The 5 Most Valuable Fictional Currencies
It’s a shame – Galactic Credit Standard used to be worth something.
It’s a shame – Galactic Credit Standard used to be worth something.
(Photo Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures)
The U.S. Federal Reserve has a new hundo that will be hitting your billfold this fall (it’s a different kind of Hot 100), and while we can’t say that our pockets are usually full of Benny’s (we’re usually putting our money into, uh, baby animal charities and totally not bookies’ pockets), we can say that we do like the futuristic look of the bill. It makes us feel like we are buying things on a different planet, where cars fly, doors open automatically, and 99 of the Hot 100 didn’t spurn our advances (we’ll call you later, Hoda).
So, in honor of the new paper, we ranked the top fictional currencies, starting with the least valuable.
5. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Leaves
On the planet Fintlewoodlewix, the residents decided to make the leaf an official currency, which all of a sudden made everyone very, very rich. However, if you know anything about economics and inflation (we don’t, but we called our high school teacher, Mr. Flemberton), you’ll know that this immediately makes everyone really, really poor. So what did the Fintlewooldlewicksians do? Burnt down the forests, of course. Did you pay NO attention in class (again, we didn’t)?
4. The Flintstones – Clams
In the Flintstoniverse, essentially everything is made of rock (including the television, of course), but carved rock money has its drawbacks (anyone with a chisel can counterfeit; being rich hurts your back), so they monetized clams. As a result, just like in the real world, people who live on the beach are freaking stacked. And, if you are an enthusiast of The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas (who isn’t?) you can even own some of the actual clams from the set! You never know who may have touched it; maybe even whichever one of the shitty Baldwin brothers was in it!
3. Spaceballs – Space Bucks
The currency in Spaceballs seems to be exactly the same as ours is here in the real world, but with the word “space” thrown in front of it. In fact, that is the case for (and the beauty of) much of the movie. So it’s only fair to stick it right in the middle of the list. Fun fact: The soundtrack for Spaceballs features Berlin, Van Halen, and Bon Jovi, and none of that is for the sake of parody! Oh, 1980s.
2. Star Wars – Galactic Credit Standard
Like most things in the Star Wars universe (even ice cream-maker guy), the Galactic Credit Standard has an unnecessarily intricate back story. The currency, which comes in cubes, bills, coins, and chips, survived the Empire (though it was briefly renamed “Imperial Credits”), so we’ll count it as the gold standard of sci-fi currency. The genre is no stranger to using the “credit” as a fictional currency – Total Recall, Demolition Man, and Judge Dredd are just the tip of the iceberg – but at least George Lucas had the sense to add “Galactic” and “Standard” to distinguish it. That’s why they pay him the big bucks.
1. Harry Potter – Galleons
The wizarding world tends to come under a lot of heat from the non-14-year-old girl demographic, but we will admit that those robed guys have something going for them: Gold. Credits and bills (and clams!) can feel good in your hand, but nothing makes you feel the joy of plundering quite like an armful of straight treasure. And honestly, who doesn’t like a good plunder?
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