''Mars Attacks'' is a
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...
-themed
trading card
A trading card (or collectible card) is a small card, usually made out of paperboard or thick paper, which usually contains an image of a certain person, place or thing (fictional or real) and a short description of the picture, along with other ...
series released in 1962 by
Topps
The Topps Company, Inc. is an American company that manufactures chewing gum, candy, and collectibles. Formerly based in New York City, Topps is best known as a leading producer of American Football Card, American football, Baseball card, baseb ...
. The cards feature artwork by science fiction artists
Wally Wood
Wallace Allan Wood (June 17, 1927 – November 2, 1981) was an American comic book writer, artist and independent publisher, widely known for his work on EC Comics's titles such as ''Weird Science (comic), Weird Science'', ''Weird Fantasy'', an ...
and
Norman Saunders
Norman Blaine Saunders (January 1, 1907 – March 7, 1989) was a prolific 20th-century American commercial artist. He is best known for paintings in pulp magazines, paperbacks, men's adventure magazines, comic books and trading cards. On occasio ...
. The cards form a story arc, which tells of the invasion of
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...
by cruel, hideous
Martian
Mars, the fourth planet from the Sun, has appeared as a setting in works of fiction since at least the mid-1600s. It became the most popular celestial object in fiction in the late 1800s as the Moon was evidently lifeless. At the time, the pred ...
s under the command of a corrupt Martian government who conceal the fact from the Martian populace that Mars is doomed to explode and, therefore, proposes colonization of Earth to turn it into their new homeworld. The cards depict futuristic battle scenes and bizarre methods of Martian attack, torture and slaughter of humans, as well as various Earth nations being attacked. The story concludes with an
expeditionary force of humans volunteering to embark on a counterattack on Mars, in which the Earth force attacks the Martians in their manner (bayoneting and bullets). This necessitates the Martians that are still on Mars to defend their homeworld. The Earth attack forces, after destroying the Martian cities and killing the Martians, depart just before Mars is destroyed in the predicted cataclysm, thus ensuring the peace and safety of Earth as the Martian race is seemingly doomed to extinction.
Scholar Nathan Brownstone noted that "The ''Mars Attacks'' cards achieved their popularity at the very time when the
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis (of 1962) ( es, Crisis de Octubre) in Cuba, the Caribbean Crisis () in Russia, or the Missile Scare, was a 35-day (16 October – 20 November 1962) confrontation between the United S ...
captured the headlines, the moment when
Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
came closest to become radioactively hot. That was when a brutal zero-sum game scenario - for Humanity to survive the Martians must die - established a solid niche in Americana popular culture".
The cards proved popular with children, but depictions of explicit gore and implied sexual content caused an outcry, leading the company to halt production. The cards have since become collectors' items, with certain cards commanding over $3,500 at auction.
In the 1980s, Topps began developing merchandise based on the ''Mars Attacks'' storyline, including mini-comic books and card reprints. An expanded set of 100 cards called ''Mars Attacks Archives'' was issued in 1994 by Topps and spawned a second round of merchandising. Director
Tim Burton
Timothy Walter Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an American filmmaker and animator. He is known for his gothic fantasy and horror films such as ''Beetlejuice'' (1988), ''Edward Scissorhands'' (1990), ''The Nightmare Before Christmas'' (1993), ...
released a feature film called ''
Mars Attacks!
''Mars Attacks!'' is a 1996 American science fiction comedy film directed by Tim Burton, who also co-produced it with Larry J. Franco. The screenplay by Jonathan Gems was based on the Topps trading card series of the same name. The film featu ...
'' in 1996 based on the series, spawning a third round of merchandising, including an
intercompany crossover
In comic books, an intercompany crossover (also called cross-company or company crossover) is a comic or series of comics in which characters, that at the time of publication are the property or licensed property of one publisher, meet character ...
with the
Image Universe
The Image Universe (IU) is a fictional universe in which some stories published by Image Comics take place. It was introduced in the early years of the publisher, shared by the various creators who formed the Image partnership. The independent, ...
, titled ''Mars Attacks Image'' and published by
Image Comics
Image Comics is an American comic book publisher and is the third largest comic book and graphic novel publisher in the industry in both unit and market share. It was founded in 1992 by several high-profile illustrators as a venue for creator-ow ...
. In 2012, Topps released a 50th anniversary expanded set of 75 cards called ''Mars Attacks Heritage'', leading to a fourth round of merchandising that continued into 2017 with the release of an official sequel series, ''Mars Attacks: The Revenge!''
