Cansposed by Carl Leek:
Search results for: 'Cansposed'
http://www.penguinmagic.com/product.php?ID=S12158
Effect: This is the classic milk can illusion performed with a can of soda. Standard presentation, a spectator thinks of a drink and the performer brags that he predicted the drink selected. He reveals a can of soda(lets say coke) only to find the spectator protesting that that is not the drink selected! (lets say Fanta) After some magical gestures the magician cracks the seal on the Coke and from inside out pours FANTA!
Price: 35.00
Teaching: This one is taught primarily by David Penn but Craig Petty helps out as well and offers up perhaps the best overall presentation of the effect. Both of these guys are clear in their instructions and offer good tips and hints on subtleties of presentation, setup, and handling. In addition to the clear instructions, Penn and Petty, have easygoing teaching styles and inject a bit of humor here and there. They certainly don’t get as goofy as Sankey and Garcia can get but for me that can be a good thing. (As much as I like Sankey & Garcia they can over do it at times IMO) Overall I have been quite impressed with the teaching styles of both Penn and Petty in the products I have purchased from WizardFX.
Quality of materials(DVD): WizardFX is getting better at production values on their DVDs. They are still not as glossy and artistically edited as DVDs produced by Wayne Houchin and Dana Hocking but that can be a good thing as well. This DVD zooms when it needs to Zoom, pans when it needs to pan, and doesn’t blur at seemingly random times. Also there is no constant background music. This can be a good thing for, no matter how good the music selection is, the same riff repeated over and over again for an hour long DVD just gets annoying. The one disappointment in the production value is a few sections where the sound seems somewhat dimmed. Other than those basic comments the DVD is well organized. It starts with some performance footage followed by an immediate explanation of the gimmicks. After that, Penn goes into a few forces that can be used(yes this effect will require you to force a drink option.) There is an “extra thoughts & pre-show” discussion where Craig Petty chimes in with a lot of great tips for performance. Also Craig teaches a move that has, until recently, only been performed and known about by a select few “underground” magicians……The Orange Palm!
Quality of materials(gimmick): I had some suspicions as to how this gimmick operated. Once I found out a force was used I feared the worst(thinking you got a bunch of coke and Pepsi stickers to slap on another can!) I’m happy to say my suspicions were way off. You receive 15 gimmicks and they can each be used only one time but the quality is top notch! I was surprised they are able to sell this so cheaply considering the quality of the gimmicks. A can could even be passed out for casual examination(though I wouldn’t let a spectator go crazy with the inspection.) Overall I am very impressed with these gimmicks. The only bad part is the limited supply but fortunately WizardFX sells extra gimmicks(30 to a pack) for those of us who really fall for this effect.
Difficulty: The difficulty in the gimmick comes down to the setup. This is not an effect that can be set up on the fly. If you are headed to a show you will want to think of how many times you might perform this and get that many gimmicks set up before hand. As for the forces, the two taught on the DVD are easy, simple, and effective. There are other ways to force objects and if you study a lot of mental magic and mentalism you may choose another method but I’m happy with the forces taught. In the end the effect is not about the force, it’s what happens after the force.
Magic Cafe' Controversy: When I was reading up on this the only review I found was on the Magic Café’. There were a few folks who were really miffed that the official spam implied that a force was not used. The issue seemed to cause quite a ruckus. My personal thought was, “What’s the big deal?” We are magicians….we force! We do it with cards, we do it with coins, we do it with mentalism. If you do it right and present it properly, then there is no false advertising in the official spam because, in the spectators mind, they truly believe that they could have thought of any drink in the world. I’m not really sure what the detractors were thinking when they bought this. Maybe little packets that quickly dissolve in water to change the color to that of the selected drink? Maybe they hoped for a can with several different chambers that could be switched to match the most common drinks? One way or the other the key of this effect is not what the spectator chose but that a completely different drink emerges from a sealed soda can. That is ultimately what your spectators will remember and what will make them gasp. Indeed you would still have a decent trick if you did no force at all. Craig Petty actually discusses an alternate handling in which you wouldn’t need a spectator to think of a drink at all. In my opinion, if forcing is going to prevent you from purchasing this effect then you are also going to have to forget about performing a lot of other great effects. If you don’t know how to force…learn! If you don’t know how to force the DVD will teach you two methods! For these reasons I consider the “forcing” issue a non-issue.
