Peter has got two new tricks up on his site which are fantastic.

Both require intermediate sleight of hand skills but neither are difficult to do. They are FUN to practice.

Check out the demos here:

http://www.peterduffie.com

Collins Extreme fooled me sooo bad when I first saw it. I thought he was using gaffs. But there are NO GAFFS in the trick.

No gaffs in Stranger in a Gansta's Paradise either.

Great tricks with fun presentations. Don't take my word for it, though. Check out the demos.

They are only $8.50 each or buy both for $10.50. A VERY good offer, IMHO.

Take it away Andrew Loh!

Whoa Cameron, nice to see you here being as the early bird always.

I just watched the two clips by Peter and I really would like to say "really great and excellent" materials here. I really liked both of the effects. Very strong and I am sure you guys will enjoy these two effects! The best part is, both effects are not very difficult to do. Of course, you will need some practice.

I agree with what you said Cameron. - For Collins Extreme, I thought the effect finishes with the Kings and Aces just like that with the awesome combinations of Triumph, poker game theme, etc. When the Kings are turned over, I immediately caught a fever! I really liked this time being fooled by Peter! I also liked each of the phases, very visual changes take place.

For the gangsta paradise, again, (I suggest that you watch the clip) again Peter nailed me with this one. Again, I thought the Jacks in the box are going to be something else, again I was wrong, the transposition effect here with the signed card (no force!) really amazed me. I really look forward to fooling my friends with this one. Awesome stuff Peter.

I think Peter has done a wonderful job in providing the explanation in great details. You don't need to worry whether you are not familiar with this or that. He covers most of the moves in great details.

I highly recommend these two effects! Yup, very good offer and you really cannot get better than this! Get these two effects while you can at http://www.peterduffie.com!

Andrew Loh

Got the email for this today from Peter.

Collins Extreme is a fantastic assembly. I'll be taking advantage of Peter's offer and picking this up tomorrow along with Stranger in a Gangsta Paradise. Another teriffic routine.

Great job Peter.

Craig

Having watched the video, I'm a bit mystified by the "clean" handling, complete with odd pauses, obvious thumb counts, and lots of futzing. It's a great "oh, I'm not exactly sure what he just did, so I must have been fooled" card effect for other magicians to be startled by the "white supper" style of card magic (just throw whatever in), but I would never do this for real people.

John,

Which of the videos are you talking about. the first or second?

The Collins routine. I didn't even risk the second. Before I am flamed, note that I am very fond of much of Peter Duffie's work. He is a superb card handler. It is that very reason that I was so displeased by the Collins handling. If it looks like that in the hands of Peter Duffie, it will be a hot mess for most anyone else.

FWIW... I totally agree with JohnWells... this does NOT appear to be Mr Duffie's best work (and I'm also a fan of Duffies WRITTEN work... not so much anyone's "one trick download video"- though I realize this seems to be the trend).
The outstanding material in "Cardzones" (w/Jerry Sadowitz) alone is more then demonstrative of Mr Duffie's creativity (and chops!).
Just my 2cents....

Michael

I actually didn't think the Collins routine was bad. Some obvious get readys but this a camera demo and I am sure you can practice or "chat" those out. I think the spelling ending for the collins routine is best and may be able to be incorporated here. Like in many tricks like this (jazz aces for one) the ending is telegrahed so even if clever no one is surprised. Would take this opportunity to recommend Guastaffero's Jazz version on his DVD. One of my new favorite tricks, really a surprise ending and easy to do.

A few thoughts...

I prefer the Triumph ending to spelling. Punchier than spelling and there's more magic going on. Plus, talk about telegraphing an ending. Once you start spelling, everyone's going to be miles ahead of you after you spell the first. Whereas lay people don't see the Triumph ending coming. And they certainly don't see the blue backed Kings ending.

If you don't like the routine, that's one thing but I am a bit amazed about the comments about breaks and such. There were two moments where he riffled up the packet. And in real performance, with minimal misdirection, this could easily be covered. Other than that, where was the futzing?

And I'll bet most think he's using double facers. He's not.

