The TA set I think is the best DVD project released until now!
Something that will make history!
:)

A winner 2009!

I can't see it being topped this decade...

LOL,

Doug L.

I might be the only person in the UNIVERSE who is not in some deep love affair with this product. Now mind you I have only seen a few of the discs. While I love me some insightful interviews, the effects I have seen have been so-so.

The ones that warranted attention seemed suffer from over-thinking while others could easily be accused of "guilding the lily" too much.

I might change my tune when I see the rest, but so far...

Sounds like another reviewer who has not tried these out in the real world, try not to look at these from a magicians perspective, these effects are pure gold

I agree Daren, I was scratching my head when I read "suffer from over-thinking" since the effects as is were already incredibly streamlined.

These are ones I want to adapt for my use:
Son of Stunner, Twilight Angles, Muscle bend, Pack of Lies, Ripped and Fryed, Naked Strange, and SS2. Aso: Tensegrity, Lubor's Lens, and Growing Card.

That is a lot of material to master, just to start.

I work standing up with no tables, and most of these effects don't need a table or can be adapted.

In the Eggs I used to do Bizarre Twist and Immaculate Connection. It's time to pull those back out again and re-learn them.

My close up is full of only powerful material, which is scripted, rehearsed, and done a million times. So I will be trying one or two of these at a time, thrown into each show to see how they go.

That is great some people have already put these in their shows. I got to the point now when I work for pay, my effects have to be rehearsed and scripted, and done at least 50-100 times perfectly in practice. I have plenty of strong material like this. I am looking forward to adding many of these items.

It might not be real soon, as I really want to have these perfected before I do them for a paying audience. I've been practicing Twilight Angels for myself every day when I sit down to the computer. I feel comfortable enough now to perform that. I'm still waiting for my RED Twilight Angles refills, so I have not tried that yet, as I really want to give away the card.
I might start on Ripped and Fryed tonight so I can put something into my act pretty soon.

Overall this set has been an inspiration to practice and learn new material, and to take the time to let those moments of "astonishment" happen.

ACE

Oh I am far from a reviewer. I'm just saying.

You callin' me a liar boy? Hee hee.

Ace, you mislead me, my friend
A few weeks again you were talking about the RED cards and how they were backordered on TAP. I clicked on the TAP link you provided, and ordered 4 packs. Nowhere on the site did it list color (red/blue), so I was trusting you man (LOL)

Low and behold, the next week I got my order and they were all BLUE

Now I just need to buy some blue decks.....

Oh well..

I did the same thing, in the notes box I requested 1/2 red 1/2 blue, I recieved all blue! Oh well Ill make do.

Jeff

P.S I haven't even recieved my set yet

Sorry, yes, that's what I said, red was out of stock, and I think someone else said they ordered and did received blue back at that time. I put the in notes with my order:
"Do not send this order unless they are RED" or something like that, and I also sent Jason an extra email. I got a reply back red were out of stock and on backorder, so I said I would just wait. I am anxious to perform this, but I said I would wait as I am not going anywhere. I ordered 50 cards so that is a lot to get in blue and not be able to use. So I made sure I specified red. If I do get blue, they will have to be sent back.

ACE

Posted: Mar 10, 2009 1:15am
Wow, this thread has really slowed down. Has everyone lost interest or just studying the TA?

I've been fooling around with Cheng's Riser tonight, and mixed with an ambitious routine, somewhere in the middle, it was fooling my eyes in the mirror.

So much material to absorb. And I just started ordering the Paul Harris Original Stars of magic. I was one of the fortunate ones to see him in lecture at our local IBM New Orleans ring. I had a front row seat. Very long time ago.
Don't remember too much, back then everything was in print, there was no visual media for sale. I need to search for my old notes. I bought a book and all these magazine extras and lecture notes and such. Of course I asked him to sign everything. I remember I kept notes like I do with the TA set and picked the effects that I would like to do. Now it is easy to go back and watch the DVD and see it again. Back then you had to go from memory and scribbled notes, so much was not even in print. You young guys have it so lucky, there should be no excuse for doing nothing but powerful magic. Then Amar's lecture was to write down your top 5 effects and only do them. It was easy then. There is so much powerful magic now, it is hard.

So can I pick one from the TA to go into my top 5? Or will I end up doing 5 from the set as my top 5? Time will tell.

What is YOUR top 1-5 effects from TA that you would like to do or already perform?

ACE

Ace, I've started re-watching the whole set for the third time. There is so much here to absorb.

