What what?: Thoughts of a Madman is a PDF file given graciously to us by Randall Freeman (R3man) and Daniel Madizzle (Madison). It contains 13 great pieces of illusion for you to learn. What is there to learn, let's have a look shall we?
Link to PDF
Now that you've had a look, let's take a look at the actual content.
Because this PDF is by two people I'll put marker next to the titles. (DM) = Daniel Madizzle and (RF) = Randall Frizzle. Got it memorized?
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Counting Crows (DM)
Simply put, this is a four card revelation with one of the cards being found at a number determined by the spectator. This is easy, simple to follow and leaves a nice little display at the end.
Colt 45 (DM)
If you know me you'll know I love a good sandwich routine; this is one of them. You count the crows and produce four aces, a card is selected and lost in the deck. One at a time the red aces vanish in a visual manner - the black aces sandwich the full deck and in a second they visually disappear into the middle of the deck. The black aces are found to be sandwiching the red aces and the red aces are sandwiching the selected card. This is a really cool visual sandwich effect, there's one move which will take some practise if you've never done it before but it's doable and is visual as heck. At the end, with the 5 card sandwich it looks really cool and you'll kind of get yourself with it because the sandwich of their card has the time misdirection built into it. Get it, you'll see what I mean.
Tokyo Smile (DM+RF)
This is a one-handed colour change of four cards. Yep you heard me, four cards change into four other cards... One-friggin'-handed. This is easy to do although may seem a little iffy at first. The change isn't quite as visual as other changes but it is quite startling and is really cool to do just as you walk around the house or something. It could be used as a switch theoretically but being as it's not designed for that then you're going to have to do it for yourself.
Through Pass (RF)
This is a nice flowing card control to the top or bottom of the deck, the motions are natural and it is relatively simple to do. Hm, this isn't really a pass in the sense that most of you are used to using the word 'pass' for so don't think you're getting some crazy new 'pass'. This controls one card and one card only, it's a little angle sensitive but these angles are easy to control. What I like most about this is how well it flows, if you were to actually do the actions it simulates they would look 99% the same. Nice job on this Randall.
Back Drop (RF)
This is an alternative to the Vernon-Multiple Shift. For those of you unfamiliar with the VMS, it controls a number of cards to the top of the deck. Each card is placed into a different part of the deck and you can show this cleanly, the cards are pushed flush and the deck is cut bringing all four cards to the top baby. As nice as this is, I think I'll stick to Mr. Vernon's method, I personally am more comfortable with that and don't get me wrong Randall's is cool and smooth but we all have to have what's comfortable for us.
Spinal Cut (RF)
This is a flashy way to reveal a spectators card from a shuffled deck by cutting right to it. I really like this, many will be intimidated by the methodology but be confident and you'll be fine. It's really simple and looks great. Again good job Randall.
The Final Cut (RF)
This is one for those of you who like to play with mentalism. A card is selected and the deck cut by the spectator so they have half, then that half is cut so there are three piles on the table. They shuffle each pile then take a card from the middle of each and place it on top of the respective packets. They select any pile they want, no magician's choice and when the top card of that packet is shown, it is their card. I like this a lot, I've yet to use it but it has a sort of double effect. That of which being that they cut the deck and shuffle - then somehow find their card and bring it to the top of a packet and then select the right packet.
Four Faces of Joseph King (RF)
Okay, I only just got the title now and I feel rather silly. You show four Jokers and place each one down onto the table. You explain to the spectator that on the bicycle of the Joker is actually the King of Spades, when the spectator is shown the card up close they can see that it literally is the King of Spades as the four Jokers have turned into the Four Kings. This is a nice little packet trick if you ask me it has a good strong foundation to it so you get a strong effect if you play it off right. Downside is that you have to use Bicycle Jokers if you want to use the idea that the Joker on the Bike is the King of Spades. But you can do it without, it's just a matter of what presentation you want to use.
Basic (DM)
A sandwich routine that happens one-handed. I mean one-handed, as in the other hand isn't involved in the whole sandwich making process... IT'S ONE-HANDED. Okay, so it doesn't start off one handed but before you rant and whine and writhe on the floor in disgust, you only use two hands to get the cards that will be doing the sandwiching. Once you've got those, you can hand them to a spectator for inspection and have them tie the other hand behind your back, the rest is completely one-handed. This is possibly the hardest sandwich routine I've ever come across, many of you will struggle as I have because you need to be able to stretch your hands quite far, whilst it is possible and this is not a 'zomg y i hav smal hndz i cnt do anfing' excuse, I simply haven't got to a point where I can stretch that far yet. Nevertheless from looking at the images that go with the instructionosos, this is a really cool looking sandwich routine. Basic my a...
Seraphan (DM)
Wow, now this is cool. Hard as heck but frickin' cool. You perform a fan and then proceed to split it in two and cut the deck one handed. This will take a decent amount of time to get down looking cool but it'll be worth it in the long run.
