View Full Version : Calling All Anime/Manga Fans: Help ID These Decks
Jeannette
09-08-2003, 22:49
Hello, All!
I've been trying to document some of the recent anime/manga "knock off" tarots for inclusion in the Tarot Garden database, but I'm working with a handicap: I don't know that much about current anime/manga series (unless it's been on Cartoon Network, then I may know a little because my son would have watched it). I do like the anime/manga illustration style, but I don't have time to "get into" any of the series myself.
Anyway, I've ended up with over a dozen of these things so far, and with a little digging, I've managed to I.D. all but three of them. In order to finish up what I have and get them all into our database, I was wondering if anyone out there would recognize the names of the series represented in each deck from the following samples.
I'll call this "Deck A":
http://www.tarotgarden.com/special/unknownanime1.gif *** Updated 08 August 04 to note: IDENTIFIED, THANKS! ***
This one "Deck B":
http://www.tarotgarden.com/special/unknownanime2.gif*** Updated 05 March 05 to note: IDENTIFIED, THANKS! ***
And this one "Deck C":
http://www.tarotgarden.com/special/unknownanime3.gif *** Updated 08 August 04 to note: IDENTIFIED, THANKS! ***
Once I know the name of the series, I can take it from there. But I couldn't even figure out that much for these three.
Thanks in advance to those who reply.
-- Jeannette
http://www.tarotgarden.com
Silverlotus
09-08-2003, 23:24
Deck A is a CLAMP anime. Maybe CLAMP School Dectectives, but I'm not sure. Or it could be various characters from CLAMP manga and anime.
Deck C is Saiyuki.
I have no idea about Deck B. Is there an artist name? A company? Something on the backs that might help out?
Deck A is by Clamp. It's a brief manga series entitle, Clover.
I'm sorry, but I do not know what Deck B is either. The artwork style does seem more "ancient"...like those that were popular in the late 1980s. Don't know if that helps at all...
Anyway, good luck with your search.
I'm sorry... I'm slightly mistaken.
Deck A is not JUST about Clover. In fact, as the previous poster postulates, it is a collection of images from various Clamp productions. The first and fifth card (counting left to right) are from Clover; the second is from the series, X; the third one resembles a character from Card Capturer Sakura (not sure); and the rest -- NO IDEA.
bighairymonster
10-08-2003, 08:07
Hello, I'd just like to add a few cents of my own.
As I go to China quite a lot (living in HK myself), I see these cards around the place at street sides and everywhere for dirt cheap prices. There's one good reason for this - it's not an official item of the anime series. China has a LOT of bootleg stuff. The characters on the cards are in Chinese and as far as I know of (being a crazy japanese anime fan), CLAMP has never produced any products or tarot cards with Chinese lettering. The only exception is their comic books, which have been officially translated from Japanese.
Just wanted to let you know. Of course, do correct me if I am mistaken!
Silverlotus
10-08-2003, 08:39
Originally posted by bighairymonster
[B]Hello, I'd just like to add a few cents of my own.
As I go to China quite a lot (living in HK myself), I see these cards around the place at street sides and everywhere for dirt cheap prices. There's one good reason for this - it's not an official item of the anime series. China has a LOT of bootleg stuff. The characters on the cards are in Chinese and as far as I know of (being a crazy japanese anime fan), CLAMP has never produced any products or tarot cards with Chinese lettering. The only exception is their comic books, which have been officially translated from Japanese
No one every said they were offical products. :) It's amazing the neat "non-offical" stuff that comes out of Hong Kong. I had a couple of SailorNoon (yes, Noon) pencil boxes when I was going to school. :)
Still deck A really looks like CLAMP style. If it's not offical, then I would say it's a copycat CLAMP style of several of the series.
Demonesse
10-08-2003, 10:22
I have no idea what Deck A is, but Deck B looks like X 1999 (not sure though).
Deck C is from the anime Gensomaden Saiyuki, which is based on the Chinese "Journey to the West" legend.
I agree that they're most probably pirated products.
isthmus nekoi
10-08-2003, 17:21
A cards appear to be
1,5 = Clover
2,4 = X1999
3 = Rg Veda (although maybe Nataku from X1999)
6=mix of Subaru from Tokyo Babylon, Kamui from X and someone (forgot name) from Rg Veda
so guessing the deck is just a CLAMP artwork deck in general...
B isn't CLAMP's style. Looks like it's been taken from a shojou manga.
Jeannette
10-08-2003, 19:40
Thanks again to everyone for their assistance thus far. I've gone ahead and entered "Deck A" into the Tarot Garden database as the "CLAMP Tarot," and "Deck C" as "Gensomaden Saiyuki Tarot." I'll keep digging around trying to find something that might help to identify "Deck B," but any additional information or guesses are still welcome.
