Junior Playing Cards

Designer Louie Mantia Jr’s aim in creating these cards was to reinterpret the standard English pack, thus introducing playing cards to new audiences, notably youngsters (hence the name “Junior”). It is fair to say that he has succeeded in keeping traditional elements while making the courts less forbidding: they are both ‘friendly’ and colourful. Only the axes on the King of Diamonds and the Jack of Hearts look somewhat superfluous, hanging in the air as they do. The black suits are now blue and the Ace of Clubs (rather than the Ace of Spades) carries some supplementary information. In the blue-backed pack, the extra cards are two Mage cards and two Flag cards, while in the red-backed pack the extra cards are two Fool cards and two Flag cards.

Above: Junior Playing Cards made by USPC Co., Erlanger, KY, USA, 2021. Blue pack: 52 cards + 2 Mage cards + 2 Flag cards in tuck box. Red pack: 52 cards + 2 Fool cards + 2 Flag cards in tuck box. Size: 63 x 88 mm. © 2021. Junior is a registered trademark of Mantia LLC.

“Quite fun, as they’ve kept to the traditional postures, though the queens are a bit samey” - Ken Lodge

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