First Thoughts:

When I first saw this trick on the Dive of Death special, I fell in love with it! I couldn't imagine bieng able to perform that. I thought for sure it was a camera trick or a stooge!

But it wasn't! There is an ACTUAL method! And it ISN'T A PIPE DREAM! THIS IS MUCHO EASY!

I couldn't believe how clever this is! This and Elixer of Life are my definite TWO PURCHASES OF THE YEAR.

The Package:

It comes in a small, half sized DVD case that looks SLEEK. Really nice looking.

On the front, it has a cool picture of a match and the words,

Light brings out,
The truth,
Which only the darkness,
Can hide.

Which is really cool. On the inside, it has a nice looking heavy duty envelope with the gimmicks in it. These are REALLY cool, but when I first looked at them I had that moment of, "What the... Oh! That's old... Wait... Does that actually work?".

The DVD:

The DVD looks nice, and when you first pop it in, it starts playing really eerie music, and showing some REALLY nice city that you only dream of bieng able to go to and see the nightlife.

It has three options, Play, Chapters, and Extras. A LOT of time was put into making this look as good as it does. Trust me, this entire DVD looks REALLY good. Like, better than Theory11. Seriously.

What is taught:

This DVD teaches you how to make the gimmick (of course using what came) which only takes about 20 seconds. This is taught by Dan White and is easy to understand.

It also teaches forces, vanishes of the card (not the standard rubaway either). The vanish that Dan Hauss teaches actually is something I haven't seen before and DEFINITLY soemthing I am going to start to use.

Quality:

The quality of performances, music, editing, everything is probbably the BEST I have seen aside from Control by Theory11.

The only thing is that the parts that Dan Hauss teaches he is like screaming a little and the camera is much lower quality than all the rest of the DVD.

Dan White teaches in the same place that eXile (available from T11) was filmed, and outside. What is wierd is that even the outside clip by Dan White was SUPER high quality.

Performances:

This DVD actually comes with several performances by Dan Hauss. All are for different audiences and it really shows the diversity of this effect.

This also really helps in confidence. It is very possible and really easy. Dan Hauss shows that.

Teaching:

The teaching is FANTASTIC. You have NO problem in the world of how to do a thing. They both go over it a TON. It is awesome.

Signed Version:

At first it was a bit of a letdown, because they only taught the unsigned version (I.E. the one David Blaine DIDN'T perform).

But then they went into a discussion about the signed version. And it is pretty tough! A lot of gimmicks will be waisted in trying until you get it right, and it will definitly take some serious practice. Not easy.

But that is DEFINITLY ok. Still doable and not a pipe dream. I only use the unsigned version because it gets the same reactions and people don't know that the signature is missing if you don't do it with the signature in the first place.

Floating Match:

If I used the gimmick he uses here, I would use this effect. Looks REALLY magical and ghostly, and is darn clever. Wouldn't be certain it hasn't been done before though.

It is done with a commercially available prop and many of you I am sure have used and own this prop.

Self-Lighting Match Pack:

You have to REALLY be careful when doing this. This is the work of science, and so it is really kinda dangerous. It does hit HARD when done right, and you do get to see a full performance of this effect.

I might have to try this, but it uses some stuff that you have to get off the internet, so it will be a while. Good news is that it is inexpensive and you only use a little each time.

Music:

The music of this DVD is amazing, and I REALLY like it. I had it in my head ALL day after watching this.

Only con is that it is one of those musics that makes you really sad when the DVD ends... Like you wanna watch it again.

Gimmicks:

The gimmicks are nicely made. Very cool idea and VERY clever thinking. They are available from penguin as a refill to this trick (thank god) and you can get 14 more for only $9.30 cents. You can buy them at http://www.penguinmagic.com/specialorde ... p?ID=11104 .

Trust me though, don't only buy the refill like some spoiled little kid. You will be TOTALLY lost and you won't get the AWESOME DVD.

Price:

This is $30.99 at Penguin. DEFINITLY worth the money.

Man though, I would have paid SO MUCH more for this. I LOVE this.

Practicality and Reset:

A lot of people ask about this. This is VERY practical and I swear you will use this. Just two little things to carry around in your pocket and you are set to go.

And the reset is instant, provided you don't give it away as a suivineer.

Final Thoughts:

If you don't buy this by now, you are a total idiot. Seriously. I don't know what I would do without this!

This is super cool, clever, and most importantly practical and possible.

Please buy it now.

Please.

