1988 Topps Dinosaurs Attack!

I remember running across a poll on another blog to the sum of "Are you a sports fan first and then a card collector?", or "Card collector first who just happens to be a sports fan" ...or something like that.  I answered that I was a card collector first.  Yes, I like sports cards...hence the baseball theme of this blog.  I also like various non-sports card sets too.  I have lots of Marvel Comics sets from the 90's and 2000's plus some of the current stuff.  Topps seemed to be king of the non-sports scene in the 80's and while I may have bought several packs of Garbage Pail Kids and other things back in the day I haven't paid them a whole lot of attention since I got back into cards.

While browsing the selection of cards for this month's group break I ran across a box of 1988 Topps Dinosaurs Attack!.  I knew nothing of the set, but I took a chance since the box was uber cheap and I'm glad that I did.

I tried to share a few packs of this comical bloody set of cards via video, but the audio gave out early on the video.  In that video I mentioned how there was a story that unfolded card by card giving a reason if you will behind the card set's subject.  Now that all of the packs have been opened and sorted I wanted to share off the complete 55 card set (and all 12 stickers!).

Pulled directly from card #55 (synopsis) in the set:

Orbiting our world is the space laboratory Prometheus, where Dr. Elias Thorne is about to demonstrate his newest and most revolutionary invention:  the Time Scanner.  By projecting a modified particle beam to Earth, Thorne hopes to view - through an enormous wall of shimmering light - any area of Earth's past he chooses.  First on the agenda:  investigating the prehistoric era and learning why the great dinosaurs became extinct 65 million years ago.  When this experiment goes awry, the Time Scanner becomes a "time tilter".  All living creatures from the Devonian Period to the Late Cretaceous are suddenly, savagely swept through time into the 20th Century.  The world trembles as dinosaurs and other prehistoric monsters invade familiar surroundings, setting cities ablaze and devouring millions of hysterical human beings.  Meanwhile, Thorne and his associates on Prometheus work feverishly to correct their cataclysmic mistake.  They finally succeed...and the sudden "yank" of this time reversal literally shreds the reptilian invaders into bloodied pulp and bone.  Despite unprecedented losses and mass destruction, our civilization recovers.

Ok, you still with me?  Ready to see the story in card form?  Yeah?  Me too!

I miss non-sports sets like this.  Having a good look at a lot of these cards it's easy to say something like this could never be sold these days.  We're too "PC" today for something like this.  Perhaps this is a reason I enjoy this set so much.  Yes it's goofy, but it appeals to the sci-fi / horror movie fan inside me.

For anyone interested I do have one full master set available for trade or sale.  I also have an extra set of just the stickers.  I'm only one card (#55) from having a full 3rd set.