"Oddballs" DVD by Scott Strange
Suggested Retail USD$24.95
Available from your favorite dealer
In a Blink: 10 Out of 10

"Oddballs", a new DVD by Scott Strange, is a collection of a new sleight and variations that is, simply, a must-have for anyone doing serious sponge ball magic. Or wanting to do serious sponge ball magic. Or has a set of sponge balls. Or knows what sponge balls are.

Okay, a little over the top, but not by much. Scott Strange has done some beautiful work here. This sleight is pretty near a work of art by itself and anyone working with sponge balls should have this disc, pure and simple.

Those same folks are also going to need some patience; this stuff isn't exactly the easiest thing to learn. But, while I appreciate and admire the producers to warn, earnestly and repeatedly, how difficult this material is, they are not beyond the grasp of anyone who has experience in sponge ball work. It felt to me as if most of the difficulty here came from just being strange (no pun intended). Don't think anything here needs more than patience and practice, just like everything else we do. Let's take a look and you'll see what I mean.

"Strange Change" is gorgeous. It is worth the price of the DVD. It is going to be one of those sleights you'll have to master to be considered a serious sponge ball worker. It is that good. Simply put, it's a visual color change/transformation of a ball done with one hand. But the flexibility of this thing blew me away. It is shown being used with a spectator's hand, on the table, even a bit flourishy with two hands. Then it's put into a quick little bit called "O.C. Transpo", where the Strange Change is used in a simple yet flashy transposition.

Next up is a great "split" move where a single ball, held at the fingertips, is split into multiple balls. This one is a bear to learn because of the timing required. Get that down, though, and you've for a beautiful move for introducing multiple balls into your routine.

After that is "Eye, Balls", a bit of a flurry routine that is cute and funny and just silly enough. I like it, what can I say? Here, the Strange Change is used again and again and looks so good in the context of the routine it's almost scary. More than that, this is a lesson is stealing loads without cover; Strange does it and gets away with it as easy as you could ask for. Brilliant work here.

Following that is "Goshman Nipple Pinch". Seriously, I can't make this stuff up; that's the name of it. This time around a two-inch ball is twisted in half, visually splitting into two one-inch balls. No description can do this one justice; it looks just plain slick.

Next is a quick flurry routine that is hilarious to watch, not because of the routine itself, but because the "real life" performance is done with two guys who are having a conversation and completely ignoring Strange who, undaunted, performs the whole routine, including the use of misdirection and audience management. I was almost in tears over this one. Those two guys not withstanding, it's a great, quick routine built around the Strange Change and looks very, very good.

Yeah, I'm completely in love with this disc. It's great stuff, extremely well-produced and wonderfully taught in addition to being packed with great material. "Oddballs" is worth every penny and every rave review it's going to be getting.

"Oddballs" DVD by Scott Strange
In a Blink: 10 Out of 10

Material: 10
The material consists of new moves with sponge balls and several variations of those moves. And if that sounds dry and boring, boy, are you in for a shock! These moves are fabulous and look incredible. Toss in some of the variations and you've got some unbelievably gorgeous, magical, sleights to add to your sponge ball routine.

Practicality: 10
Have sponge balls, will work. That's it in a nutshell, though I'd also mention that any sponge ball routine using these sleights won't suffer from practicality issues.

Quality of Production: 10
This should, by all rights, be a 42. They shot this in green screen, with the backshot being the move being performed and the foreshot showing the workings of the move. This is an absolutely brilliant idea and, really, cuts down on training time. I can't tell you how impressed I was with this.

Quality of Instruction: 10
Strange does a fantastic job of teaching his sleights, covering everything incredibly well. More, he makes learning the darn things fun. When was the last time you giggled while learning a new pass? I rest my case.

Presentation: 10
As with any sleight, the presentation is all in what you do with it. But these sleights look so good I can't see how they would do anything except strengthen most routines.

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.