Title – LETHAL
Price – Sold Out (As Far As I Know)
Originally Available At – devilsadvocateproductions.co.uk
Format – DVD
Review
Daniel Madison, the name has been thrown around a lot lately. The mysterious magician/cheat/flourisher who looks fairly reminiscent of a cowboy… A really cool cowboy. But who is the man behind the cards and, more importantly, why should we care? What is this LETHAL Project that has been in the making for 4 years, is it really all that lethal and why was it cancelled 3 times. And most mysterious of all the mysteries, is this DVD cursed? Besides, what does underground magician even mean? Does it refer to someone who is part of an elite group of magicians with dark methods of card control, whose very lives are at risk for exposing the methods (speaking of which, I need to write a review of Lee Asher’s Losing Control), or does it simply mean a person with fairly good skills who wants to make it big, and does so via lots and lots of hype?

Daniel Madison used to be a full time card cheat (or so he claims) until he spent a month in hospital after a nasty “accident” that occurred when he was discovered to be a cheat. He then pretty much vanished and started releasing DVD’s and effects over the Internet. LETHAL was his first major project, soon to be followed by DANGEROUS, and it was started in early 2004 (perhaps late 2003). Its production was stopped on the 4/4/04, and then restarted again. Stopped once more on the 5/5/05, and once again on the 6/6/06. These coincidences (if they ever actually occurred) became known as the LETHAL Curse, and forces beyond our control were meant to be stopping its release. This is, in all likelihood, just hype… Remember, there are no coincidences. But it’s still a good story, and makes you rather proud to own a copy.

This DVD has so far received rave reviews from everybody who matters, Daniel Buck, Tom Weil and Randall Freeman. There nice comments certainly paid off, as Daniel Madison now promotes products from both Tom Weil and Randall Freeman, and they were probably paid for their reviews. I, on the other hand, was not, and am nonetheless happy to share my views on this DVD.

The DVD is filmed in black and white, with a darkly tone and atmosphere about it. There is no talking on the entire DVD, which seems to be the new trend in flourishing instructional videos, but every move is still taught in detail. The lay-out is a sort of beginner-to-pro type of thing, teaching mini-flourishes, and then later using them in much larger scale flourishes, so it is advisable to learn everything on this DVD in order, however, if you decide to just skip to the harder routines and find yourself able to perform them, you should have no trouble picking up the smaller flourishes. There are exactly 7 Sybil variations here, each with a nice refreshing take on the original, as well as many moves you WILL use in your magic performances. There are some really crazy routines as well and I will now go on to list them, along with my thoughts.

CONTENTS
Symphony
There is not much to say about this one. It’s a nicely thought out little flourish, that I will be using. The first few flourishes on this DVD serve as the basis for larger routines later on the disc. It’s cool looking, but from some angles, the hand gets in the view of the spectator. An angle-suffering flourish – there’s a first.

Cylinder
This is a great spin sequence, but it is vastly improved upon later on in the DVD.

Dead Revolution
This is a nice take on the revolution cut. I have used this in some of my own personal routines, and it’s a worthy addition. You will like this, and will probably use it.

Sleeper
This is reminiscent of Daniel & David Buck’s Akira cut. In my personal opinion, it doesn’t look as good as Akira, but it is definitely easier. It’s a nice bit of interlude in my magic and I use it often.

Bicycle
This is the improvement of Cylinder that I was talking about. It is so good that I made it the finale to my Deck Twirl sequence. I love it.

Symphony Run I
This is the worse of the two Symphony Runs, but it still looks very good. My guess is that some will love it, and some will hate it. Then there are people like me, who don’t think much of it either way. I like it, but it lacks a WOW factor. It’s basically the same as Symphony, but with a Dead Revolution Cut.

Symphony Run II
This is a nice, quick routine using the Symphony sequence. It looks very good, and puts Symphony to good use. I prefer it to the other Symphony Run. It finishes once again with the Dead Revolution Cut, which is the case with all of the Runs of both Symphony & Cylinder.

Cylinder Run I
This is a fairly basic, but nice routine using the Cylinder Sequence finishing with the Dead Revolution Cut. My complaint is the same as my one of Symphony Run I.

Cylinder Run II
Cylinder Run II is a slight variation on Cylinder Run I, but it looks one hell of a lot better. The only difference is a thumb swivel, but it makes a BIG difference. I like it a lot.

Delinquent
This is a good, hard-looking, but fairly easy multi-packet cut. It has some very nice touches, and I do use this, but it is not nearly my favourite routine on the disc. Worth your attention though.