Trading cards
The ''Mars Attacks'' trading card series was created by
Topps
The Topps Company, Inc. is an American company that manufactures chewing gum, candy, and collectibles. Formerly based in New York City, Topps is best known as a leading producer of American Football Card, American football, Baseball card, baseb ...
in 1962. Product developer
Len Brown
Leonard Charles Brown (born 1 October 1956)) is a former mayor of Auckland, New Zealand, and former head of the Auckland Council. He won the 2010 Auckland mayoral election on 9 October 2010 and was sworn in as Mayor of Auckland on 1 Novembe ...
, inspired by Wally Wood's cover for
EC Comics
Entertaining Comics, more commonly known as EC Comics, was an American publisher of comic books, which specialized in horror fiction, crime fiction, satire, military fiction, dark fantasy, and science fiction from the 1940s through the mid-195 ...
' ''
Weird Science'' #16,
[''Mars Attacks'' trading cards]
on the Toonopedia website pitched the idea to
Woody Gelman
Woodrow Gelman (1915 – February 9, 1978) was a publisher, cartoonist, novelist and an artist-writer for both animation and comic books. As the publisher of Nostalgia Press, he pioneered the reprinting of vintage comic strips in quality hardcove ...
. Gelman and Brown created the story — with Brown writing the copy — and created rough sketches. They enlisted Wood to flesh out the sketches and
Bob Powell
Bob Powell (né Stanley Robert Pawlowski; While gives Stanislav Pavlowsky, and gives Stanislav Pavlowsky, Bails and Ware note: "family name corrected by his son, Seth R. Powell July 2006." October 2, 1916 to finish them. Norman Saunders painted most of the 55-card set (Maurice Blumenfeld painted 10 - 20% of them, but Saunders provided the finishing touches to all of the images).
The cards, which sold for five cents per pack of five, were test marketed by Topps through the
dummy corporation
A dummy corporation, dummy company, or false company is an entity created to serve as a front or cover for one or more companies. It can have the appearance of being real (logo, website, and sometimes employing actual staff), but lacks the capacity ...
Bubbles, Inc. under the name ''Attack from Space''. Sales were sufficient to expand the marketing and the name was changed to ''Mars Attacks''. The cards sparked parental and community outrage over their graphic violence and implied sexuality. Topps responded initially by repainting 13 of the 55 cards to reduce the gore and sexuality. However, inquiries from a
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
district attorney
In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a l ...
caused Topps to halt production of the series altogether before the replacements could even be printed.
Adaptations and merchandising
In 1984, the first official item was released since the original set appeared: a direct copy of the original set of 55 cards, plus a 56th card that reprinted the wrapper graphics, was released by Renata Galasso Inc. through an agreement with Topps.
In 1994, Topps re-released the cards as the expanded ''Mars Attacks Archives'', with the original 55 cards and 45 "New Visions" cards. The new cards are further divided into a #0 card, three subsets ("The Unpublished 11" (with 11 cards)), "Mars Attacks: The Comics" (with 10 cards) and "Visions: New and Original" (a.k.a. "New Visions"; with 22 cards)) and one card called "Norm Saunders: A Self-Portrait". 21 artists collaborated on the new cards, including
Zina Saunders, the daughter of the original artist Norman Saunders.
Topps Comics
Topps Comics was a division of Topps, Topps Company, Inc. that published comic books from 1993 to 1998, beginning its existence during a short comics-industry boom that attracted many investors and new companies. It was based in New York City, at ...
, in conjunction with the trading cards, issued a five-issue comic book miniseries based on the original 55 cards written by
Keith Giffen
Keith Ian Giffen (born November 30, 1952) is an American comics artist and writer. He is known for his work for DC Comics on their ''Legion of Super-Heroes'' and ''Justice League'' titles as well as for being the co-creator of Lobo.
Biography
K ...
and drawn by
Charles Adlard
Charles Adlard is a British comic book artist known for his work on books such as '' The Walking Dead'' and '' Savage''.
Career
Adlard began his work in the UK on ''White Death'' with Robbie Morrison and '' 2000 AD'' series including ''Judge D ...
. Topps Comics continued the story in an ongoing series that lasted seven issues, a one-shot special and three more miniseries. ''
Wizard'' magazine and Topps Comics also published a #1/2 issue and an Ace Edition issue (#65).
