Wizard Wars (2014) s01e05 Episode Script
Battle of the Vegas Strip
Magic is not just doing a series of unrelated tricks.
It's also about routining.
The order of your tricks matter.
There was a magic show, a full evening of all different magicians.
One guy was doing Snowstorm in China where he produced confetti.
A lot of confetti.
Just a ton of confetti.
Maybe even more confetti than that.
I mean, there was confetti all over the stage.
The magician after him was doing a Floating Ball.
And he was using invisible thread controlled by an assistant on either side of the stage.
The thread had to be set on the stage before the whole show.
So the thread was all set to go on the floor during the previous guy's Snowstorm in China.
The stage and the thread were covered with confetti, when the ball levitated so did the confetti.
Like it was hanging on an invisible clothesline on either side of the ball.
Kind of, sort of giving the trick away.
The Floating Ball magician just flicked the thread, the confetti fell to the stage, and on he went with his Floating Ball routine.
But it might have been better in the other order.
Yep, in magic, routining, the order of the tricks, it does matter.
It's an aspect of showmanship we pay very close attention to on "Wizard Wars.
" sync and correction I'll show you how it all works.
You have to spin it very fast, like a helicopter's propeller almost.
If you spin it really fast, it actually sucks its way up.
It's all in the wrist, it's all in the wrist.
I'll show you my favorite part, I'll show you my favorite part.
Here we go, watch.
Let's hear it for our Wizards Justin Flom, Angela Funovits, Gregory Wilson, and Shimshi.
Hey, everyone.
I'm Ellen Fox and welcome to "Wizard Wars.
" Here's how "Wizard Wars" works.
Teams of magicians are given everyday objects that they must turn into world-class magic.
Today we have two teams of elite magic creators that will compete against each other in the Challenger round.
They'll be given the same three household items to use at least once in a routine.
The team that wins the Challenger round will advance to face a team of our Wizards in round two, the "Wizard War," where they'll be working with fr new objects.
If the challengers beat the Wizards, they will walk away with $10,000.
There are few more accomplished magicians in the world than our first judges.
They are superstars of the Vegas Strip and have their own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Please welcome Penn & Teller.
Our next judge is not only an astronomer, she's also one of the most respected magic critics in the world.
The lovely Christen Gerhart.
Our final judge has been hailed as one of magic's most gifted creators Jason Latimer.
All right.
Our first challenger is an illusionist who's headlined up and down the Vegas Strip, including the Planet Hollywood Hotel and Casino.
He's also the only magician ever to make a repeat performance on "America's Got Talent.
" Please welcome Nathan Burton.
Forget about all the shows and forget about all the money, everything that goes with performing in Vegas.
This is about getting back to your roots.
I really want to prove to myself that I still have the creative bug.
Teaming up with Nathan is a magician who's been wowing audiences all over Texas with his close-up creations for over 20 years.
Please welcome Marcus Eddie.
In the magic community, I'm known as a creator.
I create magic for some of the biggest magic companies as well as some of the biggest magicians in the world.
So now I think it's time to put it to the test.
To take on this formidable pair, we're breaking out the big guns, starting with a Vegas Heliner who actually has his own theater right on the Strip.
It's Tommy Wind.
I would say my style of magic is very dynamic, fast-paced, rock 'n' roll.
So the large stage illusion show is wonderful, but I always love coming back to my humble roots and performing for a smaller audience.
Teaming up with Tommy is an innovative creator with over 30 tricks on the magic market.
He's a rising star who performs all over the Vegas Strip Chris Randall.
In the magic world, I'm known for my trick, the Inception.
I sold over a thousand copies in under a month.
So as a creator, I have to be at a 10 constantly.
And that's what I am.
Now, here are the rules for the Challenger round.
Each team will be given three of the same everyday objects that must be used at least once in a routine.
You will be judged on your creativity, deception, and showmanship.
Object one: a pile of neckties.
Object two: a rotary dial telephone.
And object three: a garden gnome.
Marcus and Nathan are up first.
They've already built their routine, so let's see how they did it.
We got lots of cool stuff in here.
Let's just try this.
Just do it, man.
That's what I'm talking about.
- Can we use this somehow? - Come on, let's bring it.
Let's do this.
You have any ideas for what we can do with the ties? Check this out.
Let's see if I can let's see if I can do this.
Check it out.
- Wow.
- You know? All right, so, we got the gnome, we got a tie, we got a phone.
- Is he gonna - He's gonna hold the phone? Can you hear me now? Marcus - Hell - can you hear me, Marcus? Hello? I think we have a bad connection.
- I wanna book you for a close-up show.
- Yeah, we have a great connection now.
Ah.
After all the fun and games - Lay down.
- All right.
Lay down on the table, let's see.
This is an idea.
the guys come up with a stage illusion that will leave Marcus prone under the point of the gnome.
So you're thinking more of an more of an escape.
That's where we use your close-up magic.
Okay.
- Bring this over.
- Will they go big This is bigger than any project that I've ever worked on.
or go gnome? What did they come up with? That's what we're about to find out.
- I'm Nathan Burton.
- My name is Marcus Eddie.
- Yeah! - We have three magic items.
Item number one is a necktie.
Item number two is an old-school rotary phone, and item number three, a garden gnome.
Now I know all three items seem a little bit random, and they are.
They are, but we decided to take all three items and tie them all together.
Item number two I'm back here, everybody.
Item number two is our rotary telephone, but we've modified this phone with some wires.
These wires are gonna be put on my arms, and every time the phone rings, it's gonna shock me more and more.
And I need a volunteer to make sure this is legit.
Do you mind getting just a touch of electricity? - No.
- So I need your hand.
- Sure.
- Just a little bit, right there.
We're gonna put our little wires on.
There you go.
We're gonna give it a little call.
Yeah, let me call it right now.
Go ahead, Marcus.
Give it a ring.
And got it right there.
- Do you feel it? - I do.
- Is it strong? - It hurts.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Good, okay.
Let's take these off.
And can you actually put them on me? - Sure.
Just on your wrist, right here? - Yeah, right there.
Wherever you want.
Right there.
And that's the number you're gonna call.
- Okay.
- And right right there.
But after you call the number, just set it on your armrest - and watch the magic.
Don't call yet.
- Okay.
And as you can see, we have two garden gnomes on this pallet above my head.
I'm gonna be directly under it the entire time.
And I'll be bound at my wrists with this necktie, trying to escape.
I'm gonna be holding the ropes.
