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Special Delivery by David Regal

Available from http://www.alakazam.co.uk/acatalog/Card_Magic_51.html

Costs £12.50

Difficulty 2

The Effect
A rubber-banded stack of windowed envelopes is placed in plain view.

A freely selected card is signed and returned to the deck. The spectator looks through the stack of envelopes until he comes across one with a card in it (the card can be seen through the window) you open the envelope and remove the card, wow it's the signed selection!

A new visual method is used to perform this classic effect. There is no palming.

The extremely convincing climax is visually perfect. You will fool yourself!

Comes complete with a photo-illustrated booklet and a special gimmick that makes everything happen.

Review
Okay, so maybe this one isn’t quite the knuckle-buster I said my next review would be of, but it’s so great I just had to write about it.

This is a great effect, you see, but not one without it’s flaws.

First though, the positives. The method is ingenious. The gimmick itself has many applications and I can’t see anyone figuring this out if performed well. You receive the stack of envelopes and the gimmick - you supply the rubber band (not essential but I find that it helps motivate a certain move...) and cards. It is possible to replace the gimmick yourself but I’ve not had to do this yet, all though I can imagine it would be necessary after time as envelopes, being the paper that they are, will get crumpled and ripped etc. No big fuss though.

The gimmick is not new, but one that is relatively unknown in magic - I have not heard it mentioned elsewhere anyway, but Mr. Regal properly credits the original creator (he developed the gimmick independent of the original, in case you’re wondering). You know that line in the advertisement - “The extremely convincing climax is visually perfect. You will fool yourself” - it’s true. Upon the first few run-throughs of this I did fool myself. It looks genuine and visually perfect it is.

Top-notch instructions in a nicely-produced booklet, clear and easy to understand. Included is a description of a sleight that I had not come across before and one which is very good. Instructions on how to make another gimmick and some different ideas are included. This is very good.

But, every effect has it’s negatives, and this one is no exception. Routining is essential as you need good motivation to be carrying around a wad of envelopes (unless this is part of a more formal performance of course). It could be done with just the one I suppose, but it all comes down to personal preference.

Plays well and is recommended.

I agree - this is a great product. The envelope is real class, and you will find yourself using it for all sorts of things. Actually it is probably the idea of the envelope I like more than the actual effect.

Devilish, and easy. What more could be asked?

Great review.
It's posts like this that make this forum so strong!
Thanks,
Piers.

Thanks!

Even though this is such a long time ago, I would just like to let it be recorded that the envelope used here was actually thought up by Roger Curzon, a very skilled and generally nice guy who deserves credit for his invention!

Crikey, I'd forgotten I'd done this review!

But yeah, should mention that David Regal credits all those who should be/need to credited.