Phenomenon - Week 4

After three mixed weeks, we're in the finals, a World's Series of sort for mentalism. And there was no clear Boston Red Sox-style standout. The show began with the promise of an unexpected twist. With the initial eliminations, two of three finalists were named: Angela Funovits and Mike Super. The third was saved for later in the show.

Funovits On First
Funovits was up first with a revelation of a name in a spirit photograph routine. The celebrity guest thought of a person in her life and her photo was taken. When the instant photo developed, the name was written behind the celebrity.

It was a mixed performance with lots of backs and forths and nothing ultimately materialized from a set of dangling stones that was prominent in the routine's early portion. I’m not sure, but I think that an initial revelation failed and caused Funovitz to work a secondary out or move to her closing phase. Judges’ comments were not positive.

Unless Funovitz has established a firm fan base out there, this performance did not appear to bring her to the top of the rankings, particularly in light of the strong routines to follow.

Super Performance
Super performed an astounding effect that involved a freely chosen color, mode of transportation and symbol, which was revealed in a written prediction. He magically produced a motorcycle that matched the freely chosen factors. Finally, a seemingly random number generated by the audience made up the characters on the motorcycle’s license plate.

It was a baffling prediction that would play well in any large scale illusion show and Super connected with the crowd. I haven't picked Super in weeks past, but he delivered tonight and seems to have quite a following. He’s definitely one to watch.

No Guns or Snakes
No Russian roulette this week. Eran Raven, the third finalist, performed a sightless navigation feat by walking through an obstacle course that was loaded with glass, razor blades, live scorpions and nails. It was an adequate choice that allowed Raven to continue his dance with danger and this time, he kept Mom away from the cameras.

The considerable downside is that lay spectators will probably feel that it takes more effort for Raven to intentionally step into a loaded box than to avoid one. The element of risk, particularly with the live scorpions, probably worked in Raven’s favor, but I think audiences are more likely to vote for Super.

Wildcard
After Raven was named as the third finalist, an unexpected wildcard situation was unveiled that gave new life to Gerry McCambridge and Guy Bavli. Both were given the opportunity to perform for a newly formed fourth slot.

With new life, Bavli took a cue from Uri Geller and performed some great spoon bending and finished the routine by involving the audience and bending the support pole of a stop sign. Geller made his mark with spoon bending and Bavli executed an impressive routine under tough conditions. Among the finalists, Bavli's routine was probably most in line with a Geller-style "Phenomenon."

Postcards From the Edge
McCambridge followed with an astounding stunt with postcards. A freely chosen postcard from a wide selection was the only one that was marked, and another celebrity drew a picture that related to the chosen postcard. The amazing kicker had freely drawn posters that were held by the audience and formed the same image as in a stadium card section.

Unfortunately for McCambridge, it wasn’t good enough to stay in the game as Angel and Geller voted for Bavli’s metal bending. Interestingly, Angel referred to Bavli’s routine as a “trick” that Geller performed.

Both Super and McCambridge ramped up their routines and seemed to save the best for last. I think it’s down to Super and Bavli. Super may win with his strong performance and established fan base and Bavli was equally strong and is most in the vein of a mentalist/phenomenon. We’ll find out next week.