Second Look: 1995 Fleer Metal Batman Forever
In 1995, there was a laundry list of good movies coming to the big screen. There were big hits such as 12 Monkeys, Dead Man Walking, Se7en, Braveheart, Apollo 13 among many others.
Despite all of those big-name films, there was really only one movie that, as a 12-year-old, I was waiting to see: Batman Forever.
Batman Forever was the third installment in the initial Batman movie series. The movie starred Val Kilmer as Batman, after Michael Keaton decided not to return as the caped crusader after starring in the first two films. The movie also had a strong supporting cast which featured the likes of Tommy Lee Jones, Jim Carrey, Nicole Kidman and Chris O’Donnell.
I really enjoyed the first two films and couldn’t wait for this one. However, after the long wait for it to be released on VHS – my parents didn’t have extra money to go to the movies – it was a big letdown. It was like getting that big box at Christmas time only to discover there were socks and underwear inside and not the complete set of Mighty Morphin Power Ranger flip heads you had hoped for. Thanks a lot Santa.
The only thing I enjoyed about the film was the acting of Jones and Carrey as Two-Face and The Riddler, respectfully. They nailed their roles, but the rest just seemed corny to me. It wasn’t the same tone as had been set in the first two films.
Despite my feelings and mixed feelings by other fans, the film did great in the box office, becoming the sixth-highest highest grossing film of 1995. That’s crazy to think about and one can only imagine it did so well because of the cast’s star power.
All I know is watching it once was enough for me. And even though it was bad, I still wanted to collect the cards from the movie. I guess it’s no different than being a sports fan of a bad team and still wanting their cards.
Batman Forever had multiple trading card sets produced for the film to choose from, but only one stood out above the others to me since it took a different approach. I think when it comes to this film’s card line, this one tends to get overlooked. Which is why I am giving it a Second Look.
1995 Fleer Batman Forever Metal didn’t use images from the film on its cards and instead used a flashier approach with shiny artwork based on the characters from the film. The card backs provided the information on the scene pictured.
Overall, 100 cards comprise the base set. There were also Silver Flasher parallels for all 100-cards to go along with three insert sets. There was Gold Flashers that fell 1:3 packs, Movie Previews that fell 1:6 packs and the toughest of the group were the 1:18 Holograms.
I still have a way to go to finish my own base set, but I will get there someday and then hopefully can chase down the insert and parallel sets.
There was plenty of variety and fun packed into the product and unlike the movie, the Metal movie cards did not disappoint. If you’re as big of Batman fan as I am, you may want to give them a Second Look as well.
