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Here is a test I apply to a new "trick" Imagine the spectator describing the trick to someone else.

"He took a card, not mine and put it inside a little plastic cover thingy. He held it up so I could see the card and it changed into my signed card. It was awesome"

"Did he let you look at the plastic thing"

"No he put it away in his pocket straight away"

"Well it must be a trick case then"

"oh yeh I suppose so I never thought of that!"

I agree this is very simplistic but if you apply that thought process and then try and reverse engineer out all the possible explanations to a method, you will find that your reputation just gets better, because those who bring up your name in conversation will defend your routines, simply because they "seem" clean in retrospect.

Then again there are those who remember it as he showed me a card and I just stared at it and it changed to my card and then my signature appeared and then it floated over the bar and stuck to the ceiling. But then again that's alcohol for you!

Maybe a silly question but can the card be signed with any pen?

Heres a tip DR Who trading cards are poker size and fit exactly, every one has a picture of the Tardis on the back.

The way the card appears is just like the Tardis does, those that have this will know.

Have them sign a card with any pen( a sharpie is better as it shows up well) , lose it in the deck then take the top card write Dr Who on the back and place it in the Tardis card proctor used by my son to keep his special cards safe.

Show any doubters that its not their card then make the card dematerialise from the pack and appear in the holder, not only does it arrive but the Dr Who writing is now on the back of the prevously signed card.

This also works as a compatability test at weddings, have the bride sign the card, lose it and have the groom sign the top card, have the tardis do its stuff and the card in the holder now bares the signature of both of them on the same card, so they must be compatable!

I have done two competitions lately and this has been my closer, both times it went down as well as in the real world. Before you ask I came third which is no reflection on WOW!

One final tip make up a pack using contrast cards only, those that have this will know what I mean, this way you are assured of the best possible reactions, as picture cards do not show the signature up well.

Its magic wrote:
One final tip make up a pack using contrast cards only, those that have this will know what I mean, this way you are assured of the best possible reactions, as picture cards do not show the signature up well.

Tip from Simon Lovell, when signing cards use a blue sharpie. They show up on face cards and blue backed cards. Black works fine on red cards, but works on both!

Hey, I'm interested in purchasing this effect from maybe mjmmagic.com, but I want some opinion before I do. Is it worth its money? in your opinion? and do you think its available at my local magic store? One last thing, if anyone is planning to preorder like me, how long does it take to ship from mjmmagic?
thanks for your help

If you work yes its worth every penny.

If not you will put it in the back draw once all your mates have seen it!!!!

I do love all the arguing that goes on!

People just have to accept that its different strokes for different folks and each to their own. One man's trash is another man's treasure and all that jazz!

I personally love the look of this effect and am very tempted by this! Having said that my slieght of hand is as weak as a little girl's bicep!

I know practice makes perfect but theres just not enough hours in the day!

Anyhoot, keep the banter flying you bunch of bickering little girls!

PS...

[quote="Its magic"]Heres a tip DR Who trading cards are poker size and fit exactly, every one has a picture of the Tardis on the back.

The way the card appears is just like the Tardis does, those that have this will know.

What a quality idea this is, as I said I don't have the effect but this is a unique way to present this! And what with all the geeky Doc Who fans there are, if you manage to spawn someone who loves it, they will go nuts and get a nice souvenir!

Good thinking Batman!

(sorry if my spelling lets me down, I am only 4!)

On the issue of people assuming the trick is in the plastic sleeve, I think it's important to introduce the sleeve a while before you do the transformation, to stop it arousing suspicion.

It's a bit like doing the vanishing deck trick, which has that black case gimmick. When doing the vanishing deck if you bring out a black box thing and then the card disappears inside it, it's only logical that the box made the deck disappear. However, if you have the black box around the deck from the very start of your routine people will assume it's just a fancy card guard or something similar. (There's a routine by James Brown where he does this.)

That said, I think it'd be slightly harder to introduce the plastic sleeve as just something you happen to have, although the idea of it being there to stop you switching cards or whatever is a nice one.

Yoshi is right about looking at magic from the audiences point of view. I have been performing magic since 1975 parlor and closeup and there is still alot for me to learn. The audience is smarter now but they want to be entertained not fooled. You need not to look like a clever magician because the heat will be on you and your props. Vernon said "Its not enough to decieve the eye, but you must fool the logic of the mind,." I have seen great magic with slight of hand and great magic with gaffs and I believe that no-one can be a purest and not use a gaff ever. That would make one rigid in their thinking and missing out on entertaing their audiences. I use gaffs because of what they can accomplish and I have never heard anyone say you used a red,blue doublebacker. No reason to run if I'm not beiing chased. Our prestation should solve the things we fear might be found out. Masuda has many great effects that are just waiting for a good presentation.

Al

Hi I brought WoW and have done it a lot of times on people and every one so far has grabbed the card to look at and not the gimmick and the reactions have been great I think it is worth the money.

Well I finally gave in (yet again ) and bought this.

I've had it about a week or so now and this is now one of my favourite tricks. The reaction you get every time is well worth the £40.

If anyone is in two minds whether to get this or not (like I initially was ), I can assure you - you won't be disappointed .

This gets 9.5/10 from me (it loses 0.5 for the fact that it costs £40 ).

This is my first attempt at making a video and though I'm not particularly proud of either my patter or presentation skills the video's worth showing just for the responses I get at the end (crank the volume up), plus notice the lack of interest in the gimmick which is consistent in all of the many outings this little beauty has now had:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gfIn2WONNU

Recently I've added a new line to my script whereby I ask to see the spec's fingerprints - the excuse being that they will have left their prints on the card they pulled out. This also serves as an excuse for me to put on my glasses - which makes it easier for me to spot the necessary clue I need as I search through the deck 'looking for their fingerprints'.

One single cut near the bottom of the deck also helps to speed up the process of finding the wrong card as this is then positioned close to the top of the pack.

I've watched the demo video of Wow and it does look very impressive. I have read some of the replies for and against Wow and based on what I've read, it seems to me that Wow is a great effect that gets incredulous responses from spectators. Who, I should add, rarely ask to examine the sleeve.

Surely, this is what matters?

The method to an effect, be it sleight-of-hand or gimmick, is of no great importance. For me, the method is simply a means to an end and it is the "end", i.e. the response of the spectator, that is important here. As is the presentation. It appears that Wow has been audience tested by a few TM members, who have all gotten superb reactions from their audiences. Using a gimmick like Wow does not make you any less of a magician just because it does the work for you. Your presentation and patter will go a long way to augmenting the affect on the spectators. Sure, give Wow to a layperson and within minutes of reading the instructions he/she can perform it. But it doesn't make them a magician, does it? I understand that some gimmicks, for whatever reason, just will not suit some magicians. This is fine and to be expected (after all, you can't please everyone all of the time). But to write off an effect just because it uses a visible gimmick and no apparent skill to perform, is a little short-sighted. Of course, sleights like the Erdnase CC achieve the same effect but gimmicks also have their place. As long as the performer does not rely solely on gimmicks, I don't see a problem.

As magicians, whether you're a hobbyist or a working professional, what we do is an art form and - sorry to quote a old cliche here - the whole is far greater than the sum of its parts. I think the real world experiences of magicians who have performed Wow for real people, speak for themselves. For this reason alone, I think Wow is a worthy purchase.

Martin, I like the fact that you keep your business card in the sleeve. Very nice touch.