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Smoked 2.0 by Christopher Dearman Review:

Two gimmicks, one booklet, one DVD, one arts and crafts project and $30 bucks. Is it gem or is it rubble? Stay tuned to find out.

Effect

Vanish the cigarettes from a pack of cigarettes. In its place can be anything that fits in a cigarette box. Change the cigarettes into money, Nicorette, candy, etc.

Method

There are two methods. One is Stephane Krief's method called Quit. This version requires an arts and crafts project which is explained in depth on the DVD. The other version is Christopher Dearman's supplied gimmick that is taught in the booklet. Each method is simple to use and there are pros and cons to each. With Krief's homemade gimmick, you have the advantage of having the pack of cigarettes look very realistic and they can be shown much more freely and openly. But you can't do the cigarettes to candy (or other object) effects with this gimmick.

With Dearman's gimmick, you have the advantage of being able to change the cigarettes into anything else, but the gimmick doesn't look near as good as Krief's. Still, it will pass a brief look from the spectators. Neither version can be examined.

Both versions can end where you tear the box to shreds if you wish. Doing this with Dearman's version is easier. Also, with Krief's version, if you're planning on ending with a torn up cig box, you can't quite display the box as freely during the presentation.

Ad Copy Integrity

The ad copy is solid for sure. It's as good as it claims and looks. No issues here.

Product Quality

The DVD is definitely low production quality, but it still gets across everything needed to make the gimmick. For the majority of the different handling suggestions, Krief briefly walks through them without going into much detail. He also half-walks through the way you would handle it for the tearing up of the box.

The booklet is produced well and covers a lot of material in decent depth. The only problem I had was that in the effects that cause the cigarettes to change into other objects, there was very little info given on how to handle the gimmick properly to prevent it from "talking" too soon. In particular, there was one routine where the cigs change into nails. That's noisy. There were no tips, that I saw, that show you how to properly handle it without the nails "talking."

The gimmicks supplied are well made, but they look nowhere near as good as the homemade gimmick that Krief teaches us how to make. Finally, in the booklet, there were tons of tips and ideas and lines and presentational ideas that make this more than just a "trick."

Final Thoughts

If you liked the idea of vanishing the cigs from the box, then you'll be very happy with the Krief DVD supplied. If you're wanting to make cigs vanish and in their place have something else, then you'll be reasonably happy with the Dearman booklet and gimmick. Lucky for you, you don't have to choose. You get 'em both for $30 bucks. For the price and all the stuff you get including some good methods for vanishing cigarettes, it's hard to not give this a decent rating.

Final Verdict:
3.5 Stars with a Stone Status of Gem.

5 Comments

  • KJ says:

    Nice review, thanks.

    I think the main problem with this is the tearing of the box. This is sold with a suggestion to do a “quit smoking” routine that ends in tearing the box. Were are you going to get all these boxes? I guess you have to take up smoking to do a “quit smoking” routine.

    Bad idea.

    KJ

    • Jeff Stone says:

      @KJ – Thanks for the post. Actually in the DVD he talks about where to get a whole bunch of cigarette boxes without being a smoker. Also, you don’t have to tear up the box to do the routine. In fact, I think that the handling freedom you get when you don’t tear up the box is better.

  • KJ says:

    Thanks, Jeff. My comment was mostly tongue-in-cheek, but thanks for clarifying where to get the boxes for those who might be more serious about this.
    KJ

    • Jeff Stone says:

      @KJ – I caught your irony for sure. I thought it was quite funny too that you have to become a smoker to do an anti-smoking trick. I should’ve mentioned that in my comment. 🙂

  • Anthony says:

    Couldn’t we just acquire empty packs from friends or some source? No need to smoke then 😂

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