Everything That Glitters is Not Gold (Thank you Dan Seals) . . . sometimes it's silver, as in a whole bunch of silver coins that appear out of nowhere. Let's quickly peek at the production quality . . . It's pretty decent. There is some older footage and newer footage of Baxt performing the routine. It's good enough quality that you can see the routine as a whole. The "studio" footage was decent; plenty clear for the purposes of the DVD. Every angle and detail of the performance and the effect and the method is covered in great depth.

If you can't learn the effect after watching this DVD, your best bet is bow to all other real magicians while repeatedly shouting the words, "We're Not Worthy." (Thank you Wayne and Garth). I don't expect you to have mastered the moves, after watching the DVD, but you should have an absolutely clear vision of what the method is and how to accomplish it. All that's left at this point is practice.

As for the routine itself, let's examine three parts: The effect, the presentation and the method. The effect: simple. Tons of coins magically appear from nowhere and are thrown into a bucket. At the end the bucket can be seen full of coins. Obviously, this is the classic Miser's Dream effect. For the most part, there really isn't anything new in the way of effect. However, what else is there . . . the coins appear. That's the effect. So we're good there.

Next, presentation. I like this overall. Sure there are a few jokes that I think are stupid and they pretty much fell flat in every performance footage shot, so I'm a bit surprised that he keeps them in the act. Of course, that's always a personality thing. I like that he uses a kid and has fun with him and for the most part doesn't embarrass the kid, but kind of makes him the star. I'm not a huge fan of his "delivery" style. It's, frankly, a bit annoying. However, as you know, that doesn't usually impact the ratings I give. You need to put your personality into it, not his. There are a lot of funny moments for sure, and after watching him do it, you'll realize the potential of the routine.

Finally, method. The method is as simple as it gets. Even if you're not a coin worker, you can do this. The props are simple. A coin purse full of whatever coins you're going to produce, a jumbo coin and a bucket. Nothing is gimmicked. If you've got the coin purse full of coins, you can borrow a bucket or a metal waste basket and do the routine (leaving out the jumbo coin if you don't happen to have it on you). You could literally stop at a bank on the way to a gig and grab a bunch of half dollars or quarters. Not that I think you should do that, but it's a nice feature to know about. The timing, choreography and misdirection are very well built into the method and presentation.

Really, the only "issue" I had with this product is that the whole time, Baxt spoke to the camera as if we the viewing audience were little kids. I don't know if he was trying to be funny or if he's just so used to working for kids or what, but it did feel a bit patronizing at times.

Finally, credits and history were well covered. If you've ever wanted to learn a simple method - all the details, ins and outs - for performing the Miser's Dream this is a great place to start. And the price of $25 bucks for this much detail on a routine that's been performed hundreds - nay . . . thousands - of times is a no brainer.

Final Verdict:
4.5 Stars with a Stone Status of Gem.