As the phone rings, it's gonna shock me more and more and more until I physically cannot hold the rope.
All right.
Close her up.
How you feeling, Marcus? You ready? - Let's ti you ready? - No, I'm not.
- Here, tie me up.
- Let's tie you up.
Okay, now the bottom.
Tighter, a little bit tighter.
- There you go.
Got it? - Good? Tight? - That's good.
That's good.
- You feel good about this? Um I think we're good.
Let's do it.
You guys ready to see this? Let's do this! I'm gonna staple gun him down so he can't get out.
Call the number.
Whoa.
Okay, that's level one.
Not too bad.
Whoa-ho.
Marcus, you gotta hurry, man.
I can't hold it much longer! Hurry, Marcus! Hurry! Aah! Don't worry, Nathan.
I got the shot! Yeah! How you doing? - How you doing, man? - Awesome.
Whoo.
- I'm Nathan Burton.
- My name is Marcus Eddie.
All right, it's time to find out what our judges think.
Christen.
First off, I thought it was great.
The sense of danger, all of that was fabulous.
It keeps us on edge, it keeps us watching.
That was absolutely beautiful.
Marcus, you freaking nailed that at the end.
I would've liked to see you button up your plaid shirt because I did see your shirt underneath it.
- Okay.
- But other than that, it was rocking.
- Thank you.
- It was great.
I loved the opening.
The idea of presenting everything makes it very clear for the audience.
"This is what we're using.
" We're using a gnome, the telephone, "and we're using the ties.
" And I liked the beginning, but the telephone setup was a little long.
What I did really like is the reveal.
Just great! It was really creative and it was really good.
The vanish and reappearance was perfect.
That prop looks wonderful, making everything look as one piece.
And look jerry-rigged and thrown together.
I wish you'd had a better timing device that I could've understood.
Even if we did believe the shocking, we don't know what level you're gonna let go.
I thought you used everything fine.
I really 1liked it.
- Coming up - How we doing, L.
A.
? Tommy and Chris switch things up.
There is always a surprise ending.
Will it be enough to advance to the "Wizard War"? I actually didn't see that coming.
Welcome back to "Wizard Wars.
" We are halfway through the Challenger round where two teams of brilliant magic creators must turn the same three everyday objects into world-class routines.
The winner will take on a team of our Wizards in the "Wizard War" for a chance to win $10,000.
Vegas stars Tommy Wind and Chris Randall are up next and they've already built their routine, so let's see how they did it.
So let's say we do - Okay, I see what you're doing.
- Que pacho.
Ready? - Ooh, nice.
- It's more small magic.
The illusions with the gnome, that's all you.
Let's see what's in the shop here 'cause there's a whole bunch of cool stuff.
I'm like a kid in a candy store.
In unison.
Ready? Let's do singles.
Que pacho, que pacho, que pacho.
You're all rhythmic.
I'm not rhythmic like you.
We have more gnomes here, though.
Spring the cards at the gnome.
After taking a stab at a card trick using the gnome - I didn't pick a card.
- Well, that was it.
Tommy and Chris head into the workshop to dial in their plans for the phone.
What I was thinking was 'cause this is the old rotary phone, so I'm thinking, maybe, if there's a prediction inside the phone.
The guys come up with a grand illusion.
Definitely gonna need some wood for this.
But in order to pull it off, they'll need to build an old-style phone booth.
- What do we do with this? - I have an idea.
However, I don't have an idea.
I'm hoping you more have it than don't.
All right, Chris and Tommy, it's time to make the magic happen.
What's up, "Wizard Wars"? Tonight we're gonna do a classic of magic, the Pick a Card trick.
Would you help me with the Pick a Card trick? - What is your name? - Absolutely.
I'm Angela.
Angela.
Give her a round of applause for helping out.
Angela, we do not have a deck of card In place of a deck of cards we have these ties.
So, in the Pick a Card trick, we're gonna need to pick a tie.
Pick a tie, any tie.
That one.
Okay.
Next step, you have to do a flourish with the card.
Hold on to that.
Next step, sign your name across the card so the people in the back can see.
All right.
Did you bring a marker for the Pick a Card trick? That, ladies and gentlemen, is why I do not do Pick a Card trick.
Thank you very much, good night! Hey, everybody, I'm Tommy Wind.
How we doing, L.
A.
? How we doing? - How you doing? What's your name? - I'm good.
I'm Angela.
A pleasure to meet you, Angela.
I'm Tommy.
I see Chris brought a deck of ties here.
So I see he got you a tie.
And which part were you up to with this so far? - He was actually having me sign it.
No.
- Sign the card.
Did he ever get to that? He probably didn't have a marker.
I have a marker right here.
I want you to go ahead and sign the tie.
So she's gonna write her name right on the tie.
All right.
Perfect.
It's right there.
You can see that that is the only tie in the world that's like that.
And what we're gonna do is we're gonna take it and we're gonna mix it up with all the other ties.
We're actually gonna juggle them a little bit, just like that.
All right.
Shuffle them up a little bit more.
All right, now all of the ties are shuffled.
Ladies and gentlemen, this is gonna be amazing.
Don't forget your tie.
Thank you very much.
Yeah, it works a lot better with a deck of cards, trust me.
All right, so this at we're gonna do.
I'm gonna take the tie.
I'm gonna put it around my neck.
I want you to watch very carefully.
I'm not gonna give it a double Windsor.
I'm gonna give it one Windsor knot.
It's gonna go and over the top just like so.
We're gonna put it right through the knot.
And we're gonna pull it right through and you can see that your name is on that tie so we never forget it.
- Would you say it's a very fair knot? - That is a fair knot.
Do you see that's your name on the tie? Okay, thank you so much.
.
I'm gonna take this of over my head and Now, ladies and gentlemen, we need to get Chris just give me a second here.
That is not Chris.
All right, but I do have an idea, however.
We're gonna use this tie.
I'm a place the tie over the gnome, or Chris, for that matter.
We got to close.
There up now.
Chris has mentioned about card tricks before, up.
But one thing he didn't mention about the steps is that there is always a surprise ending.
Ladies and gentlemen, we need a little help with the phone.
And we need lights, camera, and action.
Here we go.
- Yo! - Hey, Chris.
What's up? Chill out, man.
Is that your tie? That's her tie.
Thank you very much.
Thank you so much.
Let's go to the judges.
Jason.
One of the things I love about this show is it promotes creativity amongst stuff that shouldn't really be in a magic show.
It's beyond what a magic show should be.
And the use of the props were great.
