Marvel Masterpieces 1992-2020

[DynaEtch]

Originally Posted by DynaEtch

In the meantime, here is a curious new error pickup.

Here is the regular 1993 Dyna Etch Skullfire, how it should look on scan with all its foil. Zillions of these of this same card out there.


And here is the new pickup,



it’s an odd error that has the top foiled, but then there is a sharp dividing line and much of the bottom half not foiled, as you can see with the green sewage clearly, but with some strange patterns of foil remaining. (Look at the name to really see it, plus the foil strip at left). I cannot place this foil outline from anything….my best guess it was just a random splotch of foil somehow.

I wanted to revisit this post about the Skullfire foil error from way back. At the time I was perplexed by it and chalked up it to a random splotch of foil. I should have known better, because almost nothing is random like that, even with errors.

In some ways I’m an idiot because I didn’t think to just tilt the card in the light. I was randomly going through cards yesterday and just noticed on that Skullfire:



Yea I see the Skullfire outline in the foil now... Looks like one of the foil layers of the card was super offset, halfway down the card producing a weird error. The vertical ‘foil strip’ at left is just the small space between two cards on the sheet. As always, this type of error should exist on all the other Dyna Etch's as well, but will probably be quite rare…so look out for them, might be easy to miss.

[jdandns]

Your collection of these errors is just amazing, but why oh why, did it have to be X-Men 2099?
That said, when 2099 actually gets here, that chase set is going to be fire!

But, seriously, that regular 8 card Spectra set can sell for $60 to $75 dollars, not bad. Regardless of subject, they are gorgeous cards with terrific art.

Awesome custom '96 binder, by the way! It's truly mystifying how Skybox/Fleer and now Upper Deck have, for 30+ years, chosen to leave a significant amount of money on the table by not producing official binders for these sets.

[DynaEtch]

You and me both! You look at Fleer/Skybox in the 90s and they were churning out official binders for most of the other marvel sets, just never MM. With UD nowadays it’s not surprising though, since official album seems like a foreign concept to them unlike some other recent companies (*cough* artbox).

It’s very ironic indeed one of my fav insert sets happens to be…X-men 2099 of all things. I remember when I was a kid collecting, I was like..who the heck are these characters? But Bob Larkin’s art is great and they’re cool nonetheless. If anything I came to know the X-men 2099 team through this set more than the comics.

I chalk it up to there was that one narrow era when 2099 was all the craze, when 93MM hit…everyone remembers the fancy foil #1 comic covers etc. However almost none of these characters became beloved like the regular marvel characters…leading to the awkward legacy of an insert set like this. In retrospect….I wish these Dyna Etch’s were something else. Imagine like the Avengers, or FF and villains, or even the regular X-men (although they were overused as insert sets in the mid 90s). My 8-card FF Dyna Etch set would look something like Mr Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, Thing, Dr Doom, Galactus, Silver Surfer, Black Panther. Now that would be a cool set to collect in this etched foil.

[jdandns]

Oh, yeah, I bought the entire run of Spidey 2099 when newly issued because I like the writer Peter David. And there has been renewed interest in that character thanks to the popular animated Spider-Man movies.

As for X-Men 2099 and the rest (Punisher, Hulk, Doom), I'd usually just get the first few issues of those titles (being more of a degenerate speculator in those days). About 10 years ago, though, a longtime local comic shop went out of business and I picked up a lot of the later issues, most of which had very low print runs. I've held on to those, and as a result, actually have a pretty nice 2099 comic collection, including the one-shots that brought the line to an end.

As for the cards, I completely get why they went with 2099 characters for the 93 inserts, since it was a great way to showcase them (synergy!), but I do wish they'd chosen just a couple of the X-Men 2099 for it, and went with Spider 2099 and some of the other 2099 characters for the rest of it.

[BobCollects]

Originally Posted by jdandns

Awesome custom '96 binder, by the way! It's truly mystifying how Skybox/Fleer and now Upper Deck have, for 30+ years, chosen to leave a significant amount of money on the table by not producing official binders for these sets.

I have to believe Upper Deck would sell binders if the binders were profitable. There are some quotes at the Star Trek Card Collective website about Star Trek binders barely breaking even for SkyBox.

[BipolarBear]

The 2099 characters were also the focus of the 1993 Marvel Universe red foil set (the 9-piece puzzle). I don't know what month MM93 came out vs when MU93 did, but man, they really were pushing those characters hard that year.

