Well, im going to be completely honest. I did not think we were going to get these this soon. I thought it would take until at least after the movie, and possibly into 2016 before new Marathons started, but I am ecstatic that we are seeing them now.

After a preview post on iO9 and a few other sources, its time to take a look at what we have seen, and get some good ideas about what is coming down the pike. I think that the marathon sets are what really get the game moving, and now that it looks like the daily cards are back, we can all exhale a bit.

Vintage

The most popular of the first wave of marathons is back, with a tweaked look for wave 2. These will continue to be released every thursday, just like before, and I would expect that this should remain the top of the mountain. Now that everyone will have the opportunity to start from the beginning, we could see that value is returned to where it was at the beginning of wave 1. Obviously, Vintage Han will always be the anomaly, but these cards look really, really cool. Seeing that Value dropped so far at the end, a new start will definitely be huge.

Verdict:

Widevision

These have a bit of a different look than they did in wave 1, but I am loving the new look. They look much more sleek and modern, which should be a good way to separate them from the first batch. One of the main reasons I loved the first wave so much was because they were retro looking, but I like the newer look just as much.

Verdict:  

Film Quotes

The new Friday marathon is Film Quotes, which I think is the strongest concept of the three previews, but the weakest of the designs. Considering how awesome the sets were that were released early in the app’s existence, this is really disappointing. I hate that it says “Film Quote Friday” on the card, which just doesnt belong there to me. Branding the card with a hook is just awful in my opinion.

Verdict: 

Topps Choice

I actually loved the Topps Choice design last year, and this retro look is pretty cool too. The only thing is that the Topps 1977 design is getting a bit overused, and to see another set, this time as a marathon, use the design is something I might have gone a different direction with. Even so, this is going to be a good one.

Verdict: 

Fan’s Choice

This is going to be interesting, as the design looks very much upgraded over the last marathon, but all the characters have already been used that would ever be a fan’s choice. Obviously, Topps is planning on using those characters again, which is fine by me. This look reminds me of the resource design, but I absolutely love the stark change over the previous.

Verdict: 

Making of Mondays

Although I dont like that there is another set with the day of the week in the title, I love the theme and I love the deisgn. This is a great concept that could EASILY have been a solid replacement for Galactic Moments in the first marathon, and I am excited to see where this goes. Star Wars production photos are well documented, and I think that we are in for a treat here.

Verdict: 

Other Releases

Looks like Topps Classic is back with a black design, and as someone who loved series one, these variants look pretty freaking cool.

The Droids Set is something that looks pretty awesome, and from what the release says, this should be a pretty limited set. We shall see how it plays out.

Overall, I would guess this is far from the end of the new slate of inserts, but exciting that we get a sneak peak.