As far as appearances go and the idea of using the telephone booth, I actually didn't see that coming as far as the idea of using a telephone booth when you're given a rotary phone.
So great way of adapting it into something that magicians are more familiar with.
Disappointment is one of the most important things to be used in magic.
You do it once and fail and then come back and succeed.
And that's a very powerful, emotional thing.
They kind of didn't do that.
It kind of didn't pay off, the finding the tie.
And the fact that the tie was signed, which is kind of a nice idea, didn't really pay off because it was the same place it was gonna be in the punch line.
I liked the phone trick out of the briefcase.
I thought that was kind of nice, but I think there was a little bit too much time with joking about not having a trick.
You saw that with the audience when you did the thing through the neck.
Which you threw off as a bad trick and a failure, the audience actually kind of, sort of liked 'cause they were really itching to feel a trick at that point.
So I thought there were some really nice stuff.
I thought the appearance was really good.
I thought the showmanship was very nice.
I would've liked to have felt that it was a little more organic in how it was put together.
I definitely wanted to see a little bit more energy from you guys and a little more of you guys working together as a team.
I would've liked to see the ties off the floor.
I loved the clothing change at the end to gnome I thought that was awesome.
So really good job, guys.
Over all, it was very solid.
All right, we'll see who the judges are sending on to the "Wizard War" right after this.
- Coming up - Teller loves potatoes.
Penn & Teller reveal the secret behind - one of their most famous tricks.
- This is not juggling.
- This is called misdirection.
- And later the Wizards wreck shop.
- I'm gonna have bad luck for, like - Nine years.
But can they pick up the pieces? Something out of nothing.
Welcome back to "Wizard Wars.
" Two teams of challengers just created a killer magic performance using the same three everyday objects.
Nathan and Marcus risked life and limb with a thrilling gnomes of death routine.
Marcus, you gotta hurry, man.
I can't hold it much longer.
Don't worry, Nathan.
I got the shot! Yeah! We also saw Tommy and Chris do the old gnome in the phone booth gag.
There is a surprise ending.
- Hey, Chris.
- What's up? Now it's time to find out which team won and will move on to face two of our Wizards in the "Wizard War" for a chance to win $10,000.
The judges had a chance to weigh both performances.
It's time make a decision.
What's it gonna be? Well, we talked about it a little bit.
It's a tough one.
It's always tough because being given those random props, they probably both teams did better than the judges would've done.
And that is to be said.
I care a lot about how people talk onstage.
I also care a lot about how they carry themselves.
And Tommy and Chris, because Tommy has a little bit of an accent, there's a certain kind of ease onstage in speaking and he's interesting to listen to him talk.
I also loved gnome hat, loved the way Chris ends up look Nathan and Marcus were a little more clumsy in their patter and moving through, but I love the way the box looked.
I just loved the cardboard taped together.
You couldn't be more honest than that and also more true to the show.
The vanish and reappearance was perfect.
That prop looks wonderful, making everything look as one piece.
It looked jerry-rigged, thrown together.
It's really, really great.
Not having something that looks like a glteryrop that you pulled out of the pantry is a wonderful thing.
That being said, with a little more panache and showmanship with the speaking on this team, I think that overall, the whole thing, we all agree that Nathan and Marcus edged them out a little bit more.
Thank you.
All right.
Congratulations, Nathan and Marcus.
You are moving on to the "Wizard War.
" You will face off against two of our Wizards.
If you emerge victorious, you will win $10,000.
But before we find out why you're going up against, let's talk about your challenge.
Each team will be given four random objects to create a routine using these items at least once.
Poker chips, some "Hello, my name is" name tags, a mirror, and the easiest thing to turn into an amazing magic trick ever a child's swing set.
Wizards, two of you will take on Nathan and Marcus.
I'll give you a moment to decide who it's going to be.
Name tags is good with mentalist.
- So, poker chips.
- Who does stuff with poker chips? All of us, so that's easy.
I played on swing sets when I was a kid.
I'm sure I could come up with something.
Wizards, I need an answer.
Who is competing tonight on "Wizard Wars"? Looks like it's going to be me and Angela.
Ready or not, it's time to get to it.
You know the drill.
Upstairs we have a workshop and a magic shop with everything you need to turn these everyday objects into world-class magic.
Challengers will be performing first.
Now everyone head on up to prep your magic.
All right, we have an amazing treat in store.
Penn & Teller are going to teach us all a little bit about magic.
Here's how you do the Cups and Balls.
We take the first ball, pretend to place it in our hand, and it'll be snuck underneath the first cup.
The second ball simultaneously secreted beneath the cup, we're gonna place in our hand and show it.
Take the third and final ball, pretend to place it in our hand, pretend to show the cup, place the cup, then secretly secrete and reveal it.
Now we're all set for the second half.
Three cups all loaded, three balls on top.
The center ball placed in a cup.
Each of the side balls, we're gonna put them away.
We don't need 'em anymore.
We have three duplicates, each in a cup.
These three balls over here.
This is not juggling, this is called misdirection.
For I look over here, Teller sticks the final ball under.
One more to this side.
And, of course, for the finish, it's a potato.
Teller loves potatoes.
All right.
Let's see how things are shaping up for our challengers in the workshop.
Let's take a look.
What if we had someone sign the poker chip, make this vanish, and then the name tag that you were wearing the whole time, - and now the poker chip, signed - And it's right there.
- On the back there, like that? - That'd be kind of cool.
- All right.
- Ready? This is pretty much the most awkward moment I' ever had.
Kind of reminds me of my childhood.
If we could somehow make this a story about us.
Of being kids dreaming about doing magic.
I like that.
Nathan and Marcus collaborate on a stage illusion using the swing set.
- If we cut here.
- But to pull it off, they have to modify it to make it lighter.
Ready? - There we go.
- Whoo! Will their routine be strong enough? - It's gonna work perfect.
- I can't wait.
You're gonna le this, man.
Whoa! Yeah.
I think we should be concerned, man.
Coming up So this last piece is for anyone who has a dream.
Nathan and Marcus attempt the impossible.
But will their dreams be shattered? I think the flash could've been completely avoided.
Time for the main event: the "Wizard War.
" The challengers are up first.
There's $10,000 to be had if they can out-perform the Wizards.
The judges are looking for the best routine using the same four everyday objects poker chips, name tags, a mirror, and a swing set.
Are you ready? Marcus and Nathan, take it away.
Marcus and I met at the beginning of this competition.
We instantly became friends.