It's interesting to see how many anime/manga fans are members of this forum. These Chinese decks (which I also suspected were not licensed products, but I've never been able to corroborate that suspicion) are probably only "borderline" tarots at best, since the imagery for each of the cards seems to have been selected at random. But I'm generally drawn to the art style, so documenting as many of these decks as I can has just been one of those little "projects" I've felt compelled to pursue.
-- Jeannette
http://www.tarotgarden.com
bighairymonster
10-08-2003, 21:06
Originally posted by Silverlotus
No one every said they were offical products. :) It's amazing the neat "non-offical" stuff that comes out of Hong Kong. I had a couple of SailorNoon (yes, Noon) pencil boxes when I was going to school. :)
Well...hee hee....just wanted to let Tarotgarden know just in case of any copyright laws and such. :) And it'd be a shame if someone thought they were the real stuff and got disappointed if they bought them. I, for one matter, bought a bootleg (wee hee) tarot cards of the anime Kamikaze Kaito Jeanne - I don't use it or whatever, but I really like the series, so that's all that matters. })
Sailor NOON?! Oh my....*shudders*
Jeannette
08-08-2004, 17:14
Hi, Folks!
I'm reviving this thread because I'm finally getting around to scanning some of the other decks of this type that have accumulated here over the past months. I need to get them off of the floor by the computer and properly shelved in the library!
Thanks to everyone who contributed to ID'ing decks "A," "B," and "C" before. I'm still looking for info on deck "B," but the other two were identified. Now I have two more -- we'll call them "D" and "E" -- that need to be named before I can put them into the Tarot Garden online database.
Refresher: Here's deck "B" again:
http://www.tarotgarden.com/special/unknownanime2.gif *** Updated 05 March 05 to note: IDENTIFIED, THANKS! ***
And now here's deck "D":
http://www.tarotgarden.com/database/images/u-decks/unknownanime3cards.gif *** Updated 05 March 05 to note: IDENTIFIED, THANKS! ***
And deck "E":
http://www.tarotgarden.com/database/images/u-decks/unknownanime4cards.gif *** Updated 05 March 05 to note: IDENTIFIED, THANKS! ***
Once again, any info or insights from those of you who know something about anime and manga series would be desperately appreciated.
-- Jeannette
The Tarot Garden (http://www.tarotgarden.com?rs=3378)
Deck "E" is from the King of Fighters video game series, and the art on Deck "B" looks familiar, possible from Riyoko Ikeda, the person who did Rose of Versailles and Brother, Dear Brother.
Edit:
I was browsing your site and thought you could use some information on the Escaflowne Tarot (Hitomi's Tarot Cards). The deck was designed by Kimitoshi Yamane and does not include all four Aces. The Ace of Fishes is replaced by the Knight of Beasts. The deck is effectively limited edition. In Japan it was included with the Playstation game tie-in with the series, and in the US you could send away for it by collecting the DVDs.
I can't help you with the others, but Deck D is from Spiral Suiri no Kizuna.
Jeannette
05-03-2005, 04:29
Thank you, Tsuzuki, for reviving this thread. I'd given up hope of ever obtaining the info I needed to include these decks in the Tarot Garden database.
I've now entered deck "E" under the title "King of Fighters" tarot, and deck "D" under the "Spiral Suiri no Kizuma" title. Thanks to Tsuzuki and Chara for those great tips.
Thanks, too, Tsuzuki, for the additional info about the Escaflowne tarot. I had no idea who the artist was (obviously), and I appreciate the correction regarding the aces... I have a copy of the deck in the Tarot Garden library, but apparently I didn't check them carefully enough.
I realize that the distribution history of the Escaflowne deck may make it a limited edition in one sense, but without a more specific idea as to how many decks were given away, I can't quite bring myself to list it as such. After all, if they printed up 10,000 or 20,000, well... while I suppose that makes it "limited" if they never print it again, that would still be a massmarket level of production for any deck. Additionally, I know of at least one reprinting of the Escaflowne/Hitomi deck that was included with some sort of video game (we had one in the Tarot Garden library, but I never could figure out the translation of the box text). This was almost certainly from a different print run, because the cards were measurably smaller than the version distributed with the video series.
Thanks again for all the great info. Now, is there anyone out there who can confirm Tsuzuki's conjecture that deck "B" shows the work of Riyoko Ikeda?
-- Jeannette
The Tarot Garden (http://www.tarotgarden.com?rs=3378)
Additionally, I know of at least one reprinting of the Escaflowne/Hitomi deck that was included with some sort of video game (we had one in the Tarot Garden library, but I never could figure out the translation of the box text). This was almost certainly from a different print run, because the cards were measurably smaller than the version distributed with the video series.Yep. That would be the one that came with the Playstation game. (Horrible game, by the way. It's just a rehash of the series all pixilated.) As far as I know, that was the first print run. Also, I hear that at one point, Bandai was giving them away at anime conventions, so I'm guessing they have more than they know what to do with, or at least did at one time. Now, if we could only convince Kimitoshi Yamane to release a full deck.
