EasyRhino said:
Clif's notes spoonfeed please:
Is Spanish 21 more/less/equally dependent on good penetration as regular BJ when playing against a shoe?
Well, the effect of removal is bigger than in regular blackjack. I believe one point of Hi-lo is worth approximately .5% if blackjack, but .65 or so in Spanish. The fact that the experts missed all of this is probably what led them to conclude that Spanish 21 was worthless.
Also, the playing variations are more frequent and more powerful. In blackjack, many of the common play variations are just standing on 16's against high cards. These are not very powerful.
In spanish, you have the opportunity to stand on a 12-14 against a 2-6. You have more soft doubles to incorporate (most of the soft doubles in blackjack are basic strategy) as well.
All in all, it's looking like it may be a better game for counters.