Line #56 Main/CardSharp


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4	%% This list of examples has been alphabetized. Please add your example in the proper place. Thanks!
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9	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/caravaggio_michelangelo_merisi___the_cardsharps___google_art_project.jpg]]
10	[[caption-width-right:350:''The Cardsharps'' (ca. 1594) by Caravaggio]]
11
12	->''"Trust me, son. When '''''I''''' play cards, it ain't gambling."''
13	-->-- '''Theodore "T-Bag" Bagwell''', ''Series/PrisonBreak''
14
15	Quick hands. The prestidigitator member of a con team, who sometimes works alone. Frequently, the tricks he pulls have to do with manipulating playing cards, hence the name, but a team will sometimes call on a card sharp to make a tricky switch, "dip" a pocket, or put up a fancy misdirection. Likely a {{Hustler}}, their favorite routine is HustlingTheMark into getting their guard down enough to make a foolish bet.
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17	May or may not be a DeathDealer. A FiveAcesCheater doesn't bother as much subtlety. Compare ProfessionalGambler. Has a good chance of getting into a GamblingBrawl or being hit with TarAndFeathers.
18
19	"Card ''Shark''" is a variant of the term which doesn't always imply cheating, just a penchant for playing cards. Often in the US it refers to the professional gambler who focuses on card games.
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21	----
22	!!Examples:
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24	[[foldercontrol]]
25
26	[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
27	* Both Firo and Keith Gandor from ''Literature/{{Baccano}}''. Firo's picked up enough tricks from managing an underground casino that not only can he slip cards in and out with the best of them, but can pick marks well enough that he can nearly sweep a casino without cheating at all. Keith, on the other hand, cheats so much and so blatantly that he has a deck of cards composed entirely of jokers.
28	* In ''Anime/CowboyBebop''
29	** Faye is highly skilled in conning people in a game of cards (also dice, though then she just flat-out cheats with rigged dice).
30	** Spike's no slouch either and was able to spot Faye's con a mile away.
31	* Protagonist Allen Walker from ''Manga/DGrayMan'' is an expert at cheating in cards due to the horrible experiences with debt he had from being with General Cross.
32	* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'': Daniel J. D'Arby, one of the villains in Part 3, is a gambler who specializes in this. [[NotCheatingUnlessYouGetCaught He considers cheating just part of the game,]] fully expecting his opponents to cheat as well. Unlike most, however, he prefers rigging the entire game ''well'' before any cards are dealt. [[spoiler:Jotaro defeats him by bluffing so perfectly that what's actually ''in'' their hands doesn't matter... which is good, because Jotaro had ''crap''.]]
33	* Unsurprisingly, comes up frequently in both ''Manga/{{Kaiji}}'' and ''Manga/{{Akagi}}''.
34	* Nearly every major character in ''Manga/TheLegendOfKoizumi'' is able to cheat at Mahjong in some way.
35	* In ''Manga/LiarGame'', the 17-Card Poker game becomes a battle of ''dueling'' card sharps: Akiyama uses skill and strategy, while his opponent uses superhuman reflexes honed from an aborted career in boxing to track the cards.
36	* In ''Manga/NoMatterHowILookAtItItsYouGuysFaultImNotPopular'', the socially awkward protagonist Tomoko cheats at a trading card game. Against ''kids''. And she's a ''high-schooler''. Her cousin is not impressed.
37	* Gojyo in ''Manga/{{Saiyuki}}'' frequently cheats at cards. Hakkai can still beat him though, so one wonders if his playing style is completely orthodox.
38	* ''Anime/YuGiOh'': Bandit Keith tends to use this method of cheating. In his semi-finals duel with Joey, he slips his "7 Completed" cards out of his wristbands (which Pegasus notes and later explains after Joey wins the duel), and in his anime-only duel with Yugi, he keeps cards in a special gadget kept up his sleeve.
39
40	[[/folder]]
41
42	[[folder:Comic Books]]
43	* In ''Comics/{{Fables}}'' Jack has the ability to draw into four Jacks anytime he wishes during a poker game. The trick is to only do so only with a very large pot since it only works with four Jacks and his opponents would catch on if he tries it a second time during a game.
44	* Though it rarely comes up as a plot point, the lead [[ComicBook/GIJoeARealAmericanHeroMarvel G.I. Joe]] pilot, Capt. Brad Armbruster, didn't get his codename [[AcePilot Ace]] from being a top pilot, but rather from his love of cutthroat poker. His superiors look the other way regarding his gambling habit, since he's not only that good a pilot, he's not really "gambling" at poker since he ''never loses''.
45	* A recurring character type in ''ComicBook/LuckyLuke'', either seen at the edge of a poker table or being on top of a rail being escorted out of town after the requisite TarAndFeathers.
