Power Deck
Short summary: New Age pap illustrated by surreal clichés.
Not technically a tarot deck. This deck of 45 cards purports to reveal the secret wisdom of the universe, but the "secrets" turn out to be pretty standard stuff. Destiny, centering, creativity, balance, courage-- these truths have been around for a very long time.
The pictures are absolutely gorgeous. Each one is a work of art. Most of them would be fantastic enlarged and hung on one's wall. They are wonderful if taken individually. As a set they don't work. There is a certain sameness and repetition to them. Floating globes, the planet Earth, sky where the ground should be, the Buddha, waterfalls, a lot of trees, flowers, rocks and birds: it's as though the artist was working with a limited number of artistic concepts and symbols which he used over and over and over. The first time I looked through this deck I was bored before I was half way done.
Each illustration has an explanation on the back, but I don't think it would make much difference which words went with which picture. The Zen Garden with Floating Earth, the Starry Buddha with Orchid and Flying Eagle, Stonehenge in Space, the Boat and Heron with Floating Globes: these could be combined with Magic, Truth, Essence, Virtue, Innocence, or any one of the 45 descriptions with no noticible drop in enlightenment.
The wisdom of the cards is the standard New Age stuff. "Know that the powers of the universe are within you." "Your being is like a spirit lodge." "We are all in need of world harmony." "Awaken the power of your will, and find your joy and your laughter." "Creativity is within the crystal palace of your mind."
Like the pictures, the descriptions seem strung together somewhat randomly, as though the writer pulled miscellaneous sentences here and there from a collection of wisdom concepts.
Overall, a disappointing deck.
I Thought You Loved Me More Than That; ExplodingDog.com