Dylan Dog

Dylan Dog is the second most widely sold comic book in Italy, published by Sergio Bonelli Editore of Milan. It first appeared in 1986. Dylan Dog is a paranormal investigator who takes on cases involving supernatural elements. The character was named for the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas. The series is set mainly in London. The court cards feature some of the main characters from the series written by Tiziano Sciavi and drawn by Corrado Roi. Dylan himself appears on the Ace and King of Hearts. On the numeral cards there are small vignettes in purple with additional characters, objects and scenes from the stories. Dylan’s trusty sidekick Groucho (a Groucho Marx lookalike) is featured on the two Jokers. The leaflet has instructions in Italian for three patience games. See the box

Above: Dylan Dog playing cards published by Lo Scarabeo, Turin, Italy, c1995. 52 cards + 2 Jokers + 1 title card + leaflet in Italian, in tuck box. Size: 62 x 88 mm. © Sergio Bonelli Editore. Printer unknown.

Apart from the numbered edition on a particular kind of board mentioned in the leaflet, I have seen two different printings of these cards, one on ‘proper’ playing-card board and the other on a much lighter, whiter, see-through board. I have a few of the cheaper quality packs for sale.