Price$24.95
Media TypeTrick
CategoryMentalism
Date AddedJan 21, 2015
Hands Free Prediction
Lynx Magic
Magic Without Limits
(Based on 2 reviews)
The magician shows a deck of cards, being all different and in random order.
Then, the magician takes an envelope that contains a prediction and places it in full view on the table.
Next he hands the deck to a spectator and asks him to deal the cards, one by one, face up on the table, and to stop whenever he wants to (no force).
Incredibly the card that the spectator stopped at matches the prediction that is inside the envelope since the very beginning!
Keep in mind: The Spectators can examine the deck. The envelope is immediately shown empty after the prediction is removed. Completely free choice (the spectator stops at any card). No switching of the envelope No switching of cards. No gimmicked deck. The magician never touches the deck. Instant reset Very easy to performHands Off Prediction comes complete with the custom made gimmicks, full accessories and online instructional video explaining different professional routines, with the working professional close-up magician in mind.
Reviews
(Top ▲)
Many people have a great liking for the 'Open Prediction' plot and others do not. I happen to like it.
First of all you do not get a physical DVD with this product - the video is streamed from Vimeo and it comes with the password you need in order to watch it. It is split into seven sections and you have to watch each video, go back to the main screen and click the next video. As for the production quality, the lighting, audio and video are all very good and everything is taught clearly, except one thing about the setup which I will cover in a bit. The running time for the entire thing is about 25 minutes. You get all the necessary items and you have to supply your own normal, matching deck to complete the set up.
The envelope that comes with this is very nice. It is a thick, opaque plastic but its construction looks a little weird for an envelope. The good news is that there are other types of envelopes out there that can be used in place of this one if you do not like it, though as they say in the video, with care this envelope should last you a lifetime and because it is plastic, if it ever gets dirty you can wash it.
In the explanation video he says the envelope has sticky stuff on the flaps but mine did not, so to test it out I used my trusty Zig Two-Way glue and that worked just fine. You could also use double stick tape. He also says that because of its composition, you cannot tear the envelope with your bare hands. Well seeing as I would never use this envelope in performance, I thought I would test that out. It would take a just a little effort, but you could tear it with your hands. Why would you though? His point is that with normal use and even normal wear and tear will not ruin the envelope.
If you decide not to use it in performance and opt for a different style/type of envelope that does the same thing, this one would make a great storage envelope for singular gaffed cards when they are not in use.
In the preparation video, you will discover a huge problem. Huge, both literally and figuratively. Let me just walk you through the set up by the numbers: First, you receive 12 cards that you will need for the deck itself. You then have to add 8 cards to those from your normal deck. That is 20 cards already. Then after the ridiculous (though not difficult) set up process of sorting, dealing, grouping, sorting AGAIN, dealing AGAIN and one more time for good measure, you add another 19 cards to that. That is 39 cards. You add five more to the top which equals 44. THEN, to the bottom of the stack you place the remainder of the normal matching deck that you are using. That is 20 more cards. Unless my math is off, that is 64 cards. 64 cards! That looks nowhere near the thickness of a normal deck and then, he tells you to put everything in the box, which he does.
I watched the setup section many, many times because I thought I was missing something. I do not know about you folks, but my card boxes start getting a little tight with 58 cards inside, let alone 64. I did not miss a single thing as it turns out. What had to have happened BEFORE they filmed this was to remove 12 indifferent cards from the matching deck to begin with and they never told you to do that. There was no hinting at that anywhere. But thinking in a sensible way, it is the only explanation.
The explanation of the original version is done very well. They teach you everything you need to know in order to perform this effect, which is not a lot. The only caveat? You better hope you are performing for less-than-observant audience members for this or there is a chance they will spot something fishy. This 'something' is not a thing that looks different than anything else, but something that definitely looks out of place. Those eagle-eyed spectators will probably notice it if they are really burning the deck.
The ACAAN (Any Card At Any Number) version of this effect is not really an 'Any Card' version of that plot. It is really a "Card At Any Number" (CAAN) where you predict a card at a named number. Again, this is not difficult because the deck does the work for you and again, you will learn everything you need to know to perform this variation.
In the version using a regular deck, you still have to set up the cards a certain way but it is a clever idea. There are both upsides and downsides to this version. One upside is that you are using an absolutely regular deck, another is that you end clean. The downsides to this version are that you only get four chances to make a good effect and after that, it will still work but it loses impact. You will learn various outs for this version as well.
If you perform any of the three versions exactly as taught, you will almost automatically reset at the end of each one. I say almost because you have to put the prediction card back in the envelope and replace the dealt cards onto the pack so that is close enough to an 'automatic reset'. The challenge with any of these is to come up with a presentation that explains and justifies what you are doing and why nothing gets mixed up.
At the end of the day, what you read in the ad copy is 100% dead accurate - no false statements or inaccuracies and it really does look that clean. The ad trailer is also just as honest. You can show the deck and it will look like a well-mixed deck to most people. There are just those few uber-observant types that you will need to watch for and most people will in fact not notice much. Good audience management and a good presentational hook will give you some ways around this.
Would I use this method for performing any of the variations given? No, but they do work as described and none of them are hard at all. In fact, for the original handling and what they call the ACAAN version, the deck even does the work for you. Technically, so does the ungimmicked version.
If you like what you see and read in the ad copy and if you like the presentational possibilities and do not mind a one-time set-up of a deck for any of these effects, then you will not be disappointed with this product.
4 stars.