Diabolique
WOW, I absolutely love this! It looks so cool, and is an instant classic in my books. It puts several flourishes to very good use, including the Dead Revolution cut. It is a must in the serious flourisher’s repertoire! 10/10

DropSyble
This is a very nice Sybil indeed. It involves not one, but two aerial manoeuvres. It looks spectacular, and very hard to do, but with enough practice you should easily be able to nail this one between the eyes. This is the definition of a flourish. If you are tired of the same old Sybil cut, then you should definitely learn this. This is just the first of 7 great Sybil cuts.

PopSyble
A nice looking Sybil cut with a card location at the end. I won’t be using this, but I imagine that many people will.

PopSyble ++++
As opposed to the original PopSyble, I will be using this. Instead of just finding a single card, you find a four of a kind. Very well thought out, I like it a lot. Puts the Sybil Cut to much needed good use.

Syblnthr
This is a very crazy looking Sybil routine that involves your chin. It is very cool and it took me ages to get down, but I finally have, and it was worth the effort. This is a very nice take on Sybil.

Syble Helix 1
What can I say, yet another very good Sybil routine. It involves a spin sequence, and out of the two variations, this one is the one I prefer.

Syble Helix 2
This is a good Sybil routine, but is probably my least favourite out of the 7.

Syblnthr Helix
What happens when you cross Syblnthr with Syble Helix? You get one hell of a crazy looking sequence that blows all other Sybil Cuts out of the water. Well-done Daniel.

SnapD
I love this very simple flourish. It’s sort of hard to explain, but I’ll give it a shot. Whilst holding the deck in your left hand, the top card vertically spins off and flies into your other hand. This was one of the highlights of the DVD, and I use it often as a production.

Lethal
The disc’s namesake. This is a routine that is again reminiscent of one of the Buck Twins routines – The WERM. Instead of 4 packets however, it use 5-6. It looks very good, but it is nothing compared to…

Lethal Ex
This is fantastic. It is the same as above, but with more packets, and uses your chin. It is crazy hard to pull of, and the slightest misjudgement will send the cards tumbling down to the floor, leaving you to play 52 pick-up. This gets the highest rating from me. 10/10

Turnover
This is a cool aerial sequence that will appeal to all those who appreciate the simpler things in life. It is very straightforward, and is the perfect attention getter for laymen. I think you will really like this.

Turnover Repeat
This is not taught on the DVD, but on the PDF companion that comes with it. It’s a straightforward method of Turnover that leaves you instantly ready to do it again and again and again ‘til your heart’s content.

Downfall
This is yet another highlight of the DVD. It is another very nice aerial sequence that will have you scratching your head. Direct, straightforward, powerful – everything you want from a flourish. A gem of a flourish.

Malice
This is a cool blend of flourishes that I like very much. I expect the hard-core flourisher’s among us will want to learn this one instantly. As Borat would say ‘Very Nice!’

Twisted Rain
A nice routine that incorporates parts of Malice, and continues it into a beautiful routine. It is named after the company Twisted Rain Productions, who are acknowledged on the back of the cover. It might be Daniel Madison’s little homage to them.

Twisted Rain Rev
This is the same as the above, with a four-of-a-kind location at the end. A great ending to a great routine.

Mayhem
Hajfdasghsdoagdanga?!?!?!?! That’s what I said after watching this. This is one of the craziest cuts I’ve seen in my life. The Cobra Cut is a walk in the park in comparison. This what the DVD should have been named after, and you know what? I finally mastered it!!! YAY!!! Well at least in private practice, I’m not sure I could do it if anyone was actually watching. This gets a well-deserved 10/10 from me. A great way to end the disc.



BONUS FEATURES
The Demo Tape
This is a 16-minute self-advertising video of Daniel Madison boasting a few of his moves. He does some nice takes on the flourishes already taught on this DVD, as well as a very nice transposition, a psychokinetic bottle effect (which wasn’t all that great in my opinion) and a very nice triumph routine, but I’ve seen better. The highlight of it was a discipline routine, where he was blindfolded, spread his fingers out on a table, took out a very sharp looking knife and started stabbing very fast between his fingers. That was pretty amazing, and I’ve been training to do the same thing, with a few personal touches.
The video, overall, wasn’t all that great, and just echoed of a ‘look at me, I’m cool’ type video. My biggest problem with this Demo Tape is that it lacked depth, and I prefer Daniel Madison’s flourish work to his magic.

