| "We move from terror and loss, to unexpected good | | | | gives a splendid performance here as Clyde |
| fortune,and out of darkness, hope is born." -Angela | | | | Bruckman, a psychic gifted with the ability to predict |
| Chase in My So-Called Life, quoting the tarot. | | | | people's death, and whom FBI Agents Mulder and |
| It's inevitable that tarot cards should make it into pop | | | | Scully enlist to help them catch the killer's next victim. |
| culture. | | | | Inarguably, this is one of the favourite episodes of |
| After all, in this world where people are worried about | | | | many X-philes (fans of the show). Clever story-telling |
| death and mortality, nothing is more alarming than the | | | | has made an otherwise simple detective drama into a |
| image of the Death Card. This tarot card is perhaps | | | | wry but brilliant story. As such, the episode clearly |
| the most popular in the deck. Traditionally, TV, film, | | | | reveals the tension between Scully's skepticism and |
| literature, and the other art have always dramatically | | | | Mulder's unwavering faith in matters such as psychic |
| presented the sinister side of this tarot card, and so | | | | divination and fortune-telling. |
| audiences can be forgiven if they mistakenly assume | | | | Other People's Daughters, episode in My So-Called |
| that the Death card is equivalent to actual dying. | | | | Life |
| Just to clarify things, the Death card is not always a | | | | (first aired November 4, 1994) |
| dreaded card signifying death. Instead, the Death card | | | | Delving into the conflict of mothers versus daughters, |
| should be welcomed for the rebirth that must surely | | | | this episode has Angela Chase (played by Claire |
| follow; it is the only way to be reborn. Death then is not | | | | Danes) learning tarot reading through a crash course |
| just physical dying, but a catalyst for change and | | | | from her best friend Rayanne's mom. |
| transformation to something better and grander. | | | | Who exactly is mothering whom? Here, Angela |
| Tarot as a Story-Telling Device | | | | realises she is a daughter to her mother, as her |
| What really makes tarot ingrained in pop culture is its | | | | mother is also a child to her, and their disagreements |
| inherent story-telling powers. Tarot cards' rich imagery | | | | often arise from their refusal to acknowledge this fact. |
| and symbolism are a great minefield of stories and | | | | Angela decides to escape her grandparent's wedding |
| narratives which have inspired artists everywhere. | | | | anniversary party in favor of Rayanne's birthday party, |
| And thus we come to two remarkable TV shows | | | | and there she sees firsthand her best friend's troubled |
| which featured tarot cards in an innovative and | | | | relationship with her mom. |
| un-clichéd light. | | | | In the end, Angela declares that each tarot card has a |
| Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose, episode in The X-Files | | | | name, her friends and family corresponding to the |
| (first aired October 13, 1995) | | | | characters in them: the Magician, the Fool, the |
| In this episode, a serial killer is on the loose, targeting | | | | Empress, etc. No card is all good or bad. We all play a |
| fortune-tellers and tarot card readers. Peter Boyle | | | | role, each of us is master of our own fate. |