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[Planet_JASE]

I spent a good few hours watching Penn & Teller's Magic and Mystery Tour ,and some bullshit episodes, i just can't get enough of penn and teller, even heard tellers voice, he's got a deep voice for a little guy!

Bullshit had some awesome moments.

 

[Kentpaul]

the quick change acts seem better fitted for shows like Britons got talent.

didn't enjoy watching that weird couple one bit, wasted a good 15 minutes of the show.

 

[Raiden]

Oh man i never cared of magic tricks and stuff, but im watching this show now on Youtube, so much fun!

 

[Messypandas]

For those that liked Shawn Farquhar's sealed deck trick, he also does this very good card routine:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZgVwJek-fXY

Magic, just pure magic. I know some of the moves he pulled, but seeing them done so confidently and perfect is just majestic.

Has anyone seen anyone seen any of Derren Browns card stuff? He gets a rep as a psychic magician but he's a very very competent card magician. Had a DVD of his a while back and some of his moves were mind blowing. This was before his voice broke

 

[RagnarokX]

I have a feeling Penn figured that out too. Penn says, even after they had already stated that they were fooled, he still had a good idea how they did it. It was too late at that point.

Thing I don't get is that's essentially a deck switch, isn't it? They added a 2nd sorted deck to the shuffled deck and threw the shuffled deck out in the middle of the trick. Just because the sorted deck was added to the first deck before the first deck was discarded doesn't make it not a switch, just a slightly more elaborate one. I think the judges just used an overly strict definition of a deck switch when that's essentially what happened.

 

[Risible]

lol

At 4:10 you can see him accidentally open the trapdoor on the cup with his wand.

EDIT: Or maybe he just missed, it's late

That's the joke, there's no "trapdoor." He made it look like the wand went through the cup, and then pretended to "screw" the lid back on. Funny little bit of misdirection.

 

[Risible]

Thing I don't get is that's essentially a deck switch, isn't it? They added a 2nd sorted deck to the shuffled deck and threw the shuffled deck out in the middle of the trick. Just because the sorted deck was added to the first deck before the first deck was discarded doesn't make it not a switch, just a slightly more elaborate one. I think the judges just used an overly strict definition of a deck switch when that's essentially what happened.

They were very careful to phrase it as "Ross handled the same cards he shuffled" or something like that...they used weasel words to essentially lie, IMO. It'll only backfire on them as now they are in P&T's bad graces as P&T no doubt know they are full of shit.

 

[mre]

Also, they can't lie. There's an independent verifier on the production team who knows how it is done.

They can't lie about the method they use to perform their tricks, but I'm pretty confident they flat out lied about not pulling a "fake" switch. I don't think lying about that would disqualify them because it had nothing to do with the actual method used to perform the trick, but I agree with Amusix that it left a really bad taste in my mouth with regards to their act.

The difference between Morgan and West and the duct tape guys is that Penn and Teller straight up asked Morgan and West if they did a fake switch to fool them, and they lied in response. As far as I can recall, Penn and Teller never asked the duct tape guys if they had performed a fake switch to throw them off the scent, so they never had to lie about it.

 

[funkystudent]

this thread introduced me to Piff the Magic dragon.

Thanks thread.


(also count me in as one of the many who spent hours looking up penn and teller youtube videos yesterday)

 

[joeyjoejoeshabadoo]

Nah, what they did was they ADDED cards to the top and bottom. The cards they skip because they're not very famous are the ones that actually got shuffled. They are very careful to state that the shuffled cards were in the deck.

Possible but I don't think that's how it's done. They throw away cards twice in the middle of the act. That would mean they needed to add cards to the middle as well. I think it's all in the hand gestures and posture of the guy behind Jeffery.

 

[Ashes]

I know of a very similar trick, the variation being guessing a deck of cards. They only guess about ten so it wasn't very impressive, and yes, in that version it wouldn't work without two people in the act... The assistant has to see the card.

 

[Risible]

Possible but I don't think that's how it's done. They throw away cards twice in the middle of the act. That would mean they needed to add cards to the middle as well. I think it's all in the hand gestures and posture of the guy behind Jeffery.

I don't think that's how it's done. The original deck of silhouettes is something like 30+ cards, so if they don't do any sort of deck switch then they need to have memorized 30+ unique hand gestures/body postures to instantly convey which card Ross was looking at. Sure, it's possible I suppose, but it seems highly unlikely.

 

[Raiden]

this thread introduced me to Piff the Magic dragon.

Thanks thread.


(also count me in as one of the many who spent hours looking up penn and teller youtube videos yesterday)

Just watched that! Very funny and awesome

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_Ta-kItYOQ&feature=relmfu

 

[Risible]

Possible but I don't think that's how it's done. They throw away cards twice in the middle of the act. That would mean they needed to add cards to the middle as well. I think it's all in the hand gestures and posture of the guy behind Jeffery.

