Tavern Blog

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March 28, 2021

Quick web site note. I had to remove the Hercules image on the main page. I replaced it with the logo. I also added a Xena logo, and a Young Hercules as well. I'm not going to let a specific actor spoil something so amazing. But just to cut down how many times I need to see his face.

Last week, I picked up the last Xena card box I needed. It's for Dangerous Liaisons. I posted a few photos so you can see how lovely it is. I won't be opening it. There's no need I have a master. The first thing I noticed was that the round silver sticker with the box number and quantity produced was not there. The Rittenhouse logo shrink wrap is there. I reached out to the seller and he confirmed the box did come directly from Rittenhouse, and that he has seen the stickers missing on other Rittenhouse boxes.

I decided to keep it. This is a tough box right now. And with all of the stim money flooding into collectables, the price is bound to get higher, at least in the short term. In fact I looked everywhere and I could not find another one for sale. I'm sure there's loads around though. There were 3000 boxes plus archives. And though loads have been opened, I'm sure there's hundreds still sealed.

I have mentioned this is the only Xena product from Rittenhouse I did not bust a case. I didn't even open a box of this. This has been on my list for a long time now.. So I'm happy I got one @ 80$, before they dry up for a little while.

Just some numbers on this set: The quad costume card that was the 2 case incentive. There's roughly 125 of these cards.. and there's a costume variation. And for the Dual Autograph card there's roughly 85 of these cards.

I added a few books to the library page. Every book there has been so helpful. The one that I am posting here, I'm quite sentimental about. I remember picking this up at the book store in the mall. This book I absorbed it cover to cover, and was dreaming about so many card sets I wanted to collect. It was also cool to see the all the Topps Star Wars cards in there and I was so proud I built complete. And I still have all of my Topps SW, ESB and ROJ cards, stickers and wrappers. I also enjoyed learning about tobacco cards. When I moved to Los Angeles in 86 I only brought my text books. All of my books were separate from my cards in my room where I grew up. After college, when I went home to get all of my stuff, my family had moved several times. I have no clue what happened to any of my books. In fact my clothes and other things weren't there. It's all good, because I was happy they kept my cards and other things that were all in a footlocker. Only the footlocker made it. My family knew that my cards were the most important, so I'm super grateful.

Since then, I had not chased down the first edition of this book. Now I have it.. and it takes me back. So glad to this this little part back.

March 21, 2021

I just received in the mail a really cool Non-Sports book on vintage wax wrappers. I read on line that this book was originally 100$, and limited to 100 copies. It was published in 2005, by a relatively new collector at the time. Wax wrappers are so beautiful, because they are mostly artwork, and they are colorful in way, that they just pop. They are a sign of the times in which they were used. Regular paper could not be used, because gum was included, and it had to be kept fresh and not leak though the paper. So wax was the way to go. Candy and gum still are packaged in wax sometimes, especially in other countries.

I was fascinated to see the book. I had the Sport Americana (Non-Sport) Guides as a child.. and I was obsessed reading about every single set. And even though I had seen many vintage wrappers in color on ebay and on line, I had not seen them in a concentrated place.. and all in color.

I do have a sizable wax wrapper collection from the 70's and 80's. Nothing prior, because those wrappers are very expensive and I have no nostalgia, since I was a child of the 70's. The only foil wrappers I have, are Xena and Hercules. The foil wrappers are good, because they are not transparent and better for long term storage. Although certain coatings on cards from the 90's, will stick together, and ruin the cards.

I also want to mention that the transition from wax to foil was not direct. The were also clear plastic wrappers. Personally I thought they were terrible. Very difficult to flatten out without ripping. I do have quite a few of these.

What's cool is I have a few wax wrappers of Xena that came from the Russian region. They had stickers and gum inside, so wax was needed. And they are the coolest.. You can see scans of all of the ones I have on this site. And there's one posted to this blog entry. I love that there exists wax wrappers for Xena, because it's so old school.

