Christmas is just around the corner, and we’ve all got those geeks on our list who have been really good this year, right? If you’re looking for a gift that’s not going to break the bank… something that will put a smile on many a geek’s face… something that says “I know you’re a fan of…”–well, maybe this will fit the bill.
Albino Dragon sells officially licensed Bicycle card decks, but these aren’t just standard decks that you can find on any store shelf. Nope, these are pure geek gold. With over ten unique brands that include Ghostbusters, Wizard of Oz, The Goonies, Call of Cthulhu, The Princess Bride, and even Alien… there is a good bet that the geek(s) in your life will enjoy a set of 52 cards (plus two Jokers and the occasional bonus cards with amazing artwork).
Most decks run $9.99 and come in a beautiful box with original artwork created in-house at Albino Dragon. Specialty box sets such as The Goonies (that includes a special coin) run $24.99, and there are additional non-card products sold for certain brands (such as the Cthulhu poker chip case).
I’m a big Goonies fan. I’m also a big Ghostbusters fan. Oh, who am I kidding… I love the Cthulhu mythos, Alien movies (maybe not Alien 3), and, yeah, will grudgingly admit a liking of The Princess Bride. There’s not a lot that Albino Dragon offers that I wouldn’t enjoy finding in my stocking on Christmas morning.
Each deck is a labor of love for its subject. The Goonies deck, for example, has the Fratellis (Mama, Francis, and Jake) on a face card. Mikey, Chunk, Data, and Mouth are all the Kings in the deck. Sloth, One-Eye Willy, and even the Inferno all get their moment to shine on a card. It’s awesome.
Let’s look at the Ghostbusters deck. The four ‘busters are the kings and the queens are represented by Dana, Gozer, Janine and… wait for it… the Librarian (in her more terrorizing visage). Peck, Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man, Louis, and Slimer round out the jacks. It’s a well thought out deck, with a unique art style for all the characters (that I actually wouldn’t mind seeing in other formats such as a comic or animated movie).
Going a little darker, the Call of Cthulhu deck has some seriously twisted artwork for the various lurking horrors found on the cards. Thankfully, the deck comes with a Cast of Characters card, but I didn’t have any issues recognizing that the King of Hearts was Cthulhu or that the Jack of Clubs was Nyarlathotep. And the Alien deck? Kings are the full-sized aliens, queens are the face huggers, and the jacks are the chest bursters. Two bonus cards connect together to form the derelict alien ship discovered by the Nostromo crew on LV-426.
I’m including a lot of photos in this post because you’ve just got to see some of these cards, including the backs! You can tell that the folks at Albino Dragon really embrace their inner geek… it’s surprising that something as small as a deck of cards could be tweaked and twisted and updated with a geek theme, but they’ve done it.
Of course, they’re cards. They’re meant to be used… to be played. But considering that each card is a miniature bit of artwork, I could easily see a deck of cards (or just the face cards) being laid out and framed to fit into a themed office. Honestly, there are days I think about converting my office to a geek theme… but choosing one feels impossible.
Point a web browser over to www.albinodragon.com and take a look at it all. Not only do they have cards, but they offer themed dice (not for all brands, however), uncut card sheets, posters, game mats, and much more.
This holiday season, you won’t have to spend a fortune to give every geek in your life–spouse, friends, kids, boss, mailman–a little something that will most definitely bring a smile to their face.
Note: Albino Dragon provided card packs to GeekDad for this review.
