Marvel Universe Cards

Marvel Universe Cards were collectible trading cards based on the characters and events of the Marvel Universe.

The first series was published by Impel in 1990. The cards featured categories such as Super Heroes, Super Villains, Rookies, Famous Battles and Team Pictures. Two years later, Impel negotiated with DC Comics to publish DC Cosmic Cards.

Series I - 1990

On the front of each card in the 1990 series, a character or event was featured. The back of the card displayed a short biography and statistics such as Real Name, Battles Fought, First Appearance, etc. The series included 162 normal cards, and five limited edition hologram cards inserted randomly throughout the packs.

This series offered several things that future series would not include. Such features were the 12 "Spider-Man Presents:" cards. In these cards, Spider-Man would conduct a humorous interview with other characters in the Marvel Universe, such as Doctor Doom, Doctor Octopus, the Hulk, Silver Surfer, Thor, the Punisher, Magneto, Captain America, Dr. Strange, Iron Man, Wolverine and, of course, himself. This is also the only series that offered nicknames, win/loss records, and a trading card of Stan Lee.

Other categories in the series included Super Heroes, Super Villains, Rookies, Famous Battle, Most Valuable Comics and Team Pictures. In Series I, unique to the following series, characters could have multiple cards in the same category. For example, Spider-Man has three cards under the Super Hero...
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