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Jack Poulin Regular user Canada 186 Posts |
Hello everyone, here is my full review of Jorg Alexander's Fantastic Aces routine.
In a few words : It is a fantastic routine !! Ok ... let's add a little more precisions now First, the production value is top notch. The picture quality is crystal clear and everything is professionally shot as we all expect with the high quality standards we're used from Card-Shark. The DVD menu is fast, user friendly, and very easy to navigate to find what you're looking for. I would've like some "over the shoulder" view as IMHO nothing can beat that to learn moves/handling. It is mostly shot from the front so you have to "invert" everything while practicing. Nothing too hard to overcome but it is important to point it out. Jorg Alexander really thought everything out. He doesn't provide a patter since he performs this gem mostly to music (he barely talks during the routine). Everything is quite easy to do but for it to become "second nature" you'll have to practice as with any routine. There is a lot to remember but nothing knuckle busting. What I really like are the 3 vanishes that Jorg is teaching because they all look different and are real fooler. Your spectators won't have a clue. There is a little price to pay for the last vanish as the ace cannot be as openly displayed as the first two ... but it's no big deal if you handle this casually. At the beginning of the routine, there is a little fiddling to set everything up, a little too much for my taste ... but if you do it without pausing while speaking, there will be no problem. This is necessary to set up the routine. I'm sure that Jorg tried his best to keep everything as direct and fast as possible. The good thing is that once you're ready to go, it never stop. Jorg is very friendly, passionate and a hell of a good teacher. He really takes his time to show everything properly and slowly. This routine is more suited for a formal situation but I really don't see any problem using it in a casual venue. If you like ace assemblies/MacDonald's aces type routine ... you're in for a treat. Highly recommended. Peace Jack |
joerg_alexander New user Munich, Germany 1 Post |
Hi everyone,
thank you for your great comments on the Fantastic Aces. A few notes: The routine is in fact designed to be performed in formal close-up settings, although it can also be done in informal situations. The way I usually present it is by showing the audience a copy of the Erdnase book. I mention that what makes this book so special is that it contains both genuine cheating techniques from the card table, as well as some great card magic. I then go into my version of Darwin Ortiz's wonderful "Blind Aces", as a demonstration of the former, then I perform the Fantastic Aces as a fine example of the latter. Using the book not only adds a great backstory, I also have the three gimmicks hidden under it, which I can thus easily add to the deck after producing the aces. As I mention on the DVD, the Phoenix decks with their large center pips are just perfect for effects like this, but now this is even more true, as Christian just put out a new design with slightly larger indices. They make this routine even more convincing. Special thanks to Jack for his great review and also for generously sending me his own wonderful ideas on the McDonald's Aces. You should definitely pm him about this. I try to check the forum from time to time, but I am rather busy translating the body of my work from German to English, as there should be a large book out, hopefully soon. Still, if there are any questions on the Fantastic Aces or the Sympathetic 10, just let me know. All the best from Munich, Jorg |
Jack Poulin Regular user Canada 186 Posts |
Quote:
On Feb 1, 2017, joerg_alexander wrote: Jorg, thanks for your kind comments. I really like the presentation you just posted for your Fantastic Aces routine ... the idea of performing "Blind Aces" before "Fantastic aces" and using the Erdase book for storytelling/presentation purpose as well as a secret weapon, is simply brilliant. Great thinking, as always. Thanks for sharing it. It's very hard to present these kinds of routines with a logic/interesting patter, but you nailed it !! On a side note, I never published a review for Sympathetic 10 but I've been using it since it came out a couple years ago. It is an absolutely F-A-N-T-A-S-T-I-C (pun intended) routine that is very well put out and a great crowd pleaser. Peace Jack |
Ray Ouellette Regular user Ottawa, Canada 114 Posts |
I agree 100% regarding Sympathetic 10. A truly wonderful routine that I use every chance I get. My Fantastic Aces are on their way to my door as I write this so I cannot comment on that. But knowing it is from Jorg, I can be sure that it will be logical, well thought out, and thoroughly taught.
Good luck on your book and we all hope it will be released soon!
"Love and magic have a great deal in common. They enrich the soul, delight the heart. And they both take practice"
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lcwright1964 Special user Toronto 569 Posts |
I just picked it up from Card Shark. There is nothing brand new here in terms of the secrets--and I mean that in the most positive way. I have enjoyed working with the clever gaffs in, say, Bob Kohler's Aces in the their Faces and Simon Aronson's O'Aronson Aces, but Jorg sticks with some venerable concepts and achieves something better. Indeed, when I saw the set of gaffs I smiled because they were all familiar from other packet tricks we all know or can easily get, so there is no worry about replacing gaffs when they wear out or if you want to set up the trick in something different from Phoenix.
But the selling point here is Jorg's handling. The performance video is the real deal--absolutely everything you need to do to acheive the result is shown, and there is no crucial point obscured or edited out. There is only one knacky slight. Everything that Jorg does in the vanishes is something most of us know, but he does it so well and smoothly I keep getting fooled even though I now know the secret. Jorg's handling of the subtleties and convincers is so good I have watched the performance video over and over on pause in an effort to catch and emulate what he is doing. The effect is just awesome and when done smoothly and skilfully just baffling, even though absolutely everything in it has been around in some form for many decades. Jorg combines ideas from more than one source to give us something new. I suffer post-purchase regret more often than I care too, but not here. This is a worker and a keeper, but I think it takes some practice to make it smooth and truly miraculous. |
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