The Kastoacha Experience
This is the soundtrack to the DVD. Kastoacha has some fairly cool beats, which are good to practice to, but personally I can’t stand Techno. By the way, Kastoacha is the name of the person who composed all the music on the disc (just in case you were wondering).



THE PDF ACCOMPANIMENT
I am very glad that Daniel Madison decided to include this PDF instructional booklet teaching the methods of the routines on the DVD in worded form. It makes learning a lot easier when you combine both writing and viewing. Not all the routines are covered, but most are. They are very well taught, but you will need a basic understanding of card flourishing or XCM to follow it. Granted, you should not be buying this DVD unless you have a lot of experience in the first place. This DVD is definitely not for beginners.
A special thanks to Daniel for going to the trouble of producing this document. Brian Tudor could learn from this initiative.



THE LETHAL CURSE
Here is the completed story of the LETHAL Curse as it appears on the DVD; in part it is my own words
04/04/2004
News from the publisher arrives that problems with the final production of LETHAL were irreversible; the master disc had been destroyed before any copies were made. Earlier that morning, after a power failure, only a few of the LETHAL files could be retrieved from the affected computer. No other copies had been made. The LETHAL Project was called off.
05/05/2005
During late 2004, Daniel decided to restart the LETHAL Project.
In the closing stages of LETHAL, a robbery took place at TRP studios; none of the stolen equipment was retrieved. Included in the equipment were the computers on which LETHAL was being produced. Only a few of the LETHAL files had been written to DVD for testing purposes. The LETHAL Project was once again called off.
Later that year, Daniel was hired to be the lead subject in a hidden-camera show, in which Daniel would enter an illegal poker game and attempt sleight-of-hand techniques to cheat and win the game. During the game a malfunction in an earpiece brought attention to the con. The LETHAL Project was incomplete, the show cancelled, and Daniel spent one month in hospital… This happened on June 7th 2005
06/06/2006
The LETHAL Project was once again rebooted in late 2005.
In post-production of LETHAL a fire engulfed TRP studios, destroying all computer equipment and LETHAL files. A hard drive was recovered on which were a few of the LETHAL files, saved for back-up purposes. Daniel decided to completely call off the idea of a flourish DVD.
Due to a high demand from the underground circles and magic/flourish forums, Daniel decided to finish what he had started all those years ago.
The footage contained in the LETHAL Project is a collation of the saved footage from 04/04/04, 05/05/05 & 06/06/06

Make of this whatever you will, sounds like hype to me.



FINAL THOUGHTS
Whilst I think this has been over-hyped, there have been many cases of hype that are much worse. To name a few Enlightenment, The Black Opps Hypnosis Course, Bicycle Masters Edition, etc. This DVD is overall fantastic, and whilst I’m not entirely convinced that it’s cursed, I still sleep with a wooden stake under my pillow. It teaches some great moves, and Mayhem is just extraordinary. I loved SnapD, as well as his variations on the Sybil, and if you can get a copy it will be well worth doing so. What Daniel Madison does with a deck of cards is amazing, and I can’t wait for DANGEROUS. Anyone got any news on when it is coming out.



A WORD TO THE WISE
Do not waste your money on this DVD if you are a beginner. You will not gain much from it, and there are a very limited number of these in circulation, so leave it for the people who will gain the most from it. You will need at least a basic understanding of flourishing or XCM to be able to do the moves on this disc, and it is definitely not aimed at the unexperienced.



RATING
Overall - it's great stuff.
8/10 from me.

The lethal DVD is a really great DVD. (I got one from a friend of a acquaintance who no longer wanted it). However, I don't buy into the whole Ex-card cheat back-story malarkey. The whole intro on the lethal DVD reads like a bad movie script made up by 12 year olds. I'd venture to bet that Madison has NEVER cheated at cards. Not in a real game anyway. Its just hype to sell DVDs and PDFs.

The whole thing actually reminds me of the whole Devo 'Ullman trials' line of bull.

But, Like I said, lethal was a good DVD with some really interesting stuff on it and I'm glad I found a copy.

Tim

I have Lethal and I like this DVD but Daniel Teaches most of the same flourishes on his new DVD "Motion" (which I also own). Everything is taught a lot clearer and he gives some advice/tips at the end of each flourish.

I'm with Tim. I don't buy into the Ex-card cheat crap BUT I do like Daniel for his flourishing.

I just watched De'vos trailer for the upcoming XB2 and Daniel will be in it.