Stupid question...if everyone loves the 90's inserts?

[Topnotchsy]

Maybe it's a stupid question, but if everyone loves the 90's inserts, why don't the companies bring some of the ideas back?

It would seem that as long as the companies make the flashy cards and do not mass produce them, there'd be a huge market following.

Of course if the companies tried I'm sure they'd wreck everything with mass-production as I've never seen any moves by a card company that indicated much business sense. (If any companies are reading this which I know is unlikely, don't take it personally, but you've definitely given off this impression.)

 

[NECpilgrims8]

Dear Topnotchsy,

Just because you were once sexy, doesn't mean you'll always be sexy, especially when you ***** yourself out.

Singed,

Upper Deck and Topps

 

[matfanofold]

Not a stupid question at all, but I believe it's not as simple as "shiney inserts"...


I think the main draw of the 90's inserts, the ones that are worth collecting anyhow, is that they are very short supplied in a old product burried in time. It's the thrill of the hunt through the decade(s) old product, looking to re discover that gem amongst the pile of crap. I do not think it can be replicated via new products as we already have sp shiney cards pack pulled and current.

 

[donrusscrusademan]

Maybe it's a stupid question, but if everyone loves the 90's inserts, why don't the companies bring some of the ideas back?

It would seem that as long as the companies make the flashy cards and do not mass produce them, there'd be a huge market following.

Of course if the companies tried I'm sure they'd wreck everything with mass-production as I've never seen any moves by a card company that indicated much business sense. (If any companies are reading this which I know is unlikely, don't take it personally, but you've definitely given off this impression.)

they have substituted creativity, good photography, and design by getting lazy, overproducing, and just cutting up jerseys.. . thats not the whole story and there are exceptions.. but in general thats what has happened.

still love my crusades! ( if you couldnt tell already )

 

[donrusscrusademan]

2 of my favorites

 

[AndruwHRJones]

Yeah, I could see it now. If they brought back Crusades for example. It wouldn't just be Green, Purple, and Red. You would have Green, Purple, Red, Blue, Gold, Orange, Xfractor, Super, etc....

Bringing back some of the designs would be nice. Dufex would be awesome!

 

[gracecollector]

Somewhere along the line (many blame Donruss, but it goes back farther to Finest Refractors and Mirror Golds), parallels replaced inserts as the scarce chase card of choice by the card manufacturers. Could be because they are cheaper to produce (just change a border or foil color). I love a good insert because it is a departure from the normal base card, and themed inserts were interesting.

Just seems like as a whole, the industry has taken a step backwards in creativity. In the 90's, manufacturers experimented with different stock materials, die-cuts, embossing, refractor finishes, and other design elements. It made for interesting "never before seen" cards. Now days, it seems like it has all been done before. I think due to cut-backs at the manufacturers, there are less opportunities for their downsized design staffs to flaunt their creativity. Some of those 90's inserts would be prohibitively expensive to produce today, and production budgets can't be what they were back in the 90's heydays of collecting.

It's really too bad. I'd love to see the return of innovative inserts. Maybe factors will change. It starts with message boards like this that let the manufacturers know what their sweet-spot customers want. If we want it bad enough, you can be sure somebody will make it - provided we're willing to pay for it.

Topps and Upper Deck - if you're reading - bring back the INSERT!

 

[clarkfan]

I'm pretty sure if they brought back the Donruss Crusades and kept them for the most part the same, you'd find a lot of collectors, at the very least, wanting to put the set together. Who wouldn't enjoy seeing Albert Pujols on a 1998 Donruss Crusade Red Throwback card? I would love the idea, as long as they didn't get carried away with the color variations.

 

[donrusscrusademan]

Somewhere along the line (many blame Donruss, but it goes back farther to Finest Refractors and Mirror Golds), parallels replaced inserts as the scarce chase card of choice by the card manufacturers. Could be because they are cheaper to produce (just change a border or foil color). I love a good insert because it is a departure from the normal base card, and themed inserts were interesting.

Just seems like as a whole, the industry has taken a step backwards in creativity. In the 90's, manufacturers experimented with different stock materials, die-cuts, embossing, refractor finishes, and other design elements. It made for interesting "never before seen" cards. Now days, it seems like it has all been done before. I think due to cut-backs at the manufacturers, there are less opportunities for their downsized design staffs to flaunt their creativity. Some of those 90's inserts would be prohibitively expensive to produce today, and production budgets can't be what they were back in the 90's heydays of collecting.

It's really too bad. I'd love to see the return of innovative inserts. Maybe factors will change. It starts with message boards like this that let the manufacturers know what their sweet-spot customers want. If we want it bad enough, you can be sure somebody will make it - provided we're willing to pay for it.

Topps and Upper Deck - if you're reading - bring back the INSERT!

AGREED!!!
the 90s insert thread is the biggest one on here for a reason: those cards are easily the most breathtaking..

what is the big news of the day? that topps chrome and bowman chrome look nearly the same. the companies need to listen what grace wrote

 

[KLARNOLD]

Topps or UD can bring back more test, sample, promo, preview, prototype, and unannounced insert cards. They can also create special cards in food/toy products like they did in the 70s, 80s & early 90s. I would like to see Wiffle Ball/Burger Chef disc cards, Hostess cards, or Kelloggs cards of Albert Pujols. How about a box of Twinkies or Ding Dongs with a 3 card panel on the bottom that included 2 stars and a rookie?

 

[i43770]

Upper Deck did try to "re-invent" the 90s insert last year with X and many people hated it. They were mad that it didn't have the good GU and autos that they had come to expect in a pack/box.

 

[donrusscrusademan]

Upper Deck did try to "re-invent" the 90s insert last year with X and many people hated it. They were mad that it didn't have the good GU and autos that they had come to expect in a pack/box.

