Price$39.95
Media TypeOne-Trick DVD
CategoryMentalism
Date AddedFeb 18, 2011
Mental Epic Pad
Oberon, Marc
Alakazam Magic
(Based on 2 reviews)
At last someone has taken what is an incredibly impactful effect and brought it bang up to date!
Alakazam Magic Presents Mark Oberon's Epic Pad
- The Mental Epic effect for the 21st century!
- Natural and organic looking
- An incredible three way prediction
- Easy to perform
- Great for Stand-up, stage, parlour or cabaret
On the instructional DVD Marc teaches you step by step how to make your own Epic pad. The Epic Pad is easy to make and once you are set up you will be able to use the same board for hundreds of performances The Epic Pad can be made in various sizes. So you can even use it for close up work!
(Please Note Construction is Required)
Comes Complete With Full Instructional DVD and Special Something.
Reviews
(Top ▲)
This version of the classic "Mental Epic' by Hen Fetsch is absolutely awesome! The two things I love most about it are the fact that it not only looks like something you made up "just a moment ago" but it is much, much lighter than most of the manufactured versions of this effect are. I have a few commercial versions of this effect which are all absolutely amazing and well made, but this trumps them all.
Indeed what you receive here is a "special something" needed to construct this version of a Mental Epic and a DVD explaining everything you need and how to construct every facet of it.
Note that if you intend to travel commercially with this version already made up you will need to protect it with some type of padded case, just because of what it is. That said, it is not difficult to make this at all and if you simply take the "special something" along with you, you can buy everything else you need to make one at an office supply or craft store at your destination.
The "move" that is necessary during the use of this version is not really a "move" in the way that a sleight is a move. With a little bit of thought and working it out, it can easily be made smooth and unnoticeable.
Being that this DVD was shot in England the materials used by Marc (the board, the paper, etc.) were all metric, but they also give you the English measurements of the grid itself, but not the overall measurements of the pad and paper.
For the record, Marc uses an A2 size pad and paper here. The dimensions for A2 size are 594 x 420mm (23.4 x 16.5 in.) They do not give those measurements here, just that they are using 'A2 size'. Being from Europe I am familiar with the A series paper sizing, but in the U.S., Canada and parts of Mexico, that format is not commonly used. In short, telling viewers what "A2 size" means might have made it a little clearer to those not familiar with the term and who might want to make this prop in exactly the same size they see on the DVD, but maybe I am just nitpicking on this point.
Aside from not mentioning what "A2 size" means, everything is very well explained with clear instructions. The audio and video are crisp. Near the end of the video Marc also shares two other (smaller) sizes of Mental Epic Pads that he has made but has never actually used in performance. To his credit, he tells you exactly that and that they cannot vouch for the effectiveness of those sizes because of that.
Side note: one of the wonderful things about this version is that you do not have to make it the same size as Marc does on the DVD; you can literally construct it in any size that you desire. You only need to figure out the proper dimensions for whatever size you choose to make it in, which is not all that hard.
The one thing I wished they would have done for those viewers that have never used Mental Epic before is provide a few more ideas on various ways to use or present Mental Epic. For that, see the most excellent book by Paul Romhany called "Mental Epic Compendium", which is chock full of some amazing, complete and professional ideas and routines.
One last note: the covers used for the prediction boxes in this version are A5 size envelopes. Again, they do not give the dimensions of A5 (210 x 148 mm/8.3 x 5.8 in., if it means anything to you, dear reader), but that is of no consequence because you can find that size in most of the U.S., Canada and Mexico. For that matter, you do not even have to use envelopes - you can use any other opaque material that you choose. I use brown paper bags that I folded as needed and taped shut.
All in all this is an excellent version of the classic Mental Epic, it is very lightweight, easy to construct in any size you want and is very reliable. Highly recommended!
Indeed what you receive here is a "special something" needed to construct this version of a Mental Epic and a DVD explaining everything you need and how to construct every facet of it.
Note that if you intend to travel commercially with this version already made up you will need to protect it with some type of padded case, just because of what it is. That said, it is not difficult to make this at all and if you simply take the "special something" along with you, you can buy everything else you need to make one at an office supply or craft store at your destination.
The "move" that is necessary during the use of this version is not really a "move" in the way that a sleight is a move. With a little bit of thought and working it out, it can easily be made smooth and unnoticeable.
Being that this DVD was shot in England the materials used by Marc (the board, the paper, etc.) were all metric, but they also give you the English measurements of the grid itself, but not the overall measurements of the pad and paper.
For the record, Marc uses an A2 size pad and paper here. The dimensions for A2 size are 594 x 420mm (23.4 x 16.5 in.) They do not give those measurements here, just that they are using 'A2 size'. Being from Europe I am familiar with the A series paper sizing, but in the U.S., Canada and parts of Mexico, that format is not commonly used. In short, telling viewers what "A2 size" means might have made it a little clearer to those not familiar with the term and who might want to make this prop in exactly the same size they see on the DVD, but maybe I am just nitpicking on this point.
Aside from not mentioning what "A2 size" means, everything is very well explained with clear instructions. The audio and video are crisp. Near the end of the video Marc also shares two other (smaller) sizes of Mental Epic Pads that he has made but has never actually used in performance. To his credit, he tells you exactly that and that they cannot vouch for the effectiveness of those sizes because of that.
Side note: one of the wonderful things about this version is that you do not have to make it the same size as Marc does on the DVD; you can literally construct it in any size that you desire. You only need to figure out the proper dimensions for whatever size you choose to make it in, which is not all that hard.
The one thing I wished they would have done for those viewers that have never used Mental Epic before is provide a few more ideas on various ways to use or present Mental Epic. For that, see the most excellent book by Paul Romhany called "Mental Epic Compendium", which is chock full of some amazing, complete and professional ideas and routines.
One last note: the covers used for the prediction boxes in this version are A5 size envelopes. Again, they do not give the dimensions of A5 (210 x 148 mm/8.3 x 5.8 in., if it means anything to you, dear reader), but that is of no consequence because you can find that size in most of the U.S., Canada and Mexico. For that matter, you do not even have to use envelopes - you can use any other opaque material that you choose. I use brown paper bags that I folded as needed and taped shut.
All in all this is an excellent version of the classic Mental Epic, it is very lightweight, easy to construct in any size you want and is very reliable. Highly recommended!
(Top ▲)
What you are getting in this DVD is a method. It is a way to construct a mental epic board that looks very organic. (as opposed to the commercial well made but proppy looking ones)
The thinking is good. There is one moment in the routine that made be uncomfortable where a "move" has to be made. Perhaps with some thinking and practice this could be made less obvious.
Other than that, the idea is solid. It looked great on the DVD and I think it is something that many people will be interested in.
You are not getting a routine with this. Well, you are getting a very simple routine and Marc shares a book force with you, but in reality the DVD is about how to make an organic looking Menatal Epic Slate.
Another good point is that the slate will be large, good for stand up an small stage. He also gives you some ideas for smaller versions.
The thinking is good. There is one moment in the routine that made be uncomfortable where a "move" has to be made. Perhaps with some thinking and practice this could be made less obvious.
Other than that, the idea is solid. It looked great on the DVD and I think it is something that many people will be interested in.
You are not getting a routine with this. Well, you are getting a very simple routine and Marc shares a book force with you, but in reality the DVD is about how to make an organic looking Menatal Epic Slate.
Another good point is that the slate will be large, good for stand up an small stage. He also gives you some ideas for smaller versions.