Jigsaw (DM)
This is cool, it has a 'Wait what the eff' feel to it. A card is selected and lost into the deck. Another -different- card is found and the spectator holds onto the deck for the rest of the effect. The corner is torn on this new card and the spectator actually finishes the tear and pulls the corner off. When the spectator names their card, the corner they are holding is turned over to reveal it's their card. When they spread through the deck their card is torn and everything can be handed out for examination. No gaffs, no gimmicks pure sleight of hand. I love this, a lot, it's so cool and I can't wait for the right time to perform it. It's almost impromptu and is really quite simple to do. Daniel could've released this by itself for a reasonable price in my opinion. Really nice effect.
A Box for 51 (RF)
This is is a cool thing that allows you to vanish a card only to have it re-appear in the deck the opposite way, oh and the deck is boxed. A card is selected, taken away from the deck and the deck is put back in it's box and then left on the table. The card is held in plain view in your hand and is openly palmed before you squish it into nothing, you then proceed to show that in the deck is their card, reversed. OR (And this is probably what I will do) you can then go on to invite the spectator to open the deck and find their card reversed themselves with you hands-free. This is well thought out indeed. I like the methodology behind it, but I struggle a little with making it smooth in practice. If I put a lot of practice into it I'm sure it would work fantastically, alas this isn't for me. But I will not deny it is strong. You also learn a pretty cool vanish, it's kind of like a retention vanish for a card - similar to the rub-a-dub but nothing like it... Yeah.
Re-Sandwich (DM)
Yep another sandwich routine and no doubt this is a powerful one. It utilises an old principle of magic along with some good ol' Danny Mizzle fun. You learn the Pinch Pass which is a method for vanishing a card but could also be utilised as a colour change. After the first stage is done you are immediately ready to repeat that stage if you wish which is something I find pretty cool. Or you can finish off with stage 2 which is also pretty cool. Again, sandwich routines = Thumbs up in my book
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Final Thoughts: This is a really nice PDF filled with stuff that'll get you thinking about your magic. The teaching is direct and easy to follow with good quality pictures so you can follow along. You are expected to have a good ground in sleights such as the pass, palming and handling doubles. Randall and Daniel have been very gracious to offer this to us at such a cheap price so I'd pick it up whilst you can.
Thanks for reading my review and if you two are reading, thank you Randall Frizzle and thank you Daniel Madizzle.
Click Here to Buy Thoughts of a Madman.
- Sean
Link to PDF
Now that you've had a look, let's take a look at the actual content.
Because this PDF is by two people I'll put marker next to the titles. (DM) = Daniel Madizzle and (RF) = Randall Frizzle. Got it memorized?~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Counting Crows (DM)
Simply put, this is a four card revelation with one of the cards being found at a number determined by the spectator. This is easy, simple to follow and leaves a nice little display at the end.
Colt 45 (DM)
If you know me you'll know I love a good sandwich routine; this is one of them. You count the crows and produce four aces, a card is selected and lost in the deck. One at a time the red aces vanish in a visual manner - the black aces sandwich the full deck and in a second they visually disappear into the middle of the deck. The black aces are found to be sandwiching the red aces and the red aces are sandwiching the selected card. This is a really cool visual sandwich effect, there's one move which will take some practise if you've never done it before but it's doable and is visual as heck. At the end, with the 5 card sandwich it looks really cool and you'll kind of get yourself with it because the sandwich of their card has the time misdirection built into it. Get it, you'll see what I mean.
Tokyo Smile (DM+RF)
This is a one-handed colour change of four cards. Yep you heard me, four cards change into four other cards... One-friggin'-handed. This is easy to do although may seem a little iffy at first. The change isn't quite as visual as other changes but it is quite startling and is really cool to do just as you walk around the house or something. It could be used as a switch theoretically but being as it's not designed for that then you're going to have to do it for yourself.
Through Pass (RF)
This is a nice flowing card control to the top or bottom of the deck, the motions are natural and it is relatively simple to do. Hm, this isn't really a pass in the sense that most of you are used to using the word 'pass' for so don't think you're getting some crazy new 'pass'. This controls one card and one card only, it's a little angle sensitive but these angles are easy to control. What I like most about this is how well it flows, if you were to actually do the actions it simulates they would look 99% the same. Nice job on this Randall.
Back Drop (RF)
This is an alternative to the Vernon-Multiple Shift. For those of you unfamiliar with the VMS, it controls a number of cards to the top of the deck. Each card is placed into a different part of the deck and you can show this cleanly, the cards are pushed flush and the deck is cut bringing all four cards to the top baby. As nice as this is, I think I'll stick to Mr. Vernon's method, I personally am more comfortable with that and don't get me wrong Randall's is cool and smooth but we all have to have what's comfortable for us.
