I've been buying and selling magic for longer than I care to say, but never has there been a more constant stream of new tricks and effects hitting the shop shelves. Add the pomp and hype created by social media posts and trailers, and it isn't hard to see that magicians are being fed dreams and hopes which are rarely fulfilled once the jiffy bag has been opened.
It is the classic consumer cycle. Magicians are looking for that one mysterious item to launch them to riches and stardom or show off to their mates in the pub. The magic industry is racing to satisfy the craving, knocking out an assortment of products of varying standard. Whilst keeping the feeding frenzy high with over produced, carefully edited magic porn trailers for under-developed poorly made gimmicks which shouldn’t have seen the light of day.
I wish magicians would their screens away for a while, and have a deeper look inside themselves, and resist the new shiny toy. Instead take the less worn path, and think what would they perform, what style of effects suit them personally.
Magic is a great hobby, but it is changing into a type of consumerism rather than an art or skill. It should be about the trial and failure as you work on something personal and the prize as a unique piece of art is forged from hard toil, the holy grail we are all searching for.