast along with new voices brimming with shiny inked signatures. Case hits, a term akin to the icing on already decadent cake, bring in inserts with dazzling designs—injecting treasured nostalgia with a pop culture thrust into tomorrow.
Digging deeper, these autographs are sources of extreme giddiness and envy, thanks in part to their scarcity which teeters the delicate balance of a trading card investor’s dream. With a mere trio to quartet of these signees tucked strategically per case, they become a portfolio of desire, destined to be fawned over like actual relics of plastic-coated dust. Cal Dodd, the gruff vocal maestro of Wolverine, has left his ferocious mark on the hobby with his autograph recently clawing its way to a $400 sale.
So, is this just the opening salvo from Topps, a harbinger of yet more prospective treasures in the realm of mutant trading cards? Bet your economy-sized X-Men action figure collection on it. With the likes of varied autograph scenarios and parallel sets, expect Topps to potentially unleash further rare spins. Beyond fictional curves, collectors might clamor for concept art inserts to shine light on both sides of the artistic pane and character microcosms giving individual heroes an entire spotlight.
The cocktail of fond memories mingled with the palpable excitement of rarity presents Topps Finest X-Men 97 as an irresistible siren song for fans old and new. Whether you’re a veteran mutating your collection or a neophyte unearthing untold stories through ink and cardboard, this series is staking a claim as one of the most discussed epics of trading cards as we leap into the future.