46	[[/folder]]
47
48	[[folder:Film -- Live Action]]
49	* "Shooter" (Creator/KarlMalden) in Film/TheCincinnatiKid -- a tragic case, as he is a psychologically broken honest player who is blackmailed into using his "mechanic" skills.
50	* ''Film/{{Dealt}}'' examines the life and career of Richard Turner, a blind "card mechanic" who demonstrates how card games can be manipulated to result in the exact outcome he desires.
51	* ''Film/TheLadyEve'': Jean is a card sharp from a family of card sharps; her part of the con is to lure gullible and smitten young men into a game where they can be cleaned out by her father. It goes wrong when she falls InLoveWithTheMark.
52	* It's card sharp vs. card shark in ''Film/LockStockAndTwoSmokingBarrels'' when card sharp Eddy goes up against "Hatchet" Harry. Harry has someone with binoculars spying on Eddy.
53	* Quite a few sharps in ''Film/{{Maverick}}'' got caught cheating during the big riverboat poker tournament (the penalty for which was being tossed overboard). The dealer at the final table was also one, surreptitiously dealing from the bottom of the deck (this is known as "base/[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin bottom dealing]]", by the by).
54	* Creator/ClarkGable's character Babe in ''Film/NoManOfHerOwn1932''.
55	* Matt Damon's character facilitates this role in the ''[[Film/OceansEleven Ocean's]]'' trilogy. Also, Brad Pitt and George Clooney clean out a poker school of celebrities in the first movie.
56	--> '''Ocean:''' Cause yesterday I walked out of the joint after losing four years of my life and you're cold-decking "Teen Beat" cover-boys.
57	** Constance from ''Film/OceansEight'' is first seen robbing unsuspecting tourists from their money using the Three-card Monte con.
58	* Rotten Luck Willie in ''Film/PaintYourWagon''.
59	* Edward Norton's character, "Worm," is a card-sharp, or "mechanic", in ''Film/{{Rounders}}''. His more honest gambling buddy, played by Matt Damon, warns him against utilizing his tricks against players with sharp eyes who might turn violent if they catch him at it. [[spoiler: Worm doesn't listen, and a group of cops [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown beat the ever-loving piss out of them both]] and confiscate tens of thousands in winnings before kicking them to the curb.]]
60	* The Dean, Vernon and Larry in the poker film ''Film/Shade2003''. Larry tries to cheat a poker game only to lose his mob boss's money (and shortly thereafter his life). [[spoiler:The game was a con to steal the boss's money]]. The Dean and Vernon each use their skills in the film's final hand, with Vernon's three Jack's losing to Dean's three Queens. [[spoiler:It's a con designed to bankrupt Vernon's partners Tiffany and Frank, who had each betrayed him in different ways]].
61	* Paul Newman's character in ''Film/TheSting'' demonstrates his skill against Lonnegan as the setup for the big con. (The card manipulations in the film are actually performed by John Scarne.)
62	* ''Film/TazzaTheHighRollers'' is a Korean movie about a whole gang of card sharps who specialize in the Korean game of "hwatu". Mr. Pyeong is TheMentor, who trains young Goni in how to cheat at hwatu--palming cards, dealing from the bottom of the deck, and other parlor tricks, all used to scam the mark.
63	* In ''Film/WithinOurGates'', the dealer at a card game has a mirror that he uses to see who is getting which cards. This precipitates a shootout.
64	[[/folder]]
65
66	[[folder:Literature]]
67	* From ''Literature/TheCrystal'' there's Saern, a sorcerer, who apparently cheats using both magical means and mundane. Don't bother catching him at it, he'll act offended and fireball you.
68	* In the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' series:
69	** In ''Literature/WitchesAbroad'', the witches run into some, but Granny manages to beat them without cheating or using magic, and supposedly without having played the game (the incredibly complicated Cripple Mr. Onion) before. She'd actually played it quite a bit while caring for a sick witch, but [[ConfusionFu used her newcomer image for an advantage]].
70	** Moist von Lipwig created an alter ego to be this. Subverted in that the character was quite awful at being a card sharp, fumbling and missing golden opportunities to cheat. And when the mark left away, gleeful at having conned such a pathetic charlatan, they'd find that the few coins they'd swiped didn't make up for the wallets and watches they were now missing. And to add insult to injury, the coins are fake.
71	* In the ''Literature/GentlemanBastard'' series, the eponymous Locke Lamora successfully cheats in the safest gambling place in the world, where the mere act of cheating carries the death penalty.
72	* Believe it or not, this was Literature/JamesBond's ''original'' specialty - though he's certainly no slouch at fighting, killing, and [[HoneyTrap seducing]], the plot of his first book ''Literature/CasinoRoyale'' was all about ''out-gambling'' a Soviet agent. His card-sharping skills come in even handier during ''Literature/{{Moonraker}}''.
