Hey everyone! In this review I'm going to be looking at the brand new, version 4 Smoke & Mirrors playing cards by Dan and Dave Buck, codesigned with Si Scott. The result is incredible. This is going to be a fairly long review, so get your popcorn, open a picture of this incredible deck, and begin. In no particular order.
*Deck review template by esotresh*
Initial Impression: Kinda papery, but feel good in a spread. Nice back design, but it looks better on the back of the box. The box's dull color is very meh. Also, I discover the cards are crafted from recycled paper. A nice deck given the recycled material. I now favor it more.
The Look: Nice back design, very minimalist, as another reviewer commented, and simplistic. The front designs took a while to get used to, as they somewhat resembled cheaper decks. The S&M V3 cards look a tad better than these aesthetically, but they're very elite cards nonetheless. Jokers are sweet as always.
Card construction: These are made from recycled paper, and the feel is very good for that. The finish on them is presumably Aristocrat, as it doesn't say on the box to my knowledge.
Durability: Very good. These recover well after bendy flourishes and a good beating.
Handling: Very good quality handling. Very smooth and natural. It doesn't feel awkward as old Bikes sometimes will or rough as some cheapo decks do. It's just right for me.
Fanning: Fans are good. Thumb fans are nice and spread out. Regular fans are nice and create an attractive display. Carnahans are a little choppy, but should get better with further breaking-in of the deck.
Spring Moves: Very lively spring, although somewhat stiff from a corner spring. Single card flourishes are very "pop"-py.
Dribbles: A bit lacking. They're good, but they clump up somewhat during a basic dribble move. Anacondas clump similarly.
2+Card Obfuscations: I'll go into a small list here:
Standard DL: Without a fair amount of pressure, the cards will separate a bit. Not the best for these cards.
Center DLs: Spin Doctor Double works well, as does Dr. Jekyll. Both are very flashy and very good with these cards.
Push Off: A little better than the usual. The Ninja variation works pretty well. The standard push off, I guess that's the other move I'm using, works very well. Corner push offs are fair.
Strikes: From the side, it's kinda tricky to get, but it works, and it works well. Corner strikes are similar.
XCM cuts: The Werm works very well, and my variation wherein another card is held on the chin, works well too. Displays overall are very nice. Flashy cuts, such as Totally Bogus! and Ferrari 360 Spider also work well. False cuts, namely the Blind Swivel Cut, also work well.
Card Splitting and Gaff construction/availability: A double backer is provided.
Who should not buy?: Anyone who didn't like the previous runs of Smoke & Mirrors, or anyone that dislikes slightly papery cards.
Who should buy these?: Anyone who liked the previous runs of Smoke & Mirrors, and anyone that liked the Bicycle Eco Deck's green mentality and the feel of a good Tally-Ho.
Final Thoughts: A great deck. I'm starting to love it more and more. 8/10.
There it is! I hope this made an opinion on your approach on these cards. They are sold out on Theory 11, but some at the Bucks' site here may still be available.
Thanks for the read!
Ian
*Deck review template by esotresh*
Initial Impression: Kinda papery, but feel good in a spread. Nice back design, but it looks better on the back of the box. The box's dull color is very meh. Also, I discover the cards are crafted from recycled paper. A nice deck given the recycled material. I now favor it more.
The Look: Nice back design, very minimalist, as another reviewer commented, and simplistic. The front designs took a while to get used to, as they somewhat resembled cheaper decks. The S&M V3 cards look a tad better than these aesthetically, but they're very elite cards nonetheless. Jokers are sweet as always.
Card construction: These are made from recycled paper, and the feel is very good for that. The finish on them is presumably Aristocrat, as it doesn't say on the box to my knowledge.
Durability: Very good. These recover well after bendy flourishes and a good beating.
Handling: Very good quality handling. Very smooth and natural. It doesn't feel awkward as old Bikes sometimes will or rough as some cheapo decks do. It's just right for me.
Fanning: Fans are good. Thumb fans are nice and spread out. Regular fans are nice and create an attractive display. Carnahans are a little choppy, but should get better with further breaking-in of the deck.
Spring Moves: Very lively spring, although somewhat stiff from a corner spring. Single card flourishes are very "pop"-py.
Dribbles: A bit lacking. They're good, but they clump up somewhat during a basic dribble move. Anacondas clump similarly.
2+Card Obfuscations: I'll go into a small list here:
Standard DL: Without a fair amount of pressure, the cards will separate a bit. Not the best for these cards.
Center DLs: Spin Doctor Double works well, as does Dr. Jekyll. Both are very flashy and very good with these cards.
Push Off: A little better than the usual. The Ninja variation works pretty well. The standard push off, I guess that's the other move I'm using, works very well. Corner push offs are fair.
Strikes: From the side, it's kinda tricky to get, but it works, and it works well. Corner strikes are similar.
XCM cuts: The Werm works very well, and my variation wherein another card is held on the chin, works well too. Displays overall are very nice. Flashy cuts, such as Totally Bogus! and Ferrari 360 Spider also work well. False cuts, namely the Blind Swivel Cut, also work well.
Card Splitting and Gaff construction/availability: A double backer is provided.
Who should not buy?: Anyone who didn't like the previous runs of Smoke & Mirrors, or anyone that dislikes slightly papery cards.
Who should buy these?: Anyone who liked the previous runs of Smoke & Mirrors, and anyone that liked the Bicycle Eco Deck's green mentality and the feel of a good Tally-Ho.
Final Thoughts: A great deck. I'm starting to love it more and more. 8/10.
There it is! I hope this made an opinion on your approach on these cards. They are sold out on Theory 11, but some at the Bucks' site here may still be available.
Thanks for the read!
Ian
