Price$35.00
Media TypeDVD
CategoryClose Up
Date AddedApr 12, 2014
Holy COW
Tsao, Chef
Magic Soul
(Based on 3 reviews)
Ponta The Smith
"HOLY COW!! Freaking' Crazy Man!"
Hondo
"Visually dazzling yet practical. Loyal fans and players of coin tricks, DO NOT MISS OUT ON THIS MASTERPIECE!"
NIE TE
Basic
About Arming
3 Tricks
Holy Cow Change
Holy Cow Blur
Holy Cow Illustration
6 Routines
Chef's Coin 2.0
Invisible Move
Invisible Move 2.0
Invisible Hole
Silver Centipede
C.O.W Spellbound
Bonus
Burst Bomb (Easter Egg)
Reviews
(Top ▲)
First, let me say that I don’t consider myself a coin expert. I have a few routines that I do, a couple routines with a borrowed quarter or a few borrowed quarters, and a few more formal routines like a matrix that is not far from Al Schneiders original matrix and a coins across / through table routine that includes much of what is on the Victorian Coins DVD by Kainoa Harbottle. So, I am looking at this review from the perspective of someone who is interested in coin routines, but not an expert.
At first glance, this seems like a collection of very advanced coin moves. However, I think you will find that some of the moves on this DVD are harder than others, while other moves are within the grasp of beginner to intermediate skill level.
I would suggest that if you are interested in coin magic, look for one move on the DVD that you could incorporate into a routine and focus on that move. Or, you could start with a simple single coin routine from the DVD. There are a couple examples of some really fun stuff that is very doable. I would not suggest you try to master everything on the DVD. For example, I have a single borrowed coin routine that I enjoy. It uses simple moves like false transfer, Goshman pinch, pointer finger curl, and thumb palm. I found a couple moves on this DVD that enhanced the routine.
In this review, I will cover the moves in the DVD and give a review for each:
ARMING: A nice one hand appearing and disappearing move. The DVD starts with this move. I would say that your success with this move is not so much about the difficulty level as it is about the humidity of your hands and arms. If your hands and arms are generally dry, this is going to be a hard move. If your hands and arms are moist, this move is very doable. My hands and arms run dry. With a bit of lotion, I found this move quite easy after just a minute or two of practice.
HOLY COW CHANGE: This is a beautiful combination of the arming technique to vanish a coin with one hand and a very simply production of a different coin with the other hand. Viraully, it is stunning. It looks like one coin just turns into another coin. This move is an extension of Arming. If you can master arming, then this move is easy.
HOLY COW BLUR: A beautiful single coin move. You toss the coin from one hand down to the other and close the other hand. The hand is opened and the coin has vanished. This beautiful move is a bit nacky. This is one that you will have to experiment with different ways of holding and handling the move. In the explanation, he teaches each move separately so you practice each portion of the series of moves. With a bit of practice, the various moves come together.
HOLY COW ILLUSION: This is a series of moves to make a coin appear, vanish, appear, and vanish. Interestingly, a portion of this sequence is something that I had been doing in an impromptu sort of way. This DVD helped me with a method that makes a move I was already doing to make it easier and more magical.
CHEF’S COIN 2.0: This is a beautiful coin routine. OK, this one is not easy. I would suggest that rather than trying to do the entire routine, either incorporate some of the moves in a routine you already do, or simply create a simple routine with one or two of the moves to start. What I really like about this is all of these moves are for a single coin. For me, I think these are awesome for an impromptu borrowed coin routine.
INVISIBLE MOVE: These are some beautiful 3 fly moves. His 3 fly uses four coins. In my own three fly routine, with just three borrowed quarters, I modeled my 3 fly after Greg Wilson’s 3 fly from one of his DVDs. There are some similar moves here, and I learned some nice moves to enhance my own routine.
INVISIBLE MOVE 2.0: This is another version of 3 fly. I discovered from this routine that some coins work better for some moves than others. He uses dollar coins and I use quarters. One of the moves just doesn’t work with quarters. This is another example of applying some of the material on this DVD to your own routines and ignoring other material.
INVISIBLE HOLE: A nice routine where one of three coins in your hand appears to go through the bottom of a small glass into the glass. This routine involves moves that in my experience will only work with certain size coins. He uses dollar coins.
