The NPD department
would create the artwork and card type, but the actual Art department
was in charge of the overall design and layout, and would produce the
composition of the front side and card backs as well as the promotional
material and packaging. Composition images were generated to help guide
the final card type design and artwork placement. Artist Jay Lynch had
mentioned that although the ‘COMIC‘ backs were
created as a parody of the ‘BAZOOKA JOE‘ bubble-gum
comics with premiums, the inspiration for the actual feel for the GPK
card backs came from the ‘LITTLE CREEPS‘ comics
that he created in the late 70’s that ran for several years and were
modeled and/or rendered after these monster-themed comics, and took
it a step further by spoofing mail-order novelty products often found
in the back of comic books. The later iteration of GPK comics would
be titled The Garbage Gang.

“The
comic strip with premium … I wrote and did roughs for [most of] this
series. In these comics ones … several artists did the backs. I’m
not sure if I wrote the Oedipus specs gag … If I didn’t , Spiegelman
did. It could be that many of the gags on the backs of the 8th Series
are what was left over from the 6th Series.”
— JAY Lynch, circa 2003.

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 293A Explorin’ NORMAN and 293B Drillin’ DYLAN
FEATURES
the OS3 character for card (115a Warmin’ NORMAN and) 115b Well Done SHELDON, seen
in the same predicament and conversing with the OS5 character for card 190a Gory
RORY (and 190b GIL Grill), seen with marshmallows on a stick instead of a hand;
using the ‘camp’-fire to roast the marshmallows. NOTE: the
marshmallow that the character is holding in the final panel should be colored
white instead of flesh tone.

—
The character
in dire straits believes the scout will be saving him, by putting out the fire
and untying him, not returning with a bag of marshmallows. The novelty product,
premium ‘#314’, mentions “IT’S VERY EUROPEAN!”
and plays up the social and cultural commonality that European females don’t always
shave their undearms (and/or legs).

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 294A Weird WENDELL and 294B LUKE At Me FEATURES
the OS2 character for card 54a Fryin’ RYAN (and 54b Charred CHAD), pictured looking
for his next city conquest and asking for recommendations and conversing with
the OS3 character for card 124a HUGH Mungous (and 124b King-Size KEVIN), seen
still catching airplanes with his busy hands and pointing out the direction to
his suggested destination.

—
A
level of humor to note is that the character drops the female hostage
and the captured biplane in order to point out the direction. Also,
the New Jersey city of Hoboken, mentioned within the strip, lies on
the Hudson River and gets a lot of press flak; ex. after the
2007 Orbit Gum commercial used the city name as an euphemism within
the commerical, the city demanded it to be removed.

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 300A CORRINA Corona and 300B Smoky JOE FEATURES
the OS2 character for card 51a RUSSELL Muscle (and 51b BRETT Sweat), pictured
without his weights and conversing with the OS3 character for card (117a ROCKY
N. Roll and) 117b LES Vegas, seen without his guitar and microphone and attempting
to close up his rhinestone-studded shirt—it is unknown whether he managed
to clasp shut his unbelted pants.

—
The
character is struggling to button his shirt that’s stretching around
his round and rotund stomach; it is unknown if the man of muscles has
the strength the close the deal either. The novelty product, premium
‘#222’, mentions “OVER A BAKER’S DOZEN”
which means a group or set of thirteen, so the ‘BAG-O-WORMS‘
contains over thirteen squirmy wormies. The invertebrate animals make
a great pet because they’re alive and wriggling; and they’re a hearty
appetiser (and only better than french fries) because of their
high protein content; not sure about their flavor though.

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 301A Bowling ELAINE and 301B MIKE Strike FEATURES
the OS4 character for card 141a ASHLEY Can (and 141b GRETA Garbage), pictured
without her trash bag and trash can and conversing with the OS4 character for
card 162a Yicchy MICKEY (and 162b Barfin’ BART), seen with a fork and intestines—rather
than a fork and plate of slop and glop.