Actually, I have the name tag that we had when we first met.
- You have mine? - Yeah.
The blue one? - Yeah.
- No, sorry.
I can fix that, though.
Watch.
Watch the red name tag.
You can see my name, but it's slowly turning into blue.
Look at that.
Of course, that's still Marcus.
We need to change it to Nathan.
But watch it, the blue name tag turn to Nathan.
Nice job! - Told you I got you, buddy.
I got you.
- Nice job.
Now, Marcus and I are very similar.
We grew up doing magic at a very young age and we would practice in front of the mirror for hours, usually to do a trick for our mom who would act impressed.
Yeah.
Actually, I remember when I was a kid, I used to build little illusions out of toy boxes that I had.
And I had big dreams of going to Vegas.
In fact, I used to mess with poker chips in order to inspire that vision.
And I know they seem kind of small, but, of course, we had some big dreams.
Now, we would practice hours and hours in front of the mirror trying to get that perfect trick.
Whoa.
There you go.
In fact, we practiced so much, our dreams became reality.
Look at that.
Thank you, thank you.
Now, Marcus and I, when growing up as kids, we'd play in the backyard, and Marcus and I both had a swing set.
But we wouldn't build a fort, we would build our own theaters.
Our own little showroom.
Our own little stages.
- Let's show 'em what it would look like.
- Yeah.
There you go.
And then we'd clamp it up to make it look like a stage.
Just like that.
Perfect.
Now, Marcus, I remember I was a little shorter when I was a kid doing magic.
I remember that.
I remember that.
Looked just like this.
Looked just like this.
But we also had a lot of hard times growing up.
I had a learning disability and they gave me a test that would evaluate what you should do for a living.
And the results came back from that test and the teachers told me, "Nathan, pick a job" where you do not speak in public "or in front of a large group of people.
" True story.
Yeah, and I would always hear, "Marcus, you need to get a real job.
" But also, the main thing I heard was that magic can't inspire anybody.
So this last piece is for anyone who has a dream and chooses to follow it.
Got it? Good job, man.
Thank you very much.
- My name is Marcus Eddie.
- I'm Nathan Burton.
All right, it's time to find out what our judges think.
- Penn? - I liked it.
I like these guys.
The sleight of hand was beautiful.
I like seeing nice stuff done clean.
I think when people tune into a show like this and want to learn about magic, one of the things they want to see is just stuff done clean.
And the name tag change and all the poker chip stuff was just the way that's supposed to be done.
And the swing set thing, uh it's a really, really goofy idea to levitate the biggest thing you're probably going to get on this show, but that was part of the charm of it.
And I also thought you were getting a little bit more of a groove speaking together and I like that a lot.
So I just loved it.
The second I see you do anything sleight of hand, Marcus, I am a happy, happy person.
Its stunning.
You have a true gift with your hands.
Just it's unparalleled and I love seeing it.
Nathan, you are a joy to watch.
Your interaction together is phenomenal.
The swing set was great.
The magic of the a little flash at the bottom.
It's a weird thing, the swing set.
I didn't want it to move perfectly, I wanted it to be a little off-balance and I wanted it to look like you were struggling a bit.
And it was great.
I thought it was really wonderful.
Way to go, guys.
Truly.
The flash that you're talking about, I don't think it was see, I think the flash could've been completely avoided.
The proof that you threw in there to try to show that you couldn't see anything was what threw you down.
And it didn't need to 'cause it's so awkward and so big and it's flying.
So you got marked down on the deception 'cause you threw in a proof that didn't need to be there.
But the creativity and the showmanship and the likability of you two together is just amazing.
I loved the creativity behind all the pieces that you were given.
That was just awesome.
The name tag sleight of hand, dead on.
The poker chips, dead on.
One of the things I liked about the use of the mirror was the reverse use of the mirror.
And what I mean by that is we see the reflection of the mirror, so we saw the double of the chips that were in the front, but that's where the appearance was.
He was actually showing that the chips from behind the mirror and the appearance was in front of the mirror and that's how they kept multiplying.
Really clever on that one.
I applaud you guys.
Coming up Wow! That's amazing! The Wizards leave their mark on the audience.
Hold out your hands for me.
Just like this.
Will it be enough to smoke the challengers? - Done.
- Beautiful.
Welcome back to "Wizard Wars.
" Were the Wizards feeling the pressure or was it just super hot in the workshop? Let's take a look.
Is there any way to integrate maybe a pack of cards with the poker chip, the swing set? You know what? I think I have a pretty sweet idea.
Whoa! That's amazing.
- Can you do that with a name tag? - I sure can.
- Yes? - Yes.
I can think of a lot of things to do with the poker chip.
Flying saucer.
I like it.
You know what would be really cool? Is if we could vintage this swing set up a little bit.
The swing set that was by my house was red.
- Like, a paint job is in order.
- Yeah.
Do you know what was really fun? Oh, my God.
Yes.
We always used to do that.
Oh! Think we can do a trick with this? The broken seat sparks an idea.
This needs to be wood.
But to pull it off, the Wizards need to build a custom seat for the swing set.
What do we do with the mirror? That's a good question.
Sh - Oh! - Shoot.
Is there any way to save this? I think we can figure something out with this, right? Wizards, time to live up to your name.
What's up, everybody? My name.
- And I'm Justin Flom.
- And this is something out of nothing.
- A gift for you, Justin.
There you go.
- Thank you very much.
This poker chip that Angela made appear is now reality.
And if we were to look in the reflection of this mirror take a look at that.
Judges Penn & Teller, take a look at the monitors and you'll be able to see the reflection in the mirror the poker chip.
That is the illusion.
My job, as a magician, is to take illusion Tand create reality.
.
So the question is: Is it the illusion of one can become two, can the illusion of two become four? Thank you so much.
- Hi there, what's your name? - Erin.
Erin? Hi, Erin.
Would you mind joining us onstage? Give her a big round of applause.
Erin! Erin, take a swing.
Perfect.
Back when I was a kid and I was in my swing set days, I had this uncanny ability to go up to somebody, tell them their name without them even telling me their name.
- That's amazing.
How'd you do it? - Name tags.
Name tags.
That's so simple.
Yeah, that's right, and Justin here has a whole stack.
I have a whole bunch of name tags.
The big key here is that they're all different.
I want the cameras I want the audience to be able to see.
We have Don, Wayne, Hilary, Ian, Ron, Judy, George, they're all different.
And we're going to go through, make a selection.
- Angela.
- Yep, I'm gonna turn away.
