In this episode we unwrap and review some Christmas presents; three mystery decks from
Art of Play. Give you a chance to get in on the holiday gift fun. And we announce the
winner of Art of Magic Kit from the USPS. All that and more coming up next.
[Musc]
Ho ho ho! Pretty convincing right? I been working on filling out this costume all year long. Anyway
It’s Christmas day! Time to open presents!
There's something about the idea of unwrapping gifts. Especially when
you have no idea what's underneath the wrapping paper.
The last couple years now Art of Play has
offered mystery decks for purchase. A play on that idea.
These are decks from their catalog including stuff
that's available for purchase right now currently as well as older limited or rare editions of decks
that have been distributed through them that may have never seen wide release. I reached
out to them and they were gracious enough to sponsor this episode by sending me a batch
of six mystery decks. I'm going to be opening three of them in the next few minutes.
I have literally no idea what they’ll contain--and also I’ll be giving away the remaining three; one each
to three lucky winners so you want to make sure to stay all the way to the end of
that of this video for that contest. So really that's all the introduction I can do right
now until we know what we're dealing with. So anyway, why don't we start with the first deck? Just
want to welcome everyone back, I’m the Gentleman Wake. I hope you're having a great holiday break.
If you’re new here, I hope this video will
compel you to like and subscribe. Subscribers,
hit that notification bell to be alerted every time a new video goes up on this channel!
Alright, now it’s time to open some presents!
Before we get unwrap the first one, it’s worth taking a minute to admire the design
of the gift wrap on the mystery decks. The wrapping paper is brilliantly detailed with
a collection of predominantly red and white trinkets that all reference Art of Play’s
typical product catalog, all hiding within the leaves of green christmas laurels. There
are dice and tops and jacks and puzzles. There’s playing cards and chess pieces. Oragami and
rubik’s cubes. Part of the fun is just sitting with the wrapped deck to uncover the little
gameplay related easter eggs. The wrapping paper is held in place by a gold wax seal
which features the art of play logo. The mystery decks all retailed for about $12 and perusing
the list of available decks it was a great value--as some of the possible mystery decks
included some that regularly fetch three to four times the retail value of the mystery
deck itself.
My first mystery deck from Dan and Dave and artist play yielded the green Lucky Draw playing
cards. Available in both red and green, this green version was first made available through
Art of play on Saint Patrick's Day of 2018.
The tuck boxes are premium quality matte paper cardstock and include some gold foil accenting
and some light embossing. The front of the Box features a loose or rather an impressionistic
interpretation of a traditional Court King. It’s as if a traditional king was simplified
down to color blocked triangles and line work reminiscent of Cubist paintings like the kind
you'd see from Pablo Picasso.
The back design is a repeating diamond pattern featuring a large green diamond in the middle
surrounded with navy and eggshell tone triangles. It's a simple design that's extremely eye-catching
especially. with regards to cardistry. The color block style lends itself well to fans
and flourishes.
Bold as the back designs are the faces of the cards are a little more muted especially
the red suits in the deck which feature no black detailing and therefore lack contrast.
Actually it's almost a contradiction from a design-perspective that the faces of the
cards include no solid blocks of color; red, black or otherwise. Plus the cards feature
white faces, which is a strange choice given that the blank card included within the deck
is the same egg-shell cream-colored hue found on the back design.
The courts are based on the linework seen on the front of the tuck but ultimately made
less interesting by the lack of color. Additionally the king, queen and jacks are identical regardless
of suit which is a bit off putting. It actually feels like the back and tuck were designed
by a different designer then the one responsible for the faces of the cards. Even the pips
are a strange compromise. They are formed by a outline style of thin strokes that gives
them a maze-like appearance. The better artistic, and frankly easier to read choice would have
been going for a color blocked shape style for the pips more consistent with the back
design of the deck, which after all features what amounts to a giant diamond pip on the
back.
Also included in the deck is an Art of Play ad card and two identical one-way jokers that
DO feature strong color blocking--hinting to what could’ve been.
The cards are USPCC printed which of course means that they handle excellently. They are
air-cushioned crushed stock and modern-cut. The deck feels springy and the back design
gives the deck a fluidity of motion that is really cool. A note regarding the faces is
that some cardists do actually prefer high contrast between faces and backs as it adds
to certain displays; that may explain the muted faces.
Before we unwrap the next gift under my tree, let me take a moment to announce the winner
of the Art of Magic magician’s kit from the USPS. Congrats to Nancy Anderson who’s
first trick was called the Red Hot Mama. Contact me via facebook or instagram Nancy to claim
your magician’s kit. While I’m in the spirit of giving, stay tuned because I’m
going to give you the details on the Art of Play mystery decks giveaway soon.
The second mystery deck I opened turned out to be the Sons of Liberty, Patriot Blue edition
deck. Released a few years ago in White and Black editions, this Patriot blue Sons of
Liberty deck is a well regarded release from designer Jeff Trish and Dan & Dave Playing
Cards. The tuck box is premium midnight blue matte card stock with gold and silver foil
stamping and embossing through out. It’s a beautiful tuck case that predominantly features
wood-cut style artwork inspired by the 18th century subject matter.
The front of the deck reads The Sons of Liberty Playing Cards established in 1765. Above it
announces in gold that the deck is made in the USA, by the united states playing card
company, and the bottom has the roman numeral iteration of the year of America’s independence;
1776. Which is an odd discrepancy from the 1765 printed just above. Behind the text,
ghosted into the background, are additional embossed linework evoking clouds or smoke.
