In 1987, DC Comics had a rather novel merchandising idea to solve a self-inflicted problem. Batman had undergone a popularity renaissance due to the astronomical success of Frank Miller's DC magnum opus, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns (1986). DC wished to capitalize on the renewed demand for the character (a demand, which hasn't "Wayned" since. PUN!!!). Non-sports trading cards had also jumped in popularity by the mid-1980s, thanks in no small part to the Topps trading card company's wickedly sickening Garbage Pail Kids cards. But DC had a problem exploiting their characters in trading cards because they were legally barred from using Batman, or Batman-related characters. In the 1960s, DC had licensed the character's image for trading cards exclusively to Topps. Therefore, DC faced the prospect of launching a trading card set without being able to use one of their hottest properties (something that DC actually did in 1992 and 1993). What was DC's solution to this tricky situation? Thinking "outside of the box" by thinking inside the box...the acid-free comic book storage box that is.
DC's deal with Topps covered products defined specifically as trading cards; individually produced and cut trading cards. What the deal did not cover were backing boards, which were made from acid-free, glossy cardboard and used to support a comic book inside of a sealable storage bag. So in 1987, DC Comics Backing Board Cards were created allowing DC to get in on the trading card market using Batman and Batman-related characters, all while not violating their agreement with Topps. Sold in packs of three backing boards, the key to this not-card series was that the card images were printed on comic book backing boards, but ones that looked an awfully lot like a small, uncut trading card sheet. Because the consumer had to cut the images out of the backing boards (along conveniently present dotted lines) to turn the boards into "something resembling" trading cards, technically, DC was not selling actual trading cards at all. The backing board cards were popular enough that a second series was released in 1989. Luckily for DC, Topps' exclusive rights to Batman expired by 1994.
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| An uncut backing board from 1987's DC Comics Backing Board Cards Image Source: Cosmic Teams.com |
So, what's all this business and legal mumbo-jumbo got to do with Deathstroke? The first set of backing board cards in 1987 included a card for the Terminator, as Deathstroke was commonly known at the time. Most of the individual card images featured in the set were from stock artwork that DC used for things like t-shirt designs or children's' birthday or Valentines' Day cards. The Terminator's card #44 utilized recycled artwork by Deathstroke's co-creator, the legendary George Pérez, that he originally produced for the Terminator's Who's Who profile. The nicely cut front and back Terminator card images are posted below.
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| Deathstroke card #44 front image Art by George Pérez Image Source: The Trading Card Database |
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| Deathstroke card #44 back image Image Source: The Trading Card Database |
