Here is my in-depth review of Card to Pocket by The Other Brothers. For video version of this, please go to my YouTube here.
REVIEW PHILOSOPHY
When I review a product, I’d like to judge the product by itself alone. I will try to put myself into readers’ shoes and give the most honest review.
I paid full price of the product, and come with no affiliation with any magicians or dealers, thus as a consumer I want my readers to have full information about the thing they may be getting.
I will provide what is not said on the advertisement and details beyond the product itself.
If the product is good, I say it out loud. At the same time, if there is bad about the product, I don’t hesitate at all to say it.
I believe by giving you the most transparent information, you will have better knowledge to judge.
Helping my readers is my biggest goal with this review.
WHAT YOU GET?
You’ll get 2 decks of gimmick cards in classic Rider Back. They are constructed totally in different ways.
You also get a device to accomplish the Card-To-Pocket part of the routine.
And a link to the online tutorial is included in the box.
QUALITY OF THE GIMMICK
Let’s talk about the gimmick decks first.
One gimmick deck is specially printed cards which makes vanishing the selection very easy to do. Interestingly, it is a deck that cannot be examined but can be handled relatively freely by spectator. Since the deck is only handled by spectator for a short span of time during performance, it should last a long time. Even if the deck was mishandled and damaged a bit accidentally, it doesn’t affect how the deck works. In addition, this gimmick deck is versatile enough to accomplish dozens if not hundred of other effects. I would pay for full price for this deck only.
Another deck is responsible for another part of the effect. This deck is specially constructed which makes the trick workable. This deck is not difficult to construct and thus there is no worry about damage in long run.
Regarding the special ‘device’, it is made of durable plastic and no way daily usage will damage it. There is one additional part in this device which is creative and make the effect a lot better, though I cannot go too deep about what it is.
All in all, I am satisfied with what I receive. They are what they should be and more than good enough to make the effect work.
QUALITY OF THE TUTORIAL
The effect is well explained in the 49 minutes & 50 seconds long video.
Length (minutes) of the main parts (I literally counted):
Intro- 1:00
In the Box- 5:21
Explanation- 10:34
Explanation 2- 14:21
About the Pocket- 1:23
Studio Performance- 2:57
Bonus- 7:00
Thoughts- 1:40
Last Words- 1:18
Live Performance- 4:16
‘In The Box’ session starts with the gimmicks you receive. It explains the one-time setup of the decks. This session mainly focus how the prepare the decks (no DIY involved). So you don’t want to skip it because it’s also about Preparation.
In ‘Explanation', The Other Brothers explain the vanishing sequence of the effect in great details. They teach several handlings, audience management and tips about how to make this sequence look best. They even explained a hand-off approach which I think it should be how the trick should look. They cover all the details and there is no question that they don’t leave much behind.
In ‘Explanation 2’ (I name it differently to protect the secret), they go into the method on how to produce the selection from pocket. Interestedly, they admit that their method ’suck’, so do I think. But they have provide an execution which makes the method not too bad. I have to agree with them because their rationale is valid. I will go into deeper analysis about this later.
In ‘About the Pocket’, the creators explain the way to make showing an empty pocket possible. This is very creative and I like it.
In ‘Studio Performance’, The Other Brothers did 2 performance to teach you the timing of the moves. Honestly, it’s not particularly useful once you understand the method. There is no new tip on how to improve the timing the performance. But it only lasts for 3 minutes, not a big deal.
In the Bonus session, some random ideas are given. They put more weight on how to make the selection appear in other places. Those ideas are quite obvious but they are worth trying. They also teach a version where the deck is handled in another off-hand manner on table. Much details of this version are given and I like this part.
In ‘Thoughts’ session, nothing new is given but it’s just like they are trying to make statements to make you believe this effect is great. Honestly, I think this part is redundant.
To conclude, the production quality of the tutorial is quite nice. And it is packed with useful information about details of the effect. Not the best production quality but I am totally satisfied.
DIFFICULTY
There are 2 main things to handle in this effect. Namely, vanish and produce the selection.
To vanish the selection, the gimmick deck does most of the works for you. But you still have to manage the audience well so that they won’t accidentally discover the secret.
To produce the selection, there is a technique involved. But this is done in off-beat, therefore no heat is on the performer. It can be mastered in 1-2 hours practise.
PERFORMANCE ANGLE
There is no restriction on angle. But it is not preferable to do it while you are sitting, unless you are wearing a jacket.
CLOTHING REQUIREMENT
There is no strict requirement for clothing. You just need a pocket where your hand can be comfortably put inside. But a big pocket is not nice because it will kill the illusion.
ANALYSIS OF THE EFFECT
I will include my analysis of the effect in my product review. In this analysis, I will present my view on the strength and weakness of the effect. And will also go deeper with magic theory in mind.
For card-to-pocket effects in general, there are 2 main issues to tackle. They are VANISH and PRODUCTION of the selection. A good effect should be something handling these economical while enhancing the effect.
In this trick, The Other Brothers have done a great job in making the vanishing sequence very direct. It looks very magical if it is done correctly. However, when you step back and look at the whole picture, you will find that the chronological order of the effect doesn’t change much from other card-to-pocket effects. In other words, it’s very likely that the audience will perceive the effect no difference from other effects. In other words, the methods in this effect, in my opinion, is not improved enough to enhance the impact of the trick.
To give you an example, let’s take a look at what a typical card-to-pocket effects look like:
Performer holds the deck → Have a card selected → Pass the deck to spectator → The selection vanished → Performer puts the hand in the pocket → The selection is produced
In this effect, it is not much different from the above chronological order. That means if any methods do not improve the phases above dramatically, the general effect is hardly improved. Let’s say I have a stacked deck and can immediately palm off the selection and put it in my pocket without audience’s detection, then what I achieve will be exactly the same as this trick, with advantage of using no gimmick.
Please don’t misunderstand. This effect is good, and the methods are interesting. That’s why I would suggest performer to emphasise on the vanishing sequence in this trick because it is particularly clean.
CHOOSE WHAT YOU LOVE
This effect comes with sequences which can be used separately. So you can use either sequence in your own effects. This flexibility is good because seldom do other tricks can provide additional benefit of making your own effects like this.
PROS ABOUT THE EFFECT
Gimmick is versatile
Detailed tutorial
The price is very reasonable
CONS ABOUT THE EFFECT
The production of the card is not very ideal
The general effect is not improved as much as I thought
FINAL VERDICT
The product is nicely produced and should last a long time.
This is an effect that you can perform as it is, or you can create a lot of things from it.
There is no difficult sleight-of-hand involved and therefore suitable for any levels of performers.
I am satisfied with the quality of the product. At US$35, it is bang for bucks for even the gimmick deck involved.
Product Quality: 8/10
Effectiveness of Tricks: 7/10
Practical (Vanish): 9/10
Practical (Production): 5/10
Creativity: 7/10
Cost Performance: 10/10
Final Score: 8/10
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