Trick Review: 10 Below Zero by Andrew Normansell

I missed Andrew Normansell's name on the cover of this DVD. Had I known that this was the latest from Normansell, it would have risen to the top of my stack of DVDs to review. Based on the cover, I thought that this was some kind of close-up trick that involved ice, much like "Iced Over."

Normansell always offers solid material on his DVDs. On this one, the cold theme relates more to the set than to the tricks. But he delivers a range of commercial close-up effects, many with cards, which have lots of impact.

Tequila Sunrise is a phased color changing deck. The deck itself doesn't change at once at a single moment, but four cards that are removed from the deck change back colors, one by one, which is then followed by the rest of the deck.

Four Gone Conclusion is a card trick where a selected card vanishes from the deck and then appears face up, in the opposite direction of the other cards. After that, the remaining four of a kind that match the selected card also turn face up. It's a kicker that adds nicely to the overall impact.

Golden Triangle is an offbeat signed coin to impossible location that involves matches and a matchbox. You form a triangle with matches on the table and place a signed coin within. After resting the matchbox on top, the coin vanishes and is later found inside of the matchbox.

One of the best effects on this DVD is Funky Little Number. This two-phase effect involves a magic square that reveals a freely thought of number, which is powerful. After that, a second prediction foresees the exact amount of change that a spectator has in his or her possession. This is excellent magic that can work in walkaround as well as in stand-up. I'm working this one up for next weekend’s gigs.

Another strong effect, in King Con you find a spectator's selected card and then allow the spectator to freely shuffle the deck. After the mixing, you quickly produce the four kings.

Reverse Osmosis is a David Roth-style coin trick where three coins are seemingly extracted magically from a coin purse and appear at your fingertips. And then they travel one-by-one, back again into the purse that is resting on the table.

A great take on Darwin Ortiz's "Dream Card," Souvenir offers an antique card that is taken from a collector's frame where it’s seemingly been preserved for years. A spectator selects and signs a card. In the end, when the antique card is turned over, it's the spectator’s signed card.

While the overall effect is strong, here are a couple of observations: 1) the effect involves other cards, based on the premise that you don’t want to actually touch the antique card, which basically plays; 2) while the conclusion is strong, you can't give away the signed card at the end, you must keep it as it can't withstand examination.

Normansell covers this by saying it's his antique card and places it back into its frame, which I think that detracts from the overall effect. After all, if the spectator has signed the antique card, hasn't its value already been ruined? And hey, isn't "Souvenir" the name of the trick?

Signature Piece is Normansell's version of Doc Eason's famous "Anniversary Waltz." In Eason's effect, two people select and sign two different cards. At the end, the two signed cards merge into a single card. Normansell's excellent rendition requires no gimmicked cards and can be performed completely impromptu. One spectator signs the front of a card while the other signs the back. The card that is signed on both sides can be given away as a souvenir at the end.

Rapid Transit is Normansell's "Travellers." As in the classic effect, four signed cards quickly end up in four different jacket pockets. Normansell creates a version where there's only one palming segment and three other methods to feed the cards. It's definitely one to consider if you’re a bit hesitant to with palming.

Andrew Normansell is a worker who always offers good, commercial routines. It's quite apparent here in his "10 Below Zero."

-Wayne N. Kawamoto

MSRP: (US) $35

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