ATTENTION: The views and opinions expressed in this post are soley those of Soremel. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of the collective force of this forum. Soremel is old and cranky, therefore, his opinions should be totally ignored... or better yet, viewed as the delusional insights of a straightjacket clad madman... don't make eye contact... just slowly walk away... I was hoping that this set would have put more emphasis on the original 16 series, or a nod to at least ONE title from each of the series.
Over the last few series, there seems to have been more of an emphasis on producing as many parallels, chase cards, limited variations, etc. than there was in art direction. While there are a number of well done pieces in this set, the number of poorly executed pieces is alarming. Years ago, I recall Fleer's "Crazy Labels" sets being dubbed the "red-headed step-children" of parody cards. Today, many of the titles from the Crazy Labels sets are superior to some of the recent Wacky Packages offerings. It appears that a "quantity over quality" mentality has stricken this brand.
When I saw the sneek peaks of David's Old School contributions to the Anniversary set, I considered only purchasing those cards as they seemed to hold true to the Wacky legacy. I was extremely disappointed to see that the end product had reduced the traditional black borders to anemic single stroke lines. Same thing goes with the lack of formed die-cutting (kiss-cutting) of the stickers. Topps totally abandoned two of the characteristics that helped make the brand what it is. Leaving these two features out of a 50th anniversary set is shameful. It's even more ludicrous when one considers the Topps vs. Top Shelf Enterprises lawsuit where a bone of contention was the use of "the black borders" on the "Silly Supermarket" sets.
I will not be collecting any part of this set. Being a completist, the amount of "extras" needed to put a whole master set together goes way beyond my budget. If the set had more quality and adherence to the true core of the Wacky Packages brand, I would have considered going all out, but I'm investing my time and funds in upgrading and completing my 1967-1977 collection.
I think a FAR better 50th Anniversary tribute would have been to continue the Chrome set and release the 4th thru 16th series. Heck, maybe even release the 3rd Abrams book... A little closure is good.
Just my two cents (mic drop)