Radiant Rider-Waite

[FourLeafClover]

Has anyone seen this deck? It's the orginal RWS deck, but with the colours made more art-ish. I'm finding that I have mixed feelings about this treatment of the RWS.
Some of the cards are improved by the new, softer colours. The deck overall is lovely, and with the new colours, new details are brought to life. I also found some of the images clearer without the heavy black lines.
But some of the cards just aren't as good. I find the faces of the characters less expressive. The 9 of Wands comes to mind... in the original RWS the man in front of the wands has a wonderful expression of annoyance mixed with determination. Radiant has him looking almost expressionless.
My darling Page of Cups also suffers. He doesn't have the same joyfully mischevious look about him, and doesn't appear to have noticed the fish in his cup, unlike in the original where he seems to be sharing a joke with the fish.

All in all, though I know I prefer the original RWS, I can't quite from a definate opinion about the Radiant variation thereof.

Anyone else have any opinions about this deck?

[Le_Corsair]

I started a thread on the Radiant when it first came out, you can see it by clicking here. (http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=18144&highlight=radiant)

I find the Radiant to be the perfect metaphor for the US: reeking of plastic, too brightly colored, and labeled New and Improved! :D

Bob :THERM

[Rusty Neon]

If one wants to get a Rider-Waite pattern, there's something heart-warming about getting the real thing, i.e., the Rider-Waite, rather than the new and improved (just for the sake of being different) takes on it like the Albano-Waite, Universal Waite, and now the Radiant. It's great to connect with the creators of that deck by getting the closest thing to the original product: warts, colours, thick lines, and all. I learned the hard way; I got the Universal Waite because it was so universally praised, before going to the Rider-Waite.

On the other hand, if you don't like the Rider-Waite designs, there are plenty of RWS-inspired decks and post-modern decks available.

[Emily]

I liked the Radiant when I first got it but after using it for a while I find that I am still going back to the standard Rider Waite for study. I use the Rider Waite alongside the Morgan Greer and sometimes I find that when the image has been re-drawn as in the Radiant and the Universal some of the original detail has been lost. The Rider Waite is full of subtle symbolism, objects drawn just so, and all this is lost in the re-drawing.

I don't like the colouring of the so-called 'Original Rider Waite', too dark with thick black lines, but the pocket Rider Waite I have is nicely coloured.

Sometimes you just can't beat the true version and with the Rider Waite this is true. The Radiant and the Universal Waites might be prettier coloured and the artwork more refined but then you lose the original feel of the deck.

I do still use the Radiant, I do like the colouring but for a study deck its not working out. :)

[~X~]

Originally posted by FourLeafClover
Has anyone seen this deck? It's the orginal RWS deck, but with the colours made more art-ish. I'm finding that I have mixed feelings about this treatment of the RWS.
Some of the cards are improved by the new, softer colours. The deck overall is lovely, and with the new colours, new details are brought to life. I also found some of the images clearer without the heavy black lines.
But some of the cards just aren't as good. I find the faces of the characters less expressive. The 9 of Wands comes to mind... in the original RWS the man in front of the wands has a wonderful expression of annoyance mixed with determination. Radiant has him looking almost expressionless.
My darling Page of Cups also suffers. He doesn't have the same joyfully mischevious look about him, and doesn't appear to have noticed the fish in his cup, unlike in the original where he seems to be sharing a joke with the fish.

All in all, though I know I prefer the original RWS, I can't quite from a definate opinion about the Radiant variation thereof.

Anyone else have any opinions about this deck?

I like the coloring of the deck; however the smell of it is awful. I have noticed that the facial expressions are off.

[Aerten]

There was an open box at the little store in the strip mall near my house. I sneakily opened it to look at the cards and... ick. You're right, something about the facial expressions was very off-putting. I'd say if you're gonna go for a re-coloured RWS, stick with the Universal.

[lunakasha]

I recently purchased the Radiant Rider-Waite in preparation for Joan Bunning's online tarot class. Until then, I had resisted purchasing the (original) RW because I found it visually bland and uninspiring, although I love the RW interpretation of the cards and the fully-illustrated minors. For that reason, most of my decks are RW "clones" rather than Marseilles, Thoth, Golden-Dawn types.