SILVER CENTIPEDE: This is a nice routine with a copper silver coin. Again, these include moves that you will need to see how they work with different coin sizes. This routine also uses some moves that will require more advanced practice and skill.
COW SPELLBOUND: This is an awesome two coin routine. When you see the performance, it looks daunting. When you see the explanation, you will see that most of the moves are not so complicated. Some practice of each individual move and I think this is within the grasp of intermediate skill level.
Learning coin routines is much like concept of how do you eat a giant watermelon? One bite at a time. Don’t attempt to learn an entire routine. Learn a single move, then a second move, then a third, and before you know it, you have a routine.
The camera work and instructions are simply tremendous! While it is all taught to music, each move is shown close up, sometimes in slow motion or with stops at key points and key elements highlighted, as well as demonstrating problems and what not to do.
The ad copy merely has quotes and lists the contents. So, given the only write up is people’s opinion, there isn’t anything misleading on the ad copy, but the ad copy isn’t really that descriptive. I would say that by way of ad copy, you should know that these are coin moves that are going to take some practice. Every single one of the moves and routines uses un-gimmicked coins and pure sleight of hand.
VERDICT
This is a really good coin DVD for anyone interested in serious un-gimmicked coin work. While everything on this DVD is going to take practice, I would think that a beginner or intermediate coin worker could pick up something useful here.
At first glance, this seems like a collection of very advanced coin moves. However, I think you will find that some of the moves on this DVD are harder than others, while other moves are within the grasp of beginner to intermediate skill level.
I would suggest that if you are interested in coin magic, look for one move on the DVD that you could incorporate into a routine and focus on that move. Or, you could start with a simple single coin routine from the DVD. There are a couple examples of some really fun stuff that is very doable. I would not suggest you try to master everything on the DVD. For example, I have a single borrowed coin routine that I enjoy. It uses simple moves like false transfer, Goshman pinch, pointer finger curl, and thumb palm. I found a couple moves on this DVD that enhanced the routine.
In this review, I will cover the moves in the DVD and give a review for each:
ARMING: A nice one hand appearing and disappearing move. The DVD starts with this move. I would say that your success with this move is not so much about the difficulty level as it is about the humidity of your hands and arms. If your hands and arms are generally dry, this is going to be a hard move. If your hands and arms are moist, this move is very doable. My hands and arms run dry. With a bit of lotion, I found this move quite easy after just a minute or two of practice.
HOLY COW CHANGE: This is a beautiful combination of the arming technique to vanish a coin with one hand and a very simply production of a different coin with the other hand. Viraully, it is stunning. It looks like one coin just turns into another coin. This move is an extension of Arming. If you can master arming, then this move is easy.
HOLY COW BLUR: A beautiful single coin move. You toss the coin from one hand down to the other and close the other hand. The hand is opened and the coin has vanished. This beautiful move is a bit nacky. This is one that you will have to experiment with different ways of holding and handling the move. In the explanation, he teaches each move separately so you practice each portion of the series of moves. With a bit of practice, the various moves come together.
HOLY COW ILLUSION: This is a series of moves to make a coin appear, vanish, appear, and vanish. Interestingly, a portion of this sequence is something that I had been doing in an impromptu sort of way. This DVD helped me with a method that makes a move I was already doing to make it easier and more magical.
CHEF’S COIN 2.0: This is a beautiful coin routine. OK, this one is not easy. I would suggest that rather than trying to do the entire routine, either incorporate some of the moves in a routine you already do, or simply create a simple routine with one or two of the moves to start. What I really like about this is all of these moves are for a single coin. For me, I think these are awesome for an impromptu borrowed coin routine.
INVISIBLE MOVE: These are some beautiful 3 fly moves. His 3 fly uses four coins. In my own three fly routine, with just three borrowed quarters, I modeled my 3 fly after Greg Wilson’s 3 fly from one of his DVDs. There are some similar moves here, and I learned some nice moves to enhance my own routine.
INVISIBLE MOVE 2.0: This is another version of 3 fly. I discovered from this routine that some coins work better for some moves than others. He uses dollar coins and I use quarters. One of the moves just doesn’t work with quarters. This is another example of applying some of the material on this DVD to your own routines and ignoring other material.
INVISIBLE HOLE: A nice routine where one of three coins in your hand appears to go through the bottom of a small glass into the glass. This routine involves moves that in my experience will only work with certain size coins. He uses dollar coins.
