The Hawk 2.0
Kolle, Alexander
Hugh Phoric, Inc.
Imagine you're in a movie theater munching pop corn and raisinets...and the guy in the movie performs an utterly impossible magic effect...one of those "written for the movies" moments that you know could never exist in the real world.
Introducing Hawk 2.0
The Real Deal
Watch the movie
Yes, it's all true!
This can be the finale of your normal ambitious card routine, or a stand alone big-build-up show stopper.
Anyone signs both sides of any card (from a normal deck) You insert the signed card into the center of the deck...which you place on the floor (or hold in one hand.) Everyone stares at the top of the deck on the floor. The suspense builds...then in full view with no cover...and without anyone touching the deck...the signed card miraculously appears on top! You immediately turn the card over to show the other signature, then toss out the card to the astonished crowd.
Let's be clear here. Nothing is touching the deck when the effect happens. The deck is sitting by itself on the floor...surrounded by space. A few seconds go by ...and then the signed card literally poofs into existence on top of the deck...it visibly appears out of nowhere, just like an impossible fantasy effect in the movies!
You can fly your Hawk even higher by placing a borrowed coin (can be signed) on top of the deck. Under these test conditions the signed card still twinkles into view on top of the deck...and is still under the coin! The coin never ever moves. And again this can happen without you ever touching the deck. Only one coin is used and can be immediately returned to its owner.
And there's yet another Hawk 2.0 upgrade: the PH inspired Lucky card gimmick. This bonus gimmick lets you start and finish clean with zero sleight of hand.
- Use a normal deck
- Perform with deck on the floor or in your hand
- Includes Alex's 2.0 coin convincer - the Stealth Hawk
- Resets from zero to five seconds depending on the routine
- Two different custom-made gimmicks
- Gimmicks can be used hundreds of times when handled with care
- Includes enough extra goodies to make at least 12 more gimmicks.
Alexander Kolle went beyond all reason and jam packed the DVD with everything you'll ever want to know about flying your ambitious card through the roof!
Reviews
(Top ▲)
-You have no control over WHEN the card appears on top if the deck is set on the floor.
-You have to pick the deck and card up from the floor before both are examined.
-You need different gimmicks to do the different variations.
While all these issues are covered on the DVD, I’m not sure this goes beyond just being a cool gimmick to fool fellow magicians. There are some interesting ideas, and I’m sure many people will get use out of this effect. They even provide you with extra materials so that you can make more gimmicks once you wear out the ones you are provided with.
The DVD is well shot, and the format allows to learn the material pretty easily. My biggest problem with this product is the price. While you do get a lot of information, and plenty of gimmicks, I’m not sure the gimmicks are worth the forty dollar asking price. I’ve seen similar gimmicks for only ten or even five dollars, and they even included how to make spares.
While I did not find this to be something I’d ever perform, it’s a fair product and those interested in it will have fun making the gimmicks and doing the effect for their friends.
(Top ▲)
Let's take a look at three things:
- The DVD
- The Gimmicks
- The Ad Copy
The DVD
This DVD is about 872 hours long . . . It's full of tons of information. It's well produced; the effects are well taught; the handling is very clear and the instructions for repairing or creating a new gimmick are very clear and easy to follow. The menu is easy to navigate and read . . . so production quality, teaching, etc.: all top notch . . . 5 stars.
The Gimmicks
The gimmick is very well made, and I imagine had to be hand made which means that thousands of these things were hand crafted for this project. My gimmicks were excellent and worked perfectly. It took me a little playing around to get familiar with their functionality and timing, but 10 to 15 minutes of fiddling and I was there.
They're very durable and will likely last (as the ad copy claims) over 100 performances. You receive two gimmicks and the stuff to make about a dozen more if you wanted to. The two gimmicks you recieve allow you to do two different effects. There's the standard Hawk and the "Lucky Card" version. The standard version is angly, and requires a small amount of "clean up" at a point where the pressure is somewhat "on." This method, I think, is almost not doable. It certainly cannot be done close up. It's very angly.
However, the "Lucky Card" version is killer. Super clean, and no pressure on the clean up; plus it has a good presentational hook. This is by far the best method. Plus, it's totally angle proof and the deck is instantly examinable right after the effect happens. It's very practical and very doable.
Ad Copy
The ad copy claims and video demo are pretty accurate. The only sort-of exception to that is that the one version (non lucky card) is a little angly, and during the two times the show the vulnerable moment, they obscured or blurred the footage a little bit. I think had they not done that you would likely have seen the gimmick, so points lost for that.
I should be very clear: when you see that card appear on top of the deck, that is exactly what it looks like in real life. It just "appears" there. It's pretty amazing. The problem that after the card appears, some clean up needs to happen, and before you clean up, you're vulnerable and in a very angle sensitive setting. That part was very much obscured in the trailer . . . that's a big deal to me. It's very misleading. In low lighting situations, the angle sensitivity is nowhere near as much of a problem, but I just felt like the trailer left out some critical information causing it to be misleading.
However, that's the method I would not be using anyway. I'd much rather use the lucky card version. That's the version they should have put in the trailer. It's a much more pure effect. There's nothing to hide; it's totally angle-proof and totally clean.
I've seen a couple of reviews that said it was too much work and effort to get the gimmick working and the extra prep needed, etc. I honestly have no idea what they're referring to. There is no extra effort needed to get the gimmick to work. It comes 100% assembled and fully functioning. You just have to do one thing which takes about all of 10 seconds (literally) to do, and when you see what that one thing is, you'll realize why you have to do it. It's not the kind of thing that could be done ahead of time. The gimmicks are both very easy to use, handle and manage, so I'm just not sure what the other reviews were referring to in that regard.
Final Thoughts
When you consider that you're getting tons of instructions, two very well made gimmicks along with the stuff to make more all for $40 bucks, that's a pretty solid price.
Final Verdict:
3.5 Stars with a Stone Status of Gem.
(Top ▲)
(Top ▲)
Unfortunately, this is also one of those effects that leave out a few rather vital caveats that change this from an "anytime/anywhere" trick to one for a specific time and place.
First, the gimmick. It's not indestructible, but it appears rather sturdy (after you finish building it). Yes, it's one of those tricks where you get some parts and are shown how to finish the gimmick up and prepare the deck you supply for the effect. While I don't mind this on tricks where I could build my own gimmick later if the supplied one breaks, I don't think most people could create this gimmick from scratch.
The setup is another issue. You won't do this one impromptu or in a quiet room. You'll need a least ambient noise to keep the gimmick's sound from registering with the spectator. Also, you'll need to be the one grabbing the deck from the ground. You can hand the spectator the card that appears at the top (they can even have signed it), but the gimmick needs to be ditched before handing the deck out for examination.
Does that mean you should avoid this effect? Well, the payoff for it is a very visual card change that looks like real magic and can be done even in a street magic environment. You just have to know you probably won't be doing this at the office for a friend (a small crowd that's talking, sure).