Box Break and Review - 2012 Marvel Greatest Heroes

Box:

Company: Rittenhouse Archives
Release: 2012
Name: Marvel Greatest Heroes
Number of Packs: 24
Number of Cards per Pack: 5

Insert/ Chase Cards:

Holofoil Lettering Parallel Base - 1:3
Villains - 1:6
I am an Avenger - 1:12
Ultimate Heroes - 1:36
Icons Shadowbox - 1:72
Sketch Card - 1:24

For collectors who root for the good guys, have I got a box for you!  Rittenhouse issued Marvel Greatest Heroes in 2012, highlighting heroes and anti-heroes in the Marvel comic world.  So if, as a kid, you would only play as a cop in "Cops and Robbers" or as a Joe in "G.I. Joe vs. Cobra", then this box will not disappoint.  All the popular heroes and heroines are found in this set, including Spider-Man, Captain America, Storm, and Thor.  Anti-heroes such as Deadpool and Moon Knight were also added, providing a diverse checklist to this 81 card set.

Card Design (8.5/10)

The base cards were designed extremely well - simple yet very attractive.  On the bottom of each borderless card, the word "Marvel" and the character's name are foil-stamped in red.  Parallel base cards are found in every three packs and each one has a nice holofoil lettering instead of the red foil.

However, the insert designs left me wanting more.  Rittenhouse managed to sneak in a “Villains” insert set (every hero requires a villain, right?) and although the artists’ rendition was impressive, the schematics could have been “jazzed up” a tiny bit.  Same could be said about the “I am an Avenger” inserts.  Found at a ratio of 2 per box, I thought they could have used an upgrade.  The holoflash design was nice but I preferred to see something a bit more innovative.  At the same time, I understand there are costs involved in developing and printing special-effect cards so to keep the price affordable, concessions have to be met.

Character List (7.5/10)

The gross exclusion of Punisher was a huge disappointment.  The reasoning behind the omission could have been Rittenhouse's release of Marvel Bronze Age cards, which also took place in 2012, but it does not justify leaving out one of the most popular anti-heroes in the Marvel Universe.

On a positive note, the checklist was well thought out and a wide array of characters like Blade, Sentry, and Ka-Zar made the list.  I appreciated that the set wasn't only made up of only do-gooders like Captain America and Spider-Man but consisted of heroes and heroines that may, at times, cross the line.  Heroes with an edge, as I like to call them.

Box Break

In addition to the obligatory full base card set, I found the following inserts:

Holofoil Lettering Parallel - 8
Villains - Green Goblin, Loki, Nightmare, Thanos
I am an Avenger - Spider-Woman, War Machine
Ultimate Heroes - Scarlet Witch
Artist Sketch - Luke Cage by Michael Rooth

Here are samples of the base cards:

The base card parallels with holofoil lettering:

The four "Villains" cards I received:

 



 

The "I am an Avenger" inserts:

 

 

Ultimate Scarlet Witch:

 

 

And lastly, this very clean sketch card of Luke Cage by Michael Rooth:

 

 

Entertainment Value (9.5/10)

This was a fun box to break into.  Even though I didn't get an Icons Shadowbox, it was still very entertaining and a good way to pass the time.

Price/Value (8.0/10)

Since only 8000 boxes were made, prices are now in the range of $65 to $85 a box.  Inserts can be found for just a few dollars a card so it's harder to rationalize buying a box at that price.  However, the thrill of pulling an amazing sketch card still exists.

Final Thoughts

Overall, this was a good product from Rittenhouse.  If you bought these boxes when they first came out in the $50 range, kudos to you.  If you're wanting to buy them now, you may be able to find a better deal by bidding on two boxes at a time. 

Overall Score

8.5 out of 10

Box Break and Review - 2014 Dangerous Divas Series 2

Box:

Company: Rittenhouse Archives
Release: 2014
Name: Dangerous Divas Series 2
Number of Packs: 24
Number of Cards per Pack: 5

Insert/ Chase Cards:

Art by Milo Manara - 1:24
Artifex - 1:24
Emerald Foil Parallel Base - 1:24
Sultry Seductresses - 1:24
Sketch Card - 1:24
Cut Archives - 1:96
Marvel 75th Anniversary - 1:144
Autographed Artifex - 1:288
Diamond Foil Parallel Base - 1:288

Rittenhouse released Dangerous Divas Series 2 in December 2014 as a continuation of their highly popular Series 1, which came out a few years back.  The 90 card base set focuses on Marvel's heroines and villainesses. 

Card Design (7.0/10)

Rittenhouse moved Dangerous Divas from a borderless card design to a larger, patterned border for Series 2.  "Mighty Maidens" are showcased in a pink floral border while their counterpart, "Mistresses of Mayhem", are surrounded with a purple insidious design.  The borders give the cards a picture framed look, which is quite different from what Rittenhouse has done in the past.

On the back side of each card reveals part of a 9-card puzzle set.  Cards 1-9 form one large puzzle, cards 10-18 form another puzzle, and so on.  This replaces the traditional character bio that many card companies utilizes.

As for the inserts, Rittenhouse used different effects to separate them from the base cards.  For example, the Sultry Seductresses cards utilized a holo-flash effect while the parallel base cards have foil borders - either green in color for the Emerald Parallels or white for the rare Diamond Parallels.

Character List (8.0/10)

Although the set only included 90 cards and most of the popular female characters were already covered in Series 1, I really liked the character list in this subsequent set.  Yes, Rittenhouse included popular Marvel characters like Rogue, Mystique, and Black Widow but they also included A LOT of lesser known "divas" such as Motormouth, Ruby Thursday, Skadi, and Colleen Wing.  It's amazing how many Marvel female characters were created through out the years.

Box Break

With each box, Rittenhouse includes an entire base card set.  In addition to the base set, I received these following inserts:

Art by Milo Manara - Gamora

Artifex - Black Cat

Emerald Foil Parallel Base - Jocasta

Sultry Seductresses - She-Hulk

Artist Sketch - Dazzler by Jofel B. Cube

Here are samples of two base cards, one of Lady Deathstrike and the other of Ms. Marvel:

Scans of insert cards from this box break:

And lastly, the Dazzler colored sketch card drawn by Jofel B. Cube:

Entertainment Value (9.0/10)

It was nice to cap off 2014 with this much anticipated release from Rittenhouse.  Even after all the hits were pulled from the box, it was still enjoyable to continue opening packs and sorting through all the base cards.

Price/Value (8.5/10)

At an average price of about $50.00 per box, Dangerous Divas Series 2 is generally affordable to the masses.  Most boxes have sold for under $50.00 on EBay and most retailers are selling them for no more than $60.00. 

Final Thoughts

For a relatively inexpensive product, Dangerous Divas Series 2 is a great buy.  I liked the inserts from this set much more than from the Marvel Bronze Age box I purchased a few years ago.  This time around, I felt like the focus was on the cards and the pack-busting experience, not just solely on the sketch cards.  Having quality insert cards available in each box made the whole experience truly enjoyable.

The only thing I would change is to replace the puzzle set on the back of the cards with a character bios/profile.  The puzzle back was a cool feature but with the majority of these female characters being B and C listers, it would have been nice to learn a little more about their origins, mutant powers, and other lesser know facts.  As I opened the packs, I constantly found myself asking, "Who the heck is this?"  FYI, it'll be a good idea to have Marvel Wikia pulled up to answer some of those questions.

Overall Score

8.0 out of 10