SILVER CENTIPEDE: This is a nice routine with a copper silver coin. Again, these include moves that you will need to see how they work with different coin sizes. This routine also uses some moves that will require more advanced practice and skill.
COW SPELLBOUND: This is an awesome two coin routine. When you see the performance, it looks daunting. When you see the explanation, you will see that most of the moves are not so complicated. Some practice of each individual move and I think this is within the grasp of intermediate skill level.
Learning coin routines is much like concept of how do you eat a giant watermelon? One bite at a time. Don’t attempt to learn an entire routine. Learn a single move, then a second move, then a third, and before you know it, you have a routine.
The camera work and instructions are simply tremendous! While it is all taught to music, each move is shown close up, sometimes in slow motion or with stops at key points and key elements highlighted, as well as demonstrating problems and what not to do.
The ad copy merely has quotes and lists the contents. So, given the only write up is people’s opinion, there isn’t anything misleading on the ad copy, but the ad copy isn’t really that descriptive. I would say that by way of ad copy, you should know that these are coin moves that are going to take some practice. Every single one of the moves and routines uses un-gimmicked coins and pure sleight of hand.
VERDICT
This is a really good coin DVD for anyone interested in serious un-gimmicked coin work. While everything on this DVD is going to take practice, I would think that a beginner or intermediate coin worker could pick up something useful here.
(Top ▲)
Random I-Tunes Song of The Moment: Back to Avalon by Heart
Holy COW Review
One DVD, six routines, 3 "moves", $35 bucks and one Holy COW Review. Is it gem or is it rubble? Stay tuned to find out.
Holy COW Review: Effect
You get several effects that are all within the "standard plot" category — namely, wild coin (i.e., spellbound), coins across/3 fly, one coin flurry, vanishes/reproductions and coins through glass.
Holy COW Review: Method
Though the plots are familiar, many of the methods are not. The methods range from kind of difficult to really difficult. Also, you'll need some seriously tacky skin. I played around with one of the main moves taught on the DVD, and I couldn't even begin to do it. However, a little Octopalm and 5 minutes later, I was able to do the move with ease.
The effects use no gimmicks, just pure sleight of hand. This stuff will take some serious practice. It can, however, be done totally naked you freak. However, there are some pretty serious angles for almost all of the material. The audience cannot be to your sides. They must be in front of you. It's definitely more for a small relatively close up audience that is at a very specifically controlled point of view.
I think that all of the material is doable — I'll never put in the work to find out for sure — but you're gonna have to put in some serious time to master most of this. There is one super, super, super clever move that is relatively easy to do, and it's a great utility move for showing and hiding a coin. However, it depends largely on the size of the coin and your hand. My hand is actually too big to pull off this effect. They don't make coins big enough for my hand to be able to do this. Watch the review video, above, and I'll show you what I mean.
Are the methods legit? Yes. Are they doable? Yes. But think of it this way. Watch Jeff McBride's coin and/or card manipulation act and ask yourself the same questions. Are his (Jeff's) methods legit? Yes. Are they doable? Yes. People can do them, but not everyone can. The only way to know for sure is to put in the work and find out. Last question, are they practical? Well, is Jeff's stuff practical (assuming you've mastered the technique)? They are for him. He does them all the time. I'd say the same is true for Tsao's stuff. It's practical (assuming you've mastered the technique) if you have the right venue.
Some of the stuff can be mastered relatively quickly as you'll see in the review video. However, some of it will take some serious dedication. I think the coins in glass can be mastered relatively quickly, and the basic vanish move that makes a lot of the effects work is pretty easy. However, combining the vanish move with the other stuff is pretty hard core, but doable.
Holy COW Review: Ad Copy Integrity
The ad trailer is legitimate, believe it or not with one possible exception. There is one move where he snaps his fingers and the coin just instantly vanishes from his open palm. I know the method, and it's extremely hard, takes incredible coordination and speed. No matter how many times I attempted it, it never looked as clear as when he does it. However, in trailer when he performs it, it very much looks like a frame or two or a few were cut out of the video, but I can't prove it, and everything else is legitimate, so I'm going to give the benefit of the doubt here.
As for the written ad copy, it's legitimate, however, keep in mind a couple of things about the three "praises" received in the ad copy. Two of them (Hondo and Nie Te) are from people involved in the production of the DVD. The other one was from Ponta The Smith . . . another crazy good unbelievable coin manipulator. So . . . perspective.
