The Melancholy Disappointment of Tim Burton's Playing Cards

There are some really spectacular decks of cards available to collectors but the Tim Burton deck from Dark Horse isn't likely to make it onto that list for anyone but the most avid or forgiving fan.  It’s not expensive and it is an official product, so either Burton or someone who represents him must have given permission, but it really is a missed opportunity.

It's a poker-sized deck (2.5 × 3.5 inches / 64 × 89 mm) so the cards aren't even very impressive in the hand.  Large hands will appear to dwarf them even more.

The numbered cards from 2 to 10 have stylistic hand-drawn symbols for each of the four suits, but the only cards that feature actual Burton illustrations are the sixteen Face Cards and the two Jokers.  (I'm not going to get into a debate over whether or not Aces are considered Face Cards, so for the purposes of this review, please assume they are.)

What’s worse still is that, of those sixteen Face Cards, all Jacks display the same picture; all Queens are the same; all Kings are the same; etc.  That means there are only really six unique illustrations:

• The Jacks are Roy the Toxic Boy.
• The Queens are the Pin Cushion Queen.
• The Kings are Mummy Boy.
• The Aces are Stain Boy.
• And finally, the Jokers are Voodoo Girl, and Robot Boy.

On the plus side, they're great illustrations and unmistakably Burton-esque, as is the red and white candy stripe design that adorns the back of each one.  All of these images, and more, can also be found in Burton’s book, The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy (1997), where they had a blackly humorous poem to accompany them.