Review of Project by Shiro Ishida

“Project” teaches a collection of seven close-up effects by Shiro Ishida. According to the ad copy, Ishida is a well known magician in Japan and has acted as a magic adviser for many Asian stars and TV shows. Project offers an eclectic collection based on some great ideas.

If you perform the vanishing liquid effect and rely on the usual method that you purchase from your magic dealer, you may like The Juice. This effect offers a second part, a sequel if you will, to the traditional vanishing liquid trick. After the liquid vanishes in the usual manner from one cup, the liquid somehow travels to a second one that appeared to be empty in the beginning. While the cups can’t be examined by spectators as was done in the DVD’s presentation/demo, this is a good effect that’s based on a clever gimmick.

Ghost Rising offers a rising card trick where a card rises from a deck that’s placed into a card box, or the card can mysteriously rise from a deck that’s held in your hand. The method, which doesn’t rely on string or threads, also allows you to raise several cards in succession. I’ve seen this method used before in a product called “Toasted” (you can read my review here) but Ishida’s method gives you total control over the motion. (In “Toasted,” the card could only quickly pop out (just as in a toaster). I prefer Ishida’s method.

Visual Link offers a variation on linking cards. You bring out two “rings” made of playing cards - playing cards with the centers cut out - and then proceed to link and unlink them. You’ll have to make a gimmick from playing cards that involves household items and shouldn’t take more than 15-minutes. The method is clever and the effect looks great. According to Ishida, you can have spectators cut the “rings” out themselves, but I’m not sure that this is very practical. In this case, you’ll have make sure that they can cut straight and be confident in your ability to switch-in your pre-made gimmick.

Jump offers a signed coin to impossible place. A spectator signs a coin and you make it vanish from your hands. The coin appears inside a clear coin holder that you’re wearing around your neck. This one looked great and it fooled me. For this, you’ll need a dealer item that costs about fifty bucks but may be able to make your own from items that you purchase from a hardware store.

Angry Triumph combines three card effects: a sandwich, triumph and deck color change. In the first phase you find a card using a sandwich with jokers. In the second, you mix the deck face up and face down and find the selected card reversed in the “righted” deck (all of the other, remaining cards are facing in the same direction). In the third phase, the color of the entire deck, with the exception of the chosen card, changes colors. The color change at the end is a stunner but the triumph portion is rather weak as you can’t clearly show the mixed cards.

Magicians will love Worm Hole Again a stunningly open version of card warp. This one relies on a gimmick that is completely different from what’s employed in the Roy Walton classic. Dragon's thru offers a penetration where two folded bills pass through each other. It’s quite visual. You will have to make a gimmick for this one out of bills and there’s cutting involved.

Shiro's ACAAN offers an intriguing effect. This one is impromptu and may be performed with a borrowed and shuffled deck. A card is selected by a spectator and then a number is chosen in a manner that appears to be fair. The cards are counted from the deck and the selected card is found at that number. I have to admit that I’m more intrigued with this effect from a magician’s standpoint than of an entertainer. That said, I’m thinking of working this one up to have at a moment’s notice.

Overall, I found a decent collection of close-up effects on Shiro Ishida’s “Project” DVD. It can be worth the look.