Thank you so much for your great review on volume 1.. I can't wait for your reviews of the rest of the volumes.
Best,
Titanas



I would also like to know about it. Nefesch comes from Central America and he has no problem finding this type of bottles.. We also didn't have any problem find the right bottles in Greece.
All the best,
Titanas

Titanas, thank you and will continue my review in a day or so. There is so much wonderful material-
from both of you!

Posted: Sep 14, 2008 4:14pm
Frozen:

As complicated as it is (from set-up and performance)it is easier then I had thought- and that is a good thing! I had the basics correct from watching the performance, but expected the solution to be much harder. Very good! Ok, not for everyone all the time, but a real winner when you have the time to plan. Some people and situations you could do this many times a day/night with simple planning.

PRR:

Ok...., this is for self confident and good performers. In other words... Con Men! Haha.... maybe... haha... I worked with NLP and Hypnosis as a Therapist years ago
and can dig the game here. Not for the timid. If you are confident, try it out "just for fun". You can't lose and may find a new source of Magic....

Clean Hands:

I expected more, but this could be your thing.Hard to find a way to do this w/o much set-up and in the right places.... But hey. Cool.

Rebeled Match:

I like this! Easy, impromptu and cheap! This is like many Rubber Band Tricks, but even better when done right. Nice.

Skin:

I need to try this a few times before commenting because for some reason I don't like it, but can appreciate its power in the right hands.

More later my friends, sorry but must go out!

Thank you very much Airave for your reviews, I am glad to see that you are finding some effects in the Dvds that suite with your style, I am sure you will have new effects for your repertory with this set.

Looking forward for the review for the 3rd dvd

All the best

Nefesch

Nefesch, I will be writing more again soon!
My Life is just very busy at the moment....

I am not a Professional Magician, but I do like Magic!
There are many Tricks and Routines on this DVD that I will use
when entertaining Guests at Home and Clients at the Studio.
Much of this material can also be used in the street with just
a bit of forthought and preperation- and well worth it I think.

More reviews to come soon, but if in doubt BUY THIS SET!!!!!
Is well worth it. Great Magic from Nefesch and Titanus both!

Give me a couple of days to continue my review. Until then-
Learn, Live and Share!

I'm performing Balooned, the Cellphone to signed balloon, at a little think I have going on the weekends.

Anyone have a favorite effect, from the set, that they perform?

Hi all. Man, I've been sick, busy and burned-out the last few weeks and am just starting the journey back from the Abyss.

Chris, I have several Faves in theory and have as yet done very little performing... (of course I am not a Pro so Magic must often be in 2nd or 3rd place).

I've promised Nefesch and my Friend Titanis to continue this personal review- so here goes.

First I want to mention that I missed "Needle through Finger" in Vol. 1. I Love just it! So simple and effective! I've done this a couple of times (exchanging spots with something metalic and easily removed) and just thoroughly enjoyed the horrified
of young Females! I should know better at my age, but it is already way too late for that.

Back to Vol 2:

"T&R from Hell" is another effect I Love and will perform. This is for me one of the effects worth the cost of the DVD. I think it is the best in this Volume (at least). Ok, I'm a sucker for any and all Matrix type routines, but this goes beyond... I learned much in general watching this... Want to say more, but am restraining myself. Just buy this and you'll know.

FMachine could be a great- very great effect!, but takes some planning, testing ahead of time (several times is best) and a certain element of Luck. This is a ballsy trick. I wouldn't use it in a crowded Movie Theater at the break, but this will Amaze at the right time and place.

This Routine isn't demonstrated, rather explained. If you work in a big company,
hospital, school, etc (or want to demo there) this could Kill. Try it first- on location.

From Titanis comes a fresh twist on Drawing duplication that will inspire gasping
in Victoms. Errr, spex. I really like the Power, handling and ease typical of Titanis.

Russian Roulette is sooooo Faxing amazing!!! One of my favorites in the whole set!
Years of YouTubing and I never thought of this application! ;P I can not wait to do this Live!!!
Watching the Demo... I never got how it worked. Great!

Posted: Sep 30, 2008 2:06pm
Volume 3:


S.O.S: is cool, but too hard for me.... I think. Needs much practice and cans of soda to get it. But I do think worth it for the right People. Do it.

Blood: I love it but wish it wasn't what I (rightly) thought it was.... Bah! I might try it out anyways... 'cause I'm just crazy like that sometimes! ;P I'd prolly use it in other contexts...., but wow...

Thread: IT is a cool effect. Nice. Good for Kids and Bars, IMHO.

CAN: Could be good for "Street" workers. Depends on approach and handling. The potential is there for greatness.

Bowling: is a Mentalist effect, and I think a Good one (Dah... Mind Magic). I prolly won't use this, but that is me and me alone. I appreciate the the Effect and may change my mind someday, however.

No More Kid's Parties: Haha, I like kids and Love my 4 1/2 y/o Daughter above all. Still...., this is a good trick, and one of the few I figured out before seeing the explanation! Haven't tried it yet so can't say how clean you end up.

