Magic Tricks

Sam sent me a review copy of these notes several weeks ago but I've finally had a moment to put together my thoughts on them...

I'm a firm believer that I can glean inspiration from everywhere but I'll be honest, I struggled to find anything which would lead me to recommend these notes to fellow mentalists...

"The Watcher": I've read it several times and I just can't understand the sequence of events or make sense of the handling... I'm not certain when the p**k is supposed to take place and don't see how this improves on Bev's watch force.

"The Petal": This is one of the more workable techniques shared. It's "cute" but I don't often find myself in a performance venue where there are flowers that it would be appropriate for me to destroy...but I can see this working while simply out and about in an impromptu setting.

"Extinguish": The ad copy mentions that this "has never been seen before" but that simply isn't true - Peter Turner's "Get Busy Living or Get Busy Dying" from BIGGER FISH ONE immediately comes to mind where he uses the same strategy (and I imagine it's been used elsewhere).

"ISMIP": I view this as a seed of an idea - I like the general concept but I'm not confident that Sam has worked with it enough for it to be as deceptive and useful as he claims it to be (but I can't completely write it off as I've not attempted it in the real world).

"Purple One Handed Center Tear": Okay...so this is likely the one I have the biggest issue with...this simply doesn't seem convincing AT ALL. The participant simply couldn't ignore the fact the paper is pre-torn in such a significant manner... IMHO this is the epitome of tinkering that leads to unuseable and unnecessary "improvements". There's probably a reason that this is a "new" method...but novel doesn't always mean BETTER.

"Dreaming of Her": I'm not sure what Sam is really offering here... The ad copy says, "A book test dealing with dreams" - and that is absolutely accurate but that's about it... the idea is as straightforward as doing a classic book test using a book about dreams... I don't see any advancement here... Sam also mentions his "Page Turner" force. I use the classic number force enough to know not to rely on it as an integral part of the method so this just simply seems unreliable to me, sorry. It would make more sense to me if you r***le forced a page and then had a deceptive pumping sequence to determine any dream from the next ten pages - that way you can simply instruct the participant to flip forward a few pages if they wish but not to tell you where they finally stop.

"Limitless": This seems a bit too transparent for my tastes and I also can't imagine a situation or context in which I'd need to force this particular word.

"Falling": This is okay - but again, it seems a bit transparent and there's already many stronger routines dealing with predicting such things out there in the community.

"McKenzie's Petal": The core idea is decent but Sam has not addressed the PRIMARY issue with DR effects - how to clean up the participants reality of the experience so she too can experience an effect.

"Simon's Petal": I can appreciate the thought that went into developing this - but it seems like quite the convoluted process to determine in which hand someone is hiding an object. Also, the explanation doesn't really help the reader understand how Sam actually applies the concept to the intended routine...

"For Whom": Again, not really sure what new this brings to the table... half of the method is a Psychological Force that I use to "pepper up" a routine (referenced above in regards to "Dreaming of Her") but I won't rely on it as much as this routine requires. The other half of the method is simply a presentational idea to apply one of mentalisms "mainstay" tools. And if you're going to use this tool anyway why is the Psychological Force needed at all - simply leverage the tool for both pieces of information.

I'm really sorry Sam if this review is difficult to read... I wish I could have gotten these thoughts to you prior to you releasing the notes so that you might have reconsidered its contents... I'm not one that enjoys being the bearer of such bad news but I really don't see much value in these notes (certainly not $20 worth!). I respect your enthusiasm and bravery in stepping out and wanting to share your ideas with the community but I don't think these notes represent your best effort... I respect the art and my fellow practioners too much not to tell it like it is and save them the time and money.

Best,

Drew