Moments Notice 2 (PDF) by Cameron Francis $12.00
21 pages, 12 photos
Available at: http://www.cameron-francis.com
This is Mr. Franciss follow up to his popular Moments Notice PDF. The title reflects the fact that all of the effects are impromptu. Once youve mastered this material, if you find yourself sitting on a curb at 3:00 AM and a naked, furry, homeless woman thrusts a crusty deck in your face and screams to be entertained, youll be prepared.
The author does a good job of teaching the material. He dutifully cites the inspirational sources of his effects. The accompanying low resolution photos are a bit fuzzy, but they are helpful nonetheless.
Inter-Changeling: The performer removes the four Jacks from the deck and claims that they are gifted impressionists. He places three of the Jacks into three empty pockets. The last Jack is held by the participant. A card, say the Eight of Hearts, is selected and lost in the deck. The remaining Jack is waved over the deck and it visually transforms into the selection. The performer removes the three cards from his pockets revealing that the Jacks have transformed into mates of the Eight.
I adore everything about this effect except the ending. I suspect that the author also feels ambivalent about it, given that he excludes it from his description of the effect.
The effect should end with the Jacks transforming into the Eights. Instead, Mr. Francis continues by transforming the Eights back into Jacks. His method for transforming the Eights into Jacks is simply awful. You can only display the face of one, thats one Jack after the purported transformation! End the effect after the first transposition and youve got a winner.
Hof the Case: Two cards are selected and lost in the deck. The performer removes the four Aces and asks one of the participants to name her favorite Ace. She names the Ace of Diamonds. The Aces are placed inside the card case.
The participant shakes the card case over the deck. When the deck is spread, the Ace of Diamonds is seen reversed in the middle. The participant opens the card case and removes the cards. Sandwiched between the three Aces are the two selections.
This is a well constructed effect with a strong, unexpected climax. I really like it.
P' Wave: The performer removes five cards from the deck and places them face-down on the table, stating that they represent a good Poker hand. The performer asks a participant to state which card she thinks is the lowest card of the hand. She selects a card which is shown to be the Four of Diamonds. The other four cards are turned face-up. They are the four Aces.
Prior to displaying that the four other cards are Aces, the performer must return the packet to the top of the deck, and then remove it. This is a flagrantly unnatural, method-driven handling. Superior methods exist. I dont like it.
Re-Twixt & Between: The performer removes the two black Jacks from the deck and tables them. A card is selected and lost in the deck. The two Jacks are cut face-up into the deck. The participant cuts off a random number of cards, say nine, and the cards are returned to the deck. The performer and participant cut the deck and it is spread, revealing that nine cards are trapped between the two Jacks. The participant confirms that her selection is not one of those cards. The performer squares the deck and spreads it. The selected card is now sandwiched by the Jacks.
The business of causing a known quantity of cards to be sandwiched between the Jacks doesnt appeal to me. Id feel differently if the quantity was unknown. The methodology is also a bit too procedurally laden for my tastes. I dont like it.
Collision: A card, say the Eight of Diamonds, is selected and lost in the deck. The performer fails to find it. The participant cuts the deck and finds the Five of Diamonds and the Three of Diamonds. The performer throws the two cards at each other. They collide and visually fuse into the Eight of Diamonds.
While the literature contains many versions of this plot, the highly visual nature of Mr. Franciss handling sets this effect apart from the herd. I like it.
Twisted Limo Service Revisited: The performer removes the four Kings from the deck and tables them. A card is selected and placed inside the card case. A second card is selected and lost in the deck. The performer picks up the King packet and causes the Kings to turn face-down, one at a time. The Kings instantly transpose with the selection inside the card case. Finally, the Kings are tapped against the deck and they sandwich the second selection.
A whole lot of magic occurs in this well constructed, surprising effect. I really like it.
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