The Genii Forum

First, there was Dan Harlan's Cardtoon. Then, there was Cardtoon 2. Then came Fartoon. After that, Tenyo released Animation Card which is a pleasant alternative. What followed was a variety of knock-offs.

The quality of the above decks vary greatly. I have seen Cardtoon and Cardtoon 2 quality made by Cartamundi and others of a lesser quality.

This copying phenomenon is certainly not unusual, especially when a great creation comes to market such as this flip book deck concept from Dan Harlan.

The one I did not list above and perhaps the best of them all in both quality and deck design is Toony Angel which was the idea of Mike Maxwell. It was manufactured by the USPCC using a blue back Bicycle deck. An extra card was included to use with an alternate presentation. From my understanding, the USPCC will not make them again because it tampers with their classic Bicycle back design and they don't want to do that anymore.

Do you have any of these decks? If so, which one(s) do you have and do you have a favorite? Any ideas for using this type of deck that may be of interest?

The originator of the flip-book idea with a stick man is David Harkey, as Dan Harlan acknowledges. Harkey published it in his book, I believe.

Personally, I prefer Tenyo's version, in which one of the fairies on the back of the deck comes to life and flutters around the back before performing its magic.

The only reason I would prefer to use a deck of Bikes is if I could draw the first stickman in front of the audience, which I don't believe you can do.

As with the Tenyo Animation Card version, the design on the back of the cards of the Toony Angel version actually comes to life. Cardtoon utilizes a drawing on the back of the deck. I find that when the deck back design itself comes to life, the magic is so much better. That's why I feel that the Tenyo and Toony Angel versions are an excellent improvement and therefore superior.

Richard Kaufman wrote:The originator of the flip-book idea with a stick man is David Harkey, as Dan Harlan acknowledges. Harkey published it in his book, I believe.

We have an article about the concept on our site here: http://www.conjuringcredits.com/doku.ph ... revelation

Fascinating research!

I just found several of the TOONY ANGEL decks and I am making them available for $15 each which includes shipping to addresses within the U.S.. They are brand new and complete with the instructions which is six pages with photos in color.

Payment can be made via PayPal to randlmagicsellers@msn.com or through the mail with a U.S. Post Office Money Order.

Steve Snyderman
P.O. Box 18142
Philadelphia, PA 19116
215-552-9216

If you like the flip book deck concept, then this is for you. The angel on the bike in the Bicycle back design comes to life, does a wheelie, and produces the selected card which is a tiny duplicate of the actual card design. Very cool!

It's perfectly fine if Steve wants to sell his Toony Angel decks here.

I still have a few of the TOONY ANGEL decks available at the low price of $15 shipped. Great deck, great deal.

Tell you what! If you buy two decks, $27 for the pair. Buy three decks, $39 for all three. Thanks!