[finfangfan]

Originally Posted by BipolarBear

The 2099 characters were also the focus of the 1993 Marvel Universe red foil set (the 9-piece puzzle). I don't know what month MM93 came out vs when MU93 did, but man, they really were pushing those characters hard that year.

What’s weird is Amazing Fantasy 15 is dated August 1962, which was 31 years prior to the 2099 stuff hitting in 1993. And we are now, in 2024, 31 years removed from the 2099 stuff debuting.

[jdandns]

Originally Posted by BipolarBear

The 2099 characters were also the focus of the 1993 Marvel Universe red foil set (the 9-piece puzzle). I don't know what month MM93 came out vs when MU93 did, but man, they really were pushing those characters hard that year.

The 2099 Universe had base cards in 93MU and 93MM to go along with the chase cards. I was curious about what other 2099 cards followed and it was 94 & 95 Flair, plus 94MU, 94MM, and 95 Metal. That's it, a 2 year run on cards, and I think only base cards after '93, but with some base parallels in 94MM and 95 Metal. They also got a selection of Marvel Press posters during those same years as part of that ongoing line and I have most of them. X-Men 2099 actually got two different ones, so the company-wide push was definitely on.

ROOKIE ALERT?: Spidey 2099 actually appears in a 1992 set predating all of the above: Comic Images SPIDER-MAN II: 30th Anniversary
Any other 2099 characters in 1992 sets. Would this be the first 2099 card? Would anyone care?

And now a return to our Marvel Masterpieces specific activities.

[DynaEtch]

Great info on the 2099s. That indeed does look like spidey 2099s ‘RC’ in 1992 Spidey 30th anniversary. I guess it won’t quite catch the hype since it was printed to the moon and is a cheapo base card!

You got me thinking about what’s been made in newer marvel sets for 2099, and after briefly checking COMC it looks like Spidey 2099 has been in a few sets like Metal Universe, Fleer Ultra Spider-Man, and Flair, but outside Spidey it’s a ghost town for other 2099 characters in newer sets. It’s as if Marvel/UD have been trying to pretend they don’t exist.

I guess it was considered a ‘failed experiment’ during that one narrow 1993-1994 era. Arguably the entire genre existed just for speculators buying up the #1 issues.

Speaking of that, this was BIG when I was a kid, in the fancy gold variant. (That conveniently has all the Dyna Etch characters on it). Never did get one as a kid, but picked up a raw and graded one more recently.



Apparently they could be bought for about 20 bucks at the time from Diamond and print run of the gold is 15k copies (compared to the blue, which was utterly mass produced…so much for that speculation haha). Since it was a pricey comic, it didn’t need ads, and in fact instead of ads in the gold version, it has 8 paged sized Dyna Etch cards, including the Skullfire as the back cover.









If you’re thinking something looks off about that Xi’an and Meanstreak, you aren’t wrong! They flipped the image horizontally for some reason compared to the card. Also if you ever get this comic graded, CGC will note on the label the back cover (Skullfire) is done by Dan Brereton, which is false…it’s Bob Larkin. They are wrong on that, and never did correct that I’m pretty sure.

Anyway…this was the heyday of 2099…fall of 1993. Would be curious if it ever can make a comeback (be it movies, in card sets etc). The characters just don’t really do it for me, outside possibly Spider-Man 2099.

[jdandns]

Pretty cool, the full-page shots of the cards in lieu of ads in the gold #1, I had no idea.
Didn't at least some of them make it into the Marvel Masterpieces 1993 comic book mini-series, too?

[DynaEtch]

Originally Posted by jdandns

Pretty cool, the full-page shots of the cards in lieu of ads in the gold #1, I had no idea.
Didn't at least some of them make it into the Marvel Masterpieces 1993 comic book mini-series, too?

Yep all 8 made it into the 93MM comics as well. (And with none flipped this time). They got a lot of use out of Bob Larkin’s art at least.

[DynaEtch]

It’s been a slow summer for error pickups….hasnt been much on the market for MM tbh. I want to update with just 2 new ones:

I don’t know if people even consider this an error….its borderline. To some it’s simply miscut. But it looks sufficiently distinct enough from a regular 96MM Hulk gallery that I consider this an error. The term error itself is a subjective term.