[
In 1995, one year after the ''Archives'' series, Screamin' Productions and Topps released a tie-in set of eight ''Mars Attacks'' vinyl model kits with an accompanying series of eight new trading cards, each one inside one of the kits. Bonus items that could be acquired by sending in proof-of-purchase certificates from all eight of the kits were two new nearly identical bonus cards (one oversized card with the ''Mars Attacks'' logo on the top of it and one regular-sized card without it) and a limited edition ninth vinyl model kit.]
In 1996, Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
released Tim Burton's feature film adaptation ''Mars Attacks!
''Mars Attacks!'' is a 1996 American science fiction comedy film directed by Tim Burton, who also co-produced it with Larry J. Franco. The screenplay by Jonathan Gems was based on the Topps trading card series of the same name. The film featu ...
''. In conjunction, two hardcover novels were released: ''Mars Attacks: Martian Deathtrap'' by Nathan Archer
Lawrence Watt-Evans (born 1954) is one of the pseudonyms of American science fiction and fantasy author Lawrence Watt Evans (another pseudonym, used primarily for science fiction, is Nathan Archer).
Biography
Born in Arlington, Massachusetts, as ...
; and ''Mars Attacks: War Dogs of the Golden Horde'' by Ray W. Murrill. Each contained two new trading cards inside the middle of each book (the paperback editions, however, did not have the trading cards inside them). A paperback movie tie-in novelization by the film's screenwriter was also published, in addition to two comic book intercompany crossover
In comic books, an intercompany crossover (also called cross-company or company crossover) is a comic or series of comics in which characters, that at the time of publication are the property or licensed property of one publisher, meet character ...
s with Image Comics
Image Comics is an American comic book publisher and is the third largest comic book and graphic novel publisher in the industry in both unit and market share. It was founded in 1992 by several high-profile illustrators as a venue for creator-ow ...
continuing the Topps Comics run, titled ''Mars Attacks the Savage Dragon'' and ''Mars Attacks Image'' while respectively depicting the Martians battling the Image Comics
Image Comics is an American comic book publisher and is the third largest comic book and graphic novel publisher in the industry in both unit and market share. It was founded in 1992 by several high-profile illustrators as a venue for creator-ow ...
superhero the Savage Dragon
The Savage Dragon is a fictional superhero created by Erik Larsen, published by Image Comics and taking place in the Image Universe. The comic features the adventures of a superheroic police officer named the Dragon. The character first appeared ...
, and the Martians battling other characters from the wider Image Universe
The Image Universe (IU) is a fictional universe in which some stories published by Image Comics take place. It was introduced in the early years of the publisher, shared by the various creators who formed the Image partnership. The independent, ...
. Trendmasters
Trendmasters was an American toy company based out of St. Louis, Missouri and was most notable for its figures based on the ''Godzilla'' series, as well as the 1998 film of the same name. It closed its doors in 2002, and its IP assets were ac ...
also produced a series of toy figures based on the film.
In 2012, to commemorate the franchise's 50th anniversary, Topps partnered with a variety of companies on comic books (via IDW Publishing
IDW Publishing is an American publisher of comic books, graphic novels, art books, and comic strip collections. It was founded in 1999 as the publishing division of Idea and Design Works, LLC (IDW), itself formed in 1999, and is regularly recog ...
), bobbleheads and vinyl figures (Funko
Funko Inc. is an American company that manufactures licensed and limited pop culture collectibles, best known for its licensed vinyl figurines and bobbleheads. In addition, the company produces licensed plush, action figures, apparel, accessories ...
POP!), action figures and plush toys (Mezco Toyz
Mezco Toyz is an American company that makes action figures and other collectibles based on original and licensed properties. One of the popular products is the cult hit toy line Living Dead Dolls. The more popular line is its One:12 line. Other ...
), costumes (Incogneato), statues and busts (Quarantine Studio), electronics skins (Gelaskins) and a commemorative hardcover book and 2013 wall calendar, both with nearly identical sets of four new trading cards (the only difference being that the book's cards had white borders on the front of the cards and the calendar's cards had green borders) (Abrams Books
Abrams, formerly Harry N. Abrams, Inc. (HNA), is an American publisher of art and illustrated books, children's books, and stationery.
The enterprise is a subsidiary of the French publisher La Martinière Groupe. Run by President and CEO Michael ...
). Topps also re-released the original 55-card series again as the expanded ''Mars Attacks Heritage'', including two subsets ("Deleted Scenes" (with 10 cards) and "Guide to the New Universe" (with 15 cards)).
