Michael, I respect you a lot and I think you're a great performer, but I think all of what you have been doing to bash the Tarantula is honestly unfair. You are completely biased. You are friends with Steve Fearson, so naturally you are going to take everything he says as 100% true. If you were friends with Yigal, I'd be willing to bet you'd do the same thing. I cannot trust you at all with what you say on this topic because from what I've been reading, you refuse to accept the possibility that Yigal could be the one who is correct in this situation. Yigal has come out and said his side. Steve has come out and said his side. Steve said himself that it is up to the consumer to decide for themselves. Because no one can know the truth behind things, I did not let this whole argument try to persuade me either way as to which product to purchase. I cannot possibly make a moral decision as to which product to buy if I do not really know who is the correct person in this whole issue.
Despite this, I AM going to go ahead with the Master Levitation System. After learning how the Tarantula actually works from people I know who own it, the Tarantula is a great device, but really not worth it. Allow me to explain for the people who don't know the workings.
There are a few things on the Tarantula DVD that are taught, but what's funny is that Yigal is mainly hyping the ring flight most of all. It's funny because the ring levitation does not use the Tarantula! It uses Steve's hookup. The Haunted Pack which is taught is great because your hands are nowhere near the pack. Even so, I find the Haunted Pack very easy to perform with a loop. Also, the version of the Haunted Pack I perform actually will NEED a loop. (It's a very different looking version that I like a lot.) So I wouldn't use the Tarantula for the Haunted Pack. As for the pen and dollar animations, those are cool, but in my opinion not worth the cost of the Tarantula to do. Of course the Tarantula has potential for creativity. The things possibilities are infinite, but the Levitation System I think will suit me better because it's a hookup. I could take it out whenever I want and still do other effects. I don't need to worry about working with electrical equipment.
The Master Levitation System looks solid and will be a must purchase for me. Steve Fearson's DVD looks great. I think I'll get a lot more out of that than I will with the Tarantula. Steve's hookup looks full of awesome.
For those that haven't seen it, check out these three previews. Looks great!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzHD9zMJnaI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9HITSYGqdM&feature=channel_page
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9UToTQUZwlA&feature=channel_page
Anyway, I think Steve's hookup looks wonderful and more practical than the Tarantula.
-Doug
PS: For the person who said earlier that they think thread all over their body will be uncomfortable, don't worry about it. You said you use Loops, right? Do you feel it? I bet not. The Cloak by Justin Miller is a hookup that is all over your body. You don't feel it either. It's just a matter of getting used to things. It's like when I first got contacts. I didn't feel them, but they were always on my mind because I knew I had plastic under my eye lids. Loops were the same thing for me. I also had the same experience with the Cloak. Don't worry. They eventually just become a part of you and you can forget it's even there.