The Magic Cafe Forums - My Review For Darwin Ortiz's "At The Card Table Volume Three".

Well, I must say, I'm not sure if I can give a completely Unbiased Review, as Darwin, is ONE of THE BEST Cardmen in the WORLD to me.. As said before, I use a 1-10, with 10 being PERFECT rating scale. I judge on The Tricks, (Impact), Technique, Teaching Style & Understanding, and Video Quality, such as Camera Angles...ECT.

1. Mindbender - This is a very good Impossible Card Location. The Patter Theme is Psychic Mind Reading, and it goes over well, so well, they had to pause a minute while the Lady got back her composure. As a Magician, this is one of the best Impossible Card Locations, I've seen. Even watching the explanation, it was confusing to follow. I rate this a (8).

2. Jackpot - This is Basically a "Mock" False Dealing of Thirds and Fourths, ALTHOUGH, you really do need to know how to second deal. Darwin, is ONE OF THE BEST, right along with Steve Forte, one of the best false dealers (as well as riffle stacker) IN THE WORLD. This is a GREAT Routine. It's HARD though. I rate it a (8.5).

3. Fast Shuffle - This HAS TO BE THE HARDEST TRICK, out of them ALL on ALL Three Volumes. I've said it before, False Dealing, and Riffle-Staching to me are the GRAND-DADDY of all Card Sleights. This routine is for ADVANCED Magicians ONLY !!! He uses a Riffle Stacking Technique, THREE diffent times to stack "HIs Hand" in a poker game. Each time the stacking gets HARDER. As impossible as it sounds, the third time (The HARDEST) he only shuffles for (get this) THREE SECONDS. I rate this a (8.5).

4. The Card Warp Deck - Again, HIS version, is the Best Version, of a WELL KNOWN Card Plot. He uses a Full Deck of Cards he has collected from all over. I like his final tearing. You see I use to tear the card through the middle only to find I was off a little bit with the card displaying weird. You know what I mean. So anyway I tear as he does now at the very end. As easy at it is, I never though of using this method of tearing for the ending. I rate this a (8).

5. Mexican Poker - Again, YES AGAIN, This is the BEST version of this trick I've seen. I was VERY FOOLED by it the first time I saw it. This IS THE FAIREST Version of this Trick you'll find ANYWHERE, I kid you not. I rate this a (8).

6. The Ultimate Card Shark - Well, as the Title Suggests after watching this you WILL AGREE Darwin is the ULTIMATE CARD SHARK. He deals poker hands, in which he gets the ACES. The others get, the 4 tens, the 4 kings...ECT. At the end, he has 4 PERFECT Bridge Hands in ORDER according to Suit. HE DOESN'T TEACH THIS THOUGH. I rate it a (9).

This Tape is the HARDEST, out of the THREE. If you're looking more for gambling demonstartions this IS THE TAPE. I'd buy ALL THREE as they are well worth it. One and Two are more Magic Themed, especially two, my favorite out of the Three. I rate the whole series between a 8, and a 9. They are well done, Ed, (Eddini).

Eddini_81976 Inner circle 2183 Posts	Posted: Apr 18, 2005 10:18 pm 1 Well, I must say, I'm not sure if I can give a completely Unbiased Review, as Darwin, is ONE of THE BEST Cardmen in the WORLD to me.. As said before, I use a 1-10, with 10 being PERFECT rating scale. I judge on The Tricks, (Impact), Technique, Teaching Style & Understanding, and Video Quality, such as Camera Angles...ECT. 1. Mindbender - This is a very good Impossible Card Location. The Patter Theme is Psychic Mind Reading, and it goes over well, so well, they had to pause a minute while the Lady got back her composure. As a Magician, this is one of the best Impossible Card Locations, I've seen. Even watching the explanation, it was confusing to follow. I rate this a (8). 2. Jackpot - This is Basically a "Mock" False Dealing of Thirds and Fourths, ALTHOUGH, you really do need to know how to second deal. Darwin, is ONE OF THE BEST, right along with Steve Forte, one of the best false dealers (as well as riffle stacker) IN THE WORLD. This is a GREAT Routine. It's HARD though. I rate it a (8.5). 3. Fast Shuffle - This HAS TO BE THE HARDEST TRICK, out of them ALL on ALL Three Volumes. I've said it before, False Dealing, and Riffle-Staching to me are the GRAND-DADDY of all Card Sleights. This routine is for ADVANCED Magicians ONLY !!! He uses a Riffle Stacking Technique, THREE diffent times to stack "HIs Hand" in a poker game. Each time the stacking gets HARDER. As impossible as it sounds, the third time (The HARDEST) he only shuffles for (get this) THREE SECONDS. I rate this a (8.5). 4. The Card Warp Deck - Again, HIS version, is the Best Version, of a WELL KNOWN Card Plot. He uses a Full Deck of Cards he has collected from all over. I like his final tearing. You see I use to tear the card through the middle only to find I was off a little bit with the card displaying weird. You know what I mean. So anyway I tear as he does now at the very end. As easy at it is, I never though of using this method of tearing for the ending. I rate this a (8). 5. Mexican Poker - Again, YES AGAIN, This is the BEST version of this trick I've seen. I was VERY FOOLED by it the first time I saw it. This IS THE FAIREST Version of this Trick you'll find ANYWHERE, I kid you not. I rate this a (8). 6. The Ultimate Card Shark - Well, as the Title Suggests after watching this you WILL AGREE Darwin is the ULTIMATE CARD SHARK. He deals poker hands, in which he gets the ACES. The others get, the 4 tens, the 4 kings...ECT. At the end, he has 4 PERFECT Bridge Hands in ORDER according to Suit. HE DOESN'T TEACH THIS THOUGH. I rate it a (9). This Tape is the HARDEST, out of the THREE. If you're looking more for gambling demonstartions this IS THE TAPE. I'd buy ALL THREE as they are well worth it. One and Two are more Magic Themed, especially two, my favorite out of the Three. I rate the whole series between a 8, and a 9. They are well done, Ed, (Eddini). "Treat Others As You'd Want To Be Treated" - Jesus Christ
Paul H Inner circle UK South Coast 1135 Posts	Posted: Apr 19, 2005 09:22 pm 0 Hi Eddini, Many thanks for taking the trouble to review and rate all these tapes. The effects are awesome and your overview is most helpful. Regards, Paul H
The Magic Cafe Forum Index » » Dvd, Video tape, Audio tape & Compact discs. » » My Review For Darwin Ortiz's "At The Card Table Volume Three". (1 Likes)