—
To “hate
someone’s guts” is informal for having a strong hatred or feeling
for them; the strip takes the literal sense of guts (aka intestines) and
serves it as a heated and hated delicacy. The novelty product, premium ‘#490’,
mentions “BEDWETTERS” and the embarrassment that
follows the event of bedwetting; the involuntary urination during sleep. There
is a stigma that surrounds wetting the bed AND having the worst, most unoriginal
Hallowe’en costume: a ghost (with potential stains). A rubber or plastic fitted
bed sheet helps as a barricade between the pee and mattress.

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 304A Rubbin’ ROBYN and 304B Soapy OPIE FEATURES
the OS2 character for card 49a Double HEATHER (and 49b Schizo FRAN & 49b FRAN
FRAN), pictured working and playing together and conversing with the OS2 character
for card (71a Odd TODD and) 71b Bent BEN, seen without his keys and bell—but
still seen bent double; being playing and toyed with by the double-the-trouble
twins.

—
The
character, already slightly self-conscious about his outer appearance,
would rather play a boardgame, like the suggested ‘MONOPOLY‘,
that takes more brain skill, rather than being a physical part of ring
toss. The novelty product, premium ‘#693’, mentions “PEOPLE
OPPOSED TO REGULAR BATHING” which assumes that if you’re
that scummy you don’t mind wearing trash or the dead insects that infest
your household (due to lack of cleaning), purchasing an item you could
find for free, and that you have no fashion sense. The ‘SPACKLE‘
is a compound used to fill cracks in plaster to produce a smooth surface;
so it should technically fill in any ear holes as well.

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 308A FRITZ Spritz and 308B ELLA P. Record FEATURES
the OS2 character for card (43a Smelly KELLY and) 43b DOUG Plug, pictured without
his ‘normal’ non-GPK mutt and conversing with the OS2 character for card 74a MARK
Bark (and 71b Kennel KENNY), seen without his dog bowl and fleas—but still
in possession of his dog bone and lifting his leg in a steady position for ‘ready,
aim, fire!’ tactics.

—
A
wordy comic strip, but it delievers very well with the dry humor;
the phrase ‘ALL WET‘, at least in North America,
means you believe the person is ‘completely wrong’ or ‘full of it’,
talking complete nonsense… being ‘full of crap’, instead of water
(being a fire hydrant and all). The novelty product, premium ‘#9018’,
takes an existing, relatively cheap, consumer product and renames it
for a different overstock item in hand. The consumer gets a regular
hand fruit squeezer and has to supply their own insects.

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 310A Stinkin’ STELLA and 310B Smellin’ HELEN
FEATURES
the OS5 character for card (175a Windy WINSTON and) 175b JOHNNY One-Note, pictured
in the exact same position, stage curtain and all, and conversing with the OS4
character for card 134a Hip KIP (and 134b WALT Witless), seen without his bongos—but
the beatnik has traded in his poem book for some music beats, or rather, toots.

—
One character
is referencing the strong-smell exclamation, ‘PEE-YEW!‘,
and the other character is referencing the lifeless music sound of ‘B-FLAT?‘;
one character falls flat while the other falls flat on his back. The novelty product,
premium ‘#372’, clearly points out the fish is a man-eating specimen, so it would
definitely make your next pool party more exciting. Caveat: the dental floss is
for the fish (and your remains).

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 311A STU Spew and 311B Slimin’ SIMON FEATURES
the OS2 character for card 205a Hot ROD (and 205b BUD Buggy), pictured with his
tongue flopping to the side in the wind and conversing with the OS5 character
for card 180a Haunted HOLLIS (and 180b Batty BARNEY), who isn’t seen roosting
upside down and sleeping, but rather, awake and flying within the short story.

—
The word
‘PEOPLE!‘ is in bold because it’s part of the punchline,
but also because the two characters are considered more monster-like and creature-like;
it’s a nice inhumane comparison of character and makes for a nice impact.
The novelty product, premium ‘#476’, mentions ‘100% NATURAL FIBERS!’,
‘NO SYNTHETICS‘, but it really depends on what your shirt material is made
up of; cotton, polyester, etc. Navel lint is mainly stray fibers from clothing
mixed with dead skin cells, body hair, dust, sweat, et cetera, that moves to the
exterior navel region of your stomach due to friction with body hair. ‘NAVEL
RESEARCH‘ is a name parody for the NRL, the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory
(part of the Navy and Marine Corps.) that conducts basic scientific research.