73	* Fisk from the ''Literature/KnightAndRogueSeries'' is rather good at card tricks, though he usually sticks to cons that he can get more money out of and sneak away from easier. Unfortunately this skill doesn't see a whole lot of use. For Michael's sake, he'll usually stick to betting on whether or not he ''can'' do a trick than actually tricking people.
74	* The Lacework Kid, from Creator/DamonRunyon's story of the same name. ("Lacework" refers to his artistry with cards.)
75	* {{Subverted}} in ''Literature/RiverOfTeeth''. Cal Hotchkiss is introduced as a potential member of the CaperCrew Houndstooth is about to assemble and as someone who makes his living at the cards table. He then quickly proceeds to [[spoiler:have his left ear cut off]] for being caught cheating and eventually [[spoiler:is thrown to the feral hippos to die]] because he never learns his lesson. As it turns out, Houndstooth didn't want him for his nimble fingers but for his connections.
76	* In ''Literature/TimeScout'', Skeeter's as much a master at cheating with cards as he is with any other cheat. Picking pockets is just another part of the game.
77	* Feodor Dolokhov in ''Literature/WarAndPeace''.
78	* ''Literature/{{The Way Of Kings\|2010}}'' (first book of ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive''): Yalb, a sailor from Shallan's ship. He plays against cops, and he mentioned that the game isn't who will win, the game is will he cheat them out of their money or will they prove he was cheating, take all of his money and throw him in jail for the night to boot?
79	[[/folder]]
80
81	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
82	* Face from ''Series/TheATeam'' has been shown cheating at cards.
83	* Londo tries this once on ''Series/BabylonFive'' using his, [[BizarreAlienBiology ummm...]]attributes. It doesn't work out to well.
84	* MagnificentBastard Arnold Rothstein from ''Series/BoardwalkEmpire'' gets his EstablishingCharacterMoment by showing that he's a first rate poker player... and more than capable of cheating and [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections getting away with it due to his connections]] on the occasions when that alone isn't enough. Keep that in mind, it sums up a lot about Rothstein's character.
85	* Mr Terence Sampson in ''Series/DowntonAbbey'' is invited to the Abbey in Series 4 for a big house party, where he cheats Lord Grantham, Michael Gregson, and a few others out of substantial sums at poker. Gregson figures him out, and counters with the same technique (which he picked up in his "misspent youth"), winning back not only his losses but those of Grantham and the other guests (which he promptly returns to the respective players, particularly Grantham). Later, in the Series 4 Christmas special, he steals a love letter from [[UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfWindsor the Prince of Wales]] to [[HistoricalDomainCharacter Freda Dudley Ward]]; the Crawleys invite Sampson to a game of poker at Grantham House as part of a scheme to get the letter back and protect the Prince from scandal.
86	* ''Series/{{Heroes}}'': Hiro tries this with his time-altering super-powers at one point. [[SubvertedTrope Unfortunately for him, someone notices the switch]], because he switched the cards after his opponent had already seen them.
87	* In ''Series/KaizokuSentaiGokaiger'', both Joe and Luka are very skilled poker players, but Joe insists that Luka can ''never'' lose if she doesn't want to. When events lead to Luka and Joe playing poker against the Zangyak Empire, Luka proves her skills with shifty dealing to cheat their way to victory.
88	* One episode of ''Series/TheLoveBoat'' has a grandfatherly type hustling the crew at gin rummy. They exact revenge by spying on his cards through a porthole and using the ship's public address system to make coded announcements about his hand.
89	* Porthos from ''Series/TheMusketeers'' is introduced cheating at cards in a tavern or inn.
90	* ''Series/PersonOfInterest'': The number that The Machine spits out in "All In" points to an old "Mechanic" from the mobbed-up Atlantic City days. He used his skill at switching cards to win enough money at a casino to pay for his wife's cancer treatments, only to end up being forced to work as a money launderer for the casino's owner. It ends up being a ChekhovsSkill when during the climax of the episode [[spoiler: he is forced to play Russian Roulette and is able to take the bullet out of the gun without anyone noticing]].
91	* T-Bag in ''Series/PrisonBreak''. Claims that maybe 5 people in the country can do what he can with cards. It's only significant in one episode, however.
92	%%* Alex of ''Series/TheRealHustle''.
93	* ''Series/SneakyPete'' has Eddie and Marius both very good at playing cards and conning people. Tate is also good at playing cards.
94	* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'': When necessary, Data has shown that he can stack the deck (though in that case it was to send a subliminal message), [[SuperStrength squeeze a set of loaded dice]] hard enough to rebalance them, and count cards. When he needed money after being trapped in 19th Century San Francisco, he hustled another group of sharps using his abilities.
