I was a bit gutted by these DVDs, I was hoping for some amazing coin magic and a new style I hadn't seen before. Unfortunately most of these effects are pretty weak and not very well structured. For most of the tricks the audience didn't know whether to applaud or not (because they weren't sure if what they had seen was worthy of applause).

Dr Sawa's sleight of hand isn't the best I've seen, infact in some places his hand movements were just plain awkward. I was put off even further by the fact that Max Maven is bought in to help with the explanations. I got all three of these DVDs and I can't really even recommend one. Sorry.

First, let me start by saying that there is no question that Dr. Sawa is "The Man" when it comes to coins. He is a clever thinker and an excellent technician; not the most "entertaining" personality, but I think most of that was related to the language barrier. I believe his from Japan, and his English was rough. In fact, Max Maven translated/clarified much of the explanations. Putting that aside, the question is how valuable is this DVD to you, is it not?

If you're a card guy wanting to move to coins, skip it. It's too advanced. I believe it was Malini who was famous for setting up crazy effects and scenarios and "traps" so to speak that would allow him to do a miracle should the opportunity arise. However, most times, he wasn't able to take advantage of his elaborate set up.

Nevertheless, when he did get that "lucky break" he had a freakin' miracle on his hands, and I'm talking water-to-wine, loaves-and-fishes kind of miracle. What made his miracles such miracles is that people would never "suspect, let alone detect" (thank you Erdnase) that he anyone who actually go through the incredibly crazy set up that he did just to do a card trick.

That's sort of how I see Dr. Sawa. The effects are amazing, but the methods are even more amazing. Without tipping too much, there is an effect where you basically have to have, sitting in your lap something like 30 or 40 coins. The effect is pure magic and beautiful to watch, but it certainly isn't the most practical thing.

If you're wanting to learn coin basics, there are so many other resources out there. However, if you are a veteran or even mid-level coin worker, then you may want to consider this if for no other reason than the thinking and method behind some of these effects.

There are plenty of out of the proverbial box thinking effects on this DVD that you may get a kick out of. The odds are you'll never use 90% of what's in this DVD. Yet it's entertaining and educational nonetheless. There were a few effects that were sort so-so, but there were also some amazing things on the DVD. All in all, unless you're a die-hard coin person, I'd say skip it.