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There has been a post about this in the past, but it's just general questions, so here's my review...

The Effect

It's a package with a mixture of effects and also combining old effects, but with a twist... Guessed it? Yeah, UV! (or black light if you will). Some effects include "Veins" where a spectator chooses a card, then the magician drinks a vile of 'UV' drink... The black light is shined up the magician's arm slowly and BAM! The card appears at the end of the forearm's veins!! You also get many other ideas/sleights (if you didn't know them already) which gives magic a bit of a twist.



Cost

Well, I bought mine from http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Its-Magic so it cost me £75... For this, you get a double DVD with teaching from Brad Christian & tips from street magicians; A UV Super Sharpie (with Video CD for explanation); a UV keyring light; a wiregram; some Shaman cards; a UV marker pen; booklet of different effects; UV 'fuel' and a couple of other bits and bobs... Of course, you can buy it from Ellusionist.



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)

The effects range from 1 to 3 I'd say... But of course, you can create your own effects so, I suppose it could go all the way to 5!! (sorry to be so vague)

Review

If you're thinking, "blimey, that's costly!", then when you see what you actually receive in the box, you can kind of see why. The great thing about this is that 1.) rather than opening a trick, learning it, practising it, using it a few times then using some other gimmick; you can actually CREATE your own effects, so it gets the creative mind working... & 2.) It adds a nice twist to, let's say, an ambitious card routine. So, personally, I'd say it's worth saving your pocket money for.

Overall

I'm going to give it 8/10... The only down point is the cost. But, like I said before, some of the specially designed items you get, it's worth it.

Cheers

Tim

nice review, but this seems to go into the section marked fancy ways to reveal a specs card, along with stigmata and the like. It sounds like it would get an amazing reaction though, but I must agree with you about the price

Hi Guys'n'Gals

Hope you're all well.

I bought the scorpion package a couple of months ago. Now I've had a chance to use it I thought I'd let you know what I thought of it.

First impressions were not that good. I often have the experience of being initially disappointed with magic purchases and this was no exception. Timlic has listed the contents soI won't bother.

At first I didn't know what to do with the kit! But, as usual, that passed and I began to play with it. Very quickly possibilities began to emerge.

The first couple of times I took it out on the road, using the veins routine it seemed a bit flat. Everything worked, but the reactions weren't that good. I decided to ditch the vials, which seemed unnatural to me, after all, why would I have a vial of volatile chemicals which I then drink? Luckily I have a Tibetan tattoo on my left forearm. So, one night I prepped my left forearm (tattoo, veins, shaman symbol and force card), took it to a pub gig and performed my routine.

I couldn't believe the reactions I got. People went nuts! And I found myself acting! More on that in a bit......

The stencils are very nice. You get the alphabet, numbers, card symbols (including shattered/twisted symbols like you get in the bike gaff decks, zenner symbols, the shaman symbols and a fire shape (not entirely sure why that's on there!)).

The stamp is a piece of genius and I'm almost tempted to say the kit is worth the price just for the stamp. But it is pricey, so maybe not.

There are issues surrounding the kit. Obviously lighting is a factor. The kit is useless in daylight but if you have nighttime or indoor gigs it works beautifully. If you intend to put UV stuff on the backs of cards (red bikes, at any rate.....that's what I use when performing) you will need to buy replacement UV markers as the ink comes off the backs of the cards and onto the pen nib which stops it writing.

When forcing the shaman symbol you need to be really clear about the maths. Although it is simple, you'll be surprised how many people get it wrong. I've taken to carrying some paper with me so people can write down the sums if they need to.

I have found that the wiregram loses its shape. I've alerted Ellusionist (from whom I bought the kit) and I am hoping that it is a defective wiregram rather than an issue with the wiregrams themselves.

Edit: According to Ellusionist bringing the wire into direct contact with flame can cause it to behave in an erratic manner. It should be fine with flash paper, though.

I don't use the super sharpie. I haven't used swami gimmicks before and obviously the gimmick writes in invisible ink, so practice is an issue. Having said that, I am going to buy a regular super sharpie, just so I can practice with it.

This kit has subtly, yet profoundly, changed the way I think about magic. I've developed a routine that uses two forces and two sleights and lasts ten minutes. By the end of the routine people are in a state of shock. They scream, swear (I had one bloke shouting "NO F~@$%*G WAY", repeatedly at the top of his voice and he wasn't even involved in the trick) and even be wary of you. I kid you not, played right, this kit will make you seem like a wizard. You can see the fear in their eyes.

An added bonus of the kit is that it's not that widely known about. When have you ever seen a magician using UV lights in the routine? Until I saw the kit advertised the idea had never even occurred to me.

The real beauty in this kit is that it gives old tricks a new lease of life. Example: I had a wedding gig. The couple, when they booked me, asked for a trick involving the number seven. So, I prepped a giant card for "A Giant Mystery" (Mark Wilson's complete course in magic). I used a 7H. All over the card and board it was glued to I wrote and stencilled 7S. On the 7S force card I wrote "you will choose this card" with the UV marker and on my right arm stencilled 7S. Those of you who own the book can probably see where this is going (those of you who don't, go and buy it now). Forced 7S which the married couple which was signed by them both and returned to the deck. Did the trick and it's wrong! But wait, shine a UV light on it and the 7S is revealed. Find the force card, sine light to reveal hidden message. They loved it.

Perhaps the real beauty in the kit is that if you are to use it to it's fullest potential you have to come up with your own routines. You have to develop your acting skills. You have to become an entertainer rather than a prestidigigator.

One of the things this kit has done is to open the realms of mentalism to me. It is an area I have shied away from because I like quite visual magic. But now I'm thinking about using the centre tear or buying an impression pad. I'm definitely getting some D-Lites and am thinking about getting Electric Touch.

Who should buy this? If you are a hobbyist who wants to show some tricks to you mates this kit is probably not for you. If, however, you earn a living through magic buy the kit. It is expensive but it opens up a whole range of possibilities. It gets really strong reactions (as strong as SAW by Sean Fields without the yuck factor) and forces you to think about magic in a different way. I have seen some mixed views on this kit but I have to say it is one of the best magic related purchases I have ever made.

This has been quite a lengthy post, although I do have a tendency to waffle! If you've got this far, well done! And thank you. I was going to put my UV routines in here, but I'll stick them in the support and tips section, for those who are interested.

BTW: have just got hold of a Black Widow. As soon as it's perfected (may take a while!) and road tested I'll let you know what I think.

Best wishes
Gary[/b]

I have bought the kit, i think it 's a little expensive, but i love it !
it may be combined with some mentalism effect.

Is it possible to buy a UV SuperSharpie without having to buy the whole kit?

Pete

pcwells wrote:Is it possible to buy a UV SuperSharpie without having to buy the whole kit?

Pete

Hi Pete!

I'm not too sure of you can buy just the UV Supersharpie seperately, but if you could, you don't have to get the whole kit

The other bits in the kit are just ideas for routines, a stamp and some other little bits for another routine.

im thinking you could probably create a cool csi themed piece of magic with this...........just a thought