I just re-watched it to be sure. When Ross goes to sit down and passes in front of Morgan, Morgan inserts Jonathan's deck of cards into a sorted deck of cards he had hidden.

They start to name cards, he discards Ross's cards, Ross names a few more, Morgan discards some of their fixed deck, and then lets Ross finish up the rest.

Then Morgan carefully says at the end of the trick "Every single card Jonathan shuffled was on Jonathan's hand in the order that he shuffled them." Technically true, but false in spirit. They did do a deck switch, it's just that they also used Jonathan's deck as well.

Look at the size of the deck Ross shuffles, and then look at the deck in his hand during the trick. MUCH bigger.

 

[big_z]

They were very careful to phrase it as "Ross handled the same cards he shuffled" or something like that...they used weasel words to essentially lie, IMO. It'll only backfire on them as now they are in P&T's bad graces as P&T no doubt know they are full of shit.

yeah they knew how they did the trick more or less(not switching the deck but adding cards) and they carefully rode the line of the rules to scam out a win. penn knew they were bending the rules when he says "well what the fuck"

imo the the tricks should be performed as normally done. adding in purposely sloppy moves to throw penn & teller off is basically cheating imo.

 

[Risible]

mo the the tricks should be performed as normally done. adding in purposely sloppy moves to throw penn & teller off is basically cheating imo.

Especially the way they did it, so lame.

The funny part is the exposure they got is all negative, because it's all "did they cheat on P&T?"

Fuck those guys.

I love when an act truly delights P&T - Piff and Gazzo were great in part because of P&T's reactions to them. Teller in particular clearly adored Piff.

 

[y2dvd]

Shawn Farquhar's music routine is still blowing my mind. I don't even...

 

[Nappuccino]

yeah they knew how they did the trick more or less(not switching the deck but adding cards) and they carefully rode the line of the rules to scam out a win. penn knew they were bending the rules when he says "well what the fuck"

imo the the tricks should be performed as normally done. adding in purposely sloppy moves to throw penn & teller off is basically cheating imo.

There's a 3rd party consultant who knows exactly how the trick is done and can step in during moments of conflict.

 

[Zeliard]

Fun concept. I've watched a bunch of these due to this thread. :>

It can get a little odd at times since Penn understandably doesn't want to fully reveal the trick, and sort of has to dance around that with some of them, but it still works well.

Loved this one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rm0C6YYbrbM&feature=related

Good god!

Smooth.

 

[brianmcdoogle]

I know people disliked the magician who was disguised the entire time, but I thought this was the worst:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJk42LuMqv8

I spotted that bizarre move the first time watching, and it seems so obvious that they put that in there just to "fool them" by thinking that's how they did it, and since they get only one guess, it was wasted. And then they have the gall to claim that they didn't do that move just to distract Penn and Teller, making them waste their only guess. Worst one by far for me.

 

[TheOMan]

I know people disliked the magician who was disguised the entire time, but I thought this was the worst:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJk42LuMqv8

I spotted that bizarre move the first time watching, and it seems so obvious that they put that in there just to "fool them" by thinking that's how they did it, and since they get only one guess, it was wasted. And then they have the gall to claim that they didn't do that move just to distract Penn and Teller, making them waste their only guess. Worst one by far for me.

Yeah - there was sort of a deck switch...my guess is that as the host stepped in front of West, he put some cards on top and on the bottom of the cards that what's his face shuffled. So "technically" every card he shuffled was in his hand...along with some others in a particular order.

 

[Rapstah]

It's absolutely ridicolous that the skinny one knows what point of the act Penn is talking about immediately. Obviously something happens there and it's designed to look like what it is not.

 

[RagnarokX]

They were very careful to phrase it as "Ross handled the same cards he shuffled" or something like that...they used weasel words to essentially lie, IMO. It'll only backfire on them as now they are in P&T's bad graces as P&T no doubt know they are full of shit.

I know they were careful to say that, but they also said there was no deck switch and I think adding new cards and discarding Ross' cards during the trick is still a deck switch. They were basically arguing semantics.

 

[brianmcdoogle]

Either way, it is so glaring that a layperson like me can see it, so the illusion is completely broken. If they switched the deck, added cards, or just telegraphed the cards to one another using hand signals, it doesn't matter. I saw and know something happened at tht moment, and the trick is ruined.

 

[Nappuccino]

It's absolutely ridicolous that the skinny one knows what point of the act Penn is talking about immediately. Obviously something happens there and it's designed to look like what it is not.

I'm sure he knows the routine so perfectly that there is only one moment that stood out to him as being "confusing." Its hard to say if its cheap or not considering their backstage consultant knew everything they were doing and let them pass through.

