Well its been awhile...

[Black Hand]

...About 14 months I would say lol. If you clicked this thread and still wondering why I havent gotten to the point in the first sentence then I'm sorry, lol. Allright here goes(ill try to make it as short as possible). Well I've been away from the Magic Game(I guess you can call it that) for quite some time. Been so busy with, well, Life I guess and now deciding to Slowly(keyword "slowly" dont want people blowing head gaskets...more on that later) get back into the fray. I miss performing, routining, and practicing and just havent had time to in the past year. Heck I even was a semi-regular on these forums...had to make a new account cause I think it was deleted(Or most likely forgot my credentials but whatev, clean slate now ^_^)

So onto the main point of this thread. I've missed on quite possibly a ton of things that I can't even begin to sort through. Dont get me wrong I have, for the past 3 days, been looking at a ton of things, And too me 98% of the products ive seen is filler.I can be extremely picky with what I decide is "performance worthy" So I guess what I'm asking T11 is some recommendations of sorts. I really dont want to turn this into a "I got X amount of dollars What Do I GET!" thread. I'm just asking for some insight on some of the effects that have launched that maybe I've overlooked.Whatever recommendations people suggest, I will do heavy reasearch on and see if they fit my style, personality etc. I'm mostly proficient in Cards, coins, Street, Close-up(That pretty much covers everything huh? lol...).

As previously stated, This is not a typical "What to get" Thread, and I really hope it doesnt come off as that. I dont mind putting in the work, practice, routining to make it my own. Not out to get the most popular thing out now, and also not asking for every single trick that has come out in the past 14 months(I wonder how many did come out in that time...) Honestly picking up a deck a cards again felt hella nice...Being able to still do a perfect(Well to me it is!) fan and sleights is just awesome. I guess some things can never be forgotten(Except that night I got hammered and came home with 6 stri...nevermind different story for a different time j/k ^_^). If you are still reading at this point I commend you and would like to apoligise for this long(and possibly "boring you to tears") post. and also sorry for all the parenthesis remarks...I have a split personality and it strikes at a moments notice(like right now). In all seriousness, I thank those in advance for their time and help in this matter
-Ray

 

[praetoritevong]

...About 14 months I would say lol. If you clicked this thread and still wondering why I havent gotten to the point in the first sentence then I'm sorry, lol. Allright here goes(ill try to make it as short as possible). Well I've been away from the Magic Game(I guess you can call it that) for quite some time. Been so busy with, well, Life I guess and now deciding to Slowly(keyword "slowly" dont want people blowing head gaskets...more on that later) get back into the fray. I miss performing, routining, and practicing and just havent had time to in the past year. Heck I even was a semi-regular on these forums...had to make a new account cause I think it was deleted(Or most likely forgot my credentials but whatev, clean slate now ^_^)

So onto the main point of this thread. I've missed on quite possibly a ton of things that I can't even begin to sort through. Dont get me wrong I have, for the past 3 days, been looking at a ton of things, And too me 98% of the products ive seen is filler.I can be extremely picky with what I decide is "performance worthy" So I guess what I'm asking T11 is some recommendations of sorts. I really dont want to turn this into a "I got X amount of dollars What Do I GET!" thread. I'm just asking for some insight on some of the effects that have launched that maybe I've overlooked.Whatever recommendations people suggest, I will do heavy reasearch on and see if they fit my style, personality etc. I'm mostly proficient in Cards, coins, Street, Close-up(That pretty much covers everything huh? lol...).

