"Twister Continuum" by Stephen Tucker
Suggested Retail USD$30.00
Available from your favorite dealer
In a Blink: 8 Out of 10

"Twister Continuum", a weird little device by the genius that is Stephen Tucker, takes the "twisting" theme and turns it on its head with the most basic of sleights and some climaxes, making this one something card-workers will get a kick out of (and which'll blow away more than a few spectators), though the repetitive nature of the offered routines take a bit of the sparkle off this diamond.

The basic effect is as direct as you could ask for. It begins with the performer vertically spreading four cards in his hands, showing three face down and a single face up King (say, King of Diamonds). The cards are squared, a magical gesture made, and when the cards are spread again, that King is face down and the King of Clubs is now face up. This is repeated until all the Kings have made an appearance in the same manner. The performer lifts the cards to face, blows on them, and then shows them all to be Aces with no Kings in sight. The performer then reaches into his pocket and pulls out the four missing Kings. And at that point, everything is examinable.

That's the basic routine and it's a good one. Oh, it may not be the best piece of card magic in the world, but it's fine stuff regardless and, depending on what you do with it, it can be pretty powerful stuff.

I won't go into all the routines because they are, without exception, identical in the basic plot: you have a "twisting" sequence, then a vanish/transformation sequence, and then you pull something out of your pocket. Sure, sometimes the cards change to blanks after the "twist", or to selected cards, or end up making a royal flush, or the like, but essentially it's all the same. That was disappointing; I expected to see other things done with the this slick -- and ultimately weird -- little gimmick, but what you get is good enough to jog some creativity cells in the noggin and that's not too shabby. Still, a variance in plot would have been nice and made "Twister Continuum" see less like a one-trick pony.

Spectators won't see it as that though; they'll ultimately see a very good trick and, as takes on the classic go, this one certainly turns the "Twisting the Aces" plot upside down. The transformations (or teleportations or transpositions -- whatever you conjuror those climaxes to be) can be solid stuff. As card magic goes, this is some very good stuff and, with the right routine and presentation, will knock some spectators for a loop.

In addition to the "Twister" material, Tucker has also included two other, non-related, routines. "Missing Link" is a very sweet "link card"/"torn-and-restored" routine that has some great visuals to it and is definitely worth a look. "Snibbets Is ACAAAN" is a fairly slick piece of work (note that the extra "A" there is intentional, standing for "Any Card At Apparently Any Number") that runs a riff off the "Any Card At Any Number" plot. Both routines are interesting in several ways and might win you over if the plots are to your liking.

There are some things to be aware of before going into this one.

First up, ignore the whole "without any sleight of hand" claims in the ads. They are purely and simply marketing hype. Granted, you don't come near using anything even as remotely complicated as an Elmsley or a double lift or any other such thing. In fact, they are about as exceedingly minor as you can get and still think of them as sleights. Still, there are sleights involved; this is not completely self-working stuff here.

Second, the gimmick, while exceptionally well made, needs to be handled with care. Throwing it in a deck or in a shirt or coat pocket? That's fine. Putting it in your back pocket and plopping into a chair? Probably not a good idea. Treat it with reasonable care and it should last a good, long time. If you're hard on your props? Well, you might be replacing this one before you want to.

In the end, "Twister Continuum" is a very good, solid piece of magic. It might not make your reputation, but it will strike your spectators pretty hard. If you're into the whole "twisting" plot, this is one you don't want to pass up.

"Twister Continuum" by Stephen Tucker
In a Blink: 8 Out of 10

Practicality: 9
You'll need the gimmick, a tiny bit of pocket space, and you're pretty much good to go with this one. Set-up is a breeze, reseting is as quick as lightning and the angles are excellent. All in all, this is a very practical piece of business.

Workmanship: 9
The gimmick is very well made but should be handled with care; breaking it is definitely an option if you treat it as invincible. Exercise a bit of caution and it should last a good long time.

Documentation: 10
The documentation is on a BBM-produced DVD, which means it's all beautifully shot and presented and the duo of Tucker and Owen Packard do an excellent job of explaining all the workings and nuances.

Effect: 7
There're a few things you can do with this gimmick, so it's all really in what you come up with. All told, though, the magic is solid and -- while probably not as spectacular as the ads make it sound -- you'll definitely blow some folks away with this one.

Presentation: 9
Again, it's in what you do with it, but Tucker's gimmick does allow some very clean appearances -- and ending with everything examinable gives this one a lot of weight.

Shane

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