Loving 2015 Topps Chrome Update is All About the Nostalgia

Before I begin this post I want to remind everyone that the deadline for entering my one year anniversary contest is tonight at midnight. Thanks to all who have already entered and good luck!

From the moment I laid eyes on this year's Chrome Update cards, I was in love! I decided right away that I was going to try to complete the 50 card, retail exclusive set. Then I wrote about it. Shortly after, I began to see post after post pop up about the set. Most had good things to say about it, but a few mentioned that they failed to see what the big deal is. Those posts that wondered what all the excitement was about made me think about why I immediately liked these cards so much. After some thought, I figured it out. They remind me of another set from my collecting past.

Back in 1996, I pulled this card from a pack of Bowman. At the time, I had no idea what it was. The internet wasn't quite the resource it is today, my local card shop at the time didn't have(or wouldn't share) product info, and I didn't regularly read Beckett. Pulling this card of the best player in baseball at the time and which was unlike anything I had ever seen(and didn't know existed) is one of my favorite collecting memories. While it turns out this card isn't nearly as rare or valuable as I once imagined it might be, it was still a tough pull since these Bowman's Best Preview Atomic Refractors only fell 1:48 packs or every other box. Add to that there were 30 cards possible in the set and it was even longer odds that I was able to pull the Griffey Jr. Over the years, I've picked up a handful of these here and there, but I've never made a serious run at piecing together the set. In fact, despite several attempts, the Jeter Atomic Refractor still eludes me all these years later. That's something I'll have to fix someday.

The next time I can remember seeing that same design was in last year's Bowman products. However, the use of that finish on a recreation of the 1989 Bowman set didn't have me too terribly excited. They're still some nice cards, but nothing I felt compelled to actively chase.

Then, I saw these...

I've really liked the 2015 Topps design since day one. So, when I opened my first pack of Chrome Update and saw cards like these(I didn't actually pull these two in even my first 8 packs), I was once again surprised and thrilled. For a split second I thought maybe I had opened a 'hot pack' of Atomic Refractors'. For me, the feeling of nostalgia...being transported back to 1996, is the main reason I instantly fell in love with this set. Hopefully I'll be able to track down he remaining 8 cards I have left to finish the set without too much trouble.

Anyway, thanks for reading my ramblings and reminiscing. If you're one that likes the Update Chrome set, why do you like it. Does anyone have any similar stories about other sets?