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Hello,

This is a review (mine, indeed) of "Refried Poker" – a ten-card poker effect available as an instant download by R. Paul Wilson.

The Effect
"Ten cards. The spectator makes ALL the choices. After the fairest possible procedure, it's no surprise that they end up with an almost unbeatable hand. Almost. The magician apologises for his 'dumb luck' and reveals a Royal Straight Flush!"

Cost
$10

Available from http://www.rpaulwilson.com along with many other goodies for magicians of all skill-levels.

Difficulty
(1=easy to do, 2=No sleights, but not so easy, 3=Some sleights used,
4=Advanced sleights used, 5=Suitable for experienced magicians only)

1 – 1.5 (there's one move, but it doesn't play as a move, and an alternative is provided)

Review
As Paul makes clear, this isn't so much his trick as his variation on a Tomas Blomberg variation on a trick by David Solomon. If you follow. But the outcome is an effect with a simplicity:effect ratio that borders on the obscene.

I use this as the kicker ending to a ten-card poker deal routine, after a few "jonah" rounds. It’s the perfect sting in the tail. Ten regular cards are dealt and the spectator not only chooses all of the five cards for his hand, but all of the five cards for your hand as well. He turns over four-of-a-kind then you turn over a Royal Straight Flush. Simple. And it's practically self-working. No gaffs, no sleights, just a nice bit of thinking.

There are only two minor "issues" ("things", there's no better way of putting it) that stop this effect being COMPLETELY self-working. A walk in the park becomes a walk in the park during a mild, almost imperceptible breeze with a stray crisp packet barely visible in the distance, you might say. But any potential glitches are dealt with fully by Paul, who has clearly put much consideration into this presentation.

What you get, then, is a 7-page e-booklet as a pdf file, with the method explained succinctly but fully in a pleasant font – there's no need for any pictures.

Overall
For a fiver I think this is great. It's just a clean, neat piece of magic.

9/10 (Because, let's face it, 10/10 never sounds sincere.)

Cheers,
John

Nice review, sounds like a cool trick. Although I would be interested to know how the cards are selected since I already do a trick with the same effect/outcome.




nb: by the way your link is a bit broken you have a comma included at the end of the url.

Mahoney wrote:Nice review, sounds like a cool trick. Although I would be interested to know how the cards are selected since I already do a trick with the same effect/outcome.

Thank you. As to how ... mmm, I might be giving too much away there. Which is not to say the process doesn't seem completely fair. Put it this way, if your trick guarantees such strong hands for BOTH you and the spectator, I suspect it's a variation of the same idea.

Mahoney wrote: nb: by the way your link is a bit broken you have a comma included at the end of the url.

Cheers. Fixed.

John