Back to the book... There is also in the book a checklist, and other lists in a spread sheet format for the contents of the book. It's a nice addition. However, I found it difficult to work back with the images. There's no header on each page, so the nomenclature created for the book is difficult to pick up on the first read. There was also a printing error, where a page in the checklist was printed twice, so a photocopy of the intended page was included. Also included is a outline for the book. This was super interesting to read. These quibbles are minor, since the show piece of the book are the images. The author points this out as well. I am so happy to have this book. I recommend it. And it caused me to dig out my wrapper collection, and enjoy it. (70's & 80's time machine)

I have added a image of this book to the library page. And I added a purchase link to the links page.

A small sample from my wax wrapper collection

Don't miss picking this book up

Sample Page

Xena/Hercules Wax Wrapper/Russian Region

March 15, 2021

Want to share about this awesome card bin that has been released by BCW. I was waiting for reviews and they are all good. This bin is so versatile. It will not replace the two premium card cases that I have. But this bin is a great catch all for the rest. I wish they had it in black. They are on back order now till May. But I'm defiantly going to pick up one. I will post photos and comments on it when I do.

Right after I posted the Blog Post below.. I noticed that font colors have been added for Google sites..

So Happy!

That and with all of the font choices and sizes, and generally formatting, this is wonderful. I have already added font colors to the checklists on the site. Of course I'm not going to over do it.. but it really is so helpful.

BCW 3200 Collectable Card Bin

March 14, 2021

I can't believe it.. This Tuesday March 16, 2021, will be the 5 year anniversary, that I launched this site.

When I first created the site.. It was on the "old google sites" platform. Oh, and the drama of learning a new google site platform was coming. Google said you would be able to export everything to the new sites platform. But based on my experience with that type of thing at work.. I know it does not work the way you want.. and this tool was a couple of years away. So as soon as the new sites launched.. I started over rebuilding this site and a music site I have. My biggest issues at the start were.. no wrapper function and no deep nesting of pages and no HTML. I had to do a new layout and structure for the site. Now there's deep nesting of pages. I have mostly kept things as they are now. Still no wrapper.. That is a site wide background. What I do now is load in every background one by one. But you can copy so that makes it fast. Other than a wrapper image. There are still no font colors. I will use this extensively once it becomes available.

Overall though I'm super pleased with the new sites, and in so many ways it's faster and easier and looks better too. And the best thing about it, is it's 100% free. You just need a free google email account and you can make your one websites very easily. I have recently upgrade my google drive, since I have found google drive a better value than other cloud storage , and it works with all of my websites. I still have my pro Flickr acct, I have over 25,000 images there.

I was so happy and proud to share this site to other fans and card collectors. Both to share my collection and for it to be a database reference for everyone. And even if you never collect the cards.. you can use this site just to look at them, which is what is so great about the internet. Sharing. And after fulling searching the net, I'm proud to say this this site is the most comprehensive archive of Xena and Hercules cards.

The 25th Anniversary Xena convention has been rescheduled again for December 3-5, 2021 at the same location. I'm not confident this date will be workable given the covid situation.. But we are all going day by day. I think by June or July we will have a better understanding if this event will take place on this date. It's difficult to have excitement for it. If it had be rescheduled for sometime is 2022, I would personally feel better.

I added a couple of e-books about collecting to the library section and more books in this area are on the way.

Also I have a few new art cards and bits on the way to upload. I have been looking at ebay completed auctions and collectables of all kinds are up in sales and pricing. First I think stimulus money is going into the market, as a well as inflationary forces from all of the money printing the Fed has been doing, It all contributes in my opinion. I do believe that when movies and concerts and dining out resumes full force these markets will correct somewhat. I feel thankful I'm not buying into the market at this time when people are comfort buying.

What it means for Xena cards, is that this show continues to be impactful to a audience and culture, in addition to nostalgia. The blessing is compared to other markets Xena cards are affordable. It's a wonderful way to add a souvenir from the show. Some autos and costume cards from your favs as well as gorgeous printing technologies are great to have. And Xena cards dodged the whole parallel set after parallel set, changing the goal of set collecting to rainbow collecting. That said.. if a new Xena set was released rainbow style.. I would defiantly go full force and have fun collecting, Ha!

