Strange Attracters & Odd Men Out, Pit Hartling

Reviewed by Tom Denton.


OK, so I've had a look at this new download from Vanishing Inc and I've got some thoughts to share with you.

First of all, if you don't know about Pit Hartling, he's a German magician probably best known among the magic-consuming public for his book “Card Fictions”. His style combines sleight-of-hand, preparation and elegant subtleties to create miracles with an ordinary deck of cards. And the two effects in this download continue in the same vein.

First up, “Strange Attractors”. This is a progressive sandwich effect, in which a card is selected, the magician openly sandwiches a large group of cards containing the selection, then, with no apparent manipulation, the sandwich cards magically move through the deck to capture a smaller group, then finally, they jump to the centre of the deck to sandwich the one selected card. I think this has a very clean, hands-off look to it in performance, and if you're a fan of sandwich effects this gets the job done very efficiently.

The trade-off for the clean presentation is that some preparation is necessary. While it's not too extensive, I think it would be quite difficult to get away with in front of spectators. For me, this doesn't have the immediate audience engagement that I think an opening routine requires, so if you were going to work this, you may have to switch decks or open with a non-card piece. That's the only downside, though, which isn't insurmountable. I like this effect and, more importantly, I think that some of the ideas and subtle touches that Pit has included can act as inspiration for your own creative endeavours.

The other trick is “Odd Men Out”. This begins as apparently a piece of mental magic, in which two cards are selected, with the prospect that their identities will be divined by the magician. There's a twist, though, when the performer shows that the first spectator has apparently chosen the only red card in an all-black deck, which then transforms to show that the second spectator has chosen the only black card in an all-red deck. I really like this trick, and the way it's structured offers plenty of opportunity for comedy and by-play with the audience. The preparation required may put some people off, but, this time, I think it's certainly possible to get set-up in front of the audience, so this can be plugged straight into a set.

Both of these routines share the mentality of minimising difficult sleights with subtlety and preparation. Nevertheless, I would suggest that neither of them are “easy”. The difficulty isn't in the finger-work, but in the presentation, as I think the tricks stand or fall on your ability to sell them as real miracles. The video download is only fourteen minutes long, but wrapped up in both tricks is a wealth of detail which will reward careful study. “Odd Men Out” is my favourite of the two effects, but I think that the lessons in trick construction and subtle thinking that both tricks contain are well worth much more than the £6.26 that Vanishing Inc are asking for the download.


Available at http://www.vanishingincmagic.com/magic-downloads/card-magic-downloads/pit-hartling/

Pivotal Peek, Ryan Schlutz

This is our second review of a Schlutz release, following on from the incredible Sense-Sational, I'm pleased to see he's sharing more!

This time alongside fresh to the scene american company Trcky. Developed by creative close-up connoisseur Rich Aviles, their aim is to bring light to the finest advancements in our art.

My introduction to Trcky through 'Pivotal Peek' has certainly left me hungry to see more from the accomplished team, as the name suggests it's a peek, a card peek to be specific & one of the best I've seen.

Usual procedure: the pack is held at fingertips, the cards are riffled, spec calls stop & the pack is marginally split to display - now unlike most peeks, the pack can be instantly handed to spec for shuffling as you ALREADY know the card. It's so clean you'll think it's a force! & what's more, the method won't intimidate even the newest of the newbies.

Ryan Schlutz & the Trcky production make for a faultless download. The in-depth performances, explanations, psychology, tips & thoughts are the extra mile which really do make all the difference when learning a new effect. The clean, methodical approach to tipping the works behind 'Pivotal Peek' will have you one ahead in no time.

As cheesy as this may sound, when I think of peeks from now on, I'll be pivoting towards this one. 

Highly Recommended, available at http://www.trcky.com/