Iconic Rookies: 1989 Topps Back to the Future II #87 – Michael J. Fox Is Marty McFly

Every hobby has its blind spots. In sports, it’s usually some mid-80s parallel no one cared about at the time. In non-sports, it’s often the most obvious stuff of all: the cards that capture the exact image burned into everyone’s brain… that somehow still trade for lunch money.

That’s exactly where this one lives:

1989 Topps Back to the Future II #87 – “Michael J. Fox Is Marty McFly.”

If you picture Marty, odds are you see this era: the red-and-gray future jacket, the Nike high-tops, and of course the DeLorean door flipped open behind him. That’s what makes this one such a perfect candidate for the Iconic Rookies list.

What Makes This a “Rookie” for Marty McFly?

Like most of the cards in this series, we’re not talking about a literal first appearance of Michael J. Fox on paper – he’d been famous for years. What we’re chasing is the first, best, and most representative trading card of the character: Marty McFly.

• It’s an officially licensed Topps release tied to Back to the Future II.
• The card literally spells it out: “MICHAEL J. FOX IS MARTY McFLY” across the bottom.
• It’s a solo, front-and-center character shot, not a crowded scene or bit part.
• The pose, outfit, and car are all peak BTTF branding in one image.

If you’re defining “rookie” the way we’ve been doing in this series – as the first truly definitive card for a pop-culture character – this checks every box for Marty.

A Quick Look at the 1989 Topps Back to the Future II Set

Topps gave Back to the Future II the full late-80s movie set treatment. If you collected anything from that era, the design language will feel familiar the second you see it.

• Year: 1989
• Manufacturer: Topps
• Theme: Scenes and character shots from BTTF II – the “future 2015,” alternate timelines, and some crossover from the original film.

Card #87 sits in the character / highlight section of the checklist. The fronts use bold, colorful borders and a big directional arrow at the bottom to hold the caption, which gives the whole set this fun “video rental store” energy: loud, bright, and very un-subtle.

It’s not rare. These were mass-market movie cards meant for kids, not case-hit inserts. But the specific combination of character, caption, and composition on #87 puts it in a different conversation than most of its neighbors.

Breaking Down the Image

The front of card #87 is basically a checklist of everything you’d want in a Marty McFly card:

• Marty front and center. He’s leaning against the DeLorean, looking straight at the camera – no question who’s the star here.
• The future outfit. Red and gray self-adjusting jacket, jeans, and those unmistakable sneakers. It nails the “2015” look that 80s kids thought was the future.
• DeLorean as co-star. The gullwing door is up, the time machine is visible, but it’s still very clearly background to Marty.
• Bold caption. The bottom arrow reads “MICHAEL J. FOX IS MARTY McFLY”, which is exactly the kind of caption you want on a character rookie.

Visually, it’s one of those cards where even a non-collector glancing at your binder will point and go, “Oh man, that one’s cool.” That’s a good sign.

PSA Pop Report & Set Page

If you want to dig into how many copies of this card and set have been graded, check out the PSA population report for the full release:

PSA Population Report – 1989 Topps Back to the Future II (set overview)

Once you’re on PSA, search for “1989 Topps Back to the Future II” and click into the set page. That’ll give you the full pop breakdown by card, plus links to auction prices for #87 specifically.

Condition, Grading, and Why This Card Still Flies Under the Radar

Like most late-80s Topps movie sets, Back to the Future II wasn’t printed with “future PSA registry battles” in mind. The good news: you can still find raw copies everywhere. The challenge: truly high-grade examples are trickier than they look.

Things That Trip Up Grades

• Colorful borders. The red/yellow/blue border combo makes any edge nicks or chipping very obvious.
• Centering. Left-right centering can wander, and the strong border colors make it easy to spot.
• Surface. Minor print snow or roller lines sometimes show up in the background or on the DeLorean.

The upshot is that while raw copies are cheap and plentiful, truly sharp candidates for PSA/BGS/CGC 9+ aren’t sitting in every pile. And yet, even graded examples often sell for what you’d expect to pay for a nice modern insert, not for one of the most recognizable characters in 80s cinema.

Why This Card Belongs in an Iconic Rookies Run

Step back and look at the bigger picture. In this series we’ve covered:

• Christopher Reeve’s Superman from 1978
• Rocky’s “Meet ‘Rocky’” card
• Yoda’s Star File rookie
• Indiana Jones’ Freelance Adventurer
• Keaton’s Batman, Chunk from The Goonies, Bartman, and more

What ties all of them together is the idea that certain characters transcend their movies. They become shorthand for entire eras – and their first great trading cards are basically tiny, affordable monuments to that.

Marty McFly checks every one of those boxes:

• The trilogy still has hardcore fans across multiple generations.
• The DeLorean is one of the most famous “movie vehicles” ever built.
• The “future 2015” look has become its own meme, especially around sneaker culture.
• Michael J. Fox himself has an enormous amount of goodwill and respect attached to his name.

And yet, this card – which nails all of that in one shot – usually sells for the price of a couple of modern hobby packs.

Collecting Ideas: Building Around #87

If you want to do more than just grab a single copy and call it a day, here are a few ways to build a mini PC around this card:

• The “Time Machine” page. Pair this Marty with other iconic character + vehicle cards: X-Wing Luke, KITT from Knight Rider, the Batmobile, Ecto-1, etc.
• Back to the Future run. Add Doc Brown, the DeLorean-only cards, and a few key scene cards from BTTF II and III.
• 80s movie heroes. Slot Marty alongside Indy, Rocky, Goonies, and other lead characters from the same decade.
• Graded ladder. Try to build a raw + PSA 7 + PSA 8 + PSA 9 ladder and see what kind of eye-appeal differences you can spot.

Final Thoughts

1989 Topps Back to the Future II #87 – “Michael J. Fox Is Marty McFly” – is exactly what this Iconic Rookies series is about.

It’s not rare, it’s not a secret, and it’s not hiding in a warehouse somewhere. It’s just a great, deeply nostalgic card that the broader market hasn’t caught up to yet.

If you’re building a character-first collection, this belongs right next to your Superman, Batman, Rocky, Indy, and Yoda. And if you ever needed an excuse to re-watch the trilogy while flipping through a binder, well… nobody’s going to judge you for that.

Roads? Where we’re going, we don’t need roads. But we do need top loaders.