December 28, 2020

I love collecting. It allows me to delve deep into things I'm passionate about, as well as learn about them. And though it's been a several months since I updated this site. Everything is right where I left it. Covid brought us all so much emotions, sadness, isolation and for so many.. effected the lives and health of so many globally. I feel grateful to circle back here. Since March I have collected a few Xena cards and items. I am updating the site with them today. Also I have created a brand new collection and website.. it's for DVD's and Blu-rays for the actress Adèle Haenel, who stars in Portrait Of a Lady On Fire. A film that has had a tremendous impact on me. Like XWP, this impact is life long. So now I have four web sites. Both of my music websites need a lot of love. Also, I'm making another new website for Céline Sciamma. So on ward I go. I always have my eye out for Xena goodies. Also as everyone knows the Xena Con was postponed until 2021. However, I think we are all aware, there is no way it's going to happen. 2021 is in the can, for concerts, festivals, large gatherings, theaters, at least as far as Los Angeles is concerned. This is for the best of course.

So as I sit here in LA, on the first dark, rainy day of winter, (thunder and lightning too) I am grateful.

March 1, 2020

After a vicious battle with myself. And thinking that if I bought anything plastic it would ultimately be in a land fill, I broke down and picked up the Xena pop. The one good thing is there is only one of them. With lots of pops the are multiple kinds as well as multiple variations. It is an odd object. But it's a lot smaller than I thought.(This is a good thing) And I am super happy to have her on my card shelf. She's about 1/4" taller than a card. So many little details that are cool! So yeah I held off getting it. But I do recommend picking it up... It's a fun item.

What was also nice.. was I just tore open the box.. There was no hesitation. No thinking maybe I should get two, and keep one NRFB. That's always been a struggle with me when it comes to anything collectible. I'm proud of myself.

Feb 23, 2020

I wanted to bring up how important top loaders are for card collecting. It's such a standard item now. But there was a time that there were no top loaders, penny sleeves and team bags. And further back there were no nine pocket pages. A lot has been said about the nine pocket page. But I think another turning point for collectors was the advent of the top loader. I resisted them quite a bit. I preferred to use nine pockets for everything, and look at cards using a binder. But as I collected and purchased cards in the 90's they would come with a top loader. I found myself keeping the cards in the top loader for a while. I liked holding them in my hands and flipping them over to the back to read them, like I did when I was a kid. But there was this other part of me that liked keep all the cards with the sets.

Then I got into costume cards. And due to the different thickness, they would not fit into the pages. The ones that would made the page bulky and put too much pressure on the other cards. I did not want to keep the thin costume cards with the sets, and thick one separately. This messed with my OCD, way too much.

After a while I decided to put, all of my autograph cards, costume cards, any thick card or special cards into top loaders with penny sleeves. I loved it. Now all of these cards were uniform, they formed their own large set together. And I could handle them. I could lay them out, I could sort them very easily. This made a real impact in my collecting. Some cards were officially released in top loaders, now I could keep them all together.

I later decided that the clear acrylic boxes I was using to hold the top loaders, was not enough. And I purchased a card case for them. This was all the more better. I could also keep sealed packs and other items in the case. I have two cases now.

Top loaders are also great because they are very thin and light. And for thick cards, not much thicker than the card itself. And that brings me to the newer single card holder and that's the magnetic one touch. I have a few of my cards in them. Due to their size they fit perfectly in my card cases. As great as they are I still find myself preferring top loaders. The one touches are thicker and heavier, which of course protects the card better. But I hate fingerprints and scratches, so I have them in a team bag . I have a card that was released and sealed in a one touch.

If I were to switch out all my cards, it would add pounds of weight to my collection. The top loaders for me are easier to handle. So yeah the top loader deserves to celebrated along with the nine pocket as having a profound impact on the hobby.

Feb 16, 2020

I was checking out the size of the site, and I counted up there are 565 pages. I thought there would be about 200 or so.

I think most people when they think about Xena and Hercules in regard to trading cards and related items, would think there are a few sets, but.. there really are a lot. I hope when other collectors visit this site they discover so many sets, stickers and various item that are new to them.