Justin's just gonna fan those cards out.
I'm just going to fan them out just like this.
What I'd like you to do, just grab one out.
Make sure it's a free decision.
Take it out.
- Very good.
- And I have my eyes closed.
I'm gonna look away.
I want you to show the audience.
Don't show me.
Make sure everyone in the audience gets a real good view.
And once you've done that, I want you to just hold it between your hands.
- Put it in your hands.
Hide it.
- So that neither of us can see a thing.
- Done? - Done.
- Beautiful.
- Okay.
Look at me.
Hold out your hands for me just like this.
And just focus on this name.
Be completely honest with me here.
Is the name that you're holding in your hand, is it Larry? - It is.
- Go ahead, show the name tag.
Ladies and gentlemen, give Angela a big round of applause.
Would you be comfortable right now - of thinking back to your first kiss? - Sure.
- Do you think you could do that for me? - Yeah.
Okay, since we're in front of all these people, let's stick with just the first and last initial.
Do you think we can do that? - Mm-hmm.
- Okay.
Focus on that for me.
In fact, think of it kind of like when we were kids when we'd carve a name into a tree.
Just think of it carved into a tree.
First initial, last initial.
And look at me.
Am I right that you were something like 13 or 14 when this happens? You were - 14.
- 14 years old, very good.
Keep focusing on Angela's going to write them down on those two name tags.
Now she's committed.
She can't change her mind.
This is what I've come up with.
Right here.
- In a really loud voice.
- Erin, for the first time, - what are the initials? - They are T.
Z.
- How did she do? - T.
Z.
Ladies and gentlemen, a big round of applause.
Let her hear you.
But we wanted to use the swing set in a special way.
That's why we had her think of almost carved into a tree.
There's something very interesting that you'll find on the bottom of your seat here that was here the whole time.
It's a heart that we carved into the swing.
I want you to watch the heart.
You can actually see it carved all the way into it.
That's not a sticker.
Come close.
I want you to feel.
That says T.
Z.
That is for you to keep.
Ladies and gentlemen, another big round of applause.
That's amazing.
All right, Christen, we're gonna start with you.
Justin, you're so comfortable onstage.
I feel like I'm a guest in your home.
It's great.
I love it.
Angela, it was wonderful to see you do what you do.
There were a couple little things.
You used a very small mirror Actually, our mirror, it shattered in the workshop and we salvaged a piece of it to try and bring a nice, classic piece of image duplication through a mirror there.
That's very nice that you were able to do the trick anyway.
I would've liked to see something bigger with the swing set.
I do like that it's a very touching story, but I didn't feel like that was something that you could've only done with a swing set.
I do think it was beautifully wrapped in this bow that I felt made a lot of sense.
I enjoyed watching this very much.
Well, first of all, I love how you guys blended everything together because the creativity of trying to combine random objects together into a storyline that feels like it fits is a talent in itself.
I do agree with Christen that the swing set was underused, but I do like the location of the reveal, that the person's been sitting on it the entire time.
Very, very cool.
I would've started off bigger.
The beginning is the strongest moment you're gonna have.
I would've liked to start off with bigger than just a poker chip appearance, but all in all, I really do like the blending of everything with the story.
So thank you for that.
A lot of very good stuff.
The mind reading premise I would like there to be more of a magical cause to that.
Some sort of make-believe that we all played along with.
Like some willing suspension of disbelief.
And I also would've liked something much bigger on the swing set, although carved into something for a prediction is always really, really good because there's the feeling of no backing out and I liked the fact she was sitting on it.
It's playful.
Who will win tonight's "Wizard War"? The answer to the $10,000 question right after this.
Welcome back to "Wizard Wars.
" This is the moment of truth.
Which team is the winner of tonight's "Wizard War"? Penn.
Well, you know, you go over creativity, deception, and showmanship they're all, all four of them, wonderful show people.
And the deception, they were all good.
So we've come pretty close to a stalemate.
And we've got on both of these teams, they're forced the creativity.
They have to come up with great stuff.
The difference is that our challengers knew how to use the swing set big, so, I think unanimously, we're going for the challengers.
All right.
Congratulations, Nathan and Marcus.
You just won "Wizard Wars.
" You're going home with $10,000.
Thank you all for a phenomenal evening.
Good night from "Wizard Wars.
"
It's also about routining.
The order of your tricks matter.
There was a magic show, a full evening of all different magicians.
One guy was doing Snowstorm in China where he produced confetti.
A lot of confetti.
Just a ton of confetti.
Maybe even more confetti than that.
I mean, there was confetti all over the stage.
The magician after him was doing a Floating Ball.
And he was using invisible thread controlled by an assistant on either side of the stage.
The thread had to be set on the stage before the whole show.
So the thread was all set to go on the floor during the previous guy's Snowstorm in China.
The stage and the thread were covered with confetti, when the ball levitated so did the confetti.
Like it was hanging on an invisible clothesline on either side of the ball.
Kind of, sort of giving the trick away.
The Floating Ball magician just flicked the thread, the confetti fell to the stage, and on he went with his Floating Ball routine.
But it might have been better in the other order.
Yep, in magic, routining, the order of the tricks, it does matter.
It's an aspect of showmanship we pay very close attention to on "Wizard Wars.
" sync and correction I'll show you how it all works.
You have to spin it very fast, like a helicopter's propeller almost.
If you spin it really fast, it actually sucks its way up.
It's all in the wrist, it's all in the wrist.
I'll show you my favorite part, I'll show you my favorite part.
Here we go, watch.
Let's hear it for our Wizards Justin Flom, Angela Funovits, Gregory Wilson, and Shimshi.
Hey, everyone.
I'm Ellen Fox and welcome to "Wizard Wars.
" Here's how "Wizard Wars" works.
Teams of magicians are given everyday objects that they must turn into world-class magic.
Today we have two teams of elite magic creators that will compete against each other in the Challenger round.
They'll be given the same three household items to use at least once in a routine.
The team that wins the Challenger round will advance to face a team of our Wizards in round two, the "Wizard War," where they'll be working with fr new objects.
If the challengers beat the Wizards, they will walk away with $10,000.
There are few more accomplished magicians in the world than our first judges.
They are superstars of the Vegas Strip and have their own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Please welcome Penn & Teller.
Our next judge is not only an astronomer, she's also one of the most respected magic critics in the world.
The lovely Christen Gerhart.
Our final judge has been hailed as one of magic's most gifted creators Jason Latimer.
All right.