Jeannette
05-03-2005, 05:28
Ah, of course. And your original post mentioned the Playstation game. For some reason, my brain turned that around to meaning some other video release. I guess that goes to show that I shouldn't be trying to prowl the forums at 4 a.m. -- my level of concentration is obviously not at peak...
Thanks!
-- Jeannette
The Tarot Garden (http://www.tarotgarden.com?rs=3378)
Hi, Jeannette, Tsuzuki, Chara and friends.
Re the deck "B". I am under the impression that it is from Shinohara Chie's "Purple Eyes in the Dark" which relates the fantasitic story of a girl who transforms into a panther. Anyway, judging from the kanji (ideograph) used in the deck, I can safely assert that it was made in Taiwan or Hong Kong. Japanese never use those types of kanji. Wish this might help you a bit.
I think it is settled. The deck "B" is from "Purple Eyes in the Dark". Just look at some images of the work uploaded in Shinohara's fansite.
http://www.geocities.com/phyllis1203_wylau/shi/gal00.html#peid
I find no trace in Japan of an officially licenced PEID Tarot. PEID was a very popular manga in 80s and the official telephone-cards (tokens) were produced when it turned into movie. Perhaps some one transformed the telephone-cards into Tarot and sold them in Taiwan or Hong Kong.
For the detail of Shinohara Chie, browse the pages above. It's English site.
I think it is settled. The deck "B" is from "Purple Eyes in the Dark". Just look at some images of the work uploaded in Shinohara's fansite.
http://www.geocities.com/phyllis1203_wylau/shi/gal00.html#peidThanks! Ao no Fuuin looks lovely.
*adds to the list of manga he needs to collect*
Jeannette
05-03-2005, 21:02
Roppo,
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your help in finishing off this list of puzzlers. Deck "B" is now in the Tarot Garden database as the "Purple Eyes in the Dark" tarot.
That covers it for now... but I'm sure I've got a few more of those around here somewhere that I haven't even scanned yet. I might be reviving this thread again in the near future.
'Til Then, Thanks Again to All!
-- Jeannette
The Tarot Garden (http://www.tarotgarden.com?rs=3378)
Jeannette
08-09-2005, 00:57
Well, as promised, here I am again -- looking to "pick people's brains" about another anime deck I've gotten my hands on, but have no idea what it is. Can anyone I.D. the anime/manga from the following card images?
http://www.tarotgarden.com/database/images/u-decks/unknownanime5cards.gif *** Updated 08 September 05 to note: IDENTIFIED, THANKS! ***
TIA for your assistance!
-- Jeannette
The Tarot Garden (http://www.tarotgarden.com?rs=3378)
OakDragon
08-09-2005, 02:19
Is it just me, or is each of those cards by a different artist (or is a copy of a different artist's work)?
Jeannette
08-09-2005, 03:10
As I've said before, I actually don't know that much about anime, but I've often had the same feeling -- that the "illustration style" isn't always consistent between characters (or cards, in this case). I suppose when you're dealing with a collaborative group like CLAMP, maybe there is more than one artist involved in the character design for a particular anime/manga. As for the rest -- I couldn't say. Sometimes I wonder if the mixed styles are supposed to evoke different "moods." But on that point, I guess I'd have to turn the floor over to someone who knows a lot more about the genre than I do.
-- Jeannette
The Tarot Garden (http://www.tarotgarden.com?rs=3378)
Hi, Jeannette!
I summoned the Japanese anime-fans and friends to my website BBS and asked them about the identity of the cards. They say it's from "Fusigi-yugi".
http://pierrot.jp/title/fushigi/
I'd be honored if this information might be some help to you.
Jeannette
08-09-2005, 09:29
Roppo, my man! I was hoping you'd be watching. As usual, you came through! Thank you very much (and please thank your friends) for the information. I've now "officially" entered the deck into the Tarot Garden database under the title “Fushigi Yuugi” Tarot (since in my additional research, that turned up as the preferred spelling).
As usual, the AT forumites are THE BEST! :cool:
-- Jeannette
The Tarot Garden (http://www.tarotgarden.com?rs=3378)
Hi there,
Some days ago I came across a deck of CLAMP tarot. The cards are very large and slim and sell in a box with a lot of gold and red on it.
I tried to check out with the decks already listed here to get more information but this deck looks different from the ones here on display. As I don't have a scanner I cannot show them to you (and as the darn booklet is written either in Chinese or Japanese characters I have no idea what kind of deck is that (I am not into manga).