First of all you do not get a physical DVD with this product - the video is streamed from Vimeo and it comes with the password you need in order to watch it. It is split into seven sections and you have to watch each video, go back to the main screen and click the next video. As for the production quality, the lighting, audio and video are all very good and everything is taught clearly, except one thing about the setup which I will cover in a bit. The running time for the entire thing is about 25 minutes. You get all the necessary items and you have to supply your own normal, matching deck to complete the set up.
The envelope that comes with this is very nice. It is a thick, opaque plastic but its construction looks a little weird for an envelope. The good news is that there are other types of envelopes out there that can be used in place of this one if you do not like it, though as they say in the video, with care this envelope should last you a lifetime and because it is plastic, if it ever gets dirty you can wash it.
In the explanation video he says the envelope has sticky stuff on the flaps but mine did not, so to test it out I used my trusty Zig Two-Way glue and that worked just fine. You could also use double stick tape. He also says that because of its composition, you cannot tear the envelope with your bare hands. Well seeing as I would never use this envelope in performance, I thought I would test that out. It would take a just a little effort, but you could tear it with your hands. Why would you though? His point is that with normal use and even normal wear and tear will not ruin the envelope.
If you decide not to use it in performance and opt for a different style/type of envelope that does the same thing, this one would make a great storage envelope for singular gaffed cards when they are not in use.
In the preparation video, you will discover a huge problem. Huge, both literally and figuratively. Let me just walk you through the set up by the numbers: First, you receive 12 cards that you will need for the deck itself. You then have to add 8 cards to those from your normal deck. That is 20 cards already. Then after the ridiculous (though not difficult) set up process of sorting, dealing, grouping, sorting AGAIN, dealing AGAIN and one more time for good measure, you add another 19 cards to that. That is 39 cards. You add five more to the top which equals 44. THEN, to the bottom of the stack you place the remainder of the normal matching deck that you are using. That is 20 more cards. Unless my math is off, that is 64 cards. 64 cards! That looks nowhere near the thickness of a normal deck and then, he tells you to put everything in the box, which he does.
I watched the setup section many, many times because I thought I was missing something. I do not know about you folks, but my card boxes start getting a little tight with 58 cards inside, let alone 64. I did not miss a single thing as it turns out. What had to have happened BEFORE they filmed this was to remove 12 indifferent cards from the matching deck to begin with and they never told you to do that. There was no hinting at that anywhere. But thinking in a sensible way, it is the only explanation.
The explanation of the original version is done very well. They teach you everything you need to know in order to perform this effect, which is not a lot. The only caveat? You better hope you are performing for less-than-observant audience members for this or there is a chance they will spot something fishy. This 'something' is not a thing that looks different than anything else, but something that definitely looks out of place. Those eagle-eyed spectators will probably notice it if they are really burning the deck.
The ACAAN (Any Card At Any Number) version of this effect is not really an 'Any Card' version of that plot. It is really a "Card At Any Number" (CAAN) where you predict a card at a named number. Again, this is not difficult because the deck does the work for you and again, you will learn everything you need to know to perform this variation.
In the version using a regular deck, you still have to set up the cards a certain way but it is a clever idea. There are both upsides and downsides to this version. One upside is that you are using an absolutely regular deck, another is that you end clean. The downsides to this version are that you only get four chances to make a good effect and after that, it will still work but it loses impact. You will learn various outs for this version as well.
If you perform any of the three versions exactly as taught, you will almost automatically reset at the end of each one. I say almost because you have to put the prediction card back in the envelope and replace the dealt cards onto the pack so that is close enough to an 'automatic reset'. The challenge with any of these is to come up with a presentation that explains and justifies what you are doing and why nothing gets mixed up.
At the end of the day, what you read in the ad copy is 100% dead accurate - no false statements or inaccuracies and it really does look that clean. The ad trailer is also just as honest. You can show the deck and it will look like a well-mixed deck to most people. There are just those few uber-observant types that you will need to watch for and most people will in fact not notice much. Good audience management and a good presentational hook will give you some ways around this.
Would I use this method for performing any of the variations given? No, but they do work as described and none of them are hard at all. In fact, for the original handling and what they call the ACAAN version, the deck even does the work for you. Technically, so does the ungimmicked version.
If you like what you see and read in the ad copy and if you like the presentational possibilities and do not mind a one-time set-up of a deck for any of these effects, then you will not be disappointed with this product.
4 stars.
(Top ▲)
PROS
They teach two very powerful routines. They are very clean. They are easy to perform. They reset easily. They only take up the space of a deck of cards. They are suitable for close-up, parlor, or stage.
There is one gimmick, and it is extremely well made. It is likely to last you a very long time.
CONS
You will need to dedicate a deck to these couple effects. However, they teach you a method to use a regular deck plus the included gimmick.
I would say there is a 99% chance that a participant is not going to pick up on the method, but it is not 100%.
This may not be for everyone. If you are already doing an ACAAN routine with a regular deck, you may not want to do this version of the ACAAN with this deck.
VERDICT
These are two nice routines. They are relatively easy to do. The main advantage to these effects is you are completely hands off, as the title suggests.
They teach two very powerful routines. They are very clean. They are easy to perform. They reset easily. They only take up the space of a deck of cards. They are suitable for close-up, parlor, or stage.
There is one gimmick, and it is extremely well made. It is likely to last you a very long time.
CONS
You will need to dedicate a deck to these couple effects. However, they teach you a method to use a regular deck plus the included gimmick.
I would say there is a 99% chance that a participant is not going to pick up on the method, but it is not 100%.
This may not be for everyone. If you are already doing an ACAAN routine with a regular deck, you may not want to do this version of the ACAAN with this deck.
VERDICT
These are two nice routines. They are relatively easy to do. The main advantage to these effects is you are completely hands off, as the title suggests.