Losing Control

Asher, Lee

(Based on 2 reviews)
If you're looking for a nifty substitute for the pass, Lee's got a good one for you. As Lee says: "This uber-clever maneuver gives you the ability to have a card selected, plainly and cleanly placed back into the middle of the deck and yet have the card secretly remain on the top of the pack.

The Losing Control technique does not rely on packets transposing under the cover of heavy misdirection or sweeping hand gestures. The method is effective, bold and economical. Therefore, if you're someone who wants to master a slick and efficient card control, without spending a lifetime pursuing it - the Losing Control is for you.

It's time for you to learn this stealthy piece of sleight of hand.

This manuscript is filled with twenty (20) color photos as well as a special card that will offer you direct access to five (5) short accompanying instructional videos provided to help you to learn this technique with ease."

Reviews

Joe Diamond

Official Reviewer

Sep 19, 2011

I had the chance to go to Card Magic Heaven recently. I attended a lecture and workshop by Lee Asher. Lee only lectures once or twice a year, and when I heard he was coming to Chicago, I instantly planned on attending. I am SO glad I did.

While at the lecture, Lee taught his ‘Losing Control.’ I learned this control at the lecture, and Lee was kind enough to go over it with me several times at the private workshop. I was so impressed with the move, that I bought this booklet. I was so impressed with this booklet that I decided to write this review. I hope that after reading this review, more people will buy it and use the move.

The move itself allows you to control a selection to the top of the deck, in an extremely clean manner. It’s a brilliant move that is simple, clean, and effective. How effective? When I executed the move for my girlfriend (who can spot a ‘pass’ from a mile away) she was so convinced that her card was in the middle, that when I showed it on top a second later, she grabbed the deck thinking I was using a duplicate card.

The move is fantastic. The 16-page booklet that teaches the move is also fantastic. Lee said he worked on it for six months. Think about that for a moment: Six months spent on 16 pages. The hard work shows. This has more care and effort put into it than most books and DVDs on the market currently. The photos are in full color, and the whole thing is printed on high quality glossy paper.

The booklet is extremely well written. It’s as clear as if Lee was sitting in the room right next to you. Trust me, I know. You will be able to pick up the move rather quickly, and be adding it into your card work before you know it. There are also some wonderful variations that are just as good as the original move, and each has it’s own unique advantages. There are also some invaluable tips for practicing the move and using it in performance.

Along with the booklet, you receive a card with a secret email address on it. By simply sending a message to that address, you instantly gain access to five high quality videos. These videos alone won’t ‘teach’ you the move, that’s what the booklet is for. These videos are meant to accompany the text and photos so that you can see how the move is supposed to look in action.

Finally, there is the crediting. Lee goes to such lengths of crediting in this booklet, it puts the crediting in most full-length magic books to shame. He devotes an entire section to the history of the move, and a whole other list of credits for just the reverse spread.

The booklet is beautiful. The move it teaches is beautiful. Even Lee Asher himself, is beautiful, inside and out. His passion for magic and sharing information comes through in his teachings.

I whole heartedly recommend this booklet. It was the BEST fifteen dollars I’ve spent in a long time.
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Kolisar

May 31, 2011

The description is correct, the idea behind this move is extremely clever, and an excellent substitution for the pass in certain situations.

The explanations are very clear, and the booklet has excellent photos to iAd the learning process. The videos to which you gain access after the purchase, are helpful, if for no other reason than to allow you to get an idea of the rhythm with which it needs to be done, and to see for yourself how deceptive the move is, because once you read the explanation you may not believe that it will work. In fact, I would recommend that once you purchase the booklet (and if you do any card effects I certainly recommend that you do), you should go directly and watch the performance video of the move to see how good this can look when done properly.

I do have two items of caution:

1) While the method appears simple, it will require practice to make it smooth. You will be required to perform actions in ways that you may not be used to doing them.

2) This should not be over used. There is a slight chance, that if you happen to have a very observant spectator, you may be caught after multiple, sequential, uses of this move. If you do plan on using it multiple times within your act, it should be done nonchalantly.

So, in conclusion, if you do any card effects where you need to control a selection, Losing Control is worth every penny (it is perhaps under prices for the utility of the move).
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