It's easy to reminisce about the simple days when I first started collecting cards. You had your base set with all the big names, a handful of scrubs and some of the hottest rookies. Insert was a term I reserved for magazine subscription cards. Autographs were obtained in person or through the mail. Game jerseys were kept intact. Man, those times were great.

But the hobby evolved and I went along with it. Now there's a diverse mix of products that cater to most tastes and budgets. But with all the complications, one core group was pretty much forgotten about - the set collectors. Short prints and $100-a-box products put a big strain on the wallet when it comes to completing any given set. And the collecting-friendly sets such as Victory or Topps are filled with primarily all the same names splashed onto several subsets and inserts. I mean, who wants to collect cards of middle relievers like John Halama or utility infielders named Enrique Wilson? They just take away from the bazillionth Sammy Sosa or kazillionth Alex Rodriguez that might otherwise slip into the set.

Enter 2002 Topps Total, a mammoth single-series 990-card set. Up and down the roster, Topps Total plays like the sets of old, offering team sets that go at least 30 players deep, has all the stars and oodles of rookies. All this and a reasonable price as well. All that's missing is a stick of pink gum.

The card design is a simple mix of action and portrait photos, brief bios and limited stats. While I find the fronts attractive, the card backs are my only qualm with the set. Being such a collector-friendly product I would have liked complete rather than a brief synopsis from 2001. The bios are a nice touch, but I was hoping for something a little closer to the base Topps design.

While there's three insert sets (Total Production, Award Winners and Total Topps), they play a minor role in the set. None are particularly tough to pull and the design is a simple foil finish. No game-used, no autographs, no fancy die cuts. A wide variety of inserts would only isolate the set collectors and drive the pack price up.

Topps has kept it simple with Topps Total and I haven't had this much fun in a long time. I had so much fun I busted three boxes of the stuff. Of course that's neccessary if you hope to build the set. Each box was pretty good with one serving up five doubles and the other two coming up with perfect collation. Combined I came up a couple hundred cards short of a set with a nice stack of doubles for trade bait. But that's what I was expecting so no worries there.

Thus far, Topps Total rates as my pick for set of the year (Note: Topps Total did indeed standout out as 2002's best product).

Card Gallery

Base card	Total Production