There is a really interesting book written about card collecting. It's called Mint Condition. I picked it up as an ebook. It gives a great historical view on card collecting and all of the related drama. Lots of personal story's and accounts. It's a must read.

Mint Condition on Amazon

Feb 8, 2020

I'm slowly starting to come around about picking up the Xena pop. However, I did pick up a costume card variation for Amarice, from the Beauty & Brawn set (C12) I love it. Link in the updates.

I added a countdown timer for the Xena con.. only 201 days now! It's at the top of the home page. The excitement is building.

Pictured is a photo of my Lucy Lawless mini figure from The Simpsons. They came in blind bags. It's a little bit tough to get.

I have some fun Xena stickers on the way.. Can't wait to get them and share.

Feb 2, 2020

I found on you tube, a nice video from someone who got some free Xena cards.

It was fun and interesting to watch.

Jan. 26, 2020

Here are the instagram photos of the Xena pop, that look so cool!

User: @my_free_pop

Instagram: @my_free_pop

Jan. 25, 2020

Now that I have been all settled in my new home for many months, I have been struck again how important space is for collecting. And how it can impact what you collect and how much. Today I was organizing some things including clothing.. getting a goodwill donation bag together. Also moving things to make them even more accessible. I can't even image if I were to still have all of my old collections of various things and all the space it used. I think my brain would melt.

I have seen so many collections videos, room tours etc.. of all sorts of collectibles. And so many are incredible and beautifully done. There are also many that are very crammed in and cluttered. And much of the collection is not on display. Been there with the stashed away stuff. And you literally forget things you have. I have given this so much thought over the years. And I personally feel if you care about the items and have a passion enjoying them... You need to see them. And spend time, looking over, and maintaining it. And check for display or storage issues. And you just can't do that with a massive collection that is mostly in storage or put away. I've also been there with the "I'll get to it one day"... Then years go by. That also brings on the mental clutter. I'm glad I found a way past that.

I saw on instagram, some really cool photos of the Xena Funko pop. That pop is really cool. I still have not picked it up.

If you have not had a chance to listen to Xena Warrior Podcast, I strongly suggest you do. They have gone though all of the seasons now. They are funny, witty and have a lot of insightful perceptive on all things Xena. They also love Buffy(But I won't comment on that lol) I embedded the latest podcast on the side.

Also , if you have not picked up the Xena: Warrior Princess - 20th Anniversary Anthology CD set. There are less than 75 left on the labels website.

Jan. 19, 2020

Happy New Year! And happy new decade.

After a very long wait, google finally updated the image centering issue, that effected the mobile laylout. So I was able to clean up the home page the way I want. I also cleaned up the side bar.

After the new year was rung in, I realized the Xena convention is really not that far off now, just a few more months. I can't wait to take in all of the energy, and just relax and have a good time. It will be a mini vacation, that is the best stay-cation you can have.

I have been able to collect a few things that I have added to the site today.

May 27, 2019

I didn't expect to be away so long. The first thing that was going on is I moved. And that is so all consuming. Then my car started breaking down a few times. So I decided to get a new car. Then my 19 year old cat got sick with a kidney infection. Luckily she's OK. She was stressed from the move. The I got sick.. and all of this happen in about a month. So by the time I was getting caught back up on everything, it was a couple of months till I could work on this site. All is good now.

I was able to add a few cards I picked up before the move. And add photos of these awesome uncut sheets for Wizard Of The Coast Xena CCG . These sheets are beautiful. I'm happy I have two different ones.

WOTC uncut sheets

The next thing that I did, was I picked up a 64gb SD card. I did this because I have been keeping my files for this site on an old lap top. I got really behind backing everything up. So now I can easily keep two copy's of all files, and re-organize them on the SD card.

Mar 2, 2019

I made the decision to definitely go the Xena Con next year, and I picked up a gold seat! I didn't realize how much fun and exciting it would be to get it. I was pretty convinced I just didn't have the interest to spend and go to another Xena con... but here I am with a gold seat and I also picked up all of the autograph tickets too. It's really a far way off, so I'm trying not to think about it too much. lol The biggest thing I have to decide is drive or Uber?

