(FAUX) 'ALIEN Isolation' Bubblegum Cards.

[HuDaFuK]

http://i613.photobucket.com/albums/tt211/windebieste/ALIEN%20Isolation%20Bubblegum%20Cards/62_DeadlyDerelict.jpg

That one's beautiful. Probably my favourite so far.

http://i613.photobucket.com/albums/tt211/windebieste/ALIEN%20Isolation%20Bubblegum%20Cards/08_RendezvousWithTerror.jpg

Also I love the cheesy b-movieness of the tagline on this one

[windebieste]

Mission accomplished, I guess.  One of my goals with the captions was to pay overt homage to the 'cheesy b-movieness' of bubblegum cards from decades past; particularly Topps' original 'ALIEN' cards which laid the cheese on, pizza thick:

Let's get the next Draw happening...

Draw No.10

Numbers drawn: 70, 89, 35, 66, 74, 12.

Duplicate No.s(Frequency):  70(1), 89(1), 35(2), 66(1).

Corresponding Cards:

Notes for this Draw:

4 duplicate items.  Mind you, the 2 unique items are very cool. 

Bathed in gold light from KG348's Primary, Stompy stands against a windowed backdrop with one of the planet's many moons visible beyond.  KG348 is a typical Gas Giant and has multiple moons.  About 6 of them.  We round out the Draw with another external shot of the Torrens and Sevastopol. 

At Draw No. 10, 60 cards have been 'pulled from their packets' so it's no surprise that we are beginning to see the duplicates and unique items beginning to average  out so I'm not surprised to see the doubles hold the majority in this Draw.  It's to be expected.  From this point onwards, unique cards will be very welcome and we'll reach a point very soon when a unique item is a Joy!

-Windebieste.

[HuDaFuK]

Mission accomplished, I guess.  One of my goals with the captions was to pay overt homage to the 'cheesy b-movieness' of bubblegum cards from decades past; particularly Topps' original 'ALIEN' cards which laid the cheese on, pizza thick.

It's the exclamation mark that really makes it

[Corporal Hicks]

At Draw No. 10, 60 cards have been 'pulled from their packets' so it's no surprise that we are beginning to see the duplicates and unique items beginning to average  out so I'm not surprised to see the doubles hold the majority in this Draw.  It's to be expected.  From this point onwards, unique cards will be very welcome and we'll reach a point very soon when a unique item is a Joy!

We'll have to take to faux eBay soon enough to fill in those gaps.

[windebieste]

We can take it to Ebay right now, if you like; and you can buy the complete set off me.  lol. 

...but that won't be necessary.     On with the next Draw:


Draw No. 11

Numbers drawn: 61, 10, 51, 46, 40, 91.

Duplicate No.s(Frequency):  91(1)

Corresponding Cards:

Notes for this Draw:

We are now at  the 50% mark.  Surprisingly, only one duplicate in this Draw. 

I'm certain that 'HELD BY THE GRIP OF DEATH' is an image I downloaded from somewhere but can't recall.  Will credit the Author if known.

'THE LURKER IN THE DARK' is an HP Lovecraft reference.

We also have a couple shots of characters wearing compression suits.  Taylor is small in stature; but have you ever noticed how she gains a full foot in height when she dons her suit?  Nobody else does.  lol.

-Windebieste.

[HuDaFuK]

Taylor is small in stature; but have you ever noticed how she gains a full foot in height when she dons her suit?  Nobody else does.  lol.

Maybe she's standing on The Yellow Pages?

[Corporal Hicks]

Platform boots in the suit.

[HuDaFuK]

It would fit with the 70s feel...

[windebieste]

Yellow Pages...  Yes.  They would have those things aboard the Torrens.  *SOLVED!* 

On with the next Draw. 

Draw No. 12

Numbers drawn: 6, 53, 33, 95, 49, 37.

Duplicate No.s(Frequency):  53(1)

Corresponding Cards:

Notes for this Draw:

Only 1 duplicate in this Draw, surprisingly; and it's an Alien image.  Too Awesome!  Later, when I finished these cards, I thought 'THE BIG CHAP ATTACKS!' should have been titled 'STOMPY ATTACKS!'.  Well, maybe.  Maybe not.  We also get a pair of android shots, some more Nina Taylor (I always wondered why some card series over-represent certain characters and ignore others. Looks like I did exactly the same thing with this set.  Taylor has more than her fair share of cards.  lol.  This was inadvertent.)  ...and of course, the Sevastopol takes the deep plunge into KG348's upper atmosphere.  The proverbial 'One way elevator to Hell - going down!' reprisal at its most meaningful.