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 313A GRAHAM Bell and 313B Death NELL FEATURES
the OS4 character for card 126a Armpit BRITT (and 126b Shaggy AGGIE), pictured
in a very similar position, flies and all, and conversing with the OS2 character
for card (72a Mad MAX and) 72b Brainy BRIAN, seen without his brains and science
equipment—but using his nose, and sense of smell, instead.

—
Your brain
gets used to smells within your immediate surroundings; it’s why you (usually)
can’t smell yourself, your house aroma, along with your favorite cologne/perfume,
et cetar, after the inital squirt. The novelty product, premium ‘#930’, humorously
takes a conehead bald cap, a wig-like cap, and places fake hair on it to simulate
an actual wig. Your own natural dandruff and dead skin cells are already present,
stuck under the cap.

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 317A JAMES Flames and 317B Burnin’ VERNON FEATURES
the OS5 character for card 201a MICHAEL Mutant (and 201b ZEKE Freak), pictured
with his monster mouth closed and conversing with the OS4 character for card 134a
Hip KIP (and 134b WALT Witless), seen without his poem book and bongos, but actually
holding his newly refilled, pink ceramic mug.

—
A scraggly-looking
beard may often simulate the appearance of thin armpit hair. The novelty product,
premium ‘#107’, mentions ‘CAN ONLY USE IT ONCE‘ due to its
delicate nature of being made from glass instead of plastic; even with a ‘FRAGILE‘
breakable S&H sticker, the item would most likely arrive broken and not survive
the shipping and manhandling of services these days. The premium item is nicely
matched with the fly-infested GPK characters.

—
The card pre-production
layout picture above, post paste-up step, includes the GPK logo, tight
ink lines, and speech bubble lettering, but does not include any color,
‘FEATURING‘ characters type or the premium
card type. These show nice tight ink lines in B&W without the comic
strip color. Topps has posted several of these items up for sale on
eBay through their Topps Vault store over the years. In printing, a
back margin (B.M.) on a press sheet is the total distance from the type
on one page to that of the facing page, or twice the back margin of
a single page. Also referred to as gutter margin, the space between
columns of type, determined by the number and width of columns and the
overall width of the area to be filled.

Original
Final Artwork: TOM BUNK

Original Series —
two Puzzle Preview cards: 305 + 319 — twenty-one
Puzzle Piece cards: 295,
296, 298 (x2), 299, 302, 303, 306, 307, 309, 312, 314, 315, 316, 318 (x2), 324,
325, 327, 332 + 333.

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 320A Pumping AARON and 320B WILL Explode FEATURES
the OS1 character for card (35a Wrinkly RANDY and) 35b Rockin’ ROBERT, pictured
sitting on a park bench instead of his rocking chair and conversing with the OS2
character for card (78a Wrinkled RITA and) 78b Ancient ANNIE, also seen sitting
on a park bench—without her black poodle or massive diamond pinky ring.

—
Simple
comic strip perfection;
silence followed by seven simple words; the old odd couple believe they’re
on a city bus. The novelty product, premium ‘#749’, does not mention
if the high-class food is dehydrated where you just add water to the
‘PRESTIGIOUS PUKE‘. The adjective, ‘STATUS-CONSCIOUS‘
means to be aware of, or excessively interested in, one’s own social
status. Althought the word ‘tosser’ is slang for a different
meaning in the UK, ‘COOKIE TOSSER‘ in the States
means a person vomits easily; on rollercoasters, et cetera.

—
The reverse card pre-production
layouts pictured above, pre & post paste-up step, are with &
w/o the GPK logo, tight ink lines, speech-bubble lettering, premium
item image, and with & w/o the trademark line; but both layouts
do not include any colour, the ‘FEATURING‘
characters type, or the premium card type.