I have blogged about the awesome QC1 quad costume card before when I first got it. This card was a multi case incentive, so it's one of the more expensive cards. But what I found about it, while looking at ebay listings is that this card was made with two versions. There is the variant with Gabrielle's green top, and one with her brown skirt. I't's not hard to guess that the green one is more rare... since the top is smaller. However this particular card uses left over material from other cards. So I don't know which version is more rare. I was able to get the brown skirt variant. Have a look at both of them, they look amazing!

QC1 quad card, with Gabrielle Variant Brown Skirt

QC1 Costume Cards

Feb 18, 2019

I accomplished another goal. I finished typing out all of the detail checklists for all the Topps and Rittenhouse sets. I also went back and adjusted the layout on some pages. I think there is a more uniform look over the entire site. I know I keep saying I'm done adjusting, but there weren't any pages I felt I needed to go back to and adjust.

One of the reasons why it took so long to finish the checklists is that I struggled a little deciding how the checklists would be. I wanted a universal format for everything. And I just kept moving details around. I finally just kinda gave up and just let each set be on it's own for structure. And that wound up working best.

I can't even imagine putting a card site together for one of the larger franchises. But it would be a fun challenge.

One of the things that pulls away my free time, is working on my two other web-sites for my music collection. It's kinda like two worlds. Plus I had to rebuild one of them, when Google switched to their new web site format.

I just purchased some more custom art postcards and stickers from Red Bubble. Can't wait to get these and share.

I'm still on the fence about picking up the Xena/Herc pops. I do consider both action figure and pops to be sculpture, and an art form. hmmm

I want to share a few links to websites I found from social media, of Xena Fan's collections. They are not focused on Xena cards, but they all have massive collections and lots of rare items. It's fun to look their pages, it's really cool.

https://www.xenawarriorprincessau.com/

http://xenacollection.blogspot.com/

http://xenastuff.blogspot.com/

http://xenaproptreasures.blogspot.com/

I am adding links to all of these sites to the link pages.

Rose McIver

Also, a while back I picked up Rose McIver's auto card. This is her very 1st official autograph card. She had been on my wish list of signers from Rittenhouse for years. And she's been having a great career, as well. So happy to have this. I love "Little Problems" And Rose McIver was great in the episode.

Battle On!

Feb. 16, 2019

I was just realizing it's been three years since I made this web-site. It was incredibly fun and I learned a lot. The great challenge is that right after I finished it and I was happy with it, I had to rebuild it completely on a new web platform. But it was fun. I got to have the fun of making the site twice. As I was working though a second time, there were so many refinements I made along the way, that I may not have otherwise.

Getting into 2019, I have also realized I'm at war with myself. I'm in such a calm peace over my collecting. Yet I feel the pull to pick up other collectibles of Xena and other things. These are daily thoughts. And the latest one is the Xena and Herc pop that will be coming out later this year.

Yes, we need more new Xena and Herc collectibles. Yes, younger pop collectors will be exposed to two great characters, that they may check out and join the fandom. Yes, pops are a culture craze that may or may not last another five years.

One thing I have observed, it that most action figure collectors do not touch pops. And if they do they only have a couple to a few if that many. I watch and follow on you tube dozens of figure collectors and reviewers and that's just how it is. Especially the older figure collectors. They like me have been here many times before. And a craze is a craze. The only question is: not "Do I want it?", or "Do I need it?", It's "Do I like this?"

And I have noticed that many pop collectors focus on vinyl figures, and the wide variety of licensed pops. And they just don't collect action figures 3.75", 5" or 7" , or hot toys etc.

It would be easy to say the figure collectors are being snobby about pops. But pops really are just a completely different vibe. They can not really be played with or posed like a figure.

That said I don't collect figures or pops. But I would certainly buy either for fun.

Pops kinda remind me of hello kitty. I grew up with hello kitty in the late 70's as a child. And HK is a great character and very sweet and cute. Pops, like HK have no mouth, and large eyes and a large head.