So far I am very pleased with the deck, at least in terms of the rich, bold colors and visual appeal. It got my attention and gave me a new appreciation of the RW deck, albeit a "new-and-improved" version. It is nice that there are alternative versions available for those of us who are not fond of the original RWS.

:) Luna

[Wildchild]

I saw the Radiant RW but didn't care for it much. But then, I'm not a big fan of RW anyway. The colours are bright but they feel plasticky.

[Kissa]

I like the deck. I don't read with it but when i need a colour (shock) therapy in the middle of our dark finnish winter, i watch at these cards. I think someone here called that deck "The big tangerine sky deck" ;) I would give royalties to them if i remembered who it was ;) Really appropriate nickname ...

I find that the Universal Waite by Mary Hanson-Roberts is better done though, more detailed, finer and the lines are thiner as well. This is the recolouring of the Rider Waite that I use for readings.

About the facial expressions on the Radiant, Lee Bursten mentions in the Tarot Passages review that all the ppl on the cards appear to have taken "a mild dose of Zoloft" ;) Brilliant ...

The coating is really weird, the card almost appear to be made of plastic. I expected a terrible smell as it has been mentioned here often as a complete turn-off, luckily I stand the smell and it disappears with time, like most new deck smell.

I hesitated between the Radiant and the New Vision, I am happy with my choice. I wouldn't recommend it as a first choice though, if you need a Rider Waite and hate the original one (the RWS or RWCS) get yourself a copy of the Universal by Hanson-Roberts --not to be confused with the Universal by de Angeli (Lo Scarabeo).

My two cents anyway ...

Blessings,

Kissa

[faunabay]

IMO I really really like the Radiant version. I have noticed some of the details have disappeared, which I'm not too happy about - facial expressions, etc. But I LOVE the bright colors and the plastic feel doesn't seem to bother me at all.

I actually traded my Universal Waite in favor of the Radiant Waite and haven't been able to stomach the original deck. :) But then I'm not too much of a traditionalist. I'm one of those who can't stand the original artwork with those thick black lines. Ick!

So I really am enjoying my Radiant deck!!! :)

[Indigo Rose]

Originally posted by Kissa
I find that the Universal Waite by Mary Hanson-Roberts is better done though, more detailed, finer and the lines are thiner as well. Kissa

I agree. I just got my Radiant deck today. The colors are indeed radiant and very uplifting. However, it will take me some time to adjust. I am a big RWS fan; at least the pictures...but not the original colorings. That is the deck I started with back in 2000, but after only 2 months I found the Universal Waite and was HOOKED! I have several other decks, but ALWAYS come back to my trusted friend the Universal Waite. Now that I have the Radiant deck I will switch between the two. I think I will grow into it. As for the smell, it smells like new carpet. It is coated in a plastic film, but it should give the cards a long life.

I think it is a good deck overall.
Blessings,
Indigo Rose :)

[tarobones]

I have both the Universal Waite and the Radiant Rider Waite and switch between the two. I do NOT like the standard RWS find the drawings too jaggy and crude. As for the smell, it reminds me of one of my favorite books as a kid. The deck will last a long time and shuffles well. To each his own.
Tarobones

[lunakasha]

Well, I bought this deck because I loved the bold coloration....and now that I have had some time to work with it, I can honestly say that it *speaks* to me with a bold and commanding voice...which is exactly what I need right now! In the past two weeks, my daily card draws have been right on the money...and at the same time I am using the deck in conjunction with the online course and book by Joan Bunning...it is all working together very well!

As for the smell, it doesn't bother me too much...but just for good measure, I am keeping it in a lovely, black velvet box with some fresh sprigs of white sage....

:) Luna

[Aure]

I have ordered the Radiant Rider-Waite and Joan Bunning's book to accompany the deck and can't wait to get them!!! :)

I have been looking for a nice RW deck for a long time because I feel I'd like to learn the basics with it and believe it or not, sometimes I feel like I would like to get another view to things other than Thoth offers me!

The standard RW is too ugly, I hate the colors and the lines and I prefer decks that have a little more 'dimensions'.

[Aure]

I've been checking this thread about million times, because I'm so anxious to get my new deck! Those of you who have already seen it or have it, please tell me is it good?