As a side note, I love routines with multiple kickers. There seems to be this myth that lay people don't like them or can't follow them. I've found the complete opposite to be true. In the proper setting, lay people love routines with loads of magic. Just bugs me when magicians call longer routines with multiple climaxes "magician's magic".

While the routines are nice, I prefer Duffie's written material than videos. I like the way Peter describes the tricks in writing and it is easier in my case to follow the trick with the printed page.
I wish he could offer both type of media for his tricks.

pablo

I should re-phrase what I said. Agreed, the spelling ending is clearly "telegraphed." I used to do the Collins Aces and have only tried with spelling ending. I had good spectator response. Probably because I was impressed when I first saw it, not being familiar with a "spell stack" but being familiar with a "poker stack." At any rate Peter's routine is quite magical

Hi Folks;

Thank you for all the comments - the positive and the negative(ish) - they are all constructive, and therefore welcome.

I have to say that I am not particularly comfortable performing routines for a camera. Yes, I do prefer the PDF but there is a major swing towards video these days. Maybe I should supply both? My aim, apart from offering the magic, is to keep the price down.

On that subject - my 2 for 1 offer is back now that I have a new server for my web site. My most recent 2 for 1 offer caused my site to collapse due to exceeding the bandwidth

Best Wishes

Peter

I will concede that in live performance my technical complaints would be lessened if not obviated. Honestly, I'm just not a huge fan of the routine. I love the Collins Aces, but this seems to be more mugging for other magicians than magic. That being said, it may kill in live performance, and as someone fools me with it, I'll run drooling to the "buy it" button. (That is not facetiousness. I've bought the last half dozen things Mr. Duffie's put out. I really am a fan.)

I thought Peter's Collins Extreme was outstanding. We all see things differently.

I'm with Pablo, if it's not on a DVD, where I can watch a large, clear picture on the TV, I would prefer
a written instruction PDF with photos. The exception would be an effect that involves more complex moves.

Craig

What I like about Collin's Extreme is the clearness of the effect. Unlike many of today's method-driven effects, this is very simple to grasp magic: Four aces turn into four kings, one by one. This is really good, but once the four kings have assembled, things get a bit strange. Surely, we need a climax and the aces need to reappear, but the ending seems to be from a different trick, and while the magic happened clearly and very quickly during the first phase, the second one feels a bit slow and unmotivated. I feel that - purely from a spectator's point of view - the aces should suddenly appear in an unexpected place.

(This meant as constructive critisism - I really like the trick and will probably purchase it.)

Hi

Collins extreme is not one quick trick; it's a routine. However, you don't need to do the deal-out at the end - you can, if you wish, simply shuffle face up into face down - then spread the deck showing the deck has righted itself, except for four cards - the Aces. Then show the marked Kings to finish.

You can shorten even further and don't shuffle at all - the Aces are already reversed, so if you push the dealt pile into the middle of the balance, you can simply spread showing the Aces are face up in the deck. But if you shorten it this much I think you are losing too much, plus with no shuffle, it could be noticed that the Aces are perfectly spaced three cards apart.

Best Wishes

Peter

Peter, what are your thoughts on having written instructions and/or video instructions going forward?

Pablo

Hi Pablo;

I think some effects are easier to understand when viewed on a video. It depends on the content. For example; a recent one that I released - Power Trip - another multi-phase routine - was a PDF. I originally planned a video download, but decided that there would be no real benefits in doing it that way. Power Trip has less in the way of new development, using mainly standard moves, so the handling was easier to convey via the written word.

Having said that; I find that making & editing a video (basic as mine are) just as time-consuming as writing & photographing for a PDF.

Maybe we should have a vote in a new thread: PDF ebook or Video download?

Peter

I like a mix of them both.

I think a mix is good, too. But sometimes it is easier to convey moves on video. Utterly Wild and Collins Extreme are much easier to follow on video then they would be in written form, I think.

Sometimes PDFs and video supplements are just what the doctor ordered. One of the first things I bought off of Peter's site was Thunderstruck. It is a PDF with a video supplement of alternate displays. I always thought this was a good idea and have incorporated it in some of my download releases.

Really depends on the effect, though.