I'd like to think they wouldn't let someone on the show who is intentionally trying to misdirect Penn and Teller by faking a deck switch or something like that. All this really means is that the duo were doing something that Penn and Teller didn't see and both of them thought they saw what they didn't. If that makes sense.

 

[sixghost]

This show seems pretty awesome, but the overarching premise seems really unnecessary. Some of the best acts were figured out by P&T, yet some acts that were pretty stupid get to perform in Vegas because they had some convoluted method that fooled them.

Also, I know this wouldn't ever happen, but I think it would be cool if they explained how they knew the trick, it's kind of weird to just hear them say, "yeah we know how it's done", and then give no explanation. Maybe they just cut some of that stuff out in editing.

 

[Zeliard]

This show seems pretty awesome, but the overarching premise seems really unnecessary. Some of the best acts were figured out by P&T, yet some acts that were pretty stupid get to perform in Vegas because they had some convoluted method that fooled them.

Also, I know this wouldn't ever happen, but I think it would be cool if they explained how they knew the trick, it's kind of weird to just hear them say, "yeah we know how it's done", and then give no explanation. Maybe they just cut some of that stuff out in editing.

It feels like that aspect of the show wasn't thought through properly. From the ones I've seen, sometimes Penn will say virtually nothing about how the trick was done even though they know, and he'll just have Teller draw some diagram that the audience doesn't get to see that explains it. Other times Penn will be more explicit in describing how the trick was done.

I guess maybe he picks and chooses based on the rarity and uniqueness of the tricks, but it comes off as inconsistent and occasionally anti-climatic.

 

[Uncle]

I'd like to think they wouldn't let someone on the show who is intentionally trying to misdirect Penn and Teller by faking a deck switch or something like that.

The swedes did exactly that by their own admission. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sg1uKnTmhus (in the description)

 

[cartoon_soldier]

This show seems pretty awesome, but the overarching premise seems really unnecessary. Some of the best acts were figured out by P&T, yet some acts that were pretty stupid get to perform in Vegas because they had some convoluted method that fooled them.

I think a lot of that is probably down to the rules of the show. And also the difference between people who are thinking to themselves, "What all we can do to fool P&T" vs "I'll go do this awesome trick and see if I can fool P&T"

 

[faceless007]

Re: Morgan and West. It's easy to see that they added cards to the top, but that doesn't explain how at 4:15 they have Ross take off a bunch of cards and read them from there. How did they know where he would cut to?

 

[JavyOO7]

I don't care if he can't ever fool Penn & Teller, but Michael Vincent is awesome. Dude needs to come by a third time.

 

[Zeliard]

Yeah that guy is really fun to watch. Close up magic is my favorite.

 

[UrbanRats]

Isn't distraction a central point of magic tricks? So why are you guys against extra distracting movements? (serious question, i just started to follow this stuff from this topic, so i'm curious).

 

[Smiles and Cries]

I don't care if he can't ever fool Penn & Teller, but Michael Vincent is awesome. Dude needs to come by a third time.

agreed, he is... I guess he is a textbook master of classic card tricks with super good hands so P&T knows everything he does because they are so textbook but that dude is smooth

I would also like to see Piff the magic dragon return to try again just for the funny

 

[Mockingbird]

The swedes did exactly that by their own admission. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sg1uKnTmhus (in the description)

Ugh. Purposeful misdirection should be prohibited. The ones who go to Vegas should be the ones who fooled them purely with their extraordinary showing instead of this technicality bs. Penn & Teller said they wanted to be fooled, but I'm sure they don't mean in this way.

I don't care if he can't ever fool Penn & Teller, but Michael Vincent is awesome. Dude needs to come by a third time.

This. This guy was a class act. Especially his first one. Both of his tricks were way better than the Swedes.

 

[faceless007]

I agree that Morgan & West were a little too blatant about lying about it, but magic is all about fake moves and misdirection. Why should a magician be limited solely to fake moves that would fool a layperson if the goal of the trick is to fool another magician?

Ugh. Purposeful misdirection should be prohibited.

That's what magic is.

Edit: Here's a video of Teller being fooled by another magician (not from Fool Us). Warning: he speaks

 

[Nappuccino]

Isn't distraction a central point of magic tricks? So why are you guys against extra distracting movements? (serious question, i just started to follow this stuff from this topic, so i'm curious).

I'm not really sure... for some reason, what the swedes didn't doesn't rub me as wrong as the time traveling guys.

 

[John Dunbar]

Isn't distraction a central point of magic tricks? So why are you guys against extra distracting movements? (serious question, i just started to follow this stuff from this topic, so i'm curious).

if the distraction is something that makes you think that's where they did the trick, even if nothing happened, it makes the trick less enjoyable because you think it was so obvious. distraction is fine, but creating a moment that could be a very plausible explanation for the trick is just lame.