The ad copy also claims that the stuff on this DVD is easier than the stuff on his first DVD. I haven't seen the first, so I can't prove it, but I will say this, the basic technique that makes a lot of this stuff work is actually pretty easy (if you have Octopalm — or glue as suggested in the video). It's everything else that will kick your arse. The only exception to that may be the coins in glass routine as previously mentioned.
The only other thing worth mentioning is that the bonus trick is actually an Easter egg. The ad copy doesn't mention that, but the back of the DVD does. To access it, go to the last menu page. Highlight "conclusion" as if you are going to select it, but instead, click on the right arrow button as if there is an item on the menu to the right. On computers, the right arrow key will work. Then click the play button or the go button or whatever is on your remote. For computers, hit the space bar.
After doing that, the bonus item appears on the menu.
Holy COW Review: Product Quality
The DVD is relatively well produced as far as lighting and menu structure goes. It even has that oh so coveted "Paly All" button (no, I did not mistype that). The teaching was pretty good, but it's silent with subtitles. As I usually point out with this type of video, I can complain about the fact that I have to read while trying to also keep an eye on the technical stuff going on inches away, or I can be appreciative of the fact that someone who doesn't speak my language took the time to give me subtitles. Also, this one lets you turn off the subtitles and may be learn-able without them. You get the choice of English, none and what I'm guessing is Chinese and Japanese, but I can't tell because they're written in Chinese(?) and Japanese(?) characters.
Putting aside the vertical volley of your eyes' attention, they do a pretty good job of teaching the material. For most effects, they would show the front (audience) view of one piece of the effect, then cut to the over-the-shoulder view and back to the front (thank you Metallica) and to the rear and front and rear, etc. On the front shots they use color and the rear, black and white. This helps keep things clear.
The only issue I had with the DVD is a moment where they clearly cheated. There's a particular move that is done, where on the front on view, he was NOT doing that move. I'll show you this in the review video as well.
Overall, the DVD was solid . . . you may, however, want to turn down the audio. They constantly blast what can only be described as Hollywood Christmas Hero music. After a while, it just got old.
Holy COW Review: Final Thoughts
If you are a coin guy and have the time to learn this stuff (and don't mind the angles), I think you'll be happy with your purchase. Also, the basic vanish and reappearance is pretty easy to do. Plus the special move to hide a coin is also very clever and super easy . . . easy enough even for a beginner. That move is used for the coins in glass routine. So even if you never take the time to master the crazy hard stuff, you'll still, likely, have something useful . . . if you're a coin worker.
If you've been following my reviews for more than 3.14 minutes, you know two things about me. One, I don't like coin tricks and two, what kind of tricks I like is relevant to my final review rating/status.
Final Verdict:
4 Stars with a Stone Status of gem.
Available at your Favorite Magic Dealer. Dealer's see Murphy's Magic for details.
(Top ▲)
Wow...I almost do not know where to even begin with this DVD.
For those of you unfamiliar with Chef Tsao and his work, there is a DVD that he put out a little while back that could be considered the introductory DVD to the technique used in some of the routines on this disc. It was called "The Arming System". While he does explain how it works on this DVD as a recap, the technique is covered much more thoroughly on his first DVD.
If you have read any of my other reviews in the past, chances are you know that I am a coin magic specialist and a huge fan of the genre. Having said that, the material on this DVD is NOT for beginners or immediate coin workers - even the advanced class will find this challenging. Chef Tsao is a great technical performer, but in this case the definition of 'technical' changes a bit.
First, if I were to rate this DVD on the nice visuals that some of the routines have, I would give it five stars hands down however, there is more to it than that.
Also, if I were to rate this disc solely upon the clarity of the explanations, it would also get five stars. In the explanations, multiple camera angles and shots are used, as well as repeated duplication of certain moves just to show you that they can be done and done reliably. They also have a system showing two hands and how many of each coin should be in each hand throughout a particular effect - this is handy because some of the moves at first might be confusing to some people, so this is a great way to do a position check. Also if you choose to use them, there are captions available during the explanations and certain performance segments that help aid the explanations. None of the explanations are spoken - they are all visual and if you are using them, textual via captions. Everything is very clearly explained and easy to understand.