Jeannette
15-11-2005, 09:09
Catlin,
What you're describing sounds like that "CLOW" deck to me. I've never picked up a copy for our library, since it's not a "true" tarot (not 22 or 78 cards or even a remotely tarotish-structured subset, despite the word "tarot" often being applied to it), and I usually don't go out of my way to acquire the pseudo tarots for Tarot Garden -- a few notable exceptions aside...
-- Jeannette
The Tarot Garden (http://www.tarotgarden.com?rs=3378)
Hi Jeannette,
Yes, CLOW cards is it. I checked it in the meantime. It has indeed nothing to do with tarot, I just added it to the collection because - apart from the Sailor Moon thingy - I had nothing Manga like in it.
Jeannette
23-11-2005, 17:03
Hello, Gang!
I've got another one here, freshly scanned, that I have no recollection as to where I got it, and certainly no idea what it is. Are any of you anime experts still out there, and if so, is there any chance that these ladies (and one gentleman) look familiar to you?
http://www.tarotgarden.com/database/images/u-decks/unknown04cards.gif *** UPDATED ON 26 November '05 TO NOTE: Identified, thanks! ***
TIA,
-- Jeannette
The Tarot Garden (http://www.tarotgarden.com?rs=3378)
roppo on duty, ma'am!
[salute] I put the image on my website BBS two days ago but not yet the cards has been identified. I believe hundreds of Japanese anime & manga fans are now carrying the research in every conceivable fields. A report says the style of the cards is post-2000 and often seen in the genre called "doujin", and the cards were drawn as tarot cards from the start, not a casual pick up from already existing images. If the designs are Taiwanese originals with some influences from Japanese anime/manga style, the identification search might be a bit more difficult to us. But we'll do our best.[salute]
Jeannette
25-11-2005, 19:29
roppo: [***hugs***] to you! You're always so sweet to help!
I suppose it's possible that the cards aren't actually based on an anime or manga. I'm about 98% certain it was published in Taiwan, though. If I were to scan the box cover, do you know anyone who might be able to read and translate the text? I'm really mostly interested in the title.
-- Jeannette
The Tarot Garden (http://www.tarotgarden.com?rs=3378)
prudence
25-11-2005, 20:36
Hi Jeannette
I asked my son and he said it may be Card Captor Sakura....
hi Jeanette,
Yes, the scanning of the box cover might solve the question at once, I believe. If we could get the title by kanji, then we'll be able to do google work far much efficiently. Most Japanese including myself cannot speak Chinese, but somehow can read Chinese texts more or less correctly.
hi Astrid O,
I have to say it's no Sakura at all, and perhaps many congratulations to you! No, your son is not what is called "anime otaku" (lol)
ciliegia
25-11-2005, 21:57
I also think ..it was published in taiwan.
Jeannette
26-11-2005, 00:04
roppo and crew:
The link below should bring up a scan of the book that came with the deck. The text on the book matches the text on the card box, but is larger. So it seemed like the better choice to scan.
http://www.tarotgarden.com/special/unknownanimetarotbook.gif
TIA,
-- Jeannette
The Tarot Garden (http://www.tarotgarden.com?rs=3378)
wisteria
26-11-2005, 03:52
Haha ... now from the box , I guess it is an immitation of some anime and made out of it. It says kawaii love tarot which means cute love tarot.
The smaller yellow print on the right is saying it is very accurate.
I think i had seen it before in the bookshop in singapore.
The bottom brown small words are just some description asking you to buy and bring it home.
First let me make it clear that I am not anime/manga otaku. I am a middle aged student of modern occultism, and my speciallity is in the history of the Order of the Golden Dawn. And presently I am collecting medieval illuminated manuscripts for the sake of Tarot iconographical study.
...having said that... hi Jeannette, thanks to the new scanning you put, I managed to find the following information. "Kawaii Tarot of Love" was published in 2004/12/07 by Soft Tech, Taiwan.
http://www.softtek.com.tw/
Click the fourth tag from the left, then second from the top. You'll find the image of the mermaid. The website tells nothing about the author of the Tarot, and I assume Kawaii Tarot is Soft Teck's original. But somehow it has an atmosphere vaguely reminding one of the popular Japanese Anime such as "Mermaid Melody" (broadcast in Taiwan, too).
Wishing this might help you.
Jeannette
26-11-2005, 16:36
Thanks to everyone for their input on this one. I've just entered the deck into the Tarot Garden database as "Kawaii Tarot of Love," with an alternate search title of "Cute Love Tarot." Here's the link to the listing:
http://www.tarotgarden.com/database/dbsearchengine.php?view_title=kawaii
I've got more anime decks sitting here yet, waiting for their turns to be scanned and entered. So I'll probably be reviving this thread again sometime in the near future.
-- Jeannette
The Tarot Garden (http://www.tarotgarden.com?rs=3378)