TREK TAROT
TREK TAROT
In 1992, my husband Paul made me a Star Trek Tarot deck as an anniversary present, thus combining two of my long-time passions. He illustrated the deck; I chose many of the images for the cards, and wrote paragraphs about why I chose the specific Trek images to replace the traditional Tarot archetypes. We hand-colored our deck, but photocopied the originals in
black and white on the theory that they would reproduce more easily if anyone else in our family decided they wanted to have one.
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I wrote to Paramount and Pocket Books suggesting that such a deck -- or one constructed out of actual still photos from the series -- would probably attract a lot of buyers, as have the Lord of the Rings Tarot, the Wonderland Tarot and other theme decks. Pocket doesn't own a card license and Paramount's Consumer Division never replied to my query. I would like to write a book with chapters on Tarot card history and interpretation, Star Trek archetypes, how to use the cards as psychological tools, and some examples of Trek-specific spreads like The Comm Badge or the IDIC.
The characters and scenarios from Star Trek are all trademarks of Paramount Pictures. The graphics and text on this page are copyright Paul Anderson and Michelle Erica Green, 1992. They have never been distributed or sold for profit. Do not copy, print, adapt or re-post without permission. If you would like to see some other Trek art by Paul, click here.
Here are the first four card summary entries. Traditional card names appear in parentheses, while the descriptions contain the names of the episodes from which the images were adapted. Because this deck was entirely based on the original series, we were able to illustrate an element from every episode. I wrote similar notes on all 78 cards in the Major and Minor Arcana. The cards are approximately 2.5 x 5" as is standard for many Tarot decks.
Historically the card of courage, innocence, and adventure, The Seeker epitomizes Star Trek's commitment "to boldly go where no man has gone before." Pavel Chekov, one of the youngest members of the Enterprise crew, represents the spirit of the travelers, even though he has been known to emit a scream of terror now and then as he did in 'The Deadly Years.' |
Montgomery Scott -- supervisor and guardian angel of the Enterprise engines -- has been described as no less than a miracle worker. A tireless worker and invaluable member of the senior staff, he sometimes drinks a wee bit too much. His extracurricular activities got him into serious trouble in 'Wolf in the Fold.' |
The only person ever to have turned down a seat on the Federation Council, Vulcan leader T'Pau possesses formidable power. Few would dare oppose this embodiment of logic, whether negotiating with Starfleet Command or overseeing Spock's wedding in 'Amok Time.' |
Presiding over communications from her seat on the bridge, Lieutenant Nyota Uhura reflects the steadfastness and strength this card represents. Her work in the background is vital to the success of the Enterprise's missions, as in 'Tomorrow Is Yesterday' when her monitoring of old Earth communications saved the ship from an attack by the U.S. military of the 1960s. |
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