I personally didn't love this effect. I think the introductory effect was better than the actual effect. The reason why is that you have to use a standard white, plain match case. I think it's a whole lot of trouble just to find one of them in the first place. The second problem I found is the price. Being the "rich" person that I am, It is pretty expensive for what you get. If I were to set a price for this effect, I would nock at least $5-$10 off. The effect is okay for a street magician and something that I would like to try on stage. I oppologize that I can't give a completely informed reveiw not performing this on stage yet. As I said previously, the introductory effect can be altered for so many different effects and is something I carry around the set up to frequently.

Man it's hot in here! Lit... I believe we saw this very effect on the last Blaine special. Let me start with my one gripe about this effect, then I'll go on with the review. At the beginning of the DVD, one of the Dans states that this is an original effect. He is mistaken. Jay Sankey came up with this premise years ago. In the credits, they mention other magicians who have "independently played around with this concept" but no mention of Sankey.

That aside, this is a killer product and definitely worth consideration. I really dig the artistic style in which it was shot. A lot of black and white footage which gave it a bit of a cool feel. During the explanation portions of the DVD, there would be flashbacks to the performance section so that you could see the move, you just learned, in action. The performances, of course, were out on the streets.

For $35.00, you get, with the DVD, 14 specially printed cards and a handful of effects taught to you. Refills of 14 per pack are only $10 bucks. One of my concerns was that I wasn't sure I'd be able to find matchbooks that matched the plain white faux matchbook that comes with the DVD. Right about when I started having that concern, one of the Dans stepped into save the day with exactly how to get matching matches... whew!

There are a couple of different match tricks taught on the DVD. For me, the self lighting matchbooks (an addition by Andrew Girard) is entirely worth the price. You literally can hand an open match book to a spectator to hold. As they hold it, the whole freakin' thing bursts into flames! It's just too darn cool.

Several different ideas regarding the handling and performance are offered. Overall, this DVD is pretty typical, production-quality wise, of most of the DVDs by young guys: Super hip and fresh editing and effects, but relatively poor quality filming in the living-room-apartment-doubling-as-a-production-studio.

I definitely recommend this, if for nothing else, the self lighting match book. 1/2 point lost for not crediting one of the pioneers of this effect... Jay Sankey. GEM!

While the DVD is overpriced, there is a lot of helpful info on it to help build a complete routine. Having said that, the card gimmicks are well made and look eactly like a matchbox. Its a unique trick ideal for walkaround magic. I use it every once in a while and it is very powerful

Got this today and I wanted to warn you right away. What an over-priced disappointment. Don't buy this, it will be a bonus item in a few weeks, if it is still around. This looks like two frustrated film-makers trying to make magic videos for a bad trick. The video on the site should give you an indication of what is ahead. You need to find an item on your own that will be very hard to find and no one is going to believe the "gimmicked" product and even if they did, you don't get enough supplies to do the trick for more than a couple of weeks. You'll see how bad the "trick" is at the beginning of the instructions on the DVD. There are many good items here at Penguin, this is not one of them. Someone will post after me praising this trick, that's how it works. Trust me on this one, I have been buying from Penguin for five years. Save your money. Buyer beware.

I performed at a street festival last night and of all the tricks I performed, Lit by far had the biggest reaction. Easy to perform and hits hard. You do have to purchase an additional item which may have to be ordered online, but it is very inexpensive and well worth it.

I'm so used to transpo effects I often forget how much they can affect the laymen; the first time I did this trick my spectator physically trembled! Having said that, I highly recommend this one. It's especially awesome to have two different points of view on treatment and performance techniques for a remarkable effect that requires only basic sleights... gimmicks are very well made (bikes and not mandolins thank goodness), DVD instructions are spelled out step-by-step for all of the routines, but to have the secret to the self-lighting matchbook in the bonus section was icing on the cake! I am very happy with this purchase, a top-notch pocket trick for sure!

If you are like me, you have performed dozens (if not hundreds) I card effects. There are plenty bad, some good, fewer still are good. Let's be honest, most are forgettable.

Lit is a little mini-performance piece that will evoke a true sense of wonder. It is the unexpected that transports us for a moment. For those who would an extra bit of moveless impact, I would suggest combining this with a card idea described in "Seven" by Patrik Kuffs. The technique described will provide all the work in one swoop. It forces the card and makes it disappear.

Forget twisting and counting cards and use "Lit" to transcend the medium. It is a wonderful close up effect.

AWESOME,THIS IS ONE OF MY TOP FIVE STREET TRICK,I HAVE RECIVE INCREDIBLE REACTION,THE FIRST PART OF THE MAIN ROUTINE IS "SO AND SO" BUT WHEN THE SPECTATOR REALIZE THAN THE MATCHES CHANGE TO HIS SELECTED CARD IN HIS OWN HANDS THEY ARE REALLY REALLY REALLY SURPRISED..........FANTASTIC TRICK

GOOD EFFECT, VERY STRONG LOVE IT