[Kissa]

Originally posted by Kissa
[B]I like the deck. I don't read with it but when i need a colour (shock) therapy in the middle of our dark finnish winter, i watch at these cards. I think someone here called that deck "The big tangerine sky deck"

How pretentious, quoting myself !

But as you are in Finland too and I was referring to our dark winter, I think you can understand what I meant.

The book by Bunning is very good too, extremely user friendly. I hope you will be satisfied with both your purchases!!

Blessings,

Kissa

[Aure]

I just got the deck and Bunning's book today!! :)

I was expecting a really terrible smell when I opened the box but it wasn't that bad. I believe it will fade away gradually. The sides of the cards do smell like fresh new decks usually do ;)
The cards are a bit slippery and hard to shuffle, I tried to shuffle them like I usually do but the cards didn't slide between the other cards! Maybe they will after a while?

There was a little bubble sort of thing on one of the aces but I don't think it will cause anything to the card.

I'm still getting used to the pictures and the overall feel of the cards, they feel a bit large but they are slim, so I think I'll get used to them. I had bought two new bags from a China Market and I put the cards in a black silk bag with black dragons on it. I also have a purple silk scarf I wrap around it (I was going to use the box but it was a little bit worn from the delivery and is hard to use since there are the extra cards etc.)

The pictures are very beautiful and colors nice which I'm happy about because I've never liked the standard RWS because of the ugly colors and those thick, black lines.
I read some of the book too and it seems good! I think I'll have to get to know my deck before I can tell you if I connect with it. It is so different from the Thoth!

[spoonbender]

Congratulations on your new deck and book, Aure! I've got the Radiant Rider-Waite too and really enjoy the bright colours (though some of the facial expressions are a bit off). I just did a reading with it yesterday and it was very accurate and down-to-earth. I hope you'll grow to like it too :).

Spoonbender

[CreativeFire]

I recently got the Radiant RW and really do like the colours and images much better than the RWS, which I found the black lines a bit harsh and hard on the eye.

Aure, I also found the cards a bit sticky, but hoping they will loosen up with with use :-)

CreativeFire

[Jewel-ry]

Hi Aure,

Enjoy your deck! I have the Radiant RW and really like it. I like the bright colours and dont have a problem with missing detail since I have nothing to compare it to. When I first got it I put it in a little wooden box with a handkerchief upon which I had put a few drops of an aromatherapy oil. I cant remember what the oil was now but it certainly did the trick when the deck was first new. Now it is in its box and I dont really notice the smell.

J :)

[Aure]

I'm starting to fall in love with this deck... The cards are so shiny they force you to look at them.

I also noticed one thing when browsing through them; they squeak! It's the coating doing it when they slide against eachother...

Radiant Squeaky Tangerine Deck.... ;)

[lunakasha]

Originally posted by Aure
I'm starting to fall in love with this deck... The cards are so shiny they force you to look at them.

I also noticed one thing when browsing through them; they squeak! It's the coating doing it when they slide against eachother...

Radiant Squeaky Tangerine Deck.... ;)

LOL Aure!!!

I am glad you are enjoying your lovely RSTRW deck!!! These are my favorite cards to read with....they have been unbelievably accurate and beautiful to look at! I find that the more you shuffle with them, the easier it gets...and I took care of the smell by keeping them in a box with some white sage....lovely!

How do you like Joan's book? I also bought the RSTRW deck and Joan's book together, and am enjoying them both very much.

Enjoy!

:D Luna

[Aure]

So far, Joan's book is very easy to read and interesting! I like it and the RSTRW very much!!

Luna, that's funny that we bought the same combination! But it's a good combination :)

[CreativeFire]

I just did my first reading/s with my new Radiant RW and am very pleased with the results - very accurate and to the point. Spent quite a bit of time shuffling them and they are starting to become less sticky. I think this will become one of my favourite reading decks ;-)

In regards to the smell - what smell I say - but I guess I am lucky that I don't have a very good sense of smell then in this case - it would have to be really strong for me to notice it! LOL

But like the idea of putting some white sage in my tarot box - thanks Lunakasha for the idea.

CreativeFire

[Indigo Rose]

I have found that I have really taken a liking to this Radiant Rider deck. It has become my choice for readings, along with my Hanson Roberts deck.

Blessings,
Indigo Rose :)

[Aure]

I'm starting to connect with the deck :)

I just hope that with age the deck would look less new and it would get that nice look that old decks have!