Applications: This effect is performable in any venue, close-up, parlor, stage, street. With that said I would add that the power of this effect is pretty bloody strong. That coupled with the fact that you only have 15 performances before you need to buy replacement gimmicks leads me to this recommendation. Save this one for a crowd. This is strong magic, reputation making stuff, that is kind of wasted on a group of two or three people. Certainly it can be performed for small groups, as in the performances on the demo reel, but David Penn probably has access to a limitless supply of these gimmicks. You want to save this for when people are watching.
I’ll add a tidbit about inspect-ability here. You don’t want a spectator going over this with a fine tooth comb but it is so well covered that you shouldn't’t be too concerned about handing out the can. I actually poor the soda into a few different cups so several different members of the audience can taste the soda. I had a spectator ask to see the can and without missing a beat I handed it to her and asked her to finish pouring out the soda in the last few cups. By simply being unafraid to hand out the can and actually asking her to finish dispensing the soda any suspicions were dispelled. From there I was able to casually take the can back and dispense with it before any serious inspection took place. This gimmick is strong enough that you really don’t need to worry to much about it being detected.
Overall Rating: This is a brilliant effect using a very clever gimmick and taught by two excellent teachers on a well made DVD. I think it is well worth the $35.00 price tag. In my opinion this one is definitely headed towards the modern classics status. It’s biggest pros are the strength of the effect itself and the gimmick’s overall quality. The cons are in the fact that the gimmicks are expendable and it is unlikely you will be able to make your own gimmicks if this effect ever goes out of production. Cansposed is so good that I seriously considered giving it a bad review so all of you would keep your grubby hands off of it and I could have it all to myself!
Search results for: 'Cansposed'
http://www.penguinmagic.com/product.php?ID=S12158
Effect: This is the classic milk can illusion performed with a can of soda. Standard presentation, a spectator thinks of a drink and the performer brags that he predicted the drink selected. He reveals a can of soda(lets say coke) only to find the spectator protesting that that is not the drink selected! (lets say Fanta) After some magical gestures the magician cracks the seal on the Coke and from inside out pours FANTA!
Price: 35.00
Teaching: This one is taught primarily by David Penn but Craig Petty helps out as well and offers up perhaps the best overall presentation of the effect. Both of these guys are clear in their instructions and offer good tips and hints on subtleties of presentation, setup, and handling. In addition to the clear instructions, Penn and Petty, have easygoing teaching styles and inject a bit of humor here and there. They certainly don’t get as goofy as Sankey and Garcia can get but for me that can be a good thing. (As much as I like Sankey & Garcia they can over do it at times IMO) Overall I have been quite impressed with the teaching styles of both Penn and Petty in the products I have purchased from WizardFX.
Quality of materials(DVD): WizardFX is getting better at production values on their DVDs. They are still not as glossy and artistically edited as DVDs produced by Wayne Houchin and Dana Hocking but that can be a good thing as well. This DVD zooms when it needs to Zoom, pans when it needs to pan, and doesn’t blur at seemingly random times. Also there is no constant background music. This can be a good thing for, no matter how good the music selection is, the same riff repeated over and over again for an hour long DVD just gets annoying. The one disappointment in the production value is a few sections where the sound seems somewhat dimmed. Other than those basic comments the DVD is well organized. It starts with some performance footage followed by an immediate explanation of the gimmicks. After that, Penn goes into a few forces that can be used(yes this effect will require you to force a drink option.) There is an “extra thoughts & pre-show” discussion where Craig Petty chimes in with a lot of great tips for performance. Also Craig teaches a move that has, until recently, only been performed and known about by a select few “underground” magicians……The Orange Palm!
