I just completed putting together master sets from this era, specifically the years during which I collected as a kid (81-91).
My own personal favorite sets, based solely on looks (as opposed to value, rookie cards, variations or anything else):
1981 Fleer
1983 Topps
1987 Topps
1987 Donruss
1988 Topps
1989 Topps
1990 Fleer
1991 Upper Deck
As someone who sorted cards by teams (then and now as I ripped packs) most of the non-Topps issues were maddening because they were hard to sort in this fashion at high speed - nothing much to go on other than an often small team logo. That's one of the reasons 1990 Fleer was such a welcome change of pace.
I've often heard that it was good for Topps to get the competition in 1981 - that they had grown stale. But I think that with the exception of 1979, the sets of the 1970s (and 1980 for that matter) were some of the best ever. By contrast, I count 1982, 1985, 1986 and 1990 as some of their worst looking offerings, and this when they had to compete against 2, then 3 then 4 competitors.
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