Earlier tonight, I stumbled into one of the most entertaining comment threads that I’ve ever come across on Facebook. A woman from Alabama had taken the time to “like” the Toys “R” Us Facebook Page for the sole reason of posting an angry comment regarding the sale and Black Friday promotion of a “WishCraft Toy” containing “Tarot Cards and a Pendulum.” The post was placed on the page by a self-proclaimed “Godly Christian” denouncing these items as “promoting witchcraft to children.”
What followed was an hours-long debate with other Facebook users, and a comment thread that was up to 442 posts as of this writing. I suspect the entire thread may eventually be removed by an admin from TRU (or the original poster), so click here to view it while you still can.
I took interest in the highly-entertaining and often heated exchanges that quickly moved beyond toys and into religion (or lack thereof). I jumped in for a few comments myself, as the argument was irresistible for many. Plus, I was intrigued by these toys, which until tonight, I’d never heard of.
It turns out that the “offending” items are made by Fantasma Toys, a branch of New York’s Fantasma Magic. WishCraft is a line of five sets marketed toward girls: Mystical Tarot Cards with Magical Mat; Psychic Pendulum; Magical Wishing Heart hand-held fortune teller; Oh My! Fortune Telling Heart Game; and the Fortune Telling Hand. All of these appear to be completely harmless fun. For Toys “R” Us, Fantasma has bundled a special three-pack that contains the Tarot Cards, Wishing Heart, and Pendulum as the “WishCraft 3-in-1 Trio Magic Set.” It’s normally $24.99 and will be 50% off for Black Friday.
The Pendulum that was being blasted as a Satanic item? It’s function is similar to that of a Magic 8 Ball, which is also apparently a vessel of evil to some folks, judging by the response I received after I commented on Facebook with that observation. Check out the video below…
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The Oh My! Fortune Telling Heart Game looks awfully-similar to a OUIJA board, the Parker Bros/Hasbro version of which was a staple of my own youth. In fact, I once played with a Ouija board with my cousins in the basement of St. Paul’s Church in Monee, Illinois during a reception/meal following my Grandfather’s funeral. That was about twenty years ago, if I recall.
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My biggest surprise was that someone finally came up with a way to mass-produce and market the same kind of “fortune teller” that kids in grade school have been making out of notebook paper for decades. If you don’t know what I mean, check out the Magical Wishing Heart video and see if it looks familiar to you:
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I find it laughable that any parent would call these toys out for promoting “evil” to children. I can only assume that the same folks would take issue with Harry Potter and Star Wars for promoting “Wizardry” or “Sorcery” to their kids. If my girls were a little bit older, I’d have no problem letting them dabble in some “WishCraft.”
Now, if you really wanna talk about “Satan” and kids, how about that LULLABY VERSIONS OF SLAYER that Twinkle Twinkle Little Rock Star released? Nothing like “Hell Awaits” playing in your babies’ nursery, right? Of course, I jest. That release is awesome for all metal-loving parents and their little ones. I have a copy here at Rock Father HQ!
