|
|
djurmann Inner circle thinks time to practice and stop writing 1481 Posts |
I really like T&R card and note effects - love them BUT I have HUGE reservations about them these days because they seem so easy to backtrack.
Effect: you gave me a lemon to hold, you asked me to pick a card, I picked it, you destroyed it, it is now in the lemon. Reasoning: The guy is not God, the lemon was in my hand the whole time therefore it is a different card. Signed torn and restored the same, "I saw him burn my card to ash, it is now back in one piece therefore he burned another card". Unlike some effects T&R requires an absolute suspension of disbelief else the mystery is solved. The question then is: How do I achieve that suspension of disbelief or maybe I am creating a problem where none exists? Danny |
The Burnaby Kid Inner circle St. John's, Canada 3158 Posts |
Welcome to the Too Perfect theory.
There are three ways around this scenario. The first is to lower (or change) the claim. Ammar actually addressed the topic of burning the item on his Easy to Master Money Miracles -- you don't burn the card or bill openly, you put it in an envelope first and then burn the envelope. The mystery shifts a wee bit, so that instead of the effect obviously being destroyed-and-restored, it now really becomes a teleportation. The second is to raise the proof to match the claim. If the suspicion is that the item isn't the same one, then you have the item signed. The problem is that this puts a lot of heat elsewhere, since we have to cheat somehow. Thankfully, some guys have put some really clever work into this. Check out Guy Hollingworth. The third is to use multiple cancelling methods -- make sure that the strength of the first method offsets the weakness of the second method, and vice versa. This may sound a bit like the second in that you're offering more proofs, but what's key here is that rather than abandoning a lesser technique, you leverage its strengths, and then follow up with a stronger technique that takes care of those weaknesses. Ideally, the memory of both phases blurs together enough that you get a sort of cumulative illusion of the pure effect.
JACK, the Jolly Almanac of Card Knavery, a free card magic resource for beginners.
|
funsway Inner circle old things in new ways - new things in old ways 9982 Posts |
Not much to add to Andrew's appraisal, but I would ask why you "love" the effect if it has less than a profound effect on the spectaor? What is it about the magic scenario that appeasl to you, and can this "sense of magic" be achieved in another manner. Possibibly a story that makes sense of the destruction and resotoration and the fruit would help.
I wish I could remember who said (paraphrasing), "Most people find accomplishing the 'highly improbable' more entertaining than defying the impossible." (as in Andrew's telaportation example). However, the entire show has to be considered. What effects precede and follow this effect. Does the "tranparent impossibility" of this effect make sense within the building magic throught the show? (opinion) Sometimes having an effect that the audience can figure out (or think they can) can be advantagious.
"the more one pretends at magic, the more awe and wonder will be found in real life." Arnold Furst
eBooks at https://www.lybrary.com/ken-muller-m-579928.html questions at ken@eversway.com |
Jonathan Townsend Eternal Order Ossining, NY 27297 Posts |
The contrived setup does the damage, not the base effect, IMHO.
You can use a knife as a wand. But what's the focus on the card? Permit me to offer a different version: The performer rummages through his bag and takes out a knife, a marker, a pack of cards and a box of mints and a glass. He offers the volunteer a mint and then asks them to select a card. The card is signed with the marker and then returned to the pack. The pack is put into the case. The marker is waved over the pack, and the card rises up and out. The performer expects a stronger reaction, but offers the volunteer a mint. The marker is put away and the pack returned to its case. The performer offers to repeat the trick, as if hoping for a better reaction. This time he uses the knife instead of the marker, but nothing seems to happen. He recalls a missed step and pokes the knife into the lemon, then repeats the process. Nothing. He turns the case upside down and a drop of lemon juice falls out. He picks up the glass and squeezes the cardcase and more lemon juice comes out. Smiling he looks for applause. He gets some, asks the volunteer if they want a mint. They hesitate. He offers some lemonade. They hesitate. He picks up the lemon and asks if they'd like a slice of lemon. They hesitate. Looking at the cardcase he offers them their card as a souvenir. They look puzzled. He slowly pulls apart the halves of the lemon only to find... I believe after that setup (or something that's well scripted rather than the above which I wrote in realtime here) you'd have a better moment for the card found in the lemon.
...to all the coins I've dropped here
|
Michael Kamen Inner circle Oakland, CA 1315 Posts |
Very nice touch the lemon juice in the card case.
Michael Kamen
|
djurmann Inner circle thinks time to practice and stop writing 1481 Posts |
True! I was also thinking that I like Whit Haydn's approach as used for his T&R newspaper...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIzHb2zTW44
Danny |
djurmann Inner circle thinks time to practice and stop writing 1481 Posts |
Quote:
On 2011-07-31 09:55, funsway wrote: I love it because as a kid I thought it great. I also think it should be fantastic - the recently released ultra gum also falls into this category, but I am not sure if it is a problem....with my presentation or with the effect. The Too Perfect theory is one I had not heard off before but clearly others have had similar reservations. Best wishes, Danny |
Whit Haydn V.I.P. 5449 Posts |
This was my solution to the bill in lemon. One can put up roadblocks and arbitrary detours to discourage backtracking.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdWSEi--Nec http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLiKjD3URZI&feature=related |
Brad Burt Inner circle 2675 Posts |
That really is one spiffy routine. Radio Shack huh? ;-)
Best,
Brad Burt
|
djurmann Inner circle thinks time to practice and stop writing 1481 Posts |
Yes and backtracking through that lot would be a real b****r!
|
The Magic Cafe Forum Index » » Food for thought » » Torn and Restored Cards/notes- Magical or not? (0 Likes) |
[ Top of Page ] |
All content & postings Copyright © 2001-2024 Steve Brooks. All Rights Reserved. This page was created in 0.03 seconds requiring 5 database queries. |
The views and comments expressed on The Magic Café are not necessarily those of The Magic Café, Steve Brooks, or Steve Brooks Magic. > Privacy Statement < |