Spinal Cut (RF)
This is a flashy way to reveal a spectators card from a shuffled deck by cutting right to it. I really like this, many will be intimidated by the methodology but be confident and you'll be fine. It's really simple and looks great. Again good job Randall.
The Final Cut (RF)
This is one for those of you who like to play with mentalism. A card is selected and the deck cut by the spectator so they have half, then that half is cut so there are three piles on the table. They shuffle each pile then take a card from the middle of each and place it on top of the respective packets. They select any pile they want, no magician's choice and when the top card of that packet is shown, it is their card. I like this a lot, I've yet to use it but it has a sort of double effect. That of which being that they cut the deck and shuffle - then somehow find their card and bring it to the top of a packet and then select the right packet.
Four Faces of Joseph King (RF)
Okay, I only just got the title now and I feel rather silly. You show four Jokers and place each one down onto the table. You explain to the spectator that on the bicycle of the Joker is actually the King of Spades, when the spectator is shown the card up close they can see that it literally is the King of Spades as the four Jokers have turned into the Four Kings. This is a nice little packet trick if you ask me it has a good strong foundation to it so you get a strong effect if you play it off right. Downside is that you have to use Bicycle Jokers if you want to use the idea that the Joker on the Bike is the King of Spades. But you can do it without, it's just a matter of what presentation you want to use.
Basic (DM)
A sandwich routine that happens one-handed. I mean one-handed, as in the other hand isn't involved in the whole sandwich making process... IT'S ONE-HANDED. Okay, so it doesn't start off one handed but before you rant and whine and writhe on the floor in disgust, you only use two hands to get the cards that will be doing the sandwiching. Once you've got those, you can hand them to a spectator for inspection and have them tie the other hand behind your back, the rest is completely one-handed. This is possibly the hardest sandwich routine I've ever come across, many of you will struggle as I have because you need to be able to stretch your hands quite far, whilst it is possible and this is not a 'zomg y i hav smal hndz i cnt do anfing' excuse, I simply haven't got to a point where I can stretch that far yet. Nevertheless from looking at the images that go with the instructionosos, this is a really cool looking sandwich routine. Basic my a...
Seraphan (DM)
Wow, now this is cool. Hard as heck but frickin' cool. You perform a fan and then proceed to split it in two and cut the deck one handed. This will take a decent amount of time to get down looking cool but it'll be worth it in the long run.
Jigsaw (DM)
This is cool, it has a 'Wait what the eff' feel to it. A card is selected and lost into the deck. Another -different- card is found and the spectator holds onto the deck for the rest of the effect. The corner is torn on this new card and the spectator actually finishes the tear and pulls the corner off. When the spectator names their card, the corner they are holding is turned over to reveal it's their card. When they spread through the deck their card is torn and everything can be handed out for examination. No gaffs, no gimmicks pure sleight of hand. I love this, a lot, it's so cool and I can't wait for the right time to perform it. It's almost impromptu and is really quite simple to do. Daniel could've released this by itself for a reasonable price in my opinion. Really nice effect.
A Box for 51 (RF)
This is is a cool thing that allows you to vanish a card only to have it re-appear in the deck the opposite way, oh and the deck is boxed. A card is selected, taken away from the deck and the deck is put back in it's box and then left on the table. The card is held in plain view in your hand and is openly palmed before you squish it into nothing, you then proceed to show that in the deck is their card, reversed. OR (And this is probably what I will do) you can then go on to invite the spectator to open the deck and find their card reversed themselves with you hands-free. This is well thought out indeed. I like the methodology behind it, but I struggle a little with making it smooth in practice. If I put a lot of practice into it I'm sure it would work fantastically, alas this isn't for me. But I will not deny it is strong. You also learn a pretty cool vanish, it's kind of like a retention vanish for a card - similar to the rub-a-dub but nothing like it... Yeah.
Re-Sandwich (DM)
Yep another sandwich routine and no doubt this is a powerful one. It utilises an old principle of magic along with some good ol' Danny Mizzle fun. You learn the Pinch Pass which is a method for vanishing a card but could also be utilised as a colour change. After the first stage is done you are immediately ready to repeat that stage if you wish which is something I find pretty cool. Or you can finish off with stage 2 which is also pretty cool. Again, sandwich routines = Thumbs up in my book
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Final Thoughts: This is a really nice PDF filled with stuff that'll get you thinking about your magic. The teaching is direct and easy to follow with good quality pictures so you can follow along. You are expected to have a good ground in sleights such as the pass, palming and handling doubles. Randall and Daniel have been very gracious to offer this to us at such a cheap price so I'd pick it up whilst you can.
Thanks for reading my review and if you two are reading, thank you Randall Frizzle and thank you Daniel Madizzle.
Click Here to Buy Thoughts of a Madman.
- Sean
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