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

A total utter waste of money. Loops Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 by Yigal Mesika & Finn Jon is torturous to watch and way too expensive for the level of instruction you get. If you want to know the history of Loops, by all means, pony up the bucks and buy this. If you’re having trouble sleeping at night, play this and you’ll be nodding off in no time. The video above should give you enough idea of what effects you will be taught and none of them are difficult to figure out for anyone who is familiar with Loops…or IT for that matter.

A much better video for your Loop-minded money is The Million Dollar Knot from Penguin Magic. If you’ve played with Loops for longer than a few minutes, you know they break and you only get 5 on the card when you buy them. So you’d be better off buying an inexpensive, “Instant Download” video that teaches a few effects and, more importantly, shows you how you can make your own Loops very easily with two items that should already be in your magician’s case. The Million Dollar Knot also comes with a spool of PET2.0 that, in my experience, is better than Mesika Elastics for stretch, strength and most importantly, invisibility.

Forget Yigal Mesika and Finn Jon (and Luna Shimada¹ for that matter) and steer clear of Loops Vol. 1 and Vol. 2.

1. who talks like she’s wearing vampire teeth, but isn’t…odd

I’m back.

It’s been over a year since my last post here, but something has inspired me to come back. That something is Paul Harris’ True Astonishments DVD Boxed Set.

We all know magic can be expensive and that, quite often, you get little for cash you put down. This is not the case here. You get 9 DVDs packed with great effects to amaze and enchant audiences and a bag of goodies to help you do it. It all comes in a beautiful case that you can display proudly.

This DVD set made me want to perform magic again—that’s how good it is.

Buy it. I know it’s expensive, but what else do you think you’re going to spend your money on at the magic store? Another magnetic gimmick that is so pathetic you’ll never have the guts to perform it in front of a real audience? Don’t waste your time. Promise yourself that you won’t buy another magic gimmick for the next 8 months to a year, buy Paul Harris’ True Astonishments, lock yourself in a room with a DVD player and a screen and study…practice…master this stuff—it’s worth it.

Honestly.

So much of the magic on YouTube does damage to the performing art of magic; finally there is real magic on YouTube. Jay Sankey has began adding comedy videos to his blog a couple of days ago and yesterday he began posting those same videos (and a few product deoms) to YouTube.

Of the three comedy videos he has produced so far, the one above is my favorite (The Amazing Larry #1 is a hoot too).

Enjoy.

Jay Sankey is an amazing performer. Few magicians today affect their audience as positively and profoundly as Jay. In this DVD, Jay takes a look at The Invisible Deck and applies his years of performing experience to one of the few trick decks real magicians actually use.

I should first like to corroborate Jay’s sell-job of the Invisible Deck seen above¹ and add that for the $10 price tag, you’d be hard pressed to find a more powerful and magical effect than this deck. If you don’t own an Invisible Deck, you really should. If you’re starting in magic, this deck should be one of your first purchases.

Now— the DVD—Jay demonstrates the “classic” handling of the Invisible Deck (and even then he can’t help but add his own spin) as well as a few handlings that are available in a rather inexpensive book called “Invisible Secrets Revealed.” On top of all that, he adds many of his own ideas and, in so doing, adds that trademark Jay Sankey blend of simple brilliance and insanity to the mix. These routines and ideas are well worth the $20 to $30 price tag. If you’ve grown bored with the old ID routines, this DVD might bring some new life to your performances or even give you ideas from which you can springboard and create your own innovative handlings.

So, get the Invisible Deck and learn how it works. Perform (as opposed to “demonstrate”) it for your audiences. Once you’re ready for the next level, give Jay Sanky’s DVD a look.

I’ll leave you with what is probably the most familiar performance of the Invisible Deck that has been made in the last decade——David Blaine and his mind boggled friend.

1. sadly this video has been removed and Jay’s own YouTube channel holds nothing useful to put in its place

I had the pleasure of receiving my Ellusionist Custom 6 Deck Sample Pack in the mail last week. Ellusionist has done an exceptional job with these cards. I don’t know who they got to do the artwork on the Aces of Spades and Jokers but these are especially nice.

The cards meet the quality standards of any Bicycle deck and far exceed them in the case of the two Masters’ Edition Decks.

In all, you get a Black Tiger Deck with Red Pips (a beautiful black deck), the Ghost Deck (like the Tiger but ghostly white), the Tally-Ho Viper Deck (another black deck with red pips and silver ink), a red “Vintage” 1800 Deck (gorgeous weathered looking deck…this one might even get better with age), the Masters Edition Deck (a standard Bicycle deck with signature Ellusionist touches on a heavy card stock), and a Shadow Masters Deck (like the standard Masters Edition, but dark and moody).

These are not your run of the mill practice decks. These are strictly for performance or for collecting. A must have collection at USD$36.00.