Topps had big plans for the Terminator franchise in the lead up to the franchise’s fourth installment. Things didn’t work out as they’d imagined. An all-encompassing Terminator Chrome release was announced but never came to light. And while 2009 Topps Terminator: Salvation trading cards do exist, most would agree that they didn’t really need to.
Yes, it has all the hallmarks that most modern sets do, like autographs, memorabilia cards and sketch cards. At the same time, it feels like there are compromises at every turn. Combine that with the tepid response the movie itself got and it’s easy to see why few know or remember that Terminator: Salvation trading cards are out there.
2009 Topps Terminator: Salvation Checklist Details
The base set comes with 90 cards. It’s pretty standard with a mix of character and machine cards, and story recaps. There’s also some behind-the-scenes cards that delve into the film’s design. While that’s all find and good, several of the cards are marred by blurry images that probably shouldn’t have been used and could point toward limited available assets.
Autographs and Inserts
Hobby boxes come with two hits — an autograph and either a memorabilia card or a sketch card. Like the base set, there are some obvious concessions being made here as well. Terminator: Salvation has some decent names in the cast. Christian Bale, Bryce Dallas Howard and Sam Worthington are just some of the notables. That said, the autograph checklist is limited to more of the film’s minor roles.
The Memorabilia Card lineup has six cards. They cover important characters, but all of the pieces are on the generic side.
Sketch cards suffer from similar limitations. They’re all limited to only a couple of different Terminators. Most of the artists did poses with very little variation.
Finishing off 2009 Topps Terminator: Salvation are nine Embossed Foil cards with more machines.
2009 Topps Terminator: Salvation Checklist
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Cards per pack: 7
Packs per box: 24
Shop for 2009 Topps Terminator: Salvation boxes on eBay.
Base Set Checklist
90 cards.
1 Terminator Salvation
2 John Connor
3 Marcus Wright
4 Kyle Reese
5 Kate Connor
6 Blair Williams
7 Barnes
8 Star
9 Virginia
10 The Execution of Marcus
11 Target: Skynet!
12 Man Against Machine
13 An Inside Operation
14 To Save Human Lives
15 Connor’s Narrow Escape
16 Of Death and Rebirth
17 The Last of the Finest
18 Man Behind the Warrior
19 The Dead Zone
20 Terror and a Teammate
21 The Daylight Stalker
22 Blasting All Humans!
23 Surviving to Fight…
24 Fear and Trust
25 A Captured Hydrobot
26 Inspired to Action
27 Aerostat Attack!
28 Ravaged by the Robots
29 Their Greatest Challenge
30 Road Warriors
31 Terminators on Wheels
32 Kyle’s Road Rage
33 Blast Off
34 Blair: All Hung Up
35 A Most Welcome Rescue!
36 The Freedom Seekers
37 A Little Local Trouble
38 High-Risk Experiment
39 A Date with Death
40 Night of Terror
41 Skynet Processing
42 No Escape from Skynet
43 Resistance to the Rescue
44 Man or Terminator?
45 Escape from the Outpost
46 Cycling to Freedom
47 Fury of the Hydrobot
48 A Matter of Death and Life
49 The Resistance Strikes Back
50 Kate’s Warning
51 A Way In for Connor
52 Entering Skynet
53 Terminator On Patrol
54 Connor’s Bold Plan
55 Facing John Connor
56 The Terminator Factory
57 Terror in Mass Production
58 Humanity’s Last Chance
59 We Who Survive…
60 In Memory of Marcus
61 T-1
62 T-600
63 Aerostat
64 Hunter-Killer
65 Hydrobot
66 Moto-Terminator
67 Transporter
68 Harvester
69 Filming an Aquatic Attack
70 Hatching a Hydrobot
71 Before a Blue Screen
72 Terror of the T-600
73 Designing a Dark Future
74 The New Terminator
75 Marcus Maimed and Mangled
76 Face of the Enemy
77 An Enemy Within
78 Inside the Missile Silo
79 Freedom’s Outpost
80 Under Skynet’s Thumb
81 Power Tower Dangling
82 Our Ravaged World
83 Crumbled California
84 Tarnished Gateway of Hope
85 At Death’s Gleaming Door
86 Death has Red Eyes
87 Child’s Play
88 Mission: Destroy Humanity
89 Checklist
90 Checklist
Autographs Checklist
6 cards, 1:24 hobby packs.
Jane Alexander as Virginia
Chris Ashworth as Richter
Michael Ironside as Gen. Ashdown
Jadagrace as Star
Dylan Kenin as Turnbull
Michael Papajohn as Carnahan
Movie Memorabilia Checklist
6 cards, 1:48 hobby packs.
John Connor’s Jacket
John Connor’s Fatigues
Kyle Reece’s Jacket
Kyle Reece’s Vest
Marcus Wright’s Coat
Marcus Wright’s Shirt
Sketch Cards Checklist
1:48 packs.
The following artists contributed to the set.
Scott Barnett
Ken Branch
Richard Clark
Jason Davies
Hayden Davis
Layron Dejarnette
Luis Diaz
Brent Engstrom
Bruce Gerlach
Katie Crimespree
Jonathan D. Gordon
Kevin Graham
Brian Kong
Bob Larkin
Randy Martinez
Jake Minor
Mathew Minor
Greg Moutafis
Jake Myler
Peter Pachoumis
Don Pedicini Jr.
Don Perlin
Lance Sawyer
Jamie Snell
Robert Teranishi
Jeremy Treece
Denise Vasquez
Michael Zapata
Embossed Foil Checklist
6 cards, 1:6 packs.
1 T-1
2 T-600
3 T-700
4 Transporter
5 Aerostat
6 Hunter-Killer
7 Moto-Terminator
8 Harvester
9 T-600
Promo Cards Checklist
P1 A Nuclear Bomb Can Ruin Your Day
Action Figure Cards
6 cards. Included with Playmates action figures.
P1 John Connor
P2 T-700
P3 Marcus Wright
P4 T-RIP
P5 T-1
P6 T-600