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 321A Squashed JOSH and 321B Squoze ROSE FEATURES
the OS1 character for card 10a Tee-Vee STEVIE—spelled ‘T.V. STEVIE’ on the
comic—(and
10b Geeky GARY), pictured with a sideways profile without his mini TV sets and
conversing with the OS3 character for card 106a Fowl RAOUL (and 106b MACK Quack),
also seen standing sideways—yelling with no expletives.

—
The
audience doesn’t know why the GPK character screaming at the television
set until the Presidential punchline. This is one of two reverse card
backs with a dark blue GPK logo instead of the light blue color. The
novelty product, premium ‘#336’, mentions the popular and ‘punny’ (funny
+ pun) booger joke ‘IT’S SNOT!‘ and ‘BOOGERS
NOT INCLUDED‘; you’ll have to pick your own (nose).

—
The
comic back for OS8 reverse card 322A K.O.’d KARL and 322B Sparrin’ WARREN
FEATURES
the OS3 character for card 102a Mugged MARCUS (and 102b Kayo’d CODY), pictured
with a partially healed mug and conversing with the OS2 character for card 44a
SY Clops (and 44b One-Eyed Jack), looking very normal-sized and non-giant-like,
both watching the OS4 character for card (151a Losing FAITH and) 151b Dyin’ DINAH
falling from the sky like an angel sent from the heavens. The only OS8 comic strip
to FEATURE three different GPK characters.

—
The
girl, whose boyfriend probably tied her to the bomb, will ‘CHANGE‘
his ‘LIFE‘ forever because he’ll be DEAD, blown
to kingdom come and smithereens. To ‘FALL OUT OF THE
SKY‘ means to enter the company of a group of people, especially
by chance. The novelty product, premium ‘#777’, mentions ‘ONLY
THE RIPEST AND RICHEST COLUMBIAN EARWAX‘ is picked out of an
ear, a parody of 80’s commercials stating only the ripest and richest
Columbian coffee beans are picked. The premium couldn’t be sold to the
‘WOMEN’S ARMY CORPS‘ (WAC), created in 1942 as
an auxillary unit, because it was disbanded in 1978 where all units
were integrated with male units.

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 323A Piece O’ LISA and 323B Wedding BELLA FEATURES
the OS4 character for card 138a Alien IAN (and 138b Outerspace CHASE), pictured
without his female hostage and conversing with the OS2 character for card (46a
Rappin’ RON and) 46b RAY Gun, seen without his podium and mic—but holding
an ‘AD LIBS‘ for the non-intelligent lifeform bit.

—
Does ‘GPKKPG‘
stand for the planet ‘Garbage Pail Kids Kids Pail Garbage’? Reminiscent of the
Russian KGB (Komitet gosudarstvennoy bezopasnosti), the main security agency for
the Soviet Union until 1991. The only reverse card back comic strip with a pink
GPK logo for the OS8 release. To ad lib is an example of an improvised public
speech, to speak ‘on the fly’. The novelty product, premium ‘#41916’, pokes fun
at D.I.Y. home repair using explosive T.N.T., which would also remove warts, along
with your face.

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 326A Leather HEATHER and 326B Chained SHANE FEATURES
the OS3 character for card 122a Broad MAUD (and 122b Large MARGE), pictured without
her light snacks and conversing with the OS1 character for card (19a Corroded
CARL and) 19b Crater CHRIS, seen without his zit goo and acne lotion—but
sporting a chef’s hat, fka a toque blanche.

—
The top
chef is giving a big cottage cheese squeeze to his zit to supply the last requested
pizza topping. The novelty product, premium ‘#25436’, categorizes chewing gum
as a health food snack; Topps unshamingly plugging their own product of ‘BAZOOKA’.
The premium references ‘100% ALL NATURAL RUBBER‘ and ‘APPROVED
BY MOTHER NATURE‘ because gum was originally made from a tree sap called
‘chicle’, a natural rubber; however, after WWII a synthetic rubber was created
replacing most natural rubber in chewing gum.

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 328A Glowing AMBER and 328B Bright DWIGHT FEATURES
the OS5 character for card (173a Menaced DENNIS and) 173b Wormy SHERMY, pictured
wide awake & out of bed, conversing with the OS5 character for card (170a
RICHIE Retch and) 170b LUKE Puke, seen still barfing, ‘BARF!‘
exclamation and all.

