"Master Billet Course Volume 1 through 4" DVDs
by Allen Zingg
Suggested Retail USD$35.00 Each
Available from your favorite dealer
In a Blink: 9 Out of 10

Four volumes, five discs, over eight hours of video, over fifty techniques and effects and a single result: "Allen Zingg's "Master Billet Course" is exactly what it purports to be, a complete, thorough and engaging examination of the backbone of mentalism, handling billets. From peeks and tears to switches and psychology, it's all here, beautifully taught and incredibly encyclopedic and, more valuable than anything else, puts billet work into the hands of any dedicated performer.

It's hard not to rave about this set, and rave about it from rooftops. It is such a phenomenal contribution to mentalism it's almost beyond words. But you know me; I'll try anyway.

There's no way I'm going to go through and analyze each technique and effect Zingg and pals teaches on these discs; there's too much and it's all too good. So let's just do a fly-over of what you're looking at in "Master Billet Course".

The course is made up of four volumes which are divided quite logically and build upon one other nicely.

Volume 1 covers the basics of billet work: peeks and tears, specifically the center tear. On this volume, Zingg really keeps things simple, almost introductory, and assumes (rightfully, probably) that the viewer doesn't even know what a billet is. This is just a set-up, though, because once Zingg gets started, even the beginner in billet work becomes expert quite quickly. For my money, having Zingg teach "Acidus Novus" is worth the price of the video, but I could say that about everything here.

Volume 2 gets into the other major part of billet work: the switch. When it comes to switching billets I have my favorite I've used for years and I didn't think anything could change my mind. Zingg did, and did quickly. His "Automatic Fold Switch" is something else and I quickly fell in love with it. Of course, "Master Billet Course" being what it is, Zingg also goes into other switches and, as important as the mechanics of the switch, the timing and psychology of switching those pieces of paper around. I also fell in love with several of the routines on this disc, especially "Drive-In Movie", but all of the routines are as solid as you can ask for.

Volume 3 knocked me for a loop and, for my money, it's Zingg at his best as he teaches a single-card technique that is so natural and so clean and yet so ready to deliver all the information it holds. Yep, this one blew me away. Of course, Zingg goes into different handlings for the move that are as slick as you could ask for. This is stuff as powerful in effect as it is in appearance.

Volume 4, the last of the set, deals with Q&A. It's touted as the culmination of the "Master Billet Course" and, brother, the ads ain't lying. Here you're taught some great techniques, of course, but the meat of it is the different Q&A routines. Close-up, stage, stand-up... all the venue are covered. More, different flavors of the Q&A are taught, including sealed messages. That everything from technique to timing is taught is a godsend and makes this a grand conclusion to a marvelous collection.

Okay, so the material is all-encompassing and great stuff. That's all well and good. But even the best material would fall flat on its face if the instruction wasn't up to snuff. Zingg's instruction is simply excellent, the acme of magical instruction. Zingg covers every technique in great detail, as you would expect, but dives into all the nuances, too (which I'd argue is the real work behind billets; that's just me): the whys of things, the whens of things, and all the reasoning behind it. This incredible devotion to detail in all aspects of billet work is exactly what is needed to elevate a pencil and some paper into modern miracles.

Well, what do you know? I ended up raving from the rooftops after all. Well, if ever there was a video collection that deserved it, it's this one

Final word? Don't touch a billet without it and don't think you're working with billets until you go through Allen Zingg's "Master Billet Course".

"Master Billet Course Volumes 1 through 4" DVDs by Allen Zingg
In a Blink: 9 Out of 10

Material: 10
This is it; this is the definitive source of billet work covering every aspect of handling those pieces of paper. It may be going out on a limb, but not too far, to say that any question on working with billets is in this video set.

Practicality: 10
A pen or pencil, a few piece of blank paper... it doesn't get much smaller than that. Throw in all the niceties that have become necessities -- quick resets, limited angle issues, slight set-up -- and the material here defines practical material.

Quality of Production: 5
There are very minor glitches here and there, but nothing to detract from the value of this disc. In all respects, the production work is kept very simple so that distractions are limited.

Quality of Instruction: 10
Zingg is masterful here, covering everything is as friendly, as comfortable manner as you could want. And when I say "everything", I mean it: handlings, psychology, timing, staging... everything is taught by Zingg and taught very, very well.

Presentation: 10
The presentations go so far beyond what is typically thought of when billets are mentioned. Zingg brings everything to a presentation and makes each one a wonderful piece of mentalism.

Shane