Okay, that’s not the real name of the trick, but if the similar trick done with rubber bands can be called “The Crazy Man’s Handcuffs” this effect, done with wine corks, should logically be called “The Wino’s Handcuffs”

Word came from Wayne Houchin himself on Twitter last night…

SINFUL has been delayed. Got the books in today (was planning to ship tomorrow) and there was a major error with the print…

and continuing…

…The books will need to be re-printed which shouldn’t take too long. I’m hoping to have them in stock and ready to ship within the…

and again…

next week & a half. I’ll keep you all posted. An unfortunate delay – but Happy New Year anyway!

Sinful: A Graphic Novel takes Houchin’s Quarter Through Soda Can routine adds Josh Funk’s graphic artistry and results in what the creator’s say is not just an instruction manual, but a rare opportunity to peer into the creative process behind this routine.

I’m interested to see how this project does. Sinful has been around for a little while now and most magicians who were interested in performing the effect have either reverse engineered the workings of the routine and know all they want to know about it or have bought the video showing the inner workings of the effect. Those new to the Sinful may well choose this graphic novel as their method of obtaining the secrets behind it, but I’m skeptical if there will be much business from those who already know and love this Quarter Through Soda Can routine.

Wayne Houchin has consistently produced innovative and entertaining effects for the community and I truly hope this does well for him. Who knows, maybe we’ll be seeing “Stigmata: A Graphic Novel” and “Thread: A Graphic Novel” following on this project’s heels.

It occurred to me how often I judge magic by its packaging—how I sometimes, literally, judge a book by its cover. If I see an effect that comes in bright packaging with a cartoon of a tuxedoed magician pulling a rabbit out of his hat on the label, I assume it’s crap…I think I’m probably right most of the time. If I look in the showcase of my local magic shop and see a small white cardboard box with a poorly photocopied label glued to the front of it with a name like “James Davies’ Torn and Restored PB&J”¹ —I’m going to ask to see that.

It’s so strange that until the Criss-Angel/$40-for-one-effect-on-a-DVD movement changed the game, the traditional rules of packaging were inversely effective on professional magicians: if there was too much effort put into the packaging, it must be garbage. There’s an unspoken understanding when you buy an effect in a non-descript box with 5-times photocopied instructions stapled at the top left corner that all of the effort that didn’t find its way into making the box look good and the instructions look professional went into developing the trick, the gimmick and the routine.

1. I have dibs on this idea in case you just got excited—it’s mine [↩]

Kronos is a gimmick that allows the magician to control a borrowed battery operated quartz watch while the watch pin is completely covered by a strip of electrician’s tape. The gimmick is unique, easily concealed and very well made. This is the real deal.

Is it worth $250?

The answer to that question is dependent on what you intend to do with Kronos. In the right hands, this effect will be “a reputation maker.”¹ But if you’re just going to post a single video of your poorly practiced routine on YouTube then, no, it’s not worth it. If you are considering buying Kronos (which has become rare due to its manufacturer discontinuing its production) for YouTube use, then the powers that be have set the price too low.

It is my hope that truly amazing and powerful illusions like Kronos will be priced out of reach of the YouTuber magic hacks. It’s unfortunate that the rest of us will have to pay more for them, but at least we’ll do so knowing that we have a very good chance of being able to perform these effects without someone in the crowd shouting out that they’d seen it exposed on YouTube.

If you plan to astonish and inspire audiences with Kronos, your $250 will be well spent. If you just want to be able to freak a few minds here and there, don’t waste your money by disenchanting this amazing gimmick.

Kronos comes with the gimmick, a roll of electrician’s tape, and a micro-disc DVD (French with English subtitles) in a very nice box. If I have one slam to make against Kronos it’s that, in a time where slot-loading DVD drives are so prevalent, the instructions for how to use this gimmick are on a disc that won’t play on anything but a tray-loading DVD player. That’s not a big deal if you intend to watch on a common DVD unit in an entertainment system, but if you want to watch it on a laptop computer, you may need to first find a friend who has a computer with a tray loading optical drive and rip the little DVD’s contents to a digital file you can view in your laptop’s media player².

1. I just threw up a little in my mouth as I typed that phrase [↩]
2. which is a good thing to do with all your magic DVDs anyway…back ‘em up, Kreskin [↩]