CONGRATULATIONS! Tell me more please!

On a side note... we now have no thread with which to speculate and discuss. Therefore, since the majority of those individuals who purchased this set do not have it yet, we need somewhere to speculate and talk about the relatively non important stuff. We were directed here, so all we can do is continue our conversations in this thread.

Hope to hear more from those of you lucky SOB's who have already been graced by the presence of TA!

Thanks,
Justin

I watched quite a bit of TA last night. Started by watching the intro and New Leaf from disc 1, then watched all of disc 9 and set up my first TA pen. After that I bounced around through all the discs for a few hours. Here's some thoughts...

Muscle Bend - I use QB2 for my coin bend, and I don't plan on switching, but if I was going to use a gimmickless coin bend, this would be it. You start with your hands totally clean, sleeves rolled up. Borrow a coin and bend it. Hands are completely clean before and after the effect. Very clever.

Dr. Fun - Everyone who owns TA and works with cards is going to be performing this. Super strong effect and incredibly easy. I'm going to start practicing this today.

Cellmates - Like Dr. Fun, this is incredibly easy, technically, and is much more about presentation. A very cool way to trade phone numbers with someone you're attracted to. Personal, funny, and lots of room for presentation.

New Leaf - Not as much set-up as the original, this is a torn and restored leaf effect that happens all in the spectator's hands. Like the original (which I love), this will need some time put into it. Definitely something you want to learn, though, as it can be set-up pretty quickly and your props are everywhere outside.

Dunn's Deal - Very good handling of Out of this World. The presentation provides a good emotional hook and eliminates a step in the magician handling the cards.

Smoking I - Like most of the material on the set, this is a very personal effect for the spectator as it uses the initials of someone close to them. The person (personified as a match) is burned to a crisp and then resurrected. Definitely something I'll be using.

Naked Strange - Strange Travelers. Impromptu. I was skeptical as to how clean this was going to look compared to the original with the gimmick cards. If you're a bit skeptical yourself, don't be. This looks great.


My favorite parts are probably the Phootnotes. After each effect there is a short interview with Paul outside, discussing his thoughts on the effect's creation and his ideas on handling and presentation.

Also, Bro is awesome on this. He's got a really cool and personal performing persona, and his creativity is something to be admired. I know this is Paul Harris's set, but Bro really shines on here and from the credits and interviews with Paul, you can tell TA wouldn't be what it is without Bro. So thanks, Bro!

All-in-all, I'm really happy with TA and it's definitely living up to my expectations. I took today and tomorrow off work, so my head will be wrapped in astonishment for the next 48 hours.

Posted: Feb 4, 2009 7:57am
I can't believe I forgot to mention Tensegrity. I watched it about 2 in the morning. This is truly one of the gems of the set and something I think quite a few people are going to be performing. It looks so surreal and magical. Once you create the gimmick it can easily be carried and used whenever you want. Way more practical than you would at first imagine. I was really impressed with this.

Little off topic but wanted to claify a comment Sickmagic made. At a quick look
selling 1000 sets at $300 looks great but there's so much more behind it...
Filming, editing, and mastering is neither cheap or free. The boxes and gimmicks that come with the set also are not free. You've also got putting the sets together and shipping. Much less the other sellers and distrubitors aren't paying 300 a set, they have to make a profit too. This project has been years of hard work and investment, so you might want to think the profit margin isn't all
that big. I worked on one part of it for a while and just the Fed Ex costs alone
for incoming packages and packages being shipped out was impressive.

As I got toward the end of the set the Easter Eggs were not exactly where they seem to be. Anyone else notice this?

I just got my set about 10 minutes ago. It is set number 108 and I ordered on Dec. 11th so I have a feeling Paul had a lot of sets to sign. Very well packed and the box looks great. Mine happened to be locked which gave me a moment of panic but then I reminded myself that I am a great puzzle solver and have a number of Japaneses puzzle boxes that are really hard to open (taking like 30 moves to open) and that this one can not be all that hard to open. And it is not. Took me all of 5 seconds. But that said it is a clever little box and way over the top of what anyone would expect a magic DVD set to come in. Hats off to Paul and everyone involved in this project for setting their standards for the packaging of this set so high and meeting them.

Now I only hope the content is as good, but I have a little feeling that it will be. I will watch DVD 1 tonight if I get a chance.

