I was asked if I would write a review of the new effect by Kipp Sherry, the P-PIK Prediction Cards. I have decided to give it a go but first I thought that I should explain what type of magic I do so that you can get a better idea of where I am coming from regarding my review.

I do primarily tradeshow work with hospitality suite walk around work thrown into the mix as well. The magic that I do tends to be very straightforward. I tend to stick to the classics of magic with a heavy focus on the work of Dai Vernon, and his contemporaries. I do very little mentalist work in either type of event. My clients are generally in the IT or Insurance industry. So now you have a basic understanding of what I do and who I do it for.

I will start out by saying that I have only ever had contact with Mr. Sherry on-line and have never really had any personal dealings with him. I did talk to him about the effect prior to its release but I am under no obligation to post a positive review of this effect. This is my honest review of the P-PIK CARD effect. So, on with the review.

I was made aware of the effect’s upcoming release via Café postings where my curiosity was peaked. After conversations with Mr. Sherry and waiting several weeks the effect arrived in the mail. I was traveling to a show so I took the package, stuffed it into my briefcase and headed out for the event. That evening in the Hotel I pulled the effect out for my first real look at the trick. I first noticed the graphics on the packaging; first class printing full color and professionally produced. I hoped that this was a sign of good things to come. I took the cards out, which were inside an envelope contained inside the outer packaging. The cards were, again, very professionally done. I was first taken by the quality of the printing on the cards, top quality and very impressive. The artwork was brilliant and professional looking. I was very impressed. I read the instructions in just a short time (about 3 minutes to fully understand them all) and then started to play around with the effect.

At this time I should point out that these cards use something called the EGRESS REVEAL. This is a totally new technology to magic. It is used to reveal a symbol from a pre-selected number printed on the opposite side of the card. It would be impossible for me to totally describe the EGRESS REVEAL without giving away the secret to the trick. I can say is that it is kind of like a Polaroid developing. It starts out all black and then ends up with a yellow symbol printed where an all black space used to be. (Please note that this does not use Polaroid technology I was just attempting to describe the look of the developing symbol without giving away the secret).

The effect is a mentalist type of effect. A single card from a stock of 12 is selected and then a number is thought of and mapped to the coinciding number printed on the front of the P-PIK card. A symbol is located next to the number. That symbol is memorized and the EGRESS REVEL then takes place matching the symbol next to a thought of number. All of the cards are different with different symbols printed next to the different numbers on the fronts.

After playing around with the “secret” for a while and getting comfortable with the effect I decided that in it’s current state the effect was a little to large for me. Not large in size mind you, but large in the total number of cards that you are provided. So I sat down and came up with a handling of the effect that would suit me in the manner in which I perform. I only use 3 of the P-PIK cards at a time. That is one of the things that I like most about this effect; the fact that it is so easily adaptable to your individual needs makes it a great fit for me.

With that said I should add that the effect straight out of the package, per the instructions, is fine for most people. Mr. Sherry did a great job with the manner in which he drafted the instructions. They are very clear and easy to understand and you will probably be able to do the effect after just one reading. He leaves the door open for the creative process to take place and he also provides you with suggested patter lines that you can download for free via his web site.

After a short period of time I had adapted the effect to my needs to the point at which I thought that I would test it out at the tradeshow the next day. All I can say is it was a hit, I had people coming back to the booth bringing others asking about the effect. I will add that I had to script the patter to my clients needs but it was easy to do. The Marketing director who hired me for the tradeshow was also impressed and has actually contracted me for additional shows around the country.

So is there a down side to the effect you may be asking, well only one that really comes to mind and it really is a matter of personal taste and that is the word P-PIK is printed on all of the cards. I have been asked every time I have done the effect “what is P-PIK?” and that is the only thing that I would change about the effect. Over all I really like the effect it is commercial in nature and easily adaptable on a scale of 1-10 I would give it a 8.5 – 9.

For those of you who need a card trick that is instantly repeatable I would recommend stripping this down to four packets of three cards each and putting them in a packet trick card wallet. It can be done again for a spectator a second or even third time with different results but you really would not ever do it. Re-set on the full deck of 12 cards presentation will take just a few seconds but is not that bad at all.

As for the price of $35.00, I have paid a lot more for a card effect and gotten a lot less. I do not think that the price is bad at all and as a matter of fact, with only 500 decks available I would imagine that this effect will be found for sale at a much higher price in the near future, but that is just my thoughts on it.

Ok here is the bottom line 12 very unique playing cards professionally printed with cool graphics; Easy to read and understand instructions; One totally unique revelation; Easily adaptable to fit your patter needs. Recommended.

Kris

By the way I have never been accused of being short winded.

I predict this will be a top seller. Looks like a winning concept