95	* A G-rated version appears in an episode of ''Series/TheSuiteLifeOfZackAndCody'', in which a little girl scams Maddie out of all of her candy by getting her obsessed with trying to pick the right card. Then again, aforementioned little girl's father was pretending to be injured in order to get a free hotel room, so yeah.
96	%%* Neal Caffrey is this in several episodes of ''Series/WhiteCollar''.
97	[[/folder]]
98
99	[[folder:Music]]
100	* In "Lay It Down (Saturday Night)" by Music/SamanthaFish, she meets a card sharp named Jimmy, with an ace up his sleeve. The "it" she lays down is his body--in a shallow grave.
101	* ''Music/NautilusPompilius'': In the song "Scoundrel and Angel", the scoundrel is a card sharp who won the angel's wings.
102	[[/folder]]
103
104	[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
105	* The hucksters of ''TabletopGame/{{Deadlands}}'' find their lives last longer if they minor in ''sleight o' hand'', as a little legerdemain goes a long way in convincing the TorchesAndPitchforks crowd that, no, you didn't just summon spectral cards into your hand and use them to channel a stream of ghostly-white energy at your opponent. It was a trick of the light and nothing more. Some "hexes", like ''trinkets'', even go so far as to allow a huckster to summon small objects literally from thin air into his hands, furthering the use of one as a Card Sharp con man.
106	[[/folder]]
107
108	[[folder:Theatre]]
109	* In ''Theatre/{{Carousel}}'', Jigger plays blackjack with Billy and draws twenty-one every time, cheating him of all the money he would have obtained had the robbery they were about to attempt been successful.
110	[[/folder]]
111
112	[[folder:Video Games]]
113	* The game ''Videogame/CardShark'' is about playing a Card Shark in 18th century France in various high-stakes card games and learning various tactics to cheat your way to victory. The player starts off as an accomplice who helps his mentor count cards before becoming a proper card sharp by himself hobnobbing with nobles.
114	* ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'': Isabella, the NPC who can teach you the Duelist specialization for rogues, is a card sharp who's shown being attacked by some people she beat at cards when you first meet her. If you have a high enough pickpocket skill, you can out-card sharp her in a game, the greatest example being by letting her deal you a lousy hand and herself a winning hand, then swapping your cards while the two of you are holding them! She's impressed by how skillfully you out-cheated her.
115	* ''VideoGame/FreddyPharkasFrontierPharmacist'': The first baddie to show up in the last act.
116	* Twisted Fate and Graves of ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' fame met in a card game where they both showed four aces for their final hand. Twisted Fate in particular embodies this trope, as he uses DeathDealer abilities in battle and has a repertoire of quotes related to gambling.
117	* ''VideoGame/Left4Dead'''s Nick is stated as being a con man. He was down in Savannah trying to hit up the riverboat circuit when the infection hit.
118	* The difficulty selection in ''VideoGame/RailroadTycoon'' is represented by characters having a number of aces in their hand. The mogul has an extreme number of cards in his sleeve.
119	* The Elegant Suit in ''VideoGame/RedDeadRedemption'' gives Marston the ability to do this, pocketing a single card to discreetly swap out at any time whenever it's his deal. Failing at the minigame causes him to lose his ante and initiates a [[ShowdownAtHighNoon duel]] with the player who caught him.
120	[[/folder]]
121
122	[[folder:Visual Novels]]
123	* The first case of ''VisualNovel/ApolloJusticeAceAttorney'' has a witness who is a professional Card Sharp, [[spoiler:hired to plant evidence to falsely accuse Phoenix Wright of being one himself.]] Hilariously, [[spoiler:Phoenix Wright actually ''is'' one, but he's so good that he messes up the hired Card Sharp's plan by recognizing it and then subverting it without anyone noticing.]]
124	[[/folder]]
125
126	[[folder:Webcomics]]
127	* In ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'' Master Payne plays cards with a Wulfenbach soldier and they ''both'' take to cheating, though Payne seems to be coming out on top before their game gets cut short.
128	[[/folder]]
129
130	[[folder:Western Animation]]
131	* Batman in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' is skilled at slight-of-hand tricks (he learned them from Zatanna's father). In "Second Chance" he palms Two-Face's coin and replaces it with a trick one that will only land on its edge to paralyze the villain with indecision, and in "Joker's Wild" he swaps out cards in a hand of blackjack as he's looking for the Joker (who has taken the dealer's place at the table).
132	* Smokescreen of ''WesternAnimation/TheTransformers'' possesses a "built-in override wire" that allows him to hack machinery. In his [[ADayInTheLimelight spotlight episode]] he uses this ability to cheat at slot machines and use the winnings to free his captured fellow Autobots.
133	[[/folder]]
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Context Main / CardSharp