"Twisted Sisters" by John Bannon is widely regarded by magicians as one of the best packet tricks of
all time. But it does have a disadvantage: the cards aren't examinable at the end. The creator of
the effect, John Bannon, later revised it to provide a more clean finish, in which all the cards are
examinable by the spectators, and that revision is "Duplicity".
The overall effect of
Duplicity is somewhat similar to Twisted Sisters, and also involves eight cards. You and a spectator
each select a different Ace from your packet of red or blue backed cards. Then follows three
surprising revelations: firstly the two chosen aces are revealed to be the only ones face-up. Then,
these selected aces are revealed to have come from the other person's packet because they have a
different coloured back. Finally, all the remaining aces are revealed to be blank.
The
technical handling of this trick is quite straight forward, and just as easy as Twisted Sisters.
However a much more delicate approach is required in the wording of the patter, since the spectator
needs to make three choices throughout, and it needs to be made clear that they are all free
choices. But when this is executed well, and combined with a good presentation, the final reveals
are killer. Many magicians prefer Duplicity to Twisted Sisters because of the clean finish. An
improved version of Twisted Sisters? Maybe, but either way it's a terrific packet trick that I can
highly recommend. - BoardGameGeek reviewer EndersGame
A revised and cleaner version of John Bannon's Twisted Sisters
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