In the pantheon of movie tie-in trading cards, some sets commemorate timeless classics, while others immortalize pop culture phenomenons. And then there’s the set for Howard the Duck. Released by Topps in 1986 to accompany the George Lucas-produced blockbuster-that-wasn't, these cards are a fascinating time capsule of one of Hollywood's most legendary misfires and a quirky collectible for those who love a Hollywood underdog.

History: A Blockbuster Built on Quicksand

Before its release in the summer of 1986, Howard the Duck had immense expectations behind it. With George Lucas’s name attached as executive producer, fresh off the world-conquering success of Star Wars and Indiana Jones, the industry and public alike expected a quirky, effects-laden summer hit. Topps, the undisputed king of movie cards, geared up for the demand, producing a full-scale trading card and sticker set to fly off shelves alongside what was sure to be mountains of other merchandise.

Then the movie came out.

Howard the Duck was a critical and commercial catastrophe. Panned for its bizarre tone, cringe-worthy duck puns, and an uncomfortable romantic subplot, the film bombed at the box office. The anticipated merchandising blitz fizzled overnight. The trading cards, once destined for schoolyard trades, suddenly became artifacts of a pop culture punchline.

Breaking Down the Set: A Detailed Look at a Doomed Duck

The 1986 Topps Howard the Duck set is a single, comprehensive series that tells the film's entire story, for better or for worse.

• The Main Set: The collection consists of 66 standard-sized cards and 11 stickers.

• Card Fronts: Each card features a full-bleed movie still surrounded by a distinctive yellow border designed to look like torn 35mm film stock. The film’s jagged, colorful logo sits prominently at the bottom. The photos capture everything from Howard’s arrival on Earth to his interactions with Beverly (Lea Thompson) and his confrontation with the Dark Overlord.

• Card Backs: The card backs are pure 1980s Topps. A bold red-and-blue design frames two text boxes. The main box provides a "Story Summary," which reads as a continuous narrative across the 66-card set. Below that, a "Duck Tale" section offers a fun fact about the movie's production or a character detail.

• Stickers: The 11 stickers feature promotional shots and character art, including Howard in his signature armchair. The sticker backs are puzzle pieces that, when assembled, form a promotional image of Howard looking ready for action.

Rarity, Value, and Cult Status

Here is where the Howard the Duck set diverges from its more successful 80s counterparts like Batman or Michael Jackson. The film's failure had a direct impact on the cards' fate. While Topps likely produced a large quantity in anticipation of a hit, poor sales meant that countless boxes went unsold and were likely destroyed or left to gather dust in warehouses.

This creates a strange market dynamic. The cards are not rare in the sense of being a limited print run, but they are certainly less common in circulation than cards from blockbuster films of the era.

For decades, demand was virtually non-existent, keeping prices firmly in the bargain bin. However, as the film has aged into a beloved "so-bad-it's-good" cult classic, interest in its memorabilia has seen a modest uptick.

• Value Assessment (as of August 2025):

  • Raw Complete Set (66 cards, 11 stickers): $10 - $20

  • Unopened Wax Pack: $3 - $6

  • Unopened Wax Box (36 packs): $60 - $100+

The unopened wax box is the prize for many collectors, as it's a pristine artifact from the ill-fated marketing campaign. As with most vintage sets, professional grading dramatically changes the value. The yellow film-strip borders are prone to chipping and print defects, making Gem Mint 10 copies from PSA (Professional Sports Authenticator) exceedingly scarce. A PSA 10 common card can fetch a surprising premium, and a flawless copy of card #1, "Howard T. Duck," would be a prize for any non-sport card collector.

Behind the Scenes & Fun Facts

• Read the Movie, Skip the Movie?: Because the card backs tell the entire story in sequence, a collector could get a full plot summary—from Howard's cosmic transit to the final battle—just by arranging the cards in numerical order.

• Canadian Duck: A Canadian version was produced by O-Pee-Chee (OPC). Due to the film's even poorer reception in Canada, this set is significantly rarer than the Topps version, though it only commands a premium in very high-grade condition.

• A Marketing Misfire: The cards were part of a huge promotional effort that included a Marvel comic adaptation, a novelization, toys, and even a notoriously difficult computer game. All of it vanished from shelves almost as quickly as it appeared.

• From Joke to Gem: For years, this set was seen as worthless binder fodder. Today, it’s appreciated by collectors who specialize in pop culture oddities and memorabilia from famous Hollywood flops.

The 1986 Topps Howard the Duck set is a unique piece of hobby history. It’s a testament to a time when studios and manufacturers swung for the fences and, sometimes, struck out spectacularly. For a surprisingly low price, you can own a complete memento of one of Hollywood’s most infamous birds—a duck trapped not only in a world he never made, but also in wax packs nobody wanted to buy.

Sources:

• PSA CardFacts. "1986 Topps Howard the Duck." Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA).

• The Cardboard Connection. "1986 Topps Howard the Duck Trading Cards."

• Trading Card Database (TCDB). "1986 Topps Howard the Duck."

• Jeff Allender's House of Checklists. "1986 Topps Howard the Duck."

• Various pop culture and film history retrospectives on the Howard the Duck (1986) film.