In 2013, Topps issued ''Mars Attacks: Invasion'', a reboot series of 95 trading cards featuring a new story (''Mars Attacks: Invasion'' (cards #1-58, plus a #0 promo card from the 2013 San Diego Comic-Con
San Diego Comic-Con International is a comic book convention and nonprofit multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California since 1970. The name, as given on its website, is Comic-Con International: San Diego; but it is co ...
)) with new artwork cards (divided into "Mars Invades IDW" (cards #59-77 and #91-92) and "Art of Mars Attacks" (cards #78-90 and #93-95)) and including four new subsets ("Mars Attacks: Early Missions" (with six cards), "Mars Attacks Masterpieces" (with five cards), "Join the Fight!" (with four cards) and "Anatomy of a Martian" (also with six cards)). This was the last ''Mars Attacks'' trading card series to be sold in retail stores as of this date; all other such series have been sold online ever since.
A second series of 81 trading cards, ''Mars Attacks: Occupation'', also featuring a second reboot series of 81 trading cards that picked up where ''Mars Attacks: Invasion'' left off (''Mars Attacks: Occupation'' (cards #1-45) with new artwork cards (divided into "Art of Mars Attacks" (cards #46-63), "Factions" (cards #64-72), "Occupation Profiles" (cards #73-78) and "The Kickstarter Video" (cards #79-81)) and including six new subsets ("Mars Attacks Superstars", Mars Attacks: Then and Now!", "Mars Attacks All-Star Art" and " Dinosaurs Attack! vs. Mars Attacks" (each with nine cards (the last one of which was also available as a foil card set)), "Attacky Packages" (a hybrid subset between ''Mars Attacks'' and ''Wacky Packages
''Wacky Packages'' are a series of humorous trading cards featuring parodies of consumer products. The cards were produced by Topps beginning in 1967, first in die-cut, then in peel-and-stick sticker format. There were 16 series produced betwe ...
'' with 13 cards; the last three cards were titled " Attacky Packages Old School" (like "Dinosaurs Attack! vs. Mars Attacks", this one, too, was also available as a foil card set)) and "Mars Attacks/Judge Dredd
Judge Joseph Dredd is a fictional character created by writer John Wagner and artist Carlos Ezquerra. He first appeared in the second issue of ''2000 AD (comics), 2000 AD'' (1977), which is a British weekly anthology Comic book, comic. He is the ...
" (with 18 cards)) was funded by Topps on Kickstarter
Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, ...
in 2015 and released in 2016.Mars Attacks – Topps Heads to Kickstarter for New Series
/ref>
In 2017, to commemorate the franchise's 55th anniversary, Topps released an official sequel series to the original 1962 55-card series called ''Mars Attacks: The Revenge!'', which takes place five years after the events in the original series and chronicles a second invasion of Earth by the surviving Martians that were off-world and on Earth during the destruction of Mars. It contained 110 cards - the story itself (cards #1-55) and rough pencil art for the story cards (cards #P-1-P-55). No subsets were made for this series. It was sold as a complete box set containing only the unwrapped 110 cards.
Bibliography
*Stewart, Bhob, Bill Pearson, Roger Hill, Greg Sadowski and Wallace Wood (2003). ''Against the Grain: MAD Artist Wallace Wood''. TwoMorrows Publishing.
See also
* Mars in fiction
Mars, the fourth planet from the Sun, has appeared as a Setting (narrative), setting in works of fiction since at least the mid-1600s. It became the most popular celestial object in fiction in the late 1800s as the Moon was evidently lifeless. ...
* '' Dinosaurs Attack!''
* ''The War of the Worlds
''The War of the Worlds'' is a science fiction novel by English author H. G. Wells, first serialised in 1897 by ''Pearson's Magazine'' in the UK and by ''Cosmopolitan (magazine), Cosmopolitan'' magazine in the US. The novel's first appear ...
''
References
10.
Mars Attacks Interview w/ Len Brown
(by Kurt Kuersteiner for ''The Wrapper'' magazine #146). Retrieved 1/22/2021.
External links
*''Mars Attacks'' (complete card set)
archive
– from trading-cards.org
{{Image Comics
Trading cards
Fiction set on Mars
Mass media franchises introduced in 1962
Topps Comics titles
Image Comics titles
IDW Publishing titles
Topps franchises
Military fiction