"Crystal Card" by Pieras Fitikides
Suggested Retail USD$49.00
Available from your favorite dealer
In a Blink: 9 Out of 10

"Crystal Card", a bit of brilliance from Pieras Fitikides, has got to be one of the weirdest card revelations made, with that weirdness packing a punch if you can move the presentation away from the prop and toward the magic.

Take a look at the demo video and you'll see what I mean. "Crystal Card", a laminated thing consisting of something or other, is an instant curiosity, sure, and can be explained away here and there (the supplied explanation -- that of it being a thin sliver of some magical crystal -- works, but just barely). The problem is that, which such a curiosity piece, it appears to do all the magic while the performer does nothing but hold the thing.

Not that this is always a bad thing. If you do bizarre magic for a while, you learn (well, I hope you learn) to shift the focus from the prop to the performer with some presentational bits. But getting that to happen with "Crystal Card" is something you'll have to devote some time and care to.

Luckily, that's the only problem with "Crystal Card". Get that out of the way and you've got a powerful piece on your hands.

It's all about the visuals here and "Crystal Card" has some of the weirdest, eeriest, and spookiest visuals you'll find in a compact card revelation. There's no other way to put it other than it just looks plain strange. That strangeness really carries a ton of impact with audiences and the reactions are solid and strong.

For the performer, though, it's all about the practicality of things. "Crystal Card" is definitely practical. It's small -- you carry the "Crystal Card" itself, and a deck with a couple of things in it (which can be removed easily and logically, leaving the deck clean for other things) -- it's lacking in any real set-up or resets, and the items which get the most attention are examinable. It can even be repeated with different results or a dual revelation can be done. This is one that can easily fit into many close-up venues with no headaches.

"Crystal Card" is also pretty flexible in terms of workings and effects. The enclosed documentation covers seven routines. Don't like the weird, slow revelation? Then it can be done quickly and with a more clear, defined appearance. Want to reveal just one card? Can do. Want to reveal two? Can do, too. Don't feel like doing the work? Let the revelation appear while the spectator holds the thing. Feel like dressing it up? Fitikides throws handkerchiefs and envelopes into the mix and that's just the beginning of what you can use to give this one a little more drama.

Not that it really needs it. Taking this one out for a walk, I found the simplest presentation works just as well as the more complicated ones: have a card selected, have the spectator hold the crystal in their hand, wave you hand around it, let the revelation take place nice and slow, and stand by for the looks of shock and the scream or two.

At the end of the day, "Crystal Card" is a fine, powerful piece of magic that works on many levels and gets the reactions we want consistently. Find a good reason for the thing, a bit more of an explanation, and you've got a hit on your hands.

"Crystal Card" by Pieras Fitikides
In a Blink: 9 Out of 10

Practicality: 9
This one has a lot going for it: it packs small (the "crystal card" and a couple of widgets which can go into any red-backed Bicycle deck, which can be used for any number of other things), minimal reset and set-up, and the items with heat are examinable at the end. There are some handlings that can even be repeated with different results, but some of the slicker handlings will cause you repeatability problems.

Workmanship: 10
This is very well made. With proper care (and you will have to care for parts of this, well, carefully), it should last you a lifetime.

Documentation: 10
The documentation is surprisingly thorough, covering several handling ideas and some nice nuances here and there. It also gives you seven different variants of the revelation to play with which was most welcome.

Effect: 10
This one packs a punch. The eerie appearance of the selected card (or cards, depending on how you do it) makes jaws drop. If you go for one of the more visual revelations, be prepared for some screaming.

Presentation: 8
The big thing here is the visuals, which are definitely strange and look flat-out weird. The problem, though, is explaining an equally weird looking laminated card-thingy. Solve that one and you've got a hit on your hands.


Shane

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