[lunakasha]

Originally posted by CreativeFire
In regards to the smell - what smell I say - but I guess I am lucky that I don't have a very good sense of smell then in this case - it would have to be really strong for me to notice it! LOL

But like the idea of putting some white sage in my tarot box - thanks Lunakasha for the idea.

You are most welcome, CreativeFire! ;)

The smell wasn't a huge issue for me, but since I LOVE sage anyway, I figured, why not??? I think it took a few days for the *smell* to dissipate, but now when I pull out my lovely RSTSW cards, they smell only of pure, sweet sage.....

:D Luna

[Lee]

Originally posted by Kissa
About the facial expressions on the Radiant, Lee Bursten mentions in the Tarot Passages review that all the ppl on the cards appear to have taken "a mild dose of Zoloft" ;) Brilliant ... I must (reluctantly) decline the credit for this phrase. The review was actually written by Mark McElroy. Thanks anyway, though!

-- Lee :)

[tmgrl2]

That's what I love about the different decks....something for everyone! I took a peek at some of the cards. I am learning with RWS and a few others...(like Bunning's book) but also Aeclectice Thirteen's notes on this site..) I also like Rachel Pollacks' books
78 Degrees of Wisdom and her Complete Illustrated Guide to Tarot...I like the way she discusses the numbers separtely for the minor cards...have some books on reversals too...but key for me has been using the great readings, threads on Aeclectic and trusting my inner voice as well. Keep us posted on how you like it. Lunakasha...why am I not surprised you liked it! I may just have to order it since I feel a bond when I read your postings\

terri

[Shalott]

LOL - I do love this deck, though. I just got it a couple of weeks ago. I first started lurking here looking at the different deck images and reviews and the second I saw the images, especially the Hermit, I *just knew,* so I quickly ordered it from Amazon and dived right into it and am not disappointed. These colors seem more "correct" to me, like if somebody handed me a coloring book of PCS's drawings, this is what I would probably come up with. Things that were plain gray like the background of the Hermit, are now midnight blue, which is more realistic to me. I'm also noticing details I've never seen before. In didn't care much for the faces at first, this is one thing they probably should have left alone, however I'm getting used to them. I'm using this for study as well as reading, and I'm still carrying around the pocket regular RWS, just to see what any differences might be, but I may stop this practice as the RSTRW grows on me more and more. I was never overly fond of the super bright yellows of the regular RWS, adding the tangerine :D has helped tone this down, for me anyhoo!

Run! It's the tangerine!!!

[Emily]

I'm still not totally sure of this deck - I love the colours used, but I'm not sure of the expressions on some of the cards. They either look sullen or bored. Even the horse in the Sun card is glaring at his little passenger.

I think a little more effort could have gone into making the expressions either passive or neutral or even changing them altogether. I don't get the same feeling with the Universal Waite or the Rider Waite.

For me its the facial expressions that can either make or break a deck - Some of my decks you can't make out the faces and thats ok but with the Radiant the faces are very obvious and none of them look happy.

[Le_Corsair]

Originally posted by Emily

For me its the facial expressions that can either make or break a deck - Some of my decks you can't make out the faces and thats ok but with the Radiant the faces are very obvious and none of them look happy.


You'd be unhappy, too, if you were about to be attacked by a Giant Tangerine. :joke:

Bob :THERM

[Voodoo_Shaman]

It took me a while to get usto the strong smell of the cards, was very strong. But after a few months it was gone, and this is the only deck I use. RW and almost all it's clones have always worked well for me.

[sunflowr]

Thanks to some of the positive reviews on this thread, I purchased the Radiant Tangerine! ooops, I mean Radiant Rider Waite! ;D I LOVE it! First of all, mine didnt smell all that much. Just standard new deck kind of magazine smell. Loved that smell actually, but I'm weird. ;) Anyway, I was never as much a fan of RW mostly because of the colors. I need decks with vibrant colors and this definitely does the trick for me. And, through this rendering, I am noticing things in the RW artwork that I never noticed before. It's a great deck, expecially for learning tarot with. I am going to sink my teeth into REALLY learning tarot now. I am using Joan Bunning's online course. I downloaded it to my computer last night and have already done lesson one. I saw the book last night at Borders (where I got my deck) but it was just too $$$ for me right now. So, I am using the computer version, which is ok for now. I have other books too that I can use, like Power Tarot and a few of Nancy Shavicks books.

