Reviews

Morgan Strebler "Liquid Metal"

This is a review for Morgan Strebler’s DVD, “Liquid Metal.” Liquid Metal is a single routine, using 2 forks in 6 phases. There are also 3 bonus bends. In this review, I will break down each phase, and give my opinion on each aspect of the DVD.

Effect: 9.9/10 (10 being strongest)

Preset: In the preset, Morgan teaches how to prepare the fork. Only one of the forks needs to be prepared, so if you want, you can still do the routine impromptu (If you consider carrying a fork around in your pants impromptu).

Phase 1: In phase 1, a fork is selected, and the other put aside. The fork is gently twisted between two fingers. The fork is shown to have a 180 degree twist!

The magician now rubs the end of the fork gently against a spectator’s finger, and the fork is seen to bend and melt. The spectator now blows on the fork, and the fork bends again, and then breaks off.

Phase 2: Taking the other fork, the magician shakes it back and forth, and has the spectator blow on it again. One of the tines is seen to bend as the spectator blows on it.

Phase 3: In this phase, the fork appears to melt, as it visually bends 90 degrees.

Phase 4: The magician straightens out the fork, and places it in the spectator’s hand. The magician gently twists the fork’s head, and the spectator can actually feel the fork twist and bend. Opening their hand, the fork is seen to be twisted in a corkscrew fashion.

Phase 5: Shaking the fork again, the spectator is asked to say stop. When the magician stops, all four tines are seen to have bent in a flower shape.

Phase 6: In the last phase, the fork’s handle is seen to visually bend and twist through the magician’s fingers. The fork is then handed out as a souvenir.

Difficulty: 9.8 (10 being most difficult)

The routine isn’t hard sleight-wise. There are no difficult moves, but you need to have incredible finger strength, especially for the corkscrew bend. As you practice, the bends will become easier, but for some, this routine will seem nearly impossible.

Setup/Reset: 7/10 (10 being impromptu, 1 being most setup)

Rating the setup is difficult, because to do the first phase, the routine takes a bit of setup. However, if you decide to only do the last 5 phases, all you need is one fork per performance, and nothing to setup or reset.

Clean Factor: 10/10 (10 being completely clean)

At the end of the routine, there is nothing to ditch or hide. You can even give the fork out as a souvenir.

Gimmick: 9/10 (10 being unnoticeable or no gimmick, 1 being hard not to catch the gimmick)

There is a gimmick in the first phase, but if you do the routine correctly, there is nothing to worry about, as the gimmick is destroyed in the routine. If however, you don’ t do the first phase, there is no gimmick at all.

Overall: 9/10 (10 being the best)

This routine is very strong. However, it takes a lot of practice. Normally, I wouldn’t include have the difficulty affect score. However, this routine is so difficult (Finger strength-wise), that some people may not be able to do it at all. Personally, even though I’m not very strong, I’ve had no trouble with the bends (I have a lot of hobbies that rely on finger strength), except for the cork-screw, which I have found very difficult (I’m sure it will become easier as I practice, though). Most of the strength relies not on arm strength, but on finger strength, which may cause the routine to become difficult, even for those who are very strong.

One more thing to keep in mind is that this routine is not for everyone, and if serious/mentalist effects aren’t for you, then you may find this DVD a disappointment.

Overall, I’ve found this DVD to be very enjoyable, and while it only has one routine, it’s a 6-phase routine, and a very good one at that.

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Shane Wiker