| 2009 Donruss Americana Review View Product Profile Hits Per Box: 4 Hobby Box Configuration: 4 Packs / 5 Cards Per Pack Overall Score: 81% [starreviewmulti id=2 tpl=20] |  |
Summary
The Donruss Americana brand has revolutionized the celebrity trading card like no other product before it. Not only has Donruss (now Pannini America) managed to capture the attention of Hollywood and Celebrity collectors, they've managed to succeed at wooing sports card collectors with a non sports card product. They have not had to deal with any serious competition in this developing market so far and as a result have not been pushed very hard to improve their product. Nowhere is this more evident then in 2009 Donruss Americana. As in years past, 2009 Donruss Americana sports a mix of legendary celebrities of the past with a random mixture of today's C, D, and F list celebrities. I like the selection of early to mid 1900's Hollywood Icons, but the modern day celebrity checklist is painfully thin and devoid of any A or B list stars. When everything is said and done 2009 Donruss Americana is still a good product, but its by no means a great one. Despite its fair share of shortcomings, the Donruss Americana brand is still the best game in town for those in search of a Hollywood / Celebrity themed trading card product.
Design
2009 Donruss Americana sports an updated, revamped base card design. The base card and base card parallels have been printed using metallic chrome-like technology. All in all this is a big improvement from past Donruss Americana releases as it adds a higher quality, premium feel to the set. I'm still not crazy about the design of the insert and memorabilia cards, both of which have remained largely unchanged. Their design, while perhaps appropriate for a Hollywood themed trading card set, is gaudy and overwhelming. Overall the design has improved since last year. Those interested in building the 2009 Donruss Americana base set will appreciate these improvements the most, while collectors who are chasing the set's many hits are unlikely to notice much of a change from a design perspective.
Value
2009 Donruss Americana is a reasonably priced product. It features 4 hits per box, as well as 4 numbered inserts and a host of base cards. Overall this year's Donruss Americana release has a premium feel at a lower mid end price point.
Box Break
My review box yielded the following highlights:
Checklist
2009 Donruss Americana has some great past celebrities, but is sorely lacking big name modern day icons. All in all it is still a unique enough product that the lack of big names isn't a deal breaker. Many of the subjects don't have any other trading cards, so if this type of set is your thing then this could easily be an asset rather then a liability.
Enjoyability
2009 Donruss Americana was a fun product to break. With so many potential pulls to be had, opening each pack was an exciting experience. The 4-pack box break lasted all of 5 minutes, which may turn off collectors who are in search of a more prolonged box break experience. The 4 packs was enough to satisfy me, especially considering the 2009 Donruss Americana's price point.
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 2009 DONRUSS AMERICANA 5 BOX LOT US $39.00 |  2009 DONRUSS AMERICANA 10 BOX LOT US $84.00 |  2009 DONRUSS AMERICANA 5 BOX LOT US $39.00 |  2009 DONRUSS AMERICANA JACKIE CHAN CARD 1 US $.99 |
