Freaky/twisty, but fun?

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 31 Jan 2005, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Cerulean	31 Jan 2005
Is there a deck that kind of >freaks< you out because it's right on the money? (Gentle readers, it makes you kinda sigh or moan, oh-no-no-no-oh gee, yes I see that...) Or a deck that pushes a button because no matter how much you thought it would it work, it is always seems a little twisty, warped or wrong? Or just fun because it sheds a new light on the subject? I may have a deck that is working in a twisty way with me, but am not certain yet. I could be just a little unsettled because I'm beginning to like it's different taste...I'm really interested, because of the range of tastes here and many new voices with really interesting takes on their tarots... Regards, Cerulean

tao51	31 Jan 2005
I do think that the Bosch Tarot is usually on mark but the artwork could definitely fall into the "freaky" category. The Tarot of the Dead and the Ancient Enlightened Tarot are easy members of the category. I find them all useful. I especially like the Bosch Tarot. I use it regularly. --Tao

contrascarpe	31 Jan 2005
Oh my, the Lo Scarabeo Tarot of the Imagination fits that bill for me. It is quirky, disturbing, and sometimes downright rude, but I get some awfully accurate readings. The thing that freaks me out are the court cards. They are simplicity at its finest, yet I can always read something deep in them. Plus, I sometimes see the same court card in a different light depending on the reading. This is probably the only deck that makes me feel this way. The images are disturbing enough to turn me off, but I still am drawn to them. So yes, in an odd sort of way, this freaky/twisty deck is fun for me (although not always fun for my seekers). Dan

Rosanne	31 Jan 2005
I don't know if I would call this little Deck freaky, but it sure is ugly. I got it from a friend on Xmas. It is a cross between a RW and Marseilles. Majors like RW, minors like Marseilles. The deck is a package Chateau Le Cardboard and would sell at supermarkets. It is by Jonathon Dee. Every time I use it, it seems like its laughing at me and won't take my questions seriously. Almost like.. 'I will bring you down to earth girl, I aint no pearl but I sure got grounded wisdom' It is growing on me and I am enjoying its ugly little plainness. It says on the blurb it was specially commissioned and exquisitely illustrated. Ho Hum. Regards Rosanne

Cerulean	31 Jan 2005
...and I cannot give it up, sometimes it's this side of beautiful, sometimes it's comically like a semi-serious Fradella--all the men are godlings, all the women are sumptuous nymphs. It's bright, oversize, has writing in five languages even before the Lo Scarabeo offerings, a nonshiny laminate and a big-little-book in Italian from Dal Negro. It's Tavaglione's Porta Celeste and I keep nibbling into the Italian with a dictionary and every time I go back to it, it's richer, full of quirks...a two card reading now says Victory as the 9 of Cups balanced by Difficult Way by the Six of Swords. "Stick with me, baby," the godling hero says, "And your wish is my command, through thick and thin..." It's kind of nice to be able to tuck this sizeable friend in my backpack and see what this cast of characters sometimes suggest...sometimes it just makes me smile after I take a quick peek.

Phantom Goddess	01 Feb 2005
Some would say the Gothic Tarot by Vargo is a twisted dark and freaky deck... ( I wouldn't though) But it gives off really really accurate readings. I sometimes surprise myself.

Lurea	01 Feb 2005
The Halloween deck is not dark, but the art is a little twisty. It's trememdously fun. Sometimes I have a little trouble reading the images, but it usually proves out to be very accurate. Ex: once I got the Tower for a daily card, and down the road from my house, they were transporting a mobile home... Well, the wind caught the mobile home just right, ripped it off the truck, and flung it upside down on the road! :) Definitely the Tower.

WolfSpirit	01 Feb 2005
Fun and quirky: Jolanda den Tredjes (Swedish Witch) tarot. Hans Arnold, the artist, has a wicked sense of humour. He put lots of funny animals and other funny details in the cards. It is amazing that a deck that looks so cheerful and cute at the same time pulls no punches - this is no way a light deck - but because of the cheerfulness in it, does not make you gloomy, it wants to tell you "get over it". After much deliberation, I decided to free the images from the tedious big grey border. It looks even better now and is a handy small size, but I also miss the Swedish titles and keywords (this is the only Swedish I know, thanks to jema who translated them for AT), they were what made it a Swedish deck for me. So I am thinking of ordering another one, so I have a trimmed and an original version - quite an honour, the only other deck that has this is the DruidCraft :)

Chronata	02 Feb 2005
Tarot of the III Milennium is a freak show deck for me. It has a nifty, but twisted S&M sorta logic to it. But it is accurate! Boy is it accurate! But only when I am feeling particularly stressed and/or nuerotic. The Thoth pushes my buttons. It's really accurate too...but it just isn't very tactful or nice. Probably the reason why I don't read with it anymore.

RedMaple	03 Feb 2005
The Bosch is definitely my most "freaky twisty" deck. Every time I look at the High Priestess with the book balanced on her head, I just break up laughing. The minors are not so great, but the Majors are wild and a hoot. I've had some very interesting political readings with this very satirical deck.

jota23	04 Feb 2005
The World Spirit Tarot deck was a twisted deck for me. It was truely a love/hate relationship. The deck loved me, but I hated it. It was the first deck to truely inspire my intuition, but I found it difficult to study the deck. I just gave the deck to a complete neophyte just yesterday, so perhaps it has found it's true reader at last. I have to admit, it gave the most fantastic readings; it gives an extremely direct reading without candy coating the details, and without being cruel. This deck tended to take my standard celtic cross spread and adjust the meaning of the positions to suit the individual needs of the quierent. It created its own spread like using the same musical tune for different songs ("twinkle little star" and the "alphabet song", for example). I'll miss this deck on some levels, but know I've found a better match in the Druidcraft tarot.

The Freaky/twisty, but fun? thread was originally posted on 31 Jan 2005 in the Tarot Decks board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Tarot Decks, or read more archived threads.