The next one is definitely a more bona fide error. Here it is….its one of those inverted wrong names on a 93MM card. Can you guess, based on the rule way above in thread in post #122 (https://www.blowoutforums.com/showpo...&postcount=122), what the name must be? (Don’t scroll down for the spoiler).



We look back at our handy formula from post 122, for this error to physically make sense it must follow the rule, Y = 91-X. Where X is the number of the card art, and Y is the number of the card of the name. So Beast is #17, plug it into our formula, and the name must be that of card 91-17 = 74, which is Vengeance, and it checks out. This is the pickup.



Building up a small collection of just this genre error. Note they each follow the formula. We can go on to predict others that must exist. For example a Thor with Terrax name on it must exist.


There are also these:


At first glance it looks like the same error in top and bottom pic…wrong name upside down, follows the formula, etc. This is actually a distinct genre error though. What I mean by error genre is a certain printing mishap that affected 1 or more uncut sheets in a consistent manner. The second group of cards is different from the first. In the first, the sheet was the wrong way when printing the foil layer, and then the sheet was cut based on the printed card, making the foil offset. I have 5 of them now. In the second group, the sheet was cut based on the foiling, thus making the printed card offset. I have 3 of them (that happen to be consecutive). So these are distinct types of errors. The reason by the way the foil is not aligned with the printed card in the first place is because the uncut sheet’s margins are asymmetrical and so when it’s flipped around, it’s offset.

How many of the errors exist? Interesting question and no one knows. It’s possible the each error genre only affected a single sheet, since to this day I have yet to see a repeated example. The fact I barely see this error overall (compared to more common no-foil errors) suggests this very well could have been the case. A single example of a dup will throw that out the window, but either way it’s not often you see them.

[DynaEtch]

With the arrival of a MM24 retail blaster today, here is my complete empty box collection of MM. (ok not every box is empty, I have some I don’t want to open to make them empty). The below is every single Marvel Masterpieces box released, bar none, including rarities.











The goal at one point was to collect each box sealed, but a few things have prevented that. I chose not to do this since I may very well be holding an expensive collection of 90s bricks in the long term (whether they are or not, I may never know, but that’s enough to deter). Another obstacle is astronomical price (1996MM, 2016MM) or sheer impossibility (2008 retails).

I thought it would be beneficial to put them all together like this, to chronicle the entire series. Where does the series go from here is anyone’s guess. More MM XL’s for 2018 and beyond? MM under Fanatics? The end of the road for MM?

[fabiani12333]

Very cool, Dyna -- this thread is a fantastic resource for those interested in learning about the MM line.

[Xazark]

from the photos it looks like the MM XL blaster box larger than the hobby box, is that right?

[DynaEtch]

Originally Posted by Xazark

from the photos it looks like the MM XL blaster box larger than the hobby box, is that right?

Yes it’s larger. Hobby box is pretty thin. Blaster is like most retail blasters and has a thickness to it (comprised of mostly empty space). The heights are about the same.

[DynaEtch]

In the latest edition of one man’s junk is another man’s treasure, here are new MM errors I found. Some of them are debatably errors and really just miscuts.

I think this is a pack issued severe miscut of a 94MM apocalypse powerblast (an error), but no guarantee it’s not cut from a sheet (in which case it’s not an error). Analyzing the card, it doesn’t immediately appear handcut, but not 100% on that. Even if this is from an uncut sheet, that’s pretty interesting in itself since this uncut sheet is essentially nonexistent.



This next one I could see someone quickly tossing in the junk pile, but when a card is this off-center it becomes interesting to me, and is actually rather unique when you compare to the zillions of regular war machine holofoils out there.


Back next to a regular back, note the white strip showing due to the miscut.



The next is a 92MM Spider-Man vs Venom. Regular version on top, error pickup on bottom. I believe this is a ‘no-foil’ version. With some caveats….like the other no foils I have from this spectra set (SS vs Thanos, Cap vs Red Skull) there is some very light reflectivity if you tilt at certain angles, but the majority of the foiling layers are absent, especially the ‘etched foil’ regions, totally nonexistent.
Regular:


No foil:


It’s easiest to tell by scan like above since foil scans dark. The above scans were taken by the same scanner on the same settings- see how darker the 1st is because the regular foil. You can really see the difference by comparing the detail on the edge of the doorway, and also look at the emblem on Venom’s chest- it appears white in the no foil and that emblem should be darkened foil.

