Many magicians have created variations of "Blizzard." Along with Kenton Knepper’s “Blank,” Oz Pearlman’s “Colossal Blizzard” and Michael Ammar and Jordan Cotler’s “Point Blank,” there’s a newcomer, Aaron DeLong’s “Twisted Blizzard,” which shares the concept as well as the name. Which is best for a particular situation? I’ll try and provide an answer here.
In classic “Blizzard,” ala Dean Dill, the magician brings out a deck and a spectator names a playing card (it’s a completely free choice). After revealing the spectator’s named card, the rest of the deck is shown to be blank. The effect is a stunner.
If I’m wearing a jacket and have the table space, I’ll always go with Dean Dill’s original handling for “Blizzard.” However, when performing in my restaurants, I rarely wear jackets and often don’t have table space to work with. As a result, I prefer Knepper’s excellent “Blank,” which works right out of the card box and is completely self-contained.
While you can’t show the deck in the beginning, at the end, you’re completely clean. You only need room to deal cards into a single stack and there are no angle problems. I can even reset the trick as a put it away. As a result, “Blank” is the version that I perform most and usually have ready at my strolling gigs.
The Ammar and Cotler “Point Blank” relies on a gimmicked deck. Admittedly, when I first reviewed the trick, I was a tad harsh on it. Since I was accustomed to performing Dill-style “Blizzard” and “Blank,” I thought that the gimmicked cards could be a problem at the end when spectators may want to examine them. However, the routine features two strong revelations and much of the effect can be done in the hands away from grabby spectators. While “Point Blank” won’t replace “Blank” for me, it’s a great effect.
When it comes to Oz Pearlman’s “Colossal Blizzard” like “Blank,” I find this version more practical for my strolling situations than Dean Dill’s “Blizzard.” Overall, if you have table surfaces to work on, I would go with "Blank," but without them, Colossal Blizzard may be more practical.
The new kid on the block, Aaron DeLong’s “Twisted Blizzard,” also relies on a gimmicked deck. The gimmicking is different from that in “Point Blank” and it’s definitely meant to be performed on a table on a close-up mat. At the trick’s culmination, the heavily gimmicked cards are laying on the table and spectators could conceivably make a grab for them. For this reason, between “Point Blank” and “Twisted Blizzard,” I would definitely choose “Point Blank.”
I discovered “Blank” shortly after discovering “Blizzard,” and “Blank” is the effect that works best in most of my strolling and close-up situations. As a result, it’s the version of “Blizzard” that I perform most. But when I have the opportunity, it’s fun to fry some minds with Dean Dill’s masterpiece.