Psy Car: No comment. I have no access to manual trans cars. Sure wish I did though-! I grew up on 'Stangs and 'Vettes... Mmmmm!

Lighter then Air: Wanna learn some excellent IT stuff? Here you are. Learn it here. Totally Bonus stuff and Good!

Hehe, When you watch Nefesch you will know why he is a Star and Wonderful Magician. He just "has it". "Waaahhhhchhh, waaaahhhhch!"

Same with Titanis, not only a Super Magi and Mentalist, but Producer and Promoter of others as well.

Support these Folks.

Dear Airave,
Thank you so much for your great reviews and I am really glad that you like most of the content.
All the best,
Titanas

Thank you very much for all your Reviews, I am really glad to hear that the material on this set will be useful for all of you getting it, and also to know that it will give you new ideas and routines for your repertories.

I now would like to let you know that I recently spoke with Titanas, and he shared with me his new Good looking web site with some better prices as well, you can find it at: http://www.titanasmagic.com

If you take a look at it you will see what I am talking about.

Thank you one more time for all your reviews and support.

All the best
Nefesch

This is a wonderful DVD set, with magic that you will use.

Néfesch is the real deal. He an incredible thinker and I hope we see more from him in the future!

These DVDs were reviewed in Magic (not by me) and on the Genii forum. There seems to be a difference of opinion between them and the reviews here.

Brad Henderson

I stopped 'listening' to magazine reviewers a long time ago.

Case in point: The Casanova Concept. Mike Close, a long time MAGIC reviewer, on his website panned it ( without even watching the DVD all the way through ). Paul Harris loved it. I'd go with Paul's opinion.

The magazine reviewers watch a DVD or look at a trick and make their decision without ever trying it out on real people. They "imagine" what the reaction will be. Comments like "This will never fool anyone". "It lacks motivation", etc. don't help me make a purchasing decision.

Don't listen to anyone and buy it and make a decision. Or, listen to someone that has tried out an effect.

Why listen to someone that gets 30 products a month free, barely goes through them and makes a review?

And Magic Café groupies make statements of fact without anything to back them up.

Do you have anything with which to back up that statement.
Brad Henderson

Mike Close gives his opinions and clearly states he will not try the effect out ( as he did with Casanova Concept ) if he doesn't like it.

Posted: Nov 4, 2008 9:47pm
I don't think anyone should read magazine reviews where the effect or DVD is slammed, yet the reviewer might not have even watched the entire DVD or performed the effect. Because they have 20,30 or 40 years experience, they know it all?

It has always amused me how people say you can't judge an effect until you try it out. It's funny for two reasons. First, it's never uttered when someone LIKES an effect, only when they say they dislike it. Second, it's absolutely untrue. You CAN, quite often, judge an effect without trying it out. If you can't then you need to increase your knowledge of magic, reasoning, and human-nature.

I think anyone with experience can make a decision on a product based on their likes/dislikes, style, etc. If it doesn't appeal, there's no reason to learn it.

When professional reviewers say things like "this will fool no one" "I want to fool the smartest person in the room and this will never do that" and yet, they never tried it out and other professionals like Paul Harris for instance, love the effect, I don't put much stock in the reviewer. Others may think the reviewer "knows all" and pass on the product. I guess the reviewer did their job and kept someone from purchasing the product and seeing for themselves.

I think if you are a 'profesional' reviewer, meaning the magazine is paying you in some way to write the article, you should learn and try the effect out. You don't have to test it out in your paid show. There are plenty of opportunities to perform for real folks that aren't paying you.

Except for MAGICIAN, which I enjoy, I haven't gotten the magazines in years. When I did, I used to go right to the review section. In time, I just stopped for the above reasons.

I guess I'm asking really, how does it work? You get sent the product for free? And then test it and try it as if you have bought it and go from there? I mean of course it would be ridiculous to try everything out, somthings will be jst awefull for instance, but at the same time something that is ok, alright is that performance tested? Im not asking to promote the argument above at all, I genuinely am interested.

The issue that I have always had with magazines reviews etc is that there are always so quick, thus even if it is amazing and perfect it would take ME at least three months to perfect a routine playing it live, once it had been perfected in practice. So if we are told the reactions will be great one cant really tell, also quite often it seems the wrong people review work, people who evidentley wont be using the material.

.


Thanks.

Jon Hackett

Jon,

I can only speak for myself. We receive product - more than we can possibly review. Part of my job is to select items I think are of interest to the community, and to spend as much time with them as I possibly can before writing my review. I also pick products that I think I can fairly review given the time available. That is why I avoid most 3 or 4 disk DVD sets. I do not feel that I can give them the time and attention they deserve AND offer enough cogent information in the word count allotted. Every now and then I make an exception, but I almost always regret it.

Sometimes, it's a no brainer. Sometimes the item is clearly great, or sometimes it's clearly a rip off. In the latter case, quality becomes secondary to ethics. I did not have to try out the Benson material to know that the stuff in that book was unbelievable and I did not have to perform the material in the Biss book to know from whom it was appropriated. Plus, we reviewers do not live in a vacuum. A lot of the material has come to our attention long before it is released to the public - we have seen other's perform the stuff and can judge overall quality based on that.

