"Reel Magic Quarterly" DVD by Kozmo Studios
Suggested Retail USD$10.00
Available from your favorite dealer
In a Blink: 10 Out of 10

Kozmo Studios' "Reel Magic Quarterly", the latest entrant in the growing field of video magazines, is vibrant, entertaining, educational, and, in the end, has the potential of becoming "must viewing" for anyone in magic.

That's not as huge a statement as it sounds. Kozmo Studios has packed this first issue of the quarterly with big names -- each of whom is easily worth the ten bucks -- who are informative, masterful, and enlightening. With a good line-up and good departmentalization, "Reel Magic" is a great piece of work.

"Reel Magic" is broken down into interviews, monologues, reviews, and tricks. Like any magazine, there are going to be pieces that attract and pieces that don't; with "Reel Magic", though, the odds of there being more here to catch your eye than not are pretty darn good.

For me, it was the Paul Harris interview. Want to have the scales fall off your eyes? Harris does it, and the points he makes will have you thinking seriously about how you do what you do and why. This one piece was worth the subscription price, but it was also the tip of the iceberg.

I was laughing so hard at David Regal -- who is reviewing tricks on the disc -- that I had to watch the segment twice to get all the info. Now, I have to say that I love David Regal -- probably the man's biggest fan -- but the way he took on the tricks ("Lady Bug", "The Spike", "Melting Point", and "Melting Point Reloaded") was both informative and entertaining. Really fun stuff.

In a nice segment, John Lovick talks about his book, "Switched". This was fascinating to me on a few levels, but I'm always interested to hear how folk's creative processes work and this exposition by Lovick was certainly interesting.

Wayne Kawamoto has a segment of reviews on magic DVDs and, as always, Kawamoto's reviews are concise (certainly moreso than your humble editor) and thorough. Seeing him review video on video after seeing his work on About.com was a special treat.

Now we get the segment I think has the ability to be the most valuable piece of "Reel Magic": Andrew Pinard's "Continuum". This video-digest is an interview with those who, quoting the ad copy, "influence the magic from the past, the present, and the future". This time around, Pinard interviews Harry Lorayne and does it very, very well. The value, though, is in the concept; there are so many fine and true masters of magic that are getting on in years and may not be with us much longer. This segment could become a piece of magical history we would all-too-soon appreciate more.

And from that somber note, let's look at what many will consider the real meat of "Reel Magic" (myself among them), the tricks. And what tricks they are.

First up, Garret Thomas and his "Try This At Home" segment. This time around, Thomas instructs us on his ideas concerning the fake take. Thomas starts with the basic idea, then goes into routining it, and, along the way, hits all the high-points of audience psychology and misdirection. Gold here, pure gold.

Speaking of gold... Dan Tong's "Chop Cup" routine is also taught on this disc. If you're familiar with my writings here at all, you know how I feel about Tong and his routine. It's brilliant, practical, and I do more often than I care to think about. And it's here.

Last, but definitely not least, is Potassy's "Bill to Potato". Again, another great piece to make up and perform, this time for platform or stage work, and worth the price of the disc.

I've mentioned the price a few times, but that's simply because I can't get over the price. For what you receive, the full content and rich production values, this should easily be double the price, even triple. For the routines, for the thinking, for the historical value, "Reel Magic" is the deal of the year.

"Reel Magic Quarterly" by Kozmo Studios
In a Blink: 10 Out of 10

Material: 10
A very rich "video magazine", this one is packed with interviews, reviews, tricks... you name it. Entertaining, informative, and thought-provoking, this has the potential of becoming a must-view rivaling even the best print publications.

Practicality: n/a
It's more than tricks, so we'll forget the whole practicality thing for this one.

Quality of Production: 10
This is a Kozmo production, which is always extremely well done. He's holding the bar high with this one, too.

Quality of Instruction: 10
Whether we're talking about the tricks or the thinking, the instruction is wonderfully done.

Presentation: n/a
See "Practicality" above.

Shane

Available direct from your favorite dealer. Dealers, please contact Murphy's Magic Supplies, Inc. toll-free at 1-800-853-7403 or visit Murphy's Magic Supplies website.