I knew I should have trusted my instinct on this one. The trailer showed very little and it was
marketed as "The most visual magic video of the year." and "In 10 years I haven't seen a magic video
this visual." Are you kidding me!! These are the quotes I received in my email in regards to this
download. The trailer practically shows you nothing. It's 17 tricks!! You can't show us anything
other than some color/card changes?
These tricks are not terrible; just boring. some are
better than others of course but they crammed way too much into this. They require a lot of practice
and some are not so original. Some reviewers said:
"I almost fell asleep watching it! I
wish Cody would liven it up and make the learning fun! "
"A large majority of the material
is composed of quick color changes and tricks that are far more complicated than they are worth. "
These statements are extremely accurate! Stay way from this one. Save your money and move
on. I appreciate the work that went into this but I'd consider this a download someone should have
released for free. Meh! SHM
24 of 26 magicians found this helpful.
There have been many times I got annoyed with a magician's incomplete or incoherent explanations,
but this is the first time I have gotten fed up with someone who is too thorough.
Cody
Nottingham is pedantically deadly as an instructor in the effects he teaches. He never just explains
the effect or slight step by step, all the way through in one go. No. He explains it through the 1st
position, stops, goes back, explains it through the 1st position again, stops, explains it through
the 1st position a third time, then when you are sure that he has exhausted the 1st position
nuances, does it one more time just to be sure you are solidly asleep before starting in on the 2nd
position. He then repeats the 1st position and the 2nd position, stops, goes back to the 1st
position, reviews that in case you had forgotten it, before showing the 2nd position again. Next he
repeats the 1st and 2nd position. Then for contrast repeats the 1st and 2nd positions. One more time
with the 1st and 2nd positions, then the 3rd position. This process is repeated over and over and
over again for all 107 steps in the effect. As a result, you never get a sense of the flow of the
moves in the effect, and are ready to commit violence against him should you ever meet him in
person.
There may be some nice effects in this DVD, but I could not stay awake long enough
through the explanations to find out if any of them are actually practical. This DVD could easily be
1/4 of its length with proper editing and you would not miss a thing. Unless you are a masochist,
give this one a pass.
15 of 15 magicians found this helpful.
17 impractical, convoluted, and pointless "effects." A large majority of the material is composed of
quick color changes and tricks that are far more complicated than they are worth.
I did
like two of the tricks: the TNR effect was nice, but is so short and out of place, I can't imagine
ever fitting it into a routine.
There is also an effect that involves a card falling down the
middle of the deck, which is cool, but also pointless. You are making a card travel from the middle
of the deck (towards the top) to the middle of the deck (towards the bottom). He briefly mentions
that it can be used to find a selected card, but never explains how.
If you are looking for
some flashy, angly things to show off at a magic convention or with your magician friends, this may
be for you, but professionals and performers should pass on this one.
7 of 7 magicians found this helpful.
Even though a lot of it is angle sensitive some of the ideas are super great. The ideas just need to
be improved a little. If you want visual magic think about. If you want practical tricks STAY AWAY.
6 of 6 magicians found this helpful.
It was a good variety of effects.some you had to make up, others were straight forward tricks.he is
a thinker and i like that about him.glad i bought it.
2 of 2 magicians found this helpful.
I´ll start with the downsides:
- It does not contain a wealth fo full thought out effects and
possibly never notions such as "effect", "trick" and "sleight" are used correctly.
- Too much
throat clearing.
- Very often the interesting part of an explanation is out of focus (but you´ll
get it because of the style they are explained - more on that in the middle of this review).
-
Some effects are presented/explained inconsistently.
What you may find uncommon, some may
actually like, others may dislike:
The explanations of the sleights go smoothly back and forth
showing you the flow and transitions several times and Cody Nottingham always adds information.
For me this was refreshing and I quite liked it.
So why 4 stars?
If you look for
some inspirations in your sleight work or tools for logistics, this will give you food for thought.
Some of the techniques can create eye candy while they also can be used undetected. There are some
nice concepts in it so you may create your own ideas for effects beyond what´s on the plate. Also
you can develop your flavor what you like mechanically and what not.
The trailer could have
been a little bit more revealing that you won´t find full A-material effects, but some might already
guess it. Watching it with that mindset it can be quite inspiring - your mileage may vary.
2 of 2 magicians found this helpful.
The tricks are not difficult and any color change can be used to reveal a card. This is a great deal
for your Buck.
2 of 2 magicians found this helpful.
I was blown away by the refreshing ideas that Cody presents in "Code Red." Most of the effects on
here are VERY visual. I personally won't use all of them, but seeing the way he thinks helped
stimulate my own creative senses as well.
Some reviewers are complaining about the teaching
being boring and that a few of the effects require a lot of set up. That's just personal preference.
I thought that the teaching was fine. Yes, some of the gimmicks that Cody teaches may be time
consuming to make, but he's simply presenting HIS ideas. Although I won't be making these gimmicks
anytime soon, I gained knowledge by watching how they are constructed.
The non-gimmick
effects are definitely workable. Some reviewers seem to be biased towards the fact that they are not
revolutionary. Not every newly released book, DVD, or effect is revolutionary, again, Cody is
presenting HIS ideas and creations. I like seeing his way of thinking and creating magic.
I'm glad I bought this during the Cool Box special period. Definitely worth every penny!
2 of 2 magicians found this helpful.
This is something I got for sale and I have the ideas, moves, and routines in this DVD are totally
worth the price though a few of these tricks don't seem practical so be aware.
1 of 1 magicians found this helpful.
straight -forward teaching, well-explained quickly and repeatedly. really diverse material and very
original, original enough that you also get to make incredible gimmicks* to further spark your just
fried braindulum.
*the gimmicks will not cost you any more than what you should already be
using.(adhesives and instrument)
1 of 1 magicians found this helpful.