If there was just going to be the Xena pop, I would probably wind up getting it. But I know there will be special rare painted exclusive ones. More than one Xena style, plus all the other characters. There may finally be a plastic Joxer.

The temptation is pretty strong to pre-order. If the pre-order sells out, and people have to drop $$ to get one on the secondary market, I may be kicking myself. But it's all just FOMO.

I just have to accept that pops aren't my thing. What would be really cool that I would like is a pops mini figure. Those are rad, and if a Xena one was made I would get it.

I have the Neca/mini figure from the Simpson's 25" anniversary of Lucy Lawless. It's so cool, it's about 2" tall. I like miniature things. It's great for space too.

I'm just going to wait and see how it all shakes out, how many varieties there are. I am hoping the Xena and Herc pops do well, and other company's see potential for the license.

I'm looking forward to the fun of it all, when people get their's and show pictures, and I'm happy for everyone ordering them.

Feb. 3, 2019

Some happy news! There will be a Xena Convention next year! And the best part is that it's in Los Angeles, and I live about 10 min away, taking surface streets to get there. The last Xena Con I went to was the 2nd one in Burbank in 98. After dropping some big bucks on gold seating, and not being too happy about my seat, I was done with that. I was going to Comic Con and at the time it was substantially cheaper for four days including hotel.

I last went to Comic-Con in 2011. And I stopped going for several reasons, one being the cost. I recently went to Wonder-Con when it was in LA, and it did not cost too much. So I'm ready to give it another go at a Xena Con.

I saw Lucy at the very first Xena Con in Burbank in 97, and I saw Lucy several times at Comic Con. I also saw Renee at Comic Con as well as a few other Xena actors too.

So I'm going just for fun and nostalgia. I'm feeling really blessed living in LA, and thinking about what others need to spend for Gold seat + extras and travel expenses. So right now I'm thinking just get a Gold seat.. I will compare the packages and see what the best value is for what looks interesting.

It's so far away in the future.. I hate to drop the money so far in advance.. see how it goes.

Aug, 28-30, 2020 Los Angeles, Ca

25th Year!

There is also some other amazing news.. And that for the re-launch of the next Xena Comic the cover for issue #1 is done by David Mack. He is a genius artist, I'm a fan. I always enjoy his art even if I'm not a fan of the subject. And the cover that was revealed is insanely beautiful.

I am thinking about getting this one framed.

I have been keeping my eye on the Xena collectible market on ebay. While overall most items remain affordable.. I have noticed a bit of a uptick on high quality items. I believe the reason for this is the fans who watched the show as children continue to collect and are advancing their collections. And for them this is the first go round. Also some people are becoming more nostalgic about the show. I know I have.

Xena has been my favorite TV show since the 1st episode I saw. And there has not been any TV show of Movie that has come close to being more meaningful. That said there are many incredible TV shows I have enjoyed since then. But I keep coming back for more, and I seem to love it all more as the years go by. I'm looking forward to celebrating the 25th next year!

David Mack Cover 01 Dynamite Comics

I had some fun last week when I re-did the labeling on all of my card binders. I'm really happy how they turned out. I uploaded a pic in the collection photos section.

It took a little bit to decided the font, and sizing and then printing them. I have 31 uni-keep binders. I also re-did my Star Wars binders as well. I love it! And now when I open my card cave it just looks so much more organized and clean.

Dec. 25, 2018

Merry Christmas!

It's been a fun and festive season and I hope everyone is enjoying family and friends however you chose to celebrate.

I'm always looking and digging for cards and Xena related items. And there's one that I have had my eye on for a few years but the price has been a bit higher that I wanted to pay.

As luck would have it, the Farscape Claudia Black Auto popped up on Ebay with a fantastic buy it now price. So I finally got to add this one my collection. I recall watching the "Amazon High" episode and just loved all the actors in it. Especially Claudia Black.

I loved Lifeblood. And I'm so glad I stuck with collecting all the autos from the main cast.

Here they are: They are all in the cast section

Selma Blair : Cyane
Danielle Cormack : Samsara
Claudia Black: Karina
Karl Urban : Kor
John Callen : Oba

There is another main cast member of "Amazon High" Monica McSwain : Olan, but she has never signed any card that I know of.