Anyway, I think me and Radiant Lemon Tangerine Waite will be good friends! ;D

P.S: this is a better rendering than my other fave RW, "Diamond Tarot". I love DT but the borders on it take up much of the card and the actual images are much smaller because of it. I call that one my Peter Max tarot. ;)

[janomalee]

I don't have this deck. I came very close to buying it. I was looking at the box in the store and something about the face of the Magician looked familiar. I thought about it and I figured it out. Does anyone here read the comic strip, "This Modern World" by Tom Tomorrow? You can see it at salon.com. It is very funny. Anyway, that is what I recalled looking at the faces on the Radiant RWS. I decided I didn't want to think of Sparky the penguin when I looked at a tarot deck. :-)

[The 78th Fool]

I bought this deck when it first came out and I have to say, I love it. It doesn't displace my standard or my 'original' Rider Waite decks but it certainly sits along side them both.

I have to say, I don't have a problem with the faces! Yes they are subtly different from the originals but then if you look so are many other things - this just has to do with differences of drawing technique between two artists.

I'm sure the basis for these images were tracings of the originals, in the same way as they were for the Universal Waite and possibly Mary Hanson Roberts did a slightly more accurate job of reflecting Coleman Smith's original hand. Nevertheless I think the spirit of the original is truly celebrated and that's what matters to me. In any case, the colour reproduction here is far more accurate than with the Universal Waite - I hear the new pocket edition is much better, but until then, the Radiant wins!

[sassygirl3124]

I was reading thru all of the responses to this thread and I have to say that everybody reacts differently to color. I find that I love bright bold colors that stand out. I have not purchased the Radiant waite deck yet but plan to. For my first deck I got the Universal waite deck and I like the colors but would love something even more bright. I must say (as some will argue with me) that I think it is great that there are many versions of the rider-waite deck not everybody is the same and this makes the deck more available for people with different taste to read.

Julie

[Pocky-dog]

Yay, glad to see a thread on this! After weeks of deciding which deck to start with I decided to go with the Radiant Rider-Waite.
I'm a total newbie so all of my more experienced tarot reading friends were adamant on starting out with the RWS... but something about the original one just puts me off...maybe it's the harsh yellow tones and the black outlines.
Anyway, I wanted something within the boundaries of "traditional, easy-to-read" so someone suggested that I look at RWS clones. I gotta say, I was completely drawn to the Radiant RW. The colors on the cards were easier on the eyes...yep it's orangey but it's a pretty orange LOL...has a more rich, 3D feel to it. As for the coating, I actually like the glossy, plasticky feel to it, it'll last numerous shuffles! As for the smell problem...it wasn't so bad, I did notice a factory-like smell(from the coating?) but I think it'll wear off after a while. So yeah this was my first deck too and so far I LOVE learning with it! Hope the rest of you guys have fun with this deck!

~~~Jessi

[Emily]

Congratulations on your new deck. :)

Actually after my initial posting on this deck, I did take to it. I like the vibrancy and the bold images. It was the expressions I didn't like but when I sat down to compare them to the standard RWS and the Universal, the expressions were the same. The redrawn images are close enough to the RWS and the Radiant is much easier on the eye. The Universal Waite has much the same feel about it but not quite as vibrant. :)

[Le Fanu]

I love the fact that so many people have found a deck they love. I love the fact that all our tastes are different and richly diverse.

However, I just can´t resist expressing my opinion on this one...

I bought the Radiant Rider Waite when I was having a private RWS renaissance and it´s the most hideous deck. It made me feel sick as soon as I took it out of the box, and I don´t mean just because of the colours. It isn´t - I must add - solely the day-glo, flourescent, over-done colours (not at all Radiant; that´s just to sell it), it´s the fact that it has managed to successfully obliterate all of the mystical atmosphere of the RWS (with one fell swoop) something which the Universal didn´t do. The Radiant is just a desecration. The cards look like flashcards for kiddies; "babies first tarot."

I immediately tried to trade it, but of course there were no takers. It is now stuffed as far back as possible on my tarot shelf so as not to pollute the others ;)

(Le Fanu runs off ducking....)