With the exception of one or two effects, all of the material is performed by Chef one-on-one with a camera rather than a live audience. That speaks to the nature of the effects on here - they are not at all practical for most real-world performance venues except where you have one or perhaps up to three people directly in front of you and that is it. Most of them are very angle-sensitive but, like I said if you are performing head on for one to three people, you will fry them!
One of my other biggest issues with some of the moves on this DVD is that they are ridiculously telegraphic - that is they almost scream out that you are doing 'something' - though an audience will not necessarily be able to tell just what that 'something' is.
As I alluded to earlier, the material on this disc is HARD, but doable. Nothing on here uses gimmicks of any kind. I am an advanced coin practitioner and I had some challenges to overcome in doing some of the moves as described. They are all possible, but one in particular will be a challenge because it depends on the physicality of your own body, and with that, some people out there may find it nigh-on impossible to do. Once you watch the DVD you will know which move/technique I am referring to.
There are some excellent moves on this DVD and some very nice moments of magic that do not have any suspicious moves attached to them - these include a great and visual color change of a coin in a three-coin fan/spread, a transposition idea, a couple of very clean Spellbound changes and some nice ideas that would add even more strength to the already powerful CoinONE routine by Homer Liwag.
The Holy Cow Change, the Holy Cow Blur and the Holy Cow Illusion all use the main technique which is taught first thing on the DVD. The Holy Cow Blur can be done without the technique and is a very nice, open vanish and reproduction of a coin. This one happens with a bit of speed.
Holy Cow Illusion is a slow-motion, open-handed production and vanish of a coin. Very nice, very clean and in this case, it uses the Holy Cow Blur for a complete vanish at the very end, but in my opinion it is anti-climactic. HC Illusion is simply beautiful.
Chef's Coin 2.0 is a very visual vanish and transposition of one coin, a sort of coin flurry. If coin flurries are your thing you will like this one, but to me there is too much back-and-forth action with the hands and arms. It is just too contrived. If you pulled a few of the sequences that Chef teaches in this one, you can put them into your own coin flurry and it will look very magical, but not all of them are suitable without cleaning them up.
Invisible Move and Invisible Move 2.0 are interpretations on the Homer Liwag CoinONE effect - an open and visual handling of coins across. Invisible Move is okay and there is a particularly nice cleanup for those of you using Deep Back Clip. Invisible Move 2.0 is better. Both versions need to be performed slowly so the audience can appreciate what happens from phase to phase. In my opinion, there are better and cleaner sleights to use in both of these versions than some of the ones that are taught. Overall, they are both very visual.
Invisible Hole is one of the best things on this DVD. This is a very nice and clean Coins Through Glass (read: drinking glass). This one did not have any discrepant moves and was very visual; it almost reminds me of the visual penetrations you get with the Charlie Justice Prohibition 2.0 if you are familiar with that. I will say for some there is one move that you may want to change, depending on your comfort and skill level and it will not change the appearance if you choose to do so.
Silver Centipede was performed for a group of three or four spectators. He moved so fast through the effect that the magic was practically lost on the group - they almost looked like they were watching a tennis match with the back-and-forth action. At a couple of points, one of them had to shout out, "Look, they changed!" Despite that, I think the idea here is very valuable and would be better suited to a transposition than a back-and-forth color change, which is how it is presented. This does have one very visual and magical color change of the last coin in a coin fan. There are some other coin effects where this method would work very well.
COW Spellbound is exactly that and while there are some very nice and clean changes, the whole thing was very rapid. This handling would also benefit from slowing it down and that would make it look less like jugglery and more like magic.
There is a hidden Easter Egg on the DVD that will lead you to one extra bonus effect. It is not really that hard to find. The bonus effect is called Burst Bomb and in my opinion it is probably the most versatile idea on here. It is presented as an effect and it is pretty much a tabled version of a rather quicker version Miser's Dream except you start with two coins instead of nothing. I immediately thought of three or four other coin effects/routines that could use this idea. One example is the "Free & Unlimited Coinage of Silver" by David Roth and even some parts of the Goshman Salt Shaker routine - you could use this to get way, WAY ahead.
Having said that, for me personally the repetitive music used throughout the DVD was annoying, so I finished watching the disc without the sound on.
The two last negatives for me was that the material on this disc falls into that unfortunate category of looking more like juggling than it does magic. That is not to say that some of the moves and sequences are not very magical looking, just that what surrounds them and looks like juggling actually takes away that feeling.