The sides of the deck include some banner-style artwork reiterating the parties responsible
for the deck. The back is a fantastic two-way design representing the card backs and incorporating
some colonial era iconography commonly associated with the country’s formation. Eagles circle
around the center S & L anagram that of course stands for the decks name. The eagles are
contained with a framework created by the leg’s of a pair of architect’s compasses.
They give an impression of a pyramid thanks to the all-seeing eye framed within the compass
legs. An interesting note is that the very tip of the compass legs feel like bayoneted
muskets--which is a deliberate choice. There are some radiating lines emanating from the
eyes. In the corner there is more script with flowing banners. They read “Rebellion to
Tyrants is Obedience to God.” The deck is held closed by an unbleached brown paper seal
that mimics a poison label complete with the word VOID written across the forehead of the
skull. Opening the box reveals a a radiating star pattern and the words Liberty or Death.
One more small design detail is the diptych image on the small flaps. The top half of
a fork-tongued snake is mirrored by the image of a lit fuse.
The brilliant design work continues onto the cards as well. The back design is white lines
printed on a dark blue field encased within a poker style border. The deck includes a
Dan & Dave ad card done in the wood-cut style, There’s a second card that features marketing
copy describing the inspiration behind the deck. It’s printed to mimic the style of
colonial era documents like the declaration of independence. The Jokers include the image
of an empty pillory--a common method of civil punishment of the era. One in muted red and
the other in black. The pillories appear to have the remnants of tar and feathers another
style of punishment associated with the era.
This deck is completely custom. The spot cards feature fantastically designed pips that are
consistent with the style of the deck. To further the motiff the decks features small
lines and ink markings that make the deck feel as if it had in fact been printed by
pressing paper onto ink-covered wood-cut plates. Pip placement is also unique--especially the
nines of each suit. The Ace of spades is a fantastic and large spade pip formed by the
leaves of a tree.
The court cards are amazing as well. Each feature historically inspired representations
of revolutionary-era figures that act like avatars for the kinds of folks most associated
with the independence of America. The most obvious of which is the military general on
the king of spades which has a unmistakeable ‘Washington crossing the delaware’ vibe.
The queen of spades is a colonial woman muzzle loading a canon. The jack of spades is a maritime
vessel captain. He holds a telescope. Behind him in gold is the image of a warship. The
king of hearts is the messenger, riding in the night, by the light of a lantern, announcing
the arrival of troops; obviously a homage to Paul Revere. The queen of hearts represents
women like Mary Young Pickersgill, who famously sewed the star-spangled banner into being.
The jack of hearts is the blacksmith, forging weapons. The King of clubs holds the architects
compass in what I interpret in the jeffersonian sense; a symbol of being the architect of
a nation rather than one who designs buildings. The queen of clubs is a rebel woman holding
a musket. The jack features the military drummer keeping the rhythm of the march. There’s
a flutist behind him too. Finally the diamonds which include the diplomat or lawmaker as
the king. The queen perhaps embodies the blind lady liberty holding an olive branch. And
finally the jack which includes the image of the revolutionary militiaman.
The deck handles brilliantly as expected from a USPCC deck. The deck is modern cut and premium
stock. It’s not a deck designed for cardistry or magic obviously, but as a commemoration
of American Independence it’s a fantastic addition to any collection.
Both the Lucky Draw deck and the Sons of Liberty decks are still available on ArtofPlay.com.
Ok, giveaway time. Here’s what you have to do to win one of three Mystery Decks from
me! 1. Like this video. 2. Be a subscriber to this channel and three 3. Comment below
with the name of your deck of the year for 2019! Which deck released did you like most!
In fact, as a year end treat, I hope to have a top decks of 2018 video out for you guys
soon! In fact if you want to take part in a more official coronation, head on over to
UnitedCardists.com and take part in their Deck of the Year awards. They vote on everything
from best tuck box to best card backs to best decks for cardistry, magic and more. It’s
a celebration of the hobby and the designers and creators behind it. Click on the link
in the description. It’s pretty easy to register and take part in a great community.
I often post over there myself. Okay, so let’s get back to opening gifts!
My final mystery deck yielded a 1st playing cards by Chris Ramsay. This was a pleasant
surprise as this deck is often listed on ebay for about 4 times the price of the mystery
deck itself, roughly $50.
The deck comes in a minimalistic white matte cardstock premium tuck case with a gold foil
band proudly displaying the first logo. The tuck features practically zero text on the
box itself outside of a small mention of Chris Ramsay on the bottom.
Opening the box reveals a repeating pattern of the first logos in gold foil printed on
the inside. The card backs are a repeating pattern of Chris Ramsay’s monogram logo
set within borders of metallic gold gray and the white poker border. On the top left and
bottom right edges of the cards regardless of orientation is a small gold foil accent
featuring the logo that bleeds to the edge of the cards. It's an element designed to
create interesting patterns and fans and flourishes.
Now I reviewed this deck in detail before in the days after its release, but with the
recent announcement on Chris Ramsey's Instagram of the imminent arrival of a second edition
of the first playing cards it seems only appropriate to link you to the full details on the Chris
Ramsey first playing cards deck, including a look at the faces, jokers and of course
a review of how they handle. Click here to watch that review. Plus I did an impersonation
of the man that was pretty fun. So check that out. As always it’s been a pleasure, I’m
the Gentleman Wake, thanks so much for watching. See you next time.