If this pilot had gone to series it would have been so welcomed along with Cleopatra 2525.

The search never ends.. :)

Aug. 12, 2018

I remember when the Rittenhouse rewards cards were first announced. I thought it was really cool and I was looking forward to participating. I also recall the skepticism of the reality that there are mostly adults involved and that dealers would wind up with most of the cards.

As I started to save wrappers it became clear I would never collect the amount needed to obtain the cards I wanted. Ah well...

Well several months later at comic con, I was visiting all the card dealers and sure enough dealers had the rewards Xena cards, and they were priced way out of my reach. I was a kinda frustrated. I felt even if I saved wrappers for years the Xena cards would all be gone before I had a chance to get them. Sure I could maybe buy them one day, but I would miss the fun of getting them as a reward.

That's life, so I moved on. Well this past week a batch of them was on ebay. And at a reasonable price. I had picked up the Taste of Honey expansion set a while back.. but I was very happy to pick up R2 with the stud, and R3 with the stud. And R3 is a unique image card, not just a variation.

There is a R3 of Aphrodite in the Season 6 set so this is a double number as well.

In the case of the ebay seller I picked these up from I have bought from them since the early 90's using mail order... and since Ritenhouse cleared out all of their Xena cards, these could easily have been obtained as a buy out.

So nice to have these! Yay!

R3 Wrapper Rewards Card with Stud

Feb. 18 2018

Feeling really lucky... Awesome find! I picked up some pre-production material from Topps for the Hercules The Legendary Journeys set.

Here is LINK: to view all of it . It's fun to have a look to see a little bit of how they put a card set together. The cards and wrappers are printed on a photo paper, larger. And the photos are lazer copies with some notes.

OK... here's a first.. I added a Buffy card to my Xena collection. I have refrained from blogging too much about Buffy. ;) I really could go on about it. But one day I will share my thoughts. The shows are pretty similar and that's not on accident. Buffy was a pretty solid role model so that's a really good thing. I did have a Angel card though. (Not counting that)

Ilainus was one of my fav's on Xena and Musetta Vander did an amazing job with the character. I remember waiting and waiting for her Xena auto, and it comes out for Dangerous Liaisons, and that's right when I pretty much checked out of cards. It was also one of the first cards I got when I got back into it. I picked up a couple of her auto cards from other sets. They are listed on the update page.

Feb. 10, 2018

I have been busy working on some other collecting projects outside of card collecting. But I had uploaded a couple of new cards. And I have some very cool autos and sketch/art cards on the way. Be sure to check the site updates page. I list detailed updates so nothing is missed.

Google has added some HTML! I just added a site counter for fun. And added a footer. Now I can get back to working more on detailed checklists and how I may want to re nest all the pages.

Jan. 1, 2018

Happy New Year! Been looking for more Xena goodies.. and I was able to pick up this awesome promo postcard.

I have always loved the poster of this.. what an image! And now I have the promo postcard of it. Check out the larger image on its page...

Sep. 17, 2017

Another one of my childhood interests was stamp collecting. It was still a very popular hobby in the 70's and in local stores you could pick up stamp assortments and albums. And of course you could save stamps from the mail. I had a lot of fun collecting, and it was a very inexpensive hobby. Free if you just collected stamps off the mail. I learned about sorting and taking care of a collection. And using albums to keep things organized and nice. I was hooked on this process.

I still collect stamps. They are small and very detailed. And there's a wide range of stamps globally. Some of the most beautiful stamps I have are from The Lord Of The Rings from New Zealand. Jaw dropping printing quality. I also have Xena stamps. Also I love old engraved stamps from the US, and stamps from China. I love my Star Wars stamps too. And I have Star Wars postcards issued from the post office. Postcards are philatelic material. And I am so happy I decided to go full force collecting Xena postcards. There are quite a few, though it's not crazy out of control. I had long since collected the promo postcards.. but I mostly skipped the retail ones. I have now picked up most of them and have them scanned here on my site. The Xena postcard book is beautiful. And it's not hard to find. I think most were kept as a collectible. And also old new stock can be found.