Our first challenger is an illusionist who's headlined up and down the Vegas Strip, including the Planet Hollywood Hotel and Casino.
He's also the only magician ever to make a repeat performance on "America's Got Talent.
" Please welcome Nathan Burton.
Forget about all the shows and forget about all the money, everything that goes with performing in Vegas.
This is about getting back to your roots.
I really want to prove to myself that I still have the creative bug.
Teaming up with Nathan is a magician who's been wowing audiences all over Texas with his close-up creations for over 20 years.
Please welcome Marcus Eddie.
In the magic community, I'm known as a creator.
I create magic for some of the biggest magic companies as well as some of the biggest magicians in the world.
So now I think it's time to put it to the test.
To take on this formidable pair, we're breaking out the big guns, starting with a Vegas Heliner who actually has his own theater right on the Strip.
It's Tommy Wind.
I would say my style of magic is very dynamic, fast-paced, rock 'n' roll.
So the large stage illusion show is wonderful, but I always love coming back to my humble roots and performing for a smaller audience.
Teaming up with Tommy is an innovative creator with over 30 tricks on the magic market.
He's a rising star who performs all over the Vegas Strip Chris Randall.
In the magic world, I'm known for my trick, the Inception.
I sold over a thousand copies in under a month.
So as a creator, I have to be at a 10 constantly.
And that's what I am.
Now, here are the rules for the Challenger round.
Each team will be given three of the same everyday objects that must be used at least once in a routine.
You will be judged on your creativity, deception, and showmanship.
Object one: a pile of neckties.
Object two: a rotary dial telephone.
And object three: a garden gnome.
Marcus and Nathan are up first.
They've already built their routine, so let's see how they did it.
We got lots of cool stuff in here.
Let's just try this.
Just do it, man.
That's what I'm talking about.
- Can we use this somehow? - Come on, let's bring it.
Let's do this.
You have any ideas for what we can do with the ties? Check this out.
Let's see if I can let's see if I can do this.
Check it out.
- Wow.
- You know? All right, so, we got the gnome, we got a tie, we got a phone.
- Is he gonna - He's gonna hold the phone? Can you hear me now? Marcus - Hell - can you hear me, Marcus? Hello? I think we have a bad connection.
- I wanna book you for a close-up show.
- Yeah, we have a great connection now.
Ah.
After all the fun and games - Lay down.
- All right.
Lay down on the table, let's see.
This is an idea.
the guys come up with a stage illusion that will leave Marcus prone under the point of the gnome.
So you're thinking more of an more of an escape.
That's where we use your close-up magic.
Okay.
- Bring this over.
- Will they go big This is bigger than any project that I've ever worked on.
or go gnome? What did they come up with? That's what we're about to find out.
- I'm Nathan Burton.
- My name is Marcus Eddie.
- Yeah! - We have three magic items.
Item number one is a necktie.
Item number two is an old-school rotary phone, and item number three, a garden gnome.
Now I know all three items seem a little bit random, and they are.
They are, but we decided to take all three items and tie them all together.
Item number two I'm back here, everybody.
Item number two is our rotary telephone, but we've modified this phone with some wires.
These wires are gonna be put on my arms, and every time the phone rings, it's gonna shock me more and more.
And I need a volunteer to make sure this is legit.
Do you mind getting just a touch of electricity? - No.
- So I need your hand.
- Sure.
- Just a little bit, right there.
We're gonna put our little wires on.
There you go.
We're gonna give it a little call.
Yeah, let me call it right now.
Go ahead, Marcus.
Give it a ring.
And got it right there.
- Do you feel it? - I do.
- Is it strong? - It hurts.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Good, okay.
Let's take these off.
And can you actually put them on me? - Sure.
Just on your wrist, right here? - Yeah, right there.
Wherever you want.
Right there.
And that's the number you're gonna call.
- Okay.
- And right right there.
But after you call the number, just set it on your armrest - and watch the magic.
Don't call yet.
- Okay.
And as you can see, we have two garden gnomes on this pallet above my head.
I'm gonna be directly under it the entire time.
And I'll be bound at my wrists with this necktie, trying to escape.
I'm gonna be holding the ropes.
As the phone rings, it's gonna shock me more and more and more until I physically cannot hold the rope.
All right.
Close her up.
How you feeling, Marcus? You ready? - Let's ti you ready? - No, I'm not.
- Here, tie me up.
- Let's tie you up.
Okay, now the bottom.
Tighter, a little bit tighter.
- There you go.
Got it? - Good? Tight? - That's good.
That's good.
- You feel good about this? Um I think we're good.
Let's do it.
You guys ready to see this? Let's do this! I'm gonna staple gun him down so he can't get out.
Call the number.
Whoa.
Okay, that's level one.
Not too bad.
Whoa-ho.
Marcus, you gotta hurry, man.
I can't hold it much longer! Hurry, Marcus! Hurry! Aah! Don't worry, Nathan.
I got the shot! Yeah! How you doing? - How you doing, man? - Awesome.
Whoo.
- I'm Nathan Burton.
- My name is Marcus Eddie.
All right, it's time to find out what our judges think.
Christen.
First off, I thought it was great.
The sense of danger, all of that was fabulous.
It keeps us on edge, it keeps us watching.
That was absolutely beautiful.
Marcus, you freaking nailed that at the end.
I would've liked to see you button up your plaid shirt because I did see your shirt underneath it.
- Okay.
- But other than that, it was rocking.
- Thank you.
- It was great.
I loved the opening.
The idea of presenting everything makes it very clear for the audience.
"This is what we're using.
" We're using a gnome, the telephone, "and we're using the ties.
" And I liked the beginning, but the telephone setup was a little long.
What I did really like is the reveal.
Just great! It was really creative and it was really good.
The vanish and reappearance was perfect.
That prop looks wonderful, making everything look as one piece.
And look jerry-rigged and thrown together.
I wish you'd had a better timing device that I could've understood.
Even if we did believe the shocking, we don't know what level you're gonna let go.
I thought you used everything fine.
I really 1liked it.
- Coming up - How we doing, L.
A.
? Tommy and Chris switch things up.
There is always a surprise ending.
Will it be enough to advance to the "Wizard War"? I actually didn't see that coming.
Welcome back to "Wizard Wars.
" We are halfway through the Challenger round where two teams of brilliant magic creators must turn the same three everyday objects into world-class routines.
The winner will take on a team of our Wizards in the "Wizard War" for a chance to win $10,000.
Vegas stars Tommy Wind and Chris Randall are up next and they've already built their routine, so let's see how they did it.