As previously stated, This is not a typical "What to get" Thread, and I really hope it doesnt come off as that. I dont mind putting in the work, practice, routining to make it my own. Not out to get the most popular thing out now, and also not asking for every single trick that has come out in the past 14 months(I wonder how many did come out in that time...) Honestly picking up a deck a cards again felt hella nice...Being able to still do a perfect(Well to me it is!) fan and sleights is just awesome. I guess some things can never be forgotten(Except that night I got hammered and came home with 6 stri...nevermind different story for a different time j/k ^_^). If you are still reading at this point I commend you and would like to apoligise for this long(and possibly "boring you to tears") post. and also sorry for all the parenthesis remarks...I have a split personality and it strikes at a moments notice(like right now). In all seriousness, I thank those in advance for their time and help in this matter
-Ray

Hey Ray,

Thanks for the post! I have posted a lot, especially recently, about asking the right questions, the right way, and I think this is the perfect example of a great question. Glad to see you want to venture back into magic, and hope you have fun with it here.

In short, I think you're right. Most of what's been released is average at best, for some reason or other. I too am very picky with effects, so I can definitely understand that.

The only Theory11 release I personally think is worth getting into (that I've even considered getting) in the past few bits is Smoke by Alan Rorrison. I'm not going to get it - the gimmick is not my style (I'm a mentalist), and is too magicky for personally - but it might suit you. At least in theory, the ability to create smoke though is a very versatile one.

I've also heard pretty good things about This is Mentalism and Sick if that interests you.

To be perfectly honest though, I haven't bought any new releases in the past year - everything that I've personally bought has been stuff that's been on the market for years - and personally, I think the way to go is still to look at the tried and true products, that have proven themselves to be good and always will be good - better than most of the new stuff. I'd take a Harry Lorayne book or a Vernon book over anything T11 or E has ever released - but that's just my opinion.

 

[Black Hand]

Thanks Prae, your posts are always insightful . On topic, This is mentalism was one that struck me as well, looked very interesting, plus.it seems most impromptu and simple, but hard hitting. Sick, I have to look into that again lol(its funny how some things you forget about after all other releases of mediocrity).

I also agree, that sometimes the tried and true(and sadly mostly forgotten) effects are the best. I still to this day perform Biddle Trick
And it can still floor people

I've been on the fence about Smoke. It looks cool, but I keep asking myself "will I use it to its full potential and not just for portal and French kiss?" If I ever stumble upon 50 clams one day, then maybe. Thanks for responding, others please feel free to post your thoughts

 

[praetoritevong]

Thanks Prae, your posts are always insightful . On topic, This is mentalism was one that struck me as well, looked very interesting, plus.it seems most impromptu and simple, but hard hitting. Sick, I have to look into that again lol(its funny how some things you forget about after all other releases of mediocrity).

I also agree, that sometimes the tried and true(and sadly mostly forgotten) effects are the best. I still to this day perform Biddle Trick
And it can still floor people

I've been on the fence about Smoke. It looks cool, but I keep asking myself "will I use it to its full potential and not just for portal and French kiss?" If I ever stumble upon 50 clams one day, then maybe. Thanks for responding, others please feel free to post your thoughts

No worries. From what has been posted about Smoke by JB and others, you should be able to work out some basic limitations of Smoke. This will help you in terms of thinking about its applications. I came up with an application that I personally think is better than any other idea I've heard of to date, but it would not be suitable to perform from what I understand of this gimmick.

On This is Mentalism... From what I've heard, I think it's great for beginners in mentalism especially, as it seems to focus on some of the different ways of thinking employed by mentalists and magicians. Having one or two mentalist friends in my area but a dozen plus magician friends, it's just remarkable how some people "get it". It sounds like a nice introduction to performing mentalism, and some important lessons about performing (as opposed to the "secret").

On Sick... Well. It's not my thing, personally, and I think there are better coin magicians out there. I thought it was very revealing in the recent Essential Magic Conference, when, having performed a wonderful routine, Ponta was asked about how he interacted with the audience. He sheepishly responded that he only performs for magicians. I think it's interesting how technical skill can be mistaken for magic - and even then, I've seen crazier technical skills than Ponta's. Nonetheless, if you're interested in sleight of hand based work, then I think it would absolutely be a good investment.