Quality of materials(gimmick): I had some suspicions as to how this gimmick operated. Once I found out a force was used I feared the worst(thinking you got a bunch of coke and Pepsi stickers to slap on another can!) I’m happy to say my suspicions were way off. You receive 15 gimmicks and they can each be used only one time but the quality is top notch! I was surprised they are able to sell this so cheaply considering the quality of the gimmicks. A can could even be passed out for casual examination(though I wouldn’t let a spectator go crazy with the inspection.) Overall I am very impressed with these gimmicks. The only bad part is the limited supply but fortunately WizardFX sells extra gimmicks(30 to a pack) for those of us who really fall for this effect.
Difficulty: The difficulty in the gimmick comes down to the setup. This is not an effect that can be set up on the fly. If you are headed to a show you will want to think of how many times you might perform this and get that many gimmicks set up before hand. As for the forces, the two taught on the DVD are easy, simple, and effective. There are other ways to force objects and if you study a lot of mental magic and mentalism you may choose another method but I’m happy with the forces taught. In the end the effect is not about the force, it’s what happens after the force.
Magic Cafe' Controversy: When I was reading up on this the only review I found was on the Magic Café’. There were a few folks who were really miffed that the official spam implied that a force was not used. The issue seemed to cause quite a ruckus. My personal thought was, “What’s the big deal?” We are magicians….we force! We do it with cards, we do it with coins, we do it with mentalism. If you do it right and present it properly, then there is no false advertising in the official spam because, in the spectators mind, they truly believe that they could have thought of any drink in the world. I’m not really sure what the detractors were thinking when they bought this. Maybe little packets that quickly dissolve in water to change the color to that of the selected drink? Maybe they hoped for a can with several different chambers that could be switched to match the most common drinks? One way or the other the key of this effect is not what the spectator chose but that a completely different drink emerges from a sealed soda can. That is ultimately what your spectators will remember and what will make them gasp. Indeed you would still have a decent trick if you did no force at all. Craig Petty actually discusses an alternate handling in which you wouldn’t need a spectator to think of a drink at all. In my opinion, if forcing is going to prevent you from purchasing this effect then you are also going to have to forget about performing a lot of other great effects. If you don’t know how to force…learn! If you don’t know how to force the DVD will teach you two methods! For these reasons I consider the “forcing” issue a non-issue.
Applications: This effect is performable in any venue, close-up, parlor, stage, street. With that said I would add that the power of this effect is pretty bloody strong. That coupled with the fact that you only have 15 performances before you need to buy replacement gimmicks leads me to this recommendation. Save this one for a crowd. This is strong magic, reputation making stuff, that is kind of wasted on a group of two or three people. Certainly it can be performed for small groups, as in the performances on the demo reel, but David Penn probably has access to a limitless supply of these gimmicks. You want to save this for when people are watching.
I’ll add a tidbit about inspect-ability here. You don’t want a spectator going over this with a fine tooth comb but it is so well covered that you shouldn't’t be too concerned about handing out the can. I actually poor the soda into a few different cups so several different members of the audience can taste the soda. I had a spectator ask to see the can and without missing a beat I handed it to her and asked her to finish pouring out the soda in the last few cups. By simply being unafraid to hand out the can and actually asking her to finish dispensing the soda any suspicions were dispelled. From there I was able to casually take the can back and dispense with it before any serious inspection took place. This gimmick is strong enough that you really don’t need to worry to much about it being detected.
Overall Rating: This is a brilliant effect using a very clever gimmick and taught by two excellent teachers on a well made DVD. I think it is well worth the $35.00 price tag. In my opinion this one is definitely headed towards the modern classics status. It’s biggest pros are the strength of the effect itself and the gimmick’s overall quality. The cons are in the fact that the gimmicks are expendable and it is unlikely you will be able to make your own gimmicks if this effect ever goes out of production. Cansposed is so good that I seriously considered giving it a bad review so all of you would keep your grubby hands off of it and I could have it all to myself!