Unfortunately the error is in Poor condition, with literal dirt on the back, and some indentations on the front (can’t see on scan). So like I said one man’s junk! But it is a diamond in the rough for me….in fact I do not care about the condition of errors at all. The error is solely what makes it interesting/worth it to me. My only concern would be could this poor condition card have somehow lost its etched foil as an aftermarket (thus making it not an error). I’m doubtful and think it would need to be a production anomaly.

[DynaEtch]

A rainbow of a card that has no rainbows!

Quick summary of error Spidey vs Venoms scattered in this thread





From top left:
-Normal
-Medium extra foil
-Major extra foil
-No foil
-Wrong back
-“Demon Venom” (back printed on front), my fav

[jdandns]

Love it all.
What a collection!

[DynaEtch]

I figure I may as well balance out the good pickups with the not so good ones.

Here is my recent box break….of literal trash!







Smh. This was the brickiest of bricked boxes I think Ive ever opened…basically every single card damaged and worthless. There’s a reason I assigned a brick rating of 5/5 to 93MM. I’ve actually had some better luck recently with mostly unbricked boxes searching for error gold, just not this one. (Also no errors in this even underneath the damage…I would have kept one if there was, regardless of damage).

So PSA on the 90s Marvel boxes, especially this set since cards are so heavily UV coated, although I think most are aware. I’m well aware of the risk and consider it a necessary risk I take on when buying these (it’s not on the seller since they’re selling a sealed box).

Small side note, but note the Dyna Etches in this box (somewhat unsual to have 5, usually there’s 4). But notice they are #2,3,4,5,6….thats not a coincidence. Almost all 93MM boxes I opened, and Ive opened a lot, have consecutive Dyna Etches (including wrap around such as 7,8,1,2). It is almost always the case. So a little fun fact about Dyna Etches….from DynaEtch

[BobCollects]

Yikes. That's up there with some of the worst boxes of SkyBox Star Trek: The Next Generation (The Episode Collection) I've opened. Not a single undamaged card and cards literally torn apart trying to separate them.

[DynaEtch]

Originally Posted by BobCollects

Yikes. That's up there with some of the worst boxes of SkyBox Star Trek: The Next Generation (The Episode Collection) I've opened. Not a single undamaged card and cards literally torn apart trying to separate them.

I once bought a diverse nonsports collection having a bunch of different genres. Cards were in white long boxes. The Star Trek cards in it were…you guessed it…all bricked. Can’t remember the exact set but probably that one. Cards were all glossy.

[orion9578]

The price of shipping the complete 16MM master set in 2016... Thought this would be a fun one for people to see... Nearly 1,500 cards(145 pages x 10)...

[DynaEtch]

Wow $700+ for shipping! lol.

Is this seriously a complete master set with autos too? This is on another level. The red spectrums on that page alone are on another level. This has to be the most impressive collection of MM16 there is, if thats the case. I can’t imagine what the insured value of that package is.

Edit: misread and didn’t realize this was shipped back in 2016. Thought you just shipped it. Man it’s crazy what it costs to ship ePack stuff home in bulk.

[DynaEtch]

Some very curious pickups.



Nothing special about this, just 6 95MM Galactus’s.



Now this has piqued my interest, what the heck is going on with that Galactus top mid?



Same with Hulk..


I did post about a very odd ‘gray box’ Storm from 95MM way back in post #126. Well I just found 5 more, including the 2 above. So this went from a 1-off fluke to a darn near rare variant.

Here are the 6 I own:


I have looked at these real closely. I am positive they are the color of the card and not someone coloring over the black box. You can easily tell- first it is way too neat, in fact perfectly neat with how the card should go, second it’s totally smooth with the card and no extra thickness in that area, and third you can tell the UV laminate coating is on top of the printing layer including the gray. These are definitely, no question, gray printings. It is interesting the tone of gray does differ among the ones I have.

I cannot explain this error. You’d think if the black (key) tone was insufficient during printing, that all of the black on the back of the error would appear gray, but that is not what we observe (text and other places is perfectly normally black).

The 6 shown all happen to be from uncut Sheet A of 1995MM (there were 2 sheets for base). This suggests maybe this gray box variant may only be on the 100 from that sheet. But it could also be due to most of the regular-version base of 95MM occur on sheet A and just a coincidence.

May want to go through your sets and look out for this error/variant. It is quite rare. I have seen nothing about this variant anywhere else, including nslists or anything 30 years out, which is pretty surprising.