-Windebieste.

[Perfect-Organism]

Dang those cards look great Windebieste!  You captured the spirit of those early cards totally, and this feels like a movie.  It would actually be also cool to see these cards done with the Alien: Isolation standard graphic treatment, but then they would be taking themselves too seriously...

[HuDaFuK]

"Running causes accidents."

[windebieste]

@Perfect-Organism: Thank you.  Getting the cheesy/goofy ambiance right was important.  Makes 'em much more fun, too.  Then again, for some strange reason, Topps (like Kenner) decided their product based on an R-rated movie was appropriate for children.  I really wanted to capture that sense of weird marketing decision making.

On with the next Draw...

Draw No. 13

Numbers drawn: 17, 93, 4, 46, 61, 95.

Duplicate No.s(Frequency): 17(1), 93(1), 4(1), 46(1), 61(1), 95(1).

Corresponding Cards:

Notes for this Draw:

Gah!  A pack full of duplicate items.  Just like in the real world, these virtual cards are subject to the same rules of chance.  Only, back in the day, way back in the late 1960's and 1970's  I would have friends I could swap some of these with. 

Oh well, we'll get there.  It's not like I'm wasting all of my pocket money I've earned from mowing lawns and washing the dishes on weird bubblegum cards my folks don't understand.  (Mind you, these days I get paid a lot less for doing those same tasks - and my folks still don't understand.  lol.)

-Windebieste.

[Perfect-Organism]

The other strange thing about the Alien cards from 79 was that their overall look had nothing to do with the look of Alien.  It is just because it was 79 I would guess.  That's why you have the red and yellow frames.  Nowadays, Fox would have a style guide prepared that dictates exactly how to frame the cards to match their marketing objectives.

[Deadmeat]

these look amazing and fun and nostalgic

how about adding a little grain + level adjustment to the alien: isolation cards to make them seem a little more faded out/blurry? would definitely give them a cheesy 80's trading card feel but these still look superb either way

[windebieste]

@Perfect-Organism:
The red and yellow frames are kind of anomalous to the tone of the movie, that's for sure.  I did shamelessly emulate the frame's basic design and copy it.  The use blue and red (and yellow) coloration on the cards was also a deliberate selection.  Companies like Super7 and Gentle Giant have recently released retro themed 'ALIEN' merchandise and their their selection is based on Kenner's original 1979 line up of toys.  I decided the retro ambiance would be a great colour scheme to adopt.  Also, 'ALIEN: Isolation's design was very heavily retro influenced, so it seams a natural fit. 

The 2014 Gentle Giant replica tribute figure.  The color selections on display here were a big influence on what I chose for the cards. Also note: the 'FINAL PRODUCT MAY VARY' line is very true.  Little Jimmy as seen on the lower right on the box was removed from the final release item.  Sooo disappointed they removed Little Jimmy like that!

As for the font on the Topps cards, it's just unsightly.  I did a few brief experiments with 1970's computer and cheque book fonts but they just looked Godawful 'orrendous.  So, I decided to settle on a font that was much more in keeping with the tone of the film's title.    I could have chosen Futura or Helvitica Black as both of these are very close to the original title; but I'm happy with having settled on using Ariel Black.

@Deadmeat:

I would have loved to have made such adjustments and it did occur to me to add creases, stains and other wear marks to the cards to artificially age them.  The problem is, I was already spending enough time on the cards.  About half of Easter was spent assembling this set.  ...much longer if I didn't already have a massive collection of screen shots to choose from.  There's 100 cards; so I'd probably have to spend at least another full day implementing these features.  Plus, I have a ton of other Projects all happening at once.  So I kept the basic cards clean as if they were released this year and let such niceties slide.

Now, let's see what's in this packet...

Draw No. 14

Numbers drawn: 74, 51, 61, 84, 62, 46.

Duplicate No.s(Frequency): 7(1), 51(1), 61(1), 62(1), 46(2).

Corresponding Cards:

Notes for this Draw:

All duplicates except for No.84, 'RICARDO HAS A BAD DAY'.  I always liked Ricardo.  He was such a likeable, well-meaning and conscientious individual.  Too bad he was on the wrong space station at the wrong time. 

-Windebieste.