The Effect
Routines for Mesika's Loops
Cost
£9.99 from
www.moremagictricks.co.uk
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)
2-5
Review
I did intitially try to cancel the order for his book but it has already been sent. The reason being as I was disappointed by the Loops themselves, finding the IT used too weak for the routines supplied with effect.
Loops certainly has it's uses but it's too weak for a lot of the wild claims that have been attributed to it by it's creator.
The instructions with the effect are basic to say the least and this rather slim volume makes up for it slightly as it's more involved and actually goes into the handling of Loops a bit more.
With the claims that Loops can levitate a fork you'd expect them to be rather strong but I've not managed this or the Haunted Deck effect without them breaking.
This book contains a variety of effects for Loops. I will give a brief summary.
The Animated Fork and
Phenonemon Fork are ones that I have tried but Loops are far too weak for most forks. A light, cheap fork would certainly work, but at £8 per packet for five this would be an expensive experiment. I give these effects 3 out of 10 as with stronger thread they would slay the layman but with Loops, I haven't found it possible with most forks.
Falling: You make an object fall over without touching it. Loops are ideal for this, depending on the weight of the object used, and I have found this to be very effective. 8 out 10.
The Floating Card is much better than the Haunted Deck as Loops are strong enough for one card. A great ending for an ACR. 9 out of 10.
Jumpng For From Glass. Another fork effect! See my reservations about previous one. 2 out of 10.
Mystery Glasses. Cause a pair of sunglasses to stand up on their own or in some cases shut. Again, depends on the weight of the glasses used but 8 out of 10.
Self Revealing Card as with the Haunted Deck included in the instructions, expect a SNAP if you try and do this effect more than once. If I made my own loops with stronger thread I would certainly use this but not with the Mesika ones. 1 out of 10.
Matchical Magnetism A match held by a spectator jumps to join another match in the magicians hand. Not a rep maker, but a nice effect which loops can handle fine. 7 out of 10
A Touching Trick The magician causes someone to feel he has been touched without any apparent contact.
Yes! A nice workable effect that can be included in a psychic/mentalism routine and be effective. I like the extra presentation ideas too. 9 out of 10.
The Floating Ring. Cause a borrowed ring to levitate.
If a light ring is used, this is a very effective routine and with the right lighting looks beautiful. 9 out of 10.
Overall: 8/10
Although some of the wild claims that Loops can allegedly do are bordering on abusing the Trades Descriptions Act, there are some great ideas in this booklet and it's well written and illustrated throughout. I fear to get the best out of Loops you will need this as the instructions with the effect are so poor. It's helped me experiment with Loops and find it's limitations. If you want to practice some of the fork routines or card ones using the whole deck I suggest you buy £50 worth of Loops to go with it or buy some stronger thread and make your own.