Dynamite’s ‘Transformers’ 40th Anniversary Trading Cards Sell Out; Restock Pending
by Erik Amaya
Sometimes, a trading card set is more than meets the eye.
Dynamite announced Tuesday that its stock of The Transformers 40th Anniversary Trading Card set has sold out. Initially announced in May of last year, the set celebrates the original animated series, comic book, and action figure line from 1984. That initial wave, now dubbed “Generation 1” was commemorated via 110 base cards, 55 rainbow holofoil cards, 10 animation art cel cards, and 5 ultra-rare enhanced cards available in individual foil packs (10 cards in each) or as a box set with 24 packs included. Some of the cards also honored the contributions of Transformers comic book writers Bob Budiansky and Simon Furman.
Initially made available via a successful Kickstarter campaign, the cards eventually made their way to retail, ensuring fans of Generation 1 could seek out the packs and collect the series. But now, all variations of the initial set have completely sold out with no remaining stock from the original production run available. Although, the company noted, fulfillment of Kickstarter orders continues and is expected to conclude by the end of the month.
The relaible interest in The Transformers is one of the most compelling and surprising consumer products stories of the last 40+ years. Initially designed to make use of transforming robot toys from Japanese manufactures like Takara, The Transformers built a mythology in comics and on television that thrills its original fans even today. And though Generation 1 wound down in the late ’80s, reinvention of the concept via things like Generation 2, Beast Wars, and the live action feature film series has kept it alive almost without interruption these past 40 years with the original fans sharing the toys, characters, and ideas with their children. It is a truly remarkable phenomenon when you consider other ’80s toy lines like M.A.S.K. or Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future remain alive only in the memories of those who were there to experience the initial burst of popularity so long ago.
Since the anniversary card set was so successful, expect an update on a another production run or even a second wave in the months ahead. We, of course, will continue to follow the story.
