talkmagic.co.uk

The Effect

'Imagine...being able to hand out your business card in a way that your next client will remember for as long as they live. being able to do this anytime, anywhere...with your own cards! (No special print jobs) All this after having set up the effect way over ten hours in advance!'

Cost

US$45, (£30 approx) from www.whiterabbitmagic.net + P&P from USA
US$50 www.themagicwarehouse.com + P&P from USA

Difficulty

2, easy to operate, but a question on reliability

(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)

Review

If you are a magi who uses their mirculous skills for more than just personal interest, but as a vocation, then you will appreciate the importance of promoting yourself - for it is only through getting bookings that you can make money to earn a precious living.

For me, the best way to get these bookings is through word of mouth - the amazed laity, shocked and dazzled by your talents reveal to all their friends the wonders they have seen you perform. A certain amount of interest is generated - would they be available for private functions? Well, with very few exceptions, as entertainers we nearly certainly are. Which is why most professional magicians will always distribute a business card after every party, or every table, or every individual.

Because of thier importance, magicians have devoted many hours to concocting the perfect business card production. For me, however (admittedly a little but of a pyromanic), my favourite production through finishing with my business card ignited in a ball of flame. Jim Pace's Afterburn is the older of one of two systems which allow this to be achieved (the other being Hot Leads).

What you get is a dark brown genuine leather wallet capable of holding approximately 20 business cards. Attached to the wallet, and hidden very well is the ignition device which lets you produce your cards in a ball of fire. The wallet itself is averagely made. You also get a photcopied sheet of A4 with relatively poor instructions - I found it helped to view the video on Jim Pace's website (www.whiterabbitmagic.com). Despite my problems in analysing the instructions provided however, the device is simple to operate, and quickly becomes second nature.

The difference between the two systems is the device with which you alight your business card. Afterburn uses an electronic based system, with the addition of Flash Cotton (not supplied). I personally found difficulty with the reliability of this method - there were occasions (especially when performing outside) when this system would not light the card. While in itself not a disaster, there would always be a sinking feeling as you realised that should your spectator ever get round to smelling your card it would give off powerful hydrocarbon fumes. Not necessarily a bad thing, but for £30 I like a trick to work all the time. Another vexation I encountered was when enquiring as to how this efficiency could be improved with the devices inventor, Jim Pace, my three emails were met with a blank silence.

Another problem Afterburn users will experience (which was rectified with hot leads) was the limitation of having to reset the device after every production. While not a problem if giving a singular card away after an interview, if table hopping it would require a few moments of hiding away before being able to approach the next table. Being a magician, one is always being watched, and having to use such movements immediately prior to a set draws instant suspicion and lowers the effect of the whole performance.

The final negative, which I must confess to have not experienced, is that it is possible with the device to produce relatively large flames which can trigger fire alarm systems. I have heard of horror stories of whole restaurants having to be evacuated - although, as already mentioned, with a little care this should not be an issue.

If used effectively however, the effect is one which can become a genuine reputation maker, and, I am sure, will be an effect talked about by every person who receives a card, thus helping to guarentee future bookings come your way.

Overall

I am biased with the effect - I am a strong admirer of good fire tricks - and from the responses I get, I would say audiences tend to be impressed too. They add that element of danger (of course there is none -unless you consider setting off fire alarms) to a performance, and can have quite an impact. For some reason, many people begin to doubt the flame is real - they cannot possibly see how a normal paper business card can be on fire, and yet not burn - and repeat performaces are often asked for - although with Afterburn not possible to achieve.

I suspect however that this version of the Afterburn wallet will soon become something of a dinosaur with the release of Hot Leads, and while I have tried very hard not to mention this brash young rival in my review, it's superiority in many ways I am sure will probably lead to the extinction of its predecessor. There are however two advantages which the elder does have over it's younger rival - a silent lighting mechanism and a better hidden device.

Overall, however, I feel this merits a fair 7/10... the reason being ultimately I can think of few other business card productions which are so dynamic, simple and quick.