So let's say we do - Okay, I see what you're doing.
- Que pacho.
Ready? - Ooh, nice.
- It's more small magic.
The illusions with the gnome, that's all you.
Let's see what's in the shop here 'cause there's a whole bunch of cool stuff.
I'm like a kid in a candy store.
In unison.
Ready? Let's do singles.
Que pacho, que pacho, que pacho.
You're all rhythmic.
I'm not rhythmic like you.
We have more gnomes here, though.
Spring the cards at the gnome.
After taking a stab at a card trick using the gnome - I didn't pick a card.
- Well, that was it.
Tommy and Chris head into the workshop to dial in their plans for the phone.
What I was thinking was 'cause this is the old rotary phone, so I'm thinking, maybe, if there's a prediction inside the phone.
The guys come up with a grand illusion.
Definitely gonna need some wood for this.
But in order to pull it off, they'll need to build an old-style phone booth.
- What do we do with this? - I have an idea.
However, I don't have an idea.
I'm hoping you more have it than don't.
All right, Chris and Tommy, it's time to make the magic happen.
What's up, "Wizard Wars"? Tonight we're gonna do a classic of magic, the Pick a Card trick.
Would you help me with the Pick a Card trick? - What is your name? - Absolutely.
I'm Angela.
Angela.
Give her a round of applause for helping out.
Angela, we do not have a deck of card In place of a deck of cards we have these ties.
So, in the Pick a Card trick, we're gonna need to pick a tie.
Pick a tie, any tie.
That one.
Okay.
Next step, you have to do a flourish with the card.
Hold on to that.
Next step, sign your name across the card so the people in the back can see.
All right.
Did you bring a marker for the Pick a Card trick? That, ladies and gentlemen, is why I do not do Pick a Card trick.
Thank you very much, good night! Hey, everybody, I'm Tommy Wind.
How we doing, L.
A.
? How we doing? - How you doing? What's your name? - I'm good.
I'm Angela.
A pleasure to meet you, Angela.
I'm Tommy.
I see Chris brought a deck of ties here.
So I see he got you a tie.
And which part were you up to with this so far? - He was actually having me sign it.
No.
- Sign the card.
Did he ever get to that? He probably didn't have a marker.
I have a marker right here.
I want you to go ahead and sign the tie.
So she's gonna write her name right on the tie.
All right.
Perfect.
It's right there.
You can see that that is the only tie in the world that's like that.
And what we're gonna do is we're gonna take it and we're gonna mix it up with all the other ties.
We're actually gonna juggle them a little bit, just like that.
All right.
Shuffle them up a little bit more.
All right, now all of the ties are shuffled.
Ladies and gentlemen, this is gonna be amazing.
Don't forget your tie.
Thank you very much.
Yeah, it works a lot better with a deck of cards, trust me.
All right, so this at we're gonna do.
I'm gonna take the tie.
I'm gonna put it around my neck.
I want you to watch very carefully.
I'm not gonna give it a double Windsor.
I'm gonna give it one Windsor knot.
It's gonna go and over the top just like so.
We're gonna put it right through the knot.
And we're gonna pull it right through and you can see that your name is on that tie so we never forget it.
- Would you say it's a very fair knot? - That is a fair knot.
Do you see that's your name on the tie? Okay, thank you so much.
.
I'm gonna take this of over my head and Now, ladies and gentlemen, we need to get Chris just give me a second here.
That is not Chris.
All right, but I do have an idea, however.
We're gonna use this tie.
I'm a place the tie over the gnome, or Chris, for that matter.
We got to close.
There up now.
Chris has mentioned about card tricks before, up.
But one thing he didn't mention about the steps is that there is always a surprise ending.
Ladies and gentlemen, we need a little help with the phone.
And we need lights, camera, and action.
Here we go.
- Yo! - Hey, Chris.
What's up? Chill out, man.
Is that your tie? That's her tie.
Thank you very much.
Thank you so much.
Let's go to the judges.
Jason.
One of the things I love about this show is it promotes creativity amongst stuff that shouldn't really be in a magic show.
It's beyond what a magic show should be.
And the use of the props were great.
As far as appearances go and the idea of using the telephone booth, I actually didn't see that coming as far as the idea of using a telephone booth when you're given a rotary phone.
So great way of adapting it into something that magicians are more familiar with.
Disappointment is one of the most important things to be used in magic.
You do it once and fail and then come back and succeed.
And that's a very powerful, emotional thing.
They kind of didn't do that.
It kind of didn't pay off, the finding the tie.
And the fact that the tie was signed, which is kind of a nice idea, didn't really pay off because it was the same place it was gonna be in the punch line.
I liked the phone trick out of the briefcase.
I thought that was kind of nice, but I think there was a little bit too much time with joking about not having a trick.
You saw that with the audience when you did the thing through the neck.
Which you threw off as a bad trick and a failure, the audience actually kind of, sort of liked 'cause they were really itching to feel a trick at that point.
So I thought there were some really nice stuff.
I thought the appearance was really good.
I thought the showmanship was very nice.
I would've liked to have felt that it was a little more organic in how it was put together.
I definitely wanted to see a little bit more energy from you guys and a little more of you guys working together as a team.
I would've liked to see the ties off the floor.
I loved the clothing change at the end to gnome I thought that was awesome.
So really good job, guys.
Over all, it was very solid.
All right, we'll see who the judges are sending on to the "Wizard War" right after this.
- Coming up - Teller loves potatoes.
Penn & Teller reveal the secret behind - one of their most famous tricks.
- This is not juggling.
- This is called misdirection.
- And later the Wizards wreck shop.
- I'm gonna have bad luck for, like - Nine years.
But can they pick up the pieces? Something out of nothing.
Welcome back to "Wizard Wars.
" Two teams of challengers just created a killer magic performance using the same three everyday objects.
Nathan and Marcus risked life and limb with a thrilling gnomes of death routine.
Marcus, you gotta hurry, man.
I can't hold it much longer.
Don't worry, Nathan.
I got the shot! Yeah! We also saw Tommy and Chris do the old gnome in the phone booth gag.
There is a surprise ending.
- Hey, Chris.
- What's up? Now it's time to find out which team won and will move on to face two of our Wizards in the "Wizard War" for a chance to win $10,000.
The judges had a chance to weigh both performances.
It's time make a decision.
What's it gonna be? Well, we talked about it a little bit.
It's a tough one.
It's always tough because being given those random props, they probably both teams did better than the judges would've done.