I'd love to hear your picks.

I listed a bunch I want to work on about 8 posts up.

Top 5? Have to be very visual and jaw dropping.

Ripped and Fryed and Naked Strange have to be tops for my style, for effects. Of course there are the 2 Visual Cheng's effects that will take some practice. I can't get away from Tensegrity, I just have not had the time to put it together yet. I can't wait to try it and see spectators reactions.

Then just some of the ideas on here can be adapted. Like I said, Cheng's Riser can be put into my current Ambitious routine, and Muscle Bend can be adapted to a coin bend routine I already do.

I actually used to do The Immaculate Connection, probably 1000's of times,( Paul said in his manuscript something to the effect, "practice it until your fingers bleed, and then keep practicing!", now I do this with everything, he should have mentioned this in this set!)) I have an old VHS of me doing it on a New Orleans Riverboat for the Captain, and him going, "What?" and doing a double take. I need to switch that to DVD and put it on the puter, lol.

Okay, What are YOU looking at as your favorites, Mr. Christopher Kavanagh?

ACE

Posted: Mar 10, 2009 2:55am
Thinking about it, the two top ones I picked are similiar but different than another 2 effects I have already did in the past. R&F starts out to look like a warp(because of the folded card, but only a magician might think this, and I never work for magicians, but I might save it if I have to...), and then takes the twist of a T&R, very clever, a combo like of 2 things I already do. But so nice.
Then Naked Strange is an impromptu no gimmicks card from one packet to another. I have 3 of these marketed ones with gimmicked cards, and all are very amazing. This has to be one of the best with no gimmicks and no set up.

As far as original from something I have not seen in my almost 40 years of magic, I keep going back to Tensegrity. I just have to make it, already!

ACE

Ace, I think the TA Pen, which I'm working on, is a big standout.

Lubors Lens, Gerard's Warp, Extraordinary Proof are others for me.

I haven't made time to work on Patrick Snowden's beautiful Tensegrity, but have a routine in my mind for it.

I've used Paul's Angel Case to great success, so Angel Cake is another stand out.

Elsewhere I mentioned this set being like The Beatles White Album. On that I had favorites. A year later, I had new ones. 41 years later, I'm still discovering things from it.

My approach for this set has been that of a journey. I'm having enormous fun with it and think that will be the case for years to come.

Dr. Fun and Backlash 2 are tops to me although LVL$ and Naked Strange are great. All of the effects are solid and some could be released solo. The set is a lesson in performance, philosophy, and solid magic. Mr. Harris, Bro. Gilbert and the crew did a great job at breathing fresh air into the art. The set is the "tits" as it were, nod to Mr. Harris and Mr. Frye.

Unless your currency does not allow it, why would you use Angel Cake instead of Buck Naked (from AoA)?

Posted: Mar 11, 2009 4:52pm
Oh yeah and I just wanted to point out that the topics of TA have probably died down because everyone's discussing on the TA Forums. Those of us who didn't buy from TAP are left in the dust.

Has anybody else's box split? Mine seems to have a perfectly straight split between two of the panels on the bottom.

When I received the TA set the box was in immaculate condition and it has been treated like a shiny new baby ever since. Now I picked it up to see it had split.

Am I alone?

Posted: Mar 11, 2009 11:13pm
Perhaps instead of a slit - it is more like a "crack." The box has a straight-line crack across the bottom right between the ends of two panels.

Its never been dropped!! Ever! I'm kinda worried!

YES! Mine arrived like this. I thought that was how it was made, with 2 pieces of wood. At first I thought it was something to slide as part of the puzzle, but of course I was wrong. My fingernail can fit in the crack that is the length of the bottom of the box.
It looks like a strip of wood. Actually 3 strips on the bottom. The middle strip is not glues on one side, so there is a nice gap. The other side is glued so it looks like it is part of the bottom. Actually the wood changes style 5 times on the bottom. And 2 of the changes have cracks half way. My eyes are not that good to see the details. But real close I can now see it.
Oh well. I'm one to just keep stuff. Too much trouble to send it back.

Joe

Yeah just noticed mine when the cracks were brought up. I took a look at it last night and low and behold, mine is cracked on the bottom. I'm not sure how that happened. Hopefully the dvd wooden case doesn't get cracked even more.

You guys are not alone, my box also has a perfectly straight "crack" on the bottom. But I'm not complaining or sending it back since I think it's not a big deal.

-Aleksi