You guys all know how much I respect your opinions. And well, I don't have a skin in this game too, since I could sail by life without thinking of Virtue's decks so one way or another, people's opinions about it don't bother me.
But what I think about Virtue's Tarot decks is that for some, it is a very useful tool that in most cases is what they need at that particular point in their path. It is what they required at that moment, so it does not mean they have to continue patronizing it once its usefulness has been exhausted.
I guess I can liken it to how some people require training wheels when they first learn how to bike. Some people can take to cycling like fish to water, and if after a few mishaps they find their footing and can use their bike like a pro then good for them! I guess these would be the sort of readers who can handle the hard cold Truths that the traditional Tarot decks can throw at them without flinching. They can commence their Tarot studies using the RWS or even the stark Thoth as their starter deck, and even if they sometimes use imaginative ways to cope with inauspicious readings (like for example, pulling more clarificatory cards to somehow counter the "bad" ones they drew in their spread), they mostly take these in stride.
Then there are people who would only get battered, discouraged, hurt, and maybe traumatized if they chose to ride a bike head on. They are the unathletic, ungainly kids who no matter how you try to guide them (and amidst your slowly mounting frustration) would always find ways to fall on their butts, knees, arms, etc. Seeing no progress they would begin to lose their confidence, and after lots of struggles with hardly any headway, they might even begin to hate the bike itself. In time, many of them would just quit altogether, defeated, when all they really needed was the efficacious use of training wheels which they would slowly lift until they reach the goal they're after.
And this would be what would happen if you get a sensitive, broken spirit who has somehow been guided to the Tarot as a means of helping them with their pain, but who has been thrown into the deep end of the Tarot pool when all they really needed at the moment is the warm, comforting waters at the shallow end. We have all had phases in our lives when we were utterly, absolutely down, when we were at the end of our rope, when we were at our nadir. Sometimes, all we need is a little comfort, some kindness, some hope to pull us through. The very last thing we need is a stern taskmaster who will tell us all our faults and how effed up our present is and so and so. I mean, some probably respond to that but in my experience most don't.
I guess I'm lucky that I met the Tarot at the right time in my life, when I can take most of what it shows me and react to them productively. Because I've had some dark, ugly phases in my life that I faced alone, since after all, the golden boy must always perform for people and he must always be wholesome and shiny and he just has so many things in his plate so he must never be allowed to show his weaknesses because it would be such a faux pas. I mean, imagine the shame on his family's name. The very best Tarot can guide you to the right paths, and they can look nice and all but above all they must never shy away from the truth. With all the fakery and the odious brawls for status and all the hypocritically false "social acquaintances" I must keep up with during that time, if I tried to find solace in the traditional Tarot and I was presented a harsh mirror to the lie I've been living, I would have been on the defensive and eventually noped it out of my life. A proud, desperate person doesn't like being told outright that his life stinks. Which would have been a shame since I would never have been exposed to all the lessons that the Tarot has shown me. And I'd be loathe to admit it, but I think that at that time in my life, a Virtue Tarot might just have been the right deck to start me on my path to healing.
That's why I think that the Virtue decks can also be very useful, and it might not be gainful to simply dismiss them. Other people deal with loss, with extreme heartbreak, with the impending collapse of their dreams and at that time, what they need is a comforting friend. If through them a person can somehow find the strength of mind and the willpower to once again give it his best shot and to find his mojo once again then he should use them.
Does that mean that I disapprove of all the criticisms against the Virtue decks? Definitely not! Because most of them are valid and factual after all, and one should not shy away from that. But what I really dislike about the Virtue narrative is their schtick that their Tarot is the true path, the enlightened one, and that traditional Tarot is not necessary. Maybe it is like that for the pampered beings languishing in la dolce vita who would never break a sweat or suffer at all in their idyllic lives. But for the vast majority, the Virtue decks are something they should one day outgrow. Because if all something preaches is light and warmth and kindness etc, at one point people who have the capacity to think for themselves would eventually find it inadequate. Also, if someone wants to explore the Tarot and his life is just average with nothing world-shattering going on (as I think most Tarot beginners are), then he must be heavily discouraged from beginning with the Virtue decks no matter how sweet their promises are, and must be led to the more traditional Tarot decks. Because of this, the reasonable criticisms leveled against the Virtue decks are very much important.
Regarding some of the disparaging remarks the DV brand has against traditional Tarot, it is like a vast training wheel production empire telling people to just stick to using their products because they're safer and more convenient and they're used to it so why fix something when it ain't broke? If we allow that to be broadcast without opposition then people's growth would just be stalled and their potential won't be realized. So yes, it's important to put the word out that the Virtue decks are not the be-all and end-all of Tarot, and that if they have the necessary strength, character and hardiness to tackle the traditional Tarot, then for their own sake they must think of switching quick.
So yup, for me the Virtue Tarot decks, as has been endorsed in many heartfelt reviews and testimonials, can prove to be very useful for certain people. I don't think it must be phased out. But if one truly wishes to discover the whole gamut of spiritual riches that the Tarot can offer to anyone brave and perspicacious enough to explore it to its very limits, then it's just fair that people are made aware of the limitations of the Virtue decks, and that their scurrilous statements against the traditional Tarot be refuted.