Good luck to everyone still waiting for your sets. May you all have yours soon.

I have now watched the 1st disc and the 9th disc and have my TA pen set up along with the "extra" gimmicks for each of the TA pen effects.

On Disc 1:

I really enjoyed Twilight Angels. Its very simple and it seems like it is pretty personal with the spectator. Just a thought on this....instead of using your lighter, perhaps use the spectators pocket mirror from her purse. I also liked New Leaf and the Big Tiny. Again, both of these are pretty simple and really don't require a lot of work to pull off the effect. I like that New Leaf happens completely in the spectators hands and makes it that much stronger. Also for Big Tiny, it is virtually self working. There is one small simple "move" that must be performed but it is simple and easy and then the effect basically takes care of itself.

On Disc 9:
I really like all of the effects since they are all completely new. Short Term Memory and Bulldog Nightshades are probably my favorites though. To be honest, the TA pen isn't really what I thought it was going to be. I thought it would be more for single bill switches (think some sort of TT bill change with one bill and without the TT) but I think I like this better. I was initially kind of disappointed because of this but the more I play with it, the better I like it. This pen is definitely ingenious and my hat goes off to Paul and gang for creating this. It is really easy to set up and is always ready to go. Definitely watch the video though before you decide to fiddle around with it.

Overall:
The PHootNotes and easter eggs are a lot of fun and give some priceless information. Just out of curiousity....I heard that one of the cookies features Daniel Garcia. Has anyone found this one yet? Im kind of curious what hes up to. The box is absolutely amazing and the puzzle feature is just enough deterrant to keep nosy siblings, roommates and visitors out of your secrets. This is definitely well worth the sticker price. I would not hesitate to pay even double for this set. Absolutely astonishing!!

Just out of curiosity did you get your set today Jay? I know you are on the east coast and I expect mine to come the same day as yours so I was just wondering.

What kind of props are included with the DVD apart from the TA pen?
Are they mostly customised gaff cards??

One last question, is the gaff card for the marketed Twilight Angel included??

Heya Whiskey, Nothing yet today. My mail comes anywhere between 1pn and 5pm on weekdays though, so there's still time
I expect it to be tomorrow though as I chose priority mail and that's usually a 3 day journey from California. Since Saturday shipping didn't happen, that means mine went out Monday... so Thursday is the more likely target for receiving.

With that said, I have (very rarely) received priority mail from Ca. within 2 days, so there is always the chance.

I'm slobbering on the window in any event
My mail lady thinks I have a crush on her...
My wife thinks I have a crush on Paul...
My cat thinks I am becoming one of them...

this is not good no matter how you look at it! (you should see my mail lady)

Just wondering about the ta pen, will it work with bills slightly larger in width and length of a normal size U$ bill??

I am on the East coast and my set came this morning (I had it delivered to my work). I used Priority mail (2-3day) and I ordered on Dec. 11th. I would say there is a very good chance that Jay and Whiskey will get their sets today.

The TA Pen looks like it will work with bill slightly bigger than US bills but I am not 100% since I have not watched DVD 9 and I do not want to play with the pen until I know how to do so without breaking it.

And by the way, from the data points I have (and they are only up until Dec. 11) it looks like by the end of Dec. at least 500 sets would have been sold from projecting out the curve. This may be way off since factors like increased word of mouth may have shot sales way up or they could have dropped way down after a big initial rush. And of course this only includes signed sets from TA.

WWWWWHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO I never expected to have it this quick or have it signed!!! Ordered 1/30 set number 260! See you all in a few months!!!

Sean

Nice Sean! That's impressive! Congrats!!

Congratz Sean! And thanks for the data point. Totally changes my graph. Looks like there may be less than 400 total signed sets. That makes each of our sets that much more special.

Anyone in the UK recieved theirs yet ?

OMG I got it!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ordered 12/31
#248
Priority Mail

Hopefully mine comes in. Order # 1365 with priority mail. Sigh come on mailman get here!

Got mine today. Ordered 12/17 Number 205.

I ordered before all of you and haven't gotten anything. With the same shipping. What is wrong with this picture? I still have no shipping confirmation. I'm really worried!

I haven't received mine either, and I live in California. Hmmmm....well, if it doesn't come by tomorrow, I will start worrying