Cowboys & Aliens

Unlike Thor, Captain America, or any other superhero movie that came out this summer, I wasn’t sure what to expect when heading in to see Cowboys & Aliens.  To be honest, I had no idea it was a graphic novel which was published back in 2006.  It was fun not having a single clue about what was going to happen next.  In my reading, the film makes some changes when compared to the novel, but that usually happens.

Combining the old west with futuristic alien tech is something I’ve never seen before, and I really enjoyed it.  Let me say one thing.  Harrison Ford makes one badass cowboy that I wouldn’t want to screw with.  The same can go for Daniel Craig.  The aliens were designed well.  They kinda reminded me of miniature incredible hulks.

There have already been small talks about a sequel, but I’m not sure how that would work.  The end of the movie really puts a cap on the whole thing.  In 2007, there was a web-comic released that was a sequel to the graphic novel.

All in all, it was a great film.  Nothing gets more sci-fi then the title of Cowboys & Aliens.  The last movie I’ll probably go see this year in the theatre is Rise of the Planet of the Apes.  After that, I’ll be waiting for The Avengers which hits theatres May 2012.

2011 Industry Summit Thoughts

In my mind the 2011 Industry Summit seems to be getting a lot more attention this year than usual.  Panini seems to be stirring up the most attention with its new distribution system, HD video trading cards, and their popular Black Boxes.  Black Boxes are cool, HD trading cards are way cool, but I’m not a fan of the new distribution system.  It focuses on minimum pricing and a week long delay for non-card shop retailers.  This system is suppose to drive more collectors to brick and mortar shops, because online dealers won’t be able to sell new wax until it has been out for a week in the hobby shops, and they won’t be able to drop the price level past a certain amount.  To make a long story short, after this system has been in place for a few years, don’t be surprised if you see 5 year old Panini products selling for close to what they were when they originally came out.  There isn’t a real need to complain, because I don’t think this system will last.  Its just a small blip on the hobby radar.

I’m really interested to see a working model of Panini’s HD video cards.  I doubt that it could get anymore authentic then watching a video on the card of the player signing the card.  I just hope collectors will be able to replace the batteries when they run out.  Or maybe they’ll be powered by the pure power of the hobby 🙂

According to Sports Card Radio, Leaf is suppose to be creating a tri-fold booklet that contains cut signatures of John F. Kennedy, Lee Harvey Oswald, and a car seat relic from the actual car JFK was shot in.  Sounds kinda creepy, but also kinda cool.

On April 12th, Upper Deck plans to unveil “Evolution” that is suppose to change the hobby.  I’m not sure whats its about, but I bet it deals with on-card video too.  Perhaps it will involve some type of interactive card.  Lots of exciting stuff going on!

Avatar 3D Trading Cards & More

Last night I went to see the hugely popular movie Avatar 3D, and it was probably one of the best films I’ve ever seen.  I could watch that movie a thousand times and I’d still be learning new things.  The graphics were stunning and it had a terrific story behind it.  James Cameron has one heck of an imagination and I can’t wait to see what he has in store for its sequel.  Being a big fan of superhero movies and stuff like that, I usually know what I’m in for when I plan to go to a movie of that genre in a theater.  But Avatar 3D is in a world by itself.  Before this movie was released nobody had any past knowledge of these characters.  Its not like they’ve been in the comics for 40+ years.  Not only was it the characters first time on the big screen, but it was the first time the audience was introduced to them.  After seeing Avatar 3D, I get a sense of how people must have felt when they watched Star Wars for the first time back in 1977.

I know what everyone is thinking – “What the hell does this have to do with trading cards?”  In truth, it doesn’t have a lot to do with cards at all.  I thought with all the popularity this movie has received it might have its own card set, but I haven’t seen anything yet.  Doing a quick search on eBay you’ll find a bunch of collectors that have made their own cards, plus some other various promotional cards given away at certain theaters.  Some of these promos have been selling for as much as $50.00.  It wouldn’t surprise me if they release a trading card set in the future.  They could do a whole lot with refractors, holograms, and even lenticular technology to create a cool product.  You can also find various other autographed cards of stars from the movie in products like Donruss Americana, Celebrity Cuts, Upper Deck Spectrum, and some of the Razor Cut Signature brands.

I rarely talk about non-sports cards, but I thought I’d take a crack at it.  If your really into collecting non sports related cards, be sure to check out Trader Crack’s Card Blog.

These cards look like they’re signed by the actors, but its just a reprint.