talkmagic.co.uk

Name: TEAR-able Sessions - By Ben Williams

Available from: Exclusively http://www.merchantofmagic.co.uk/

Price: £15.99

Maker: Ben Williams

Examinable: before and after

Difficulty: see individual effect

Out of 10: solid 8/10

media Type:12 page instructional Booklet

What They say

Effect From the creative mind of Ben Williams comes THREE brand new easy to do, high impact card tricks involving the torn corners of signed cards.

Virtually sleight free so you can concentrate on your performance. Learn two routines centered around making the torn corner of a signed card appear anywhere you want, under your watch, in a spectator’s pocket, on the OTHER side of a window, the possibilities are endless.

Also learn how to restore the corner to a signed card with a routine so visual and simple you will have the perfect starter for your favorite ambitious card routine or your favorite signed card routine.

All of these routines have been tried and tested and have never failed to get great reactions, their simplicity in plot and handling combined make these routines perfect for your arsenal.

TEAR-ific
A spectator’s selection is marked by having a corner torn off and the torn card is also signed. The spectator holds onto his card as the magician takes the corner and eats it, no switches take place, it is the corner you tear off. A moment later when the spectator is satisfied the corner has been swallowed the magician reveals that the exact piece to the spectator’s signed card is now taped to the underside of his watch. Torn but not forgotten!

TEAR-ified
A spectator chooses a card this card is then marked by having the corner torn off AND being signed by the spectator. The performer then takes the torn corner and chews it up. The pulpy remain of this torn corner is then offered back to the spectator. When they make it clear they do not want it back the performer swallows the pulpy corner to get rid of it. Not to be bothered by this the performer strives on claiming that the spectator can still have their piece back, all that is needed is a bit of magic. The performer then takes the signed, torn card and lifts it up to his face where he blows on it to reveal the corner piece is now restored back onto the signed card.

TEAR-ibble
A spectator selects a card and it is signed. The signed card is then placed in between the spectator’s palms and held tightly. The performer asks if the spectator would be impressed if he managed to steal the card from between their hands. When told that the spectator would be impressed the performer has a go at trying to steal the signed card without the spectator feeling anything. Upon the third failed attempt the performer explains that he has been training for this and he simply must show something to try to impress the spectator. So, the performer suggests stealing some of the card and mimes ripping the corner off of the card. When the spectator opens their hand the signed card is indeed missing a corner. The spectator is told to turn around and the corner piece is stuck to the window behind him, on the outside.

My Comments
This is my first attempt at a review so please be gentle.

Well I was lucky enough to get my grubby little hands on this a week early so here we go. The booklet contains the 3 effects mentioned above in a well put together booklet (similar in style to C2C). Each effect is well explained covering all aspects including hints and tips on misdirection and a host of alternative presentations ideas. I have only had chance to play around with the first two effects and my comment are listed below.

TEAR-IFIC
Difficulty 4/10 only as high as this because a simple F**** is required (not explained).
Effect 8/10
This does exactly what is says on the tin, Its surprisingly easy and gets a very good reaction.
I am a relative newbie to magic but even so I was able to perform this within 30 mins of opening it.
I changed the presentation slightly and had the corner reappear in a small tin of mints the spectator was holding all along; there are endless ways to produce the missing corner with a little imagination.
From the dozen or so times that I have performed this the reactions have been very good, all in all a solid effect that I can see myself performing for quite sometime.

TEAR-IFIED
Difficulty 4/10 same reason as above.
Effect 8/10
I like the look of this one the most out of all three, unfortunately due to a lack of time this week I have not been able to practice this one very much. Its not yet been performed in anger but initial trials on family look very promising. This one will take a little more practice than the above but I can see this effect leading very nicely into another signed card effect like ACR.
I will update this further when flown for real.

TEAR-IBBLE
I have not yet had chance to have a play around with this as of yet therefore I can’t say anymore about this other than it sounds good and reads well. If the other two are anything to go by it this should also play out quite nicely.

Summary
I initially felt when it arrived that it looked a little light on content to justify the price of £15.99. All I can say now is after playing around with two out of the three of the effects I have completely changed my mind. My magic draws at home are currently overflowing with stuff that I either can’t do or won’t end up doing, most of which cost more than this. For £16 I now have 2 effects(maybe 3) that I will continue to do for a long time, for that I say cheers Ben and well done to the Merchants of Magic.


Chris

Hey Chris,

Thanks for the review, I really appreciate it. I would also like to say thank you to everyone who has bought this and it would be good to hear what you think of the routines also.

If anyone who has bought this trick would like the 'master' routine I perform now involving a montage of the effects in the book then simply tell me what the 5th word along the top line of page 11 is by emailling me at ben@unbelievablemagic.com and I will forward the routine to you.

Thanks again everyone and here's to a great 2007

Ben Williams

Big thumbs up to Ben and his effects.

I recently bought the TEAR-able sessions booklet and haven't had time to perform any of the 3 given yet, but am looking forward to trying them in the 'real world'

Also, got to say, Ben is one of those guys that will gladly help you out AFTER you've bought one of his effects with different ideas, troubleshooting, etc.

Top man