The other great thing about postcards, is the suffix of the word. ;) Postcards are cards. Not trading cards, not bubble gum cards, but cards. They fit right in with my collection and they look great in pages. There have been over-sized trading cards made. The first ones that come to mind are the Photo Cards of Star Wars Empire Strikes Back from Topps. And the Rittenhouse release for Xena Archive Collection set over size, sold out.. link

Xena's Card Cave - Archive Collection Set (2001)

There have been loads of these over-sized sets made, so postcards are perfect for collecting and they are a bit cheaper than a lot of similar cards that are not postcards.

On this site... I added a whole new section for Razor distributed and PSA graded cards. I did this so I could share scans of the cards I have. I doubt I will seriously get into collecting them.

Sep. 3, 2017

Familiar faces and coming full circle. Growing up I always had trading cards of some sort. The first ones I remember having were the Topps You'll die laughing. I even traded cookies from my lunch to get them. I was in the 2nd grade. Over the next few years I had all kinds. I had Happy Days and Welcome Back,Kotter, Etc... I was a fan of Star Trek but I never saw the 76 set. Also no kids in my neighborhood or school had them either. So when Star Wars came out and I started to get the cards, it was the perfect thing. Star Wars was my favorite movie. And enjoying the cards was a great way to keep the movie alive in my young world. I loved the cards and kept collecting and trading all through The Return of Jedi series 2. The first entire box purchase I made was Star Wars Orange series 5. That worked out so well, getting the extra sets and stickers.. I was hooked on box buying and marathon pack opening.

After Star Wars I collected many other sets.. And it was at this stage I was picking up packs cause it was fun. And not so much since I was a huge fan of the license. By 86 I had moved to Los Angeles and in my second year of college. All of my cards were at home safely in binders and boxes. The entire thing was behind me. And being young I focused on music and concerts and picking up CD's which was the new tech at the time. LA was the perfect city for clubs and concerts.

Then 93 happened.. I don't recall exactly how I heard.. but new a Star Wars movie was in work. And not long after I was getting into the SW Topps Galaxy and Dark Empire from Dark Horse. On my next trip back home I brought down to LA all of my cards. Changed out all the plastic sheets, and started to pick out sets and enjoy the new waves of all sorts of non sports, and SW cards, and a few comic story's too. The geek in me was simply sleeping. In the 80's VHS was too expensive, but the 90's brought cheap home video so I got to relive just about any movie or show from my youth. And cable TV was amazing.. so many channels and reruns.. And I also had been enjoying a Sega Genesis, on a large TV that I paid for from my first "good" job. Geek dreams do come true.

And continuing on this geek adventure that was the 90's , while watching lame Saturday afternoon TV[that I loved] on KTLA .. I stared watching Xena. A complete instafav.. so once the Xena merch started rolling out.. I got into the cards.

Later on.. I put the geek life behind me a second time in early 07... and in late 2015, the geek has returned. lol

But now things have come full circle. I can't really put into words how awesome it is that a couple of Xena actors have signed Star Wars cards.. the Typho always cost too much for me to consider picking it up when it came out.

These cards bring together the favorites from my childhood and adulthood in these auto cards. Also I just picked up a SW card from the Topps Vault. It's a 1 of 1, it's a SW card and the actor Jay Laga'aia played Draco on Xena. So just like that this is the most monumental card I have in this regard. This also happens to be the 1st 1 of 1 card I ever got as well as the 1st Topps Vault card I have too.

Collecting the various actor/actresses from Xena on other card sets is pretty awesome. I have been able to get a sticker auto and a printing plate. These are both new things for me in card collecting. So much collecting fun.

In addition there are several actors that never signed for Rittenhouse. I used to have this wish list of signers. And every time a new Xena set was announced, I would check off everyone who was signing. The list still has quite a few names on it, so it's been great to pick up some auto cards for those who have only signed for other sets.

As for site updates.. I have started to add base card set checklists and dimensions. This has been an enjoyable process that makes my OCD very happy.

Topps #'d Auto 5 of 25