The other thing that annoyed me was the crediting: Each routine was credited to magicians W, X, Y, Z, etc. but he did not say which magician sleights/moves A, B, C, D, etc. came from. While the given credits were better than nothing, I would have like to have seen more specific credits given to those performers.
I just have to get something else off of my chest: Some of the clean-ups and the execution of certain sleights/moves were done at the incorrect moments from a technical point of view. If you have really studied the psychology of misdirection and redirection of attention, you will see what I am talking about and where it applies here. Though this is the case, Chef Tsao makes it work - it would just bother the crap out of me if I did it that way because of the way I work.
For all of its downsides in the technical aspects, this DVD has excellent production quality. The sound was a bit loud, but in the few performances where he actually speaks the music was not overpowering at all. The video and audio were both clear and crisp and the ad copy is accurate - as well it should be, considering that it is not very descriptive at all.
If you have seen and practiced moves from CoinONE by Homer Liwag, SICK by Ponta the Smith and Monster by Mott Sun, you will be familiar with or will recognize many of the moves used on here. Also, if you are a fan of Dr. Sawa or Michael Vincent, you will recognize some of their work here as well.
If you watch the trailer for this DVD, you will see what is presented here. If you think you are up for the challenge and have the ability to swap certain sleights and moves for others to help clean up some of the ones given, I think you will get something out of this DVD. Even if you do not like all of the routines as a whole, many of them have some very clean and very useful moves/sleights that can be used with other effects and routines.
3.5 stars.
For those of you unfamiliar with Chef Tsao and his work, there is a DVD that he put out a little while back that could be considered the introductory DVD to the technique used in some of the routines on this disc. It was called "The Arming System". While he does explain how it works on this DVD as a recap, the technique is covered much more thoroughly on his first DVD.
If you have read any of my other reviews in the past, chances are you know that I am a coin magic specialist and a huge fan of the genre. Having said that, the material on this DVD is NOT for beginners or immediate coin workers - even the advanced class will find this challenging. Chef Tsao is a great technical performer, but in this case the definition of 'technical' changes a bit.
First, if I were to rate this DVD on the nice visuals that some of the routines have, I would give it five stars hands down however, there is more to it than that.
Also, if I were to rate this disc solely upon the clarity of the explanations, it would also get five stars. In the explanations, multiple camera angles and shots are used, as well as repeated duplication of certain moves just to show you that they can be done and done reliably. They also have a system showing two hands and how many of each coin should be in each hand throughout a particular effect - this is handy because some of the moves at first might be confusing to some people, so this is a great way to do a position check. Also if you choose to use them, there are captions available during the explanations and certain performance segments that help aid the explanations. None of the explanations are spoken - they are all visual and if you are using them, textual via captions. Everything is very clearly explained and easy to understand.
With the exception of one or two effects, all of the material is performed by Chef one-on-one with a camera rather than a live audience. That speaks to the nature of the effects on here - they are not at all practical for most real-world performance venues except where you have one or perhaps up to three people directly in front of you and that is it. Most of them are very angle-sensitive but, like I said if you are performing head on for one to three people, you will fry them!
One of my other biggest issues with some of the moves on this DVD is that they are ridiculously telegraphic - that is they almost scream out that you are doing 'something' - though an audience will not necessarily be able to tell just what that 'something' is.
As I alluded to earlier, the material on this disc is HARD, but doable. Nothing on here uses gimmicks of any kind. I am an advanced coin practitioner and I had some challenges to overcome in doing some of the moves as described. They are all possible, but one in particular will be a challenge because it depends on the physicality of your own body, and with that, some people out there may find it nigh-on impossible to do. Once you watch the DVD you will know which move/technique I am referring to.
There are some excellent moves on this DVD and some very nice moments of magic that do not have any suspicious moves attached to them - these include a great and visual color change of a coin in a three-coin fan/spread, a transposition idea, a couple of very clean Spellbound changes and some nice ideas that would add even more strength to the already powerful CoinONE routine by Homer Liwag.
The Holy Cow Change, the Holy Cow Blur and the Holy Cow Illusion all use the main technique which is taught first thing on the DVD. The Holy Cow Blur can be done without the technique and is a very nice, open vanish and reproduction of a coin. This one happens with a bit of speed.