As to trying out material, I read all and work through many of the tricks in books - especially if I find them confusing or am unsure how they will play. With DVDs you can get an idea from performance (and it always amuses me to receive dvds where the performer doesn't even perform the routine! I think the only person Dan Army ever fooled was himself!). Even still, if I am on the fence I will either try it out, or express my concerns making it clear that I had not tried it out. Osterlind's Memory test comes to mind. It has a lot going for it, but is only 10 or 20 objects "long." Though I liked the structure I was unsure if that number was sufficient to impress a real (as opposed to L and L) audience. Even if I tried it, I knew I would not give it a fair performance, so instead I stated my concerns making it clear that this was something I was unsure about.

Most of the time, the problem is one of structure or scripting. Jason Palter's work comes to mind. There is something kinda good in most of his releases, but if you analyze his scripts, the overall presentation is often internally inconsistent. So, do I review the trick as _I_ would do it, or do I review the trick as packaged? While I know many smart performers will see the problem and fix it, do I give it a positive slant knowing that there are some who will go the extra mile, or do I review the item I was given? Sometimes, I can offer a suggestion - usually after I have tried it out. I like to be able to do that, but even still, is that the "right" thing to do? I have my issues with that. (One very well known mentalist had a book panned years ago because the material - AS WRITTEN - was unworkable. Of course, he could actually do the stuff, but his writing skills did not communicate what was really at work. The reviewer was right to pan it. The item as presented was unworkable.)

Of course, we cannot spend hours on a single trick and get it to professional performance quality. Usually though, the flaws are pretty evident even in loose trials. Sometimes, you are surprised. But I believe that a sincere attempt will give one enough of an idea to make a judgment. However, there were two items that I truly felt had to be tested in order for me to judge it. One was Lee Earle's Star Trick. I just wasn't sure how it would play, so I performed it a few times for "friendly audiences" and reported back. Same is true of an item that I have had for 6 months. I knew I needed to test it in performance. The good news is that I feel I can give a more complete review, the bad news is that the items are hardly "hot" by the time the reviews are published.

But then again, how thorough can a review of a 6 disk DVD set be when it came out less than a month ago. As one of the other posters mentioned, no one discounts the validity of positive reviews written hastily. Regardless, I personally would rather review an item late than offer an opinion that I could not back up. (Again, Chris and I completely disagree about these things.) There is ALWAYS a battle between thorough and current. This battle rages both in the pages on the magazines and on the web. It is unavoidable.

Also, and this is a personal peeve I am sure - but reflects the state of the art as we know it - I am much more likely to try out a trick that comes complete in it's package. If I have to make a trip to three different stores, I probably won't try it. But 1) I will let the readership know that the effect remains untested and 2) I will let them know that this $30 one trick DVD requires a trip to three stores and will eventually require about $45 in materials. In my mind, that may be the most valuable part of the review.

Of course, the most important element in ANY review is supporting one's judgments. One item - the one I was sued over - used an equivoque which I felt was inferior. Not only did I say so, I quoted the elements of the text which led me to believe that. In that way, you the reader can decide if we are on the same page. I realize that not everyone will have the same opinion as mine. My job is not to make up your mind for you - as Chris has implied. It is my job to give you, the reader, the information you need so you can decide for yourself.

I cannot speak for all reviewers, but I know that I (and several others) spend far more time on the reviews than is probably in our best interest. I make my living as a performer. I really should spend more time on my own work. Even now I should be prepping for a show out of the country.

But I was asked to do this and I do get something out of it - I am often forced to read great books that I might otherwise put on the "get to later shelf." That alone has made it worthwhile to me.

I think if Chris thought about his "magazine reviewing" experiences honestly, he would confess that the reviewers did disclose when something went untested. He would admit that they back up their opinions with facts. And he would concede that they took the time to let the reader know WHY they disliked something, as opposed to simply saying "that sucks, don't buy it."


Brad Henderson

Well... we now know where you are coming from, Brad. Good post.



Jaded, magicians are learning about the Magic of Nefesch. Brad has posted his views and I have posted other reviews about this subject. How can one make an informed decision about a product if all you hear are statements such 'great', 'fantastic', 'a must buy'. Or 'sucks', 'not worth the paper it's written on'. Neither is offering any information on learning about a product. Nor offers enough information to the potention customer to make an informed decision.

Good and bad reviews should be posted without anyone being bad mouthed about them.

"magazine reviewers don't try the effects" can be read as all or some, neither was specifically stated. I think we can agree that not all reviewers try out what they review .That is true for the Café as well as for the magazines. Both Chris and Brad have argued their sides and both are correct.

Can we move on?

Brad, have fun in Russia. Chris, you made me want to watch Clerks 2 again.

Tony

Brad,

I want thank you for writing a knowledgable review on my Light Heavy Chest in the November Issue of Magic Magazine. I also appreciate the trouble you went through to return the chest back to me. I think a lot of people are under the impression that you get to keep everything you review, but that's not the case.

Gimpy