I thought UDX08 went in the right direction. it was less expensive, made GU/autos more rare, and the expotiental demensionals each had different pictures for each rarity level, not just color differences. there were Longoira and Jeter autos, and die cuts.. but people still wanted more.
havnt checked out 09 as much, but I hear the prices are even better and its even more rare to pull a GU, which is a good thing.

 

[beefycheddar]

I spoke to Panini reps about it, Crusades can't come back since the printer who did them is no longer around and no one else will do that style card.

 

[Greg Cleveland]

I've always loved inserts, and have a love/hate feeling about parallels. Pacific in the late 90's really did a number for player collectors, making so many color variations, only available in these packs, or those packs, etc. Now it's all about refractors. Scary to think about red, orange, blue, etc. for years past, but then again, we can all be glad they don't exist. (I mean, can you imagine the 2001 BC Pujols cards?) My favorite has always been Dufex, and loved Zenith in 2005. I like checking out the 90's insert threads, and hope we'll start a 00's thread next year. Probably won't be as much love as the 90's.

Then again, I have boxes of inserts and refractors that nobody wants, just like commons.

 

[clarkfan]

I remember when Upper Deck did a Jersey Throwback set that looked similar to the 1997 UD Game Jerseys and those were very popular and sold pretty well. Heck, I still need the Will Clark card from that set. It always sells for more than I thought it was "worth"

 

[Topnotchsy]

If done right, there's a lot of potential there. The APOH 500 HR set was immensely popular including later releases (like Griffey) until Upper Deck (in what appears to have been an incredibly shortsighted move) changed the cards from /350 to one per case and essentially destroyed the demand for the newer releases.

If the companies made the cards really rare, and tastefully combined other elements like game-used and autographs, the set would be a massive hit IMO.

 

[ChasHawk]

I've always loved inserts, and have a love/hate feeling about parallels. Pacific in the late 90's really did a number for player collectors, making so many color variations, only available in these packs, or those packs, etc. Now it's all about refractors. Scary to think about red, orange, blue, etc. for years past, but then again, we can all be glad they don't exist. (I mean, can you imagine the 2001 BC Pujols cards?) My favorite has always been Dufex, and loved Zenith in 2005. I like checking out the 90's insert threads, and hope we'll start a 00's thread next year. Probably won't be as much love as the 90's.

Then again, I have boxes of inserts and refractors that nobody wants, just like commons.

I would definitely post there!

Upper Deck did try to "re-invent" the 90s insert last year with X and many people hated it. They were mad that it didn't have the good GU and autos that they had come to expect in a pack/box.

I didn't care that it didn't have gu/autos, I just thought it was crap. UDX
does not even sniff the design and creativity of most 90's inserts.

 

[ffgameman]

The allure for the "majority" of collectors is the autograph and game-used card....so I guess that's what the companies will continue to produce.

I do agree however. It would be nice to see UD/Topps/Panini go back to the basics of card design and creativity - one thing that made 90s inserts such a great thing. Today it's too easy to throw a white swatch of jersey into a card and call it a "hit" - even if there aren't scarce like the most sought-after 90s cards were.

To Greg's post I just saw - I agree with chashawk. The 'X' designs were okay but paled in comparison to even some of the weakest inserts from the 90s. They mainly played back to the "parallel" game with slightly different levels of the "X" insert card. If we get any sort of insert craze again, one of the key components will have to good creativity and design.

Maybe it's a stupid question, but if everyone loves the 90's inserts, why don't the companies bring some of the ideas back?

It would seem that as long as the companies make the flashy cards and do not mass produce them, there'd be a huge market following.

Of course if the companies tried I'm sure they'd wreck everything with mass-production as I've never seen any moves by a card company that indicated much business sense. (If any companies are reading this which I know is unlikely, don't take it personally, but you've definitely given off this impression.)

 

[JoshHamilton]

Here is my personal take:

I collect 90's inserts, sets, and still buy 90's boxes not particularly because I like them better than newer releases (even though I do), but for what those cards mean to me on a personal level. I was 9 when the 90's started and 19 when they ended. That spanned fom elementary school to college. My formulative years growing up. It was also a much simpler time in my life. Nevermind paying bills, mortgages, pregnancy scares, grad school courses, and everything else that comes with being an adult; in the 90's all I had to worry about was selling enough golf balls I found in the woods to afford a few more packs of cards. I had no big boy problems then. 90's inserts are a microcosm of a more innocent and enjoyable time in my real and collecting life

When I buy a 97 Finest Gold Embossed Refractor Jeff Conine, I'm not just buying it for the badass design. I'm buying it because it reminds me of the summer of 97, my first summer with a drivers license, driving up to the card shop and buying packs of 97 Finest in hopes of pulling the same card. Every time I drop $200 on a 93 Finest Refractor star, it reminds me of when I was 13 and there was no way in hell I could afford $25 a pack in hopes of pulling one. Kinda cool to know that now I can

if companies brought back exact designs of 90's inserts, I'm honestly not sure if I'd enjoy them. The nostalgia wouldn't be there for me. UD pulled off a badass replication of their 93 SP foil rookies last year (don't remember the product), and it just didn't give me the same feeling of sitting there on Xmas morning in 93, ripping open a box of the original product

 

[Philip J. Fry]

I'm pretty sure if they brought back the Donruss Crusades and kept them for the most part the same, you'd find a lot of collectors, at the very least, wanting to put the set together. Who wouldn't enjoy seeing Albert Pujols on a 1998 Donruss Crusade Red Throwback card? I would love the idea, as long as they didn't get carried away with the color variations.

They did this in 2002 and it sucked.