 

[Munin]

I'm not really sure... for some reason, what the swedes didn't doesn't rub me as wrong as the time traveling guys.

I agree. Those guys are asshats but I don't see any issues with the Swedes.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

some of the best acts I've seen on this show just admit that they did not fool Penn and Teller

but some of the worst tricks got to go to Vegas, so I want to ask if they lied does this not really harm their careers?

 

[Mockingbird]

I agree that Morgan & West were a little too blatant about lying about it, but magic is all about fake moves and misdirection. Why should a magician be limited solely to fake moves that would fool a layperson if the goal of the trick is to fool another magician?


That's what magic is.

Edit: Here's a video of Teller being fooled by another magician (not from Fool Us). Warning: he speaks

You know what I mean -- this is purposely trying to misdirect only Penn & Teller. No adding false bs moves that have the sole purpose of trying to misdirect Penn & Teller because they get only one guess. a good act that truly mystifies them, like the one where the guy predicts where someone will sit and what they'll eat is what really deserves the win and trip to vegas.

 

[Risible]

I know they were careful to say that, but they also said there was no deck switch and I think adding new cards and discarding Ross' cards during the trick is still a deck switch. They were basically arguing semantics.

My point exactly. They were full of shit and they knew it.

 

[John Dunbar]

some of the best acts I've seen on this show just admit that they did not fool Penn and Teller

but some of the worst tricks got to go to Vegas, so I want to ask if they lied does this not really harm their careers?

they can't lie. they have to tell a third judge how they do the trick, and if they lie he stops them.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

That's what magic is.

Edit: Here's a video of Teller being fooled by another magician (not from Fool Us). Warning: he speaks

I like hearing Teller speak, that dude is so sharp. Yet I also love that he does not speak in his act he is like a master mime his facial expression and body language say everything

 

[faceless007]

You know what I mean -- this is purposely trying to misdirect only Penn & Teller. No adding false bs moves that have the sole purpose of trying to misdirect Penn & Teller because they get only one guess. a good act that truly mystifies them, like the one where the guy predicts where someone will sit and what they'll eat is what really deserves the win and trip to vegas.

So even though the point of the show is to fool P&T, you don't think they should be allowed to do moves designed to fool P&T?

You don't fool a fooler by doing the same things you do with a normal person. M&W were asshats by lying about it and making it so clumsy, but I don't see anything inherently wrong with trying to misdirect P&T by using their knowledge against them. Again, that's what magic is.

 

[picklecannon]

some of the best acts I've seen on this show just admit that they did not fool Penn and Teller

but some of the worst tricks got to go to Vegas, so I want to ask if they lied does this not really harm their careers?

Some of the acts land much better deals though. Piff the magic dragon is working on getting his own sitcom and the people from the french box act landed a ton of shows in vegas.

 

[Smiles and Cries]

they can't lie. they have to tell a third judge how they do the trick, and if they lie he stops them.

Like most people here I am still kinda pissed at the Time Traveller guys... I guess because I found the trick really boring for the most part.

another thing about the show it seems when Penn and Teller likes an act they try very hard not to give away how they did the trick but other times they simply humiliate the ones they did not like.

Some of them really did not think things through and came on the show doing tricks that Penn and Teller have done before while others use simple of the shelf things like that dude with the trick dice and Penn walked up after took the box with the dice in it and started rolling 6s to show how the guy did the trick lol

the show has had some really top quality talent but others really are insulting with the level of tricks they came on with

the 15 year old with the twisting arm thing was horrid his 6 cards trick was cute though

Some of the acts land much better deals though. Piff the magic dragon is working on getting his own sitcom and the people from the french box act landed a ton of shows in vegas.

Cool, I knew that show would open doors for some of the best acts well deserved

 

[Nappuccino]

Some of them really did not think things through and came on the show doing tricks that Penn and Teller have done before while others use simple of the shelf things like that dude with the trick dice and Penn walked up after took the box with the dice in it and started rolling 6s to show how the guy did the trick lol

Its been awhile since I saw that one, but even if the dice was weighted there is no guarantee it wouldn't land on that number. I think its more likely that the dice he put in there didn't have the number of the bag with his phone in it at all...

 

[Smiles and Cries]

Its been awhile since I saw that one, but even if the dice was weighted there is no guarantee it wouldn't land on that number. I think its more likely that the dice he put in there didn't have the number of the bag with his phone in it at all...

I will have to watch again I think Penn said something about checking the numbers too but then he went on to roll 6s

 

[kottila]

Some of the acts land much better deals though. Piff the magic dragon is working on getting his own sitcom and the people from the french box act landed a ton of shows in vegas.

I'd guess that the good guys (and P&T) know they won't fool them. They just see it as a way to get great publicity and P&T sees it as a way to showcase some great magic. That canadian world champions probably got much bigger stuff lined up than opening for P&T anyway (even though he actually fooled them)