SleightfulSleightly Unhinged's Review - 25/08/2025
👋 Ahoi, fellow conjurers and card-wielding tricksters!
Let’s dive into this week’s magical mishmash—where the tricks are slick, the reviews are snappy, and the mentalism advice is as sharp as a magician’s thumbnail.
TL;DR
Ten videos reviewed, from no-setup card miracles to award-winning sharky antics. Highlights include a self-working trick that’ll fool your nan, a packet trick with three climaxes (because one’s too polite), and a brutal takedown of lazy mentalism. Plus: card cheats, color-changing aces, and a gadget that’ll make you feel like MacGyver.
Videos Reviewed
🎩 No Setup Magic Trick Tutorial by oscar
A self-working card trick that requires zero prep, zero sleight, and zero chance of your audience catching on. Borrowed deck? Sorted. Video call? Sorted. A hangover? Also sorted. Just shuffle and bamboozle.
The Unhinged Take: Blimey, this is the magician’s equivalent of a ready meal—no cooking, all flavor. Perfect for when you’ve promised to “do that card thing” at the pub but forgot to practice. The method’s so clean, you’ll feel guilty… until you see their faces.
Details here → No Setup Magic Trick Tutorial
🎩 Spin Doctor by John Bannon - Magic Review by ChampionMagic
A three-phase packet trick that’s like a magical trilogy—each act bigger than the last. Pre-arranged cards, maximum impact, and resets faster than you can say “Abracadabra Logistics.”
The Unhinged Take: Three phases? That’s not a trick, that’s a box set. John Bannon’s Spin Doctor sounds like the kind of routine that’ll make your audience clap twice—once for the climax, once for the encore.
Details here → Spin Doctor by John Bannon - Magic Review
🎩 The Famous Five Collection by Steve Gore | Review Show Special by magic-tv
Craig Petty gushes over five of Steve Gore’s hits, including a card transpo that’s “rapid-fire” and a coin trick that’s charming (a word we don’t use lightly). Practical, performable, and built for real humans—not just YouTube commenters.
The Unhinged Take: If magic were a Spice Girls album, this’d be “Wannabe”—but make it five wanna-be miracles. Craig’s enthusiasm is contagious, though. I’m half-convinced to sell a kidney for this collection.
Details here → The Famous Five Collection by Steve Gore | Review Show Special
🎩 Award Winning magic! | Get Sharky by Christoph Borer | full performance by MurphysMagicSupplies
A spectator-handled card trick used on TV. The deck’s tossed around like a hot potato, yet the magic? Impossible. No suspicious hands, no fumbles—just pure, hands-off wizardry.
The Unhinged Take: If magic’s a sport, this is the Olympic decathlon. Letting the audience handle the deck is like handing a toddler a lit match—unless you’ve got this trick. Then it’s just showmanship with a side of cheek.
Details here → Award Winning magic! | Get Sharky by Christoph Borer | full performance
🎩 Tool by David Stone - Magic Review by ChampionMagic
A tiny magnetic gizmo that vanishes coins, rings, or your dignity after three gin-and-tonics. Durable, discreet, and the closest thing magicians have to a Swiss Army knife (if Swiss Army knives made stuff disappear).
The Unhinged Take: A tool for your tool? Bold move. But this gadget’s less “cheating” and more “creative problem-solving”—like using a calculator in a maths exam, but everyone’s too dazzled to care.
Details here → Tool by David Stone - Magic Review
🎩 How Card Cheats Deal To The Aces - Revealed #magic #tricks #tutorial by AMillionCardTricks
A beginner-friendly breakdown of a classic cheat’s move. Secretly stack the aces to yourself—perfect for themed poker nights or scaring your mates into thinking you’ve gone full Oceans 11.
The Unhinged Take: Teaching card cheating on YouTube? Brave. But if you’re gonna learn the dark arts, better it’s here than in a back alley. Just don’t blame me when you get banned from the pub poker league.
Details here → How Card Cheats Deal To The Aces - Revealed #magic #tricks #tutorial
🎩 Dear Magicians, the TRUTH About Mentalism! by ReidFerry
Reid Ferry roasts mentalists who recycle the same tired tropes. Duplicate drawings, book tests, and “I-read-your-mind” scripts? Yawn. He demands originality, emotional stakes, and a personality that isn’t “mysterious bloke #42.”
The Unhinged Take: Reid’s the teacher who stayed late to scold the class. But he’s not wrong—mentalism shouldn’t feel like a PowerPoint. Time to ditch the clichés or embrace your inner drama queen.
Details here → Dear Magicians, the TRUTH About Mentalism!
🎩 Magic Card Trick Tutorial - Color Changing Aces #magic #tutorial #shorts by BestMagic
A visual stunner: aces change color in the spectator’s hands. No gimmicks, just solid card handling. Classic, clean, and the kind of trick that’ll make your Instagram followers hit “pause” 17 times.
The Unhinged Take: Color-changing aces are magic’s equivalent of a black turtleneck—timeless, slightly pretentious, but always works. Bonus points if you narrate it like a Marvel origin story.
Details here → Magic Card Trick Tutorial - Color Changing Aces #magic #tutorial #shorts
🎩 How to Force a Card 👑#tutorial ##cardtrick #learnmagictricks by magicorthodoxy
A primer on Theodore Annemann’s 202 Methods of Forcing—a dusty tome that’s basically the Kama Sutra of card magic. Forces aren’t just tricks; they’re psychological puppetry.
The Unhinged Take: A book from 1933 still schooling us? Classic. If you’re not forcing cards like a pro, you’re leaving free will on the table. Or… making it look like you are. Subtle difference.
Details here → How to Force a Card 👑#tutorial ##cardtrick #learnmagictricks
🎩 Do Professionals Look Down On Hobbyists? | Q&A With Craig Petty by magic-tv
Craig Petty answers this (spoiler: no) and dishes on transitions, table engagement, and desert-island tricks. TL;DR: Magic’s a team sport. Also, impromptu > gimmicks.
The Unhinged Take: Craig’s the mate who remembers your birthday and also how to palm a coin. His advice? Gold. If you’re a hobbyist, this video’s a hug. If you’re a pro, it’s a reminder to stop being a prat.
Details here → Do Professionals Look Down On Hobbyists? | Q&A With Craig Petty
Other videos I didn’t have space for
Farewell
A quick shower thought: The best magic isn’t about the method—it’s about the moment. Whether you’re fumbling a force or dazzling with a Sharky, make ’em lean in. Oh, and always check your pockets for loose gimmicks. Trust issues.
Yours in sleight and spite,
Sleightly Unhinged