"Black Moon" by Docc Hilford
Suggested Retail USD$45.00
Available from your favorite dealer
In a Blink: 8 Out of 10

"Black Moon", an effect by Docc Hilford, is a great piece of mentalism using classic techniques to pull off a beautiful routine. Be careful who you do this one for and you'll find yourself in reputation-making territory.

The effect is a simple prediction, but, brother, does it play.

The performer shows a specially-printed pad of paper, listing the signs of the Chinese Zodiac calendar. The performer then makes a prediction as to the spectator's sign and the resulting I-Ching "symbol" formed by randomly tossing three "ancient" Chinese coins on the pad, placing it face down on the table. The spectator gives her year of birth and tosses the coins. The pad is turned over and naturally, the performer is correct.

I've left some stuff out of the description for the sake of secrecy, but you get the idea on how this goes. The full routine, courtesy of Hilford's thinking, makes this one a powerful, personal, prediction routine, an act in itself.

Not bad for three coins and a pad of paper.

Okay, let's get to some details. For the money, you're getting a specially-printed and gimmicked pad of paper, three feng-shui coins, and a tiny reference sheet folded into a booklet form. Those are the props you need to carry around and manage to pull off "Black Moon". You're also getting the necessary instructions detailing Hilford's routine and some great bits of business to make this all play powerfully.

The pad, the meat of the work here, consists of one hundred sheets that are printed with I-Ching casting translations on one side and the signs of the Chinese Zodiac on the other. Toward the bottom is a figure of the moon (set perfectly for Hilford's "Dance of Shiva", "Acidus Novus", and probably a few other peek techniques as well). The pad is gimmicked, but don't get too excited about that: it's an old thing just used differently and ingeniously by Hilford here.

For my money, the real genius here is in the coins. They are ungimmicked (you can pick them up online a hundred at a time for a couple of bucks), look as old as the hills, and serve their purpose perfectly. Hilford has concocted a brilliant scheme with them that allows you to know the pattern they will match before they are thrown (got that? Yes, I'm being oblique here again). This is a beautiful idea, ultimately a simple one, that really got the gears turning in my head.

Lastly, the "book". This is a printed single-sheet that describes and translates the meaning of the possible I-Ching patterns. Folded into a small booklet and easily reproduced, this makes a great hand-out and completes the entire "prediction" package.

With the props on hand, and with Hilford's deep thinking on this, you're set to produce one mental miracle after the other.

That's really the big strength here. If done exactly as Hilford outlines in the instructions, you've got a strong, powerful mental act. But Hilford built so much more into this. You've got, in one package and in one theme, enough to add a peek routine to things, an impression-device effect, a book-test... You can go totally off the rails thinking about things you can do with this package. Now, throw the flexibility and the cleverness of this into the mix with the perfect audience -- women -- and you're talking reputation-making material here.

There are some things to be aware of with "Black Moon". First, if you plan on doing this often, you'll need to order new pads pretty quickly (they are available at the fairly good price of $15 for two). Second, there is some memory work involved (Hilford's included a workable mnemonic to help that along). Third, and most importantly, choose your audience wisely for this one: if they're up on the I-Ching or the Chinese Zodiac, you'll find yourself explaining way too much to cover discrepancies between the "book" and pad as you will between what is commonly taught in material on the topics and what you're showing them (things that have been asked: "Year of the Cow? Wasn't that a South Park episode?" and "Why only three coins cast once?"). It's easily explained, of course, but you'll need to come up with those answers if you do throw this one at someone who has been there and done that.

All in all, those things are more like "words of caution" than problems with "Black Moon". With all the possibilities of the theme and the props at your fingertips, Hilford's latest creation is a winner for anyone that likes the theme and has some mentalism experience under their belt. This is one effect and a dozen ideas worth the price of admission.

"Black Moon" by Docc Hilford
In a Blink: 8 Out of 10

Practicality: 7
You'll need to carry the special pad around with you, repeating it is a no-no, and reset will require some privacy. Otherwise, there are no other issues to deal with. If you consider this a one-off effect, something for that particular person at a particular place and time, then this is quite practical.

Workmanship: 10
All the material here is very well made and looks great.

Documentation: 7
It's Hilford's usual -- editing problems abound -- but the material is full explained; you'll have no problems learning this one.

Effect: 10
It's a series of classic effects and, well, classics are classics for a reason. This plays huge.

Presentation: 8
The only problem with this one? Don't do it for anyone familiar with the topic; the discrepancies will raise eyebrows.

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.