They are designed by Eric Duan aka mloong and produced by Diavoli productions.

What’s to like?

They handle beautifully and the back design is very intricate and attractive. With the compass points it is inherently ‘1-way’ – which is potentially useful.

The jokers, too, are nicely designed, and sit well with the theme. If you look closely you will see one is holding a dagger and one a harp. There is also a double backed card supply which is a nice touch with many uses for magicians.

We mainly like the work on the Ace of Spades, but have a few issues with the blue ink – about which more below… We’re also unsure whether the spelling of ‘pirate’ on the Ace (it is spelled ‘Piraue’) is deliberate and has some meaning, or is an accident.

What’s not so good?

I suspect the colouring of the cards will be a Marmite thing. Some will love it and some will hate it. Various (arbitrary?) pips are coloured blue. Here’s what a hand of spades looks like:

Here are some on the hearts:

And different aspects of the court cards are coloured blue according to suit and value:

There appears to be no rhyme nor reason to this. So for example, only the Jack of Spades has blue hair – no other Jacks, no other spade court cards, in fact just no other cards. The Queen of Spades and Diamonds both have blue hairbands but not the Queen of Hearts or Clubs.

Perhaps a more inventive magician than me will come up for a routine which capitalises on these variations.

Or perhaps there is more to it than meets the eye – there is an extra card supplied which hints at a secret hidden in the cards.

All in all I think I was a little disappointed with the look of these.

The Black version has black faces with purple colouring which looks better from my point of view.

But I have seen other reviews taking the opposite view.

You will have to decide for yourself at the end of the day. They are a limited edition – only 2,500 printed – so will probably be collectible. The good news is we have a black and a white deck up for grabs in our summer competition and still plenty of time to enter.

Alternatively you can buy them from:

Cards4Magic for £9
Bicycle Playing Card Supplies for £8

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