Holy Cow Illusion is a slow-motion, open-handed production and vanish of a coin. Very nice, very clean and in this case, it uses the Holy Cow Blur for a complete vanish at the very end, but in my opinion it is anti-climactic. HC Illusion is simply beautiful.
Chef's Coin 2.0 is a very visual vanish and transposition of one coin, a sort of coin flurry. If coin flurries are your thing you will like this one, but to me there is too much back-and-forth action with the hands and arms. It is just too contrived. If you pulled a few of the sequences that Chef teaches in this one, you can put them into your own coin flurry and it will look very magical, but not all of them are suitable without cleaning them up.
Invisible Move and Invisible Move 2.0 are interpretations on the Homer Liwag CoinONE effect - an open and visual handling of coins across. Invisible Move is okay and there is a particularly nice cleanup for those of you using Deep Back Clip. Invisible Move 2.0 is better. Both versions need to be performed slowly so the audience can appreciate what happens from phase to phase. In my opinion, there are better and cleaner sleights to use in both of these versions than some of the ones that are taught. Overall, they are both very visual.
Invisible Hole is one of the best things on this DVD. This is a very nice and clean Coins Through Glass (read: drinking glass). This one did not have any discrepant moves and was very visual; it almost reminds me of the visual penetrations you get with the Charlie Justice Prohibition 2.0 if you are familiar with that. I will say for some there is one move that you may want to change, depending on your comfort and skill level and it will not change the appearance if you choose to do so.
Silver Centipede was performed for a group of three or four spectators. He moved so fast through the effect that the magic was practically lost on the group - they almost looked like they were watching a tennis match with the back-and-forth action. At a couple of points, one of them had to shout out, "Look, they changed!" Despite that, I think the idea here is very valuable and would be better suited to a transposition than a back-and-forth color change, which is how it is presented. This does have one very visual and magical color change of the last coin in a coin fan. There are some other coin effects where this method would work very well.
COW Spellbound is exactly that and while there are some very nice and clean changes, the whole thing was very rapid. This handling would also benefit from slowing it down and that would make it look less like jugglery and more like magic.
There is a hidden Easter Egg on the DVD that will lead you to one extra bonus effect. It is not really that hard to find. The bonus effect is called Burst Bomb and in my opinion it is probably the most versatile idea on here. It is presented as an effect and it is pretty much a tabled version of a rather quicker version Miser's Dream except you start with two coins instead of nothing. I immediately thought of three or four other coin effects/routines that could use this idea. One example is the "Free & Unlimited Coinage of Silver" by David Roth and even some parts of the Goshman Salt Shaker routine - you could use this to get way, WAY ahead.
Having said that, for me personally the repetitive music used throughout the DVD was annoying, so I finished watching the disc without the sound on.
The two last negatives for me was that the material on this disc falls into that unfortunate category of looking more like juggling than it does magic. That is not to say that some of the moves and sequences are not very magical looking, just that what surrounds them and looks like juggling actually takes away that feeling.
The other thing that annoyed me was the crediting: Each routine was credited to magicians W, X, Y, Z, etc. but he did not say which magician sleights/moves A, B, C, D, etc. came from. While the given credits were better than nothing, I would have like to have seen more specific credits given to those performers.
I just have to get something else off of my chest: Some of the clean-ups and the execution of certain sleights/moves were done at the incorrect moments from a technical point of view. If you have really studied the psychology of misdirection and redirection of attention, you will see what I am talking about and where it applies here. Though this is the case, Chef Tsao makes it work - it would just bother the crap out of me if I did it that way because of the way I work.
For all of its downsides in the technical aspects, this DVD has excellent production quality. The sound was a bit loud, but in the few performances where he actually speaks the music was not overpowering at all. The video and audio were both clear and crisp and the ad copy is accurate - as well it should be, considering that it is not very descriptive at all.
If you have seen and practiced moves from CoinONE by Homer Liwag, SICK by Ponta the Smith and Monster by Mott Sun, you will be familiar with or will recognize many of the moves used on here. Also, if you are a fan of Dr. Sawa or Michael Vincent, you will recognize some of their work here as well.
If you watch the trailer for this DVD, you will see what is presented here. If you think you are up for the challenge and have the ability to swap certain sleights and moves for others to help clean up some of the ones given, I think you will get something out of this DVD. Even if you do not like all of the routines as a whole, many of them have some very clean and very useful moves/sleights that can be used with other effects and routines.
3.5 stars.