—
Although
the character did not let out a ‘CHIRP‘, a short, sharp,
high-pitched sound made by small birds and insects, the other character is imitating
the act of regurgitation; disgorging food back to the mouth. The novelty product,
premium ‘#906’, is reusing soiled kitty-litter and rebranding it as celebratory
confetti and mentions ‘OFFER VOID WHERE “NO LITTERING”
LAWS APPLY‘, which is practically all 50 States since they tend to have
anti-litter laws and various littering fines everywhere, so not
sure they’ll be selling a great deal.

—
The pre-production,
color rough card concept was hand drawn, lettered, and colored by artist JAY Lynch.
The ‘FEATURING‘
section lists, and the comic strip showcases, the OS5 GPK character (198a Gore
MAY and) 198b CONNIE Sewer who does not show up on a printed card for the OS8
release. The comic
strip portion was re-worked for cards 328A Glowing AMBER and 328B Bright DWIGHT,
now FEATURING
GPK characters ‘Wormy SHERMY’ and ‘LUKE Puke’; perhaps CONNIE Sewer is upset she
got stuck with the poop-shoot half. Although shortened, the
‘PREMIUM ONLY‘ was kept intact but found on cards 322A K.O.’d
KARL and 322B Sparrin’ WARREN, replaced with kitty-litter confetti.

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 329A LEM Phlegm and 329B Gezundt HEIDI FEATURES
the OS2 character for card (67a Phony LISA and) 67b MONA Loser, pictured without
her backdrop and posing for the OS1 character for card (19a Corroded CARL and)
19b Crater CHRIS, seen without his zit goo and acne lotion—but sporting painter’s
hat, fka a beret; tossing aside his paintbrush and going for a splatter
affect.

—
A cheap
copy-cat ‘Mona Lisa’ will not be reproduced, instead, some ‘POP
ART!‘, popular culture artwork from popped zits. The novelty
product, premium ‘#4747’, of ‘6-PACK O’BODY FLUIDS‘, blood,
snot, pus, mucus, saliva and piquant (having a pleasantly intriquing sharp taste
or an interesting flavor) “MYSTERY LIQUID” is
poking fun at the six essential nutriants: protein, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins,
minerals and water.

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 330A Lotta LOTTA and 330B Dupli-KIT FEATURES
the OS5 character for card (170a RICHIE Retch and) 170b LUKE Puke, seen green-faced
& almost throwing-up, conversing with the OS2 character for card 45a Leaky
LINDSAY (and 45b Messy TESSIE), seen without her cat-cradle web of snot, tissues,
and allergy products—but with a finger up her nose and being grossed out.

—
Does
kissing stop vomiting? Or, does the victim get a mouthful of puke? The
novelty product, premium ‘#966’, mentions waterbeds which skyrocketed
in popularity from the mid-70s to the late 80s. Bed-bugs are parasitic
bloodsucking bugs that often infest houses, especially beds. The new
‘WATERBED BUGS‘ fuses these critters with gills
in order to survive damp wet places. Who misses that water-in-plastic
lapping noise?

—
The comic
back for OS8 reverse card 334A ASHLEY To Ashes and 334B DUSTIN To Dust
FEATURES
the OS4 character for card 134a Hip KIP (and 134b WALT Witless), seen without
his poem book, bongos & pink ceramic mug, and conversing with the OS3 character
for card (92a MARVIN Gardens and) 92b Spittin’ SPENCER, seen in a non-fountain
scenario—free range, and not solidified to the spot, but still spitting.

—
A beard
on fire can allude to somone with red/auburn hair, but in this case most likely
from a lighter and oily hair; and spitting on someone’s face is usually an offensive
insult. The novelty product, premium ‘#704’, is another money-making scheme selling
consumer hair product received for free. Since most collectors are prepubescent,
this would be ideal for making Hallowe’en characters, et cetera. It is ‘(OUR
CHOICE)‘ considering they have no control over the hair color of free clippings
and sweepings from barbershops.