cost = £19.99
from:
http://www.alakazam.co.uk/cgi-bin/sh000 ... 1627#a1627
pages= 40
difficulty = depends on the trick, id say 2-3
heres a list of the effects included:
Susceptible - a spectator feels the magician touch their neck, although you have the forefingers of both hands on their closed eyelids.
This is an old practical joke that Gary has tried to revive some interest in. Personally, i think its a very weak effect 2/10
Relax - A spectator sits with their eyes closed. the magician touches their own sholder and the spectator reports that they felt a touch on their sholder
This is another old effect. As referenced in this book, it is also used in PK Touches by Banachek. I've seen much more effective uses of this technique than detailed here 3/10
Distant Touch - a standing spectator feels a touch on their neck while standing opposite the magician
This doesnt have the appearence of a finished effect. It is a method of producing the 'touch' using one piece of apparatus (not included). There is no actual routine to speak of and no patter suggested. It is also not very practical. I could only imagine this done on a stage 3/10
Focus - A seated spectator feels a touch on the back of the neck although both the magicians hands are on the spectator's sholders
This cannot be done with anyone watching, or they will see the method. The gimmick required is difficult to conceal and would not fit into a trousar pocket. You would probably need deep jacket pockets to carry it without being seen. For this reason and the fact that it can only be done with a complete absence of other people (apart from the spec) i dont really rate it 3/10
Connected - A wineglass on a ouija board spells out a written name before falling over and breaking
This was the only effect in the booklet that i found even slightly interesting. I like the effect and it is quite practical. You will need to buy a magicians gimmick if you dont already have it. As with the other effects, no patter is included, although there are a few points on the acting thats needed 6/10
The Crying Child - The magian tells a story about a young girl who dissapeared after her mother was murdered by her father. The spectator picks a photo from a pile and it matches the one in a covered frame. The frame then falls over and the spectator feels someone invisible touch them
This is similar material to Docc Hilford, but there is nothing like Hilford's depth of material here . The background story is about 6 lines long! There is a lot of setup for this trick. You need to make all the props. You also need a gimmick used in some of the previous effects. This uses the distant touch effect as a convincer. There is a lot of setup also for the performance area, you need to control where spectators walk and sit. It is not very practical.
This is an interesting idea, but with the recent dissapearences of several children in real-life, i wouldn't present this effect without major changes to the background. 6/10
Ghost Glass - A borrowed finger ring is placed in a wine glass and apparently begins to move inside the glass while untouched.
You need a gimmick that is used for most of the other effects here. The method is quite practical and portable. This can be done impromptu. I like this effect because a spectator can take the ring out of the glass at the end. However, the magician does need to handle the ring before it goes into the glass. 7/10
Burn on - a dead match relights when struck
This is an old bar gag, plain and simple (as detailed by here in 1/2 page A5
) 3/10
Unaware - this is not an effect, just 1 page of after-thoughts on using the mini-effects like distant touch. It suggests making other 'supernatural' things happen in routines (like a book moving) but doesnt give any idea of how to do this!
Overall, i feel this is a very poor booklet and deffinatly not worth the price tag. I will be selling mine on ebay. It reads like a vague collection of ideas, mostly centred around one particular gimmick. Some of these require a static setup, so are not that suitable for working pros except for palour or stage shows. None of the effects go into the detail that I think is needed to perform these with any result. I don't have the required gimmick for these effects, and will not be purchasing it solely because of this book. Frankly theres far better material out there
Get something by Docc Hilford, Luke Jermay,Eugene Burger, Banachek or Max Maven instead. (Not to knock any other brilliant mental performers, these are the few whose material i have read or seen)
Overall 4/10 - sadly dissapointing. If this were expanded as a book, it would be worth the money , but not for a 40 page booklet, its just too expensive!