And that is to be said.
I care a lot about how people talk onstage.
I also care a lot about how they carry themselves.
And Tommy and Chris, because Tommy has a little bit of an accent, there's a certain kind of ease onstage in speaking and he's interesting to listen to him talk.
I also loved gnome hat, loved the way Chris ends up look Nathan and Marcus were a little more clumsy in their patter and moving through, but I love the way the box looked.
I just loved the cardboard taped together.
You couldn't be more honest than that and also more true to the show.
The vanish and reappearance was perfect.
That prop looks wonderful, making everything look as one piece.
It looked jerry-rigged, thrown together.
It's really, really great.
Not having something that looks like a glteryrop that you pulled out of the pantry is a wonderful thing.
That being said, with a little more panache and showmanship with the speaking on this team, I think that overall, the whole thing, we all agree that Nathan and Marcus edged them out a little bit more.
Thank you.
All right.
Congratulations, Nathan and Marcus.
You are moving on to the "Wizard War.
" You will face off against two of our Wizards.
If you emerge victorious, you will win $10,000.
But before we find out why you're going up against, let's talk about your challenge.
Each team will be given four random objects to create a routine using these items at least once.
Poker chips, some "Hello, my name is" name tags, a mirror, and the easiest thing to turn into an amazing magic trick ever a child's swing set.
Wizards, two of you will take on Nathan and Marcus.
I'll give you a moment to decide who it's going to be.
Name tags is good with mentalist.
- So, poker chips.
- Who does stuff with poker chips? All of us, so that's easy.
I played on swing sets when I was a kid.
I'm sure I could come up with something.
Wizards, I need an answer.
Who is competing tonight on "Wizard Wars"? Looks like it's going to be me and Angela.
Ready or not, it's time to get to it.
You know the drill.
Upstairs we have a workshop and a magic shop with everything you need to turn these everyday objects into world-class magic.
Challengers will be performing first.
Now everyone head on up to prep your magic.
All right, we have an amazing treat in store.
Penn & Teller are going to teach us all a little bit about magic.
Here's how you do the Cups and Balls.
We take the first ball, pretend to place it in our hand, and it'll be snuck underneath the first cup.
The second ball simultaneously secreted beneath the cup, we're gonna place in our hand and show it.
Take the third and final ball, pretend to place it in our hand, pretend to show the cup, place the cup, then secretly secrete and reveal it.
Now we're all set for the second half.
Three cups all loaded, three balls on top.
The center ball placed in a cup.
Each of the side balls, we're gonna put them away.
We don't need 'em anymore.
We have three duplicates, each in a cup.
These three balls over here.
This is not juggling, this is called misdirection.
For I look over here, Teller sticks the final ball under.
One more to this side.
And, of course, for the finish, it's a potato.
Teller loves potatoes.
All right.
Let's see how things are shaping up for our challengers in the workshop.
Let's take a look.
What if we had someone sign the poker chip, make this vanish, and then the name tag that you were wearing the whole time, - and now the poker chip, signed - And it's right there.
- On the back there, like that? - That'd be kind of cool.
- All right.
- Ready? This is pretty much the most awkward moment I' ever had.
Kind of reminds me of my childhood.
If we could somehow make this a story about us.
Of being kids dreaming about doing magic.
I like that.
Nathan and Marcus collaborate on a stage illusion using the swing set.
- If we cut here.
- But to pull it off, they have to modify it to make it lighter.
Ready? - There we go.
- Whoo! Will their routine be strong enough? - It's gonna work perfect.
- I can't wait.
You're gonna le this, man.
Whoa! Yeah.
I think we should be concerned, man.
Coming up So this last piece is for anyone who has a dream.
Nathan and Marcus attempt the impossible.
But will their dreams be shattered? I think the flash could've been completely avoided.
Time for the main event: the "Wizard War.
" The challengers are up first.
There's $10,000 to be had if they can out-perform the Wizards.
The judges are looking for the best routine using the same four everyday objects poker chips, name tags, a mirror, and a swing set.
Are you ready? Marcus and Nathan, take it away.
Marcus and I met at the beginning of this competition.
We instantly became friends.
Actually, I have the name tag that we had when we first met.
- You have mine? - Yeah.
The blue one? - Yeah.
- No, sorry.
I can fix that, though.
Watch.
Watch the red name tag.
You can see my name, but it's slowly turning into blue.
Look at that.
Of course, that's still Marcus.
We need to change it to Nathan.
But watch it, the blue name tag turn to Nathan.
Nice job! - Told you I got you, buddy.
I got you.
- Nice job.
Now, Marcus and I are very similar.
We grew up doing magic at a very young age and we would practice in front of the mirror for hours, usually to do a trick for our mom who would act impressed.
Yeah.
Actually, I remember when I was a kid, I used to build little illusions out of toy boxes that I had.
And I had big dreams of going to Vegas.
In fact, I used to mess with poker chips in order to inspire that vision.
And I know they seem kind of small, but, of course, we had some big dreams.
Now, we would practice hours and hours in front of the mirror trying to get that perfect trick.
Whoa.
There you go.
In fact, we practiced so much, our dreams became reality.
Look at that.
Thank you, thank you.
Now, Marcus and I, when growing up as kids, we'd play in the backyard, and Marcus and I both had a swing set.
But we wouldn't build a fort, we would build our own theaters.
Our own little showroom.
Our own little stages.
- Let's show 'em what it would look like.
- Yeah.
There you go.
And then we'd clamp it up to make it look like a stage.
Just like that.
Perfect.
Now, Marcus, I remember I was a little shorter when I was a kid doing magic.
I remember that.
I remember that.
Looked just like this.
Looked just like this.
But we also had a lot of hard times growing up.
I had a learning disability and they gave me a test that would evaluate what you should do for a living.
And the results came back from that test and the teachers told me, "Nathan, pick a job" where you do not speak in public "or in front of a large group of people.
" True story.
Yeah, and I would always hear, "Marcus, you need to get a real job.
" But also, the main thing I heard was that magic can't inspire anybody.
So this last piece is for anyone who has a dream and chooses to follow it.
Got it? Good job, man.
Thank you very much.
- My name is Marcus Eddie.
- I'm Nathan Burton.
All right, it's time to find out what our judges think.
- Penn? - I liked it.
I like these guys.
The sleight of hand was beautiful.
I like seeing nice stuff done clean.
I think when people tune into a show like this and want to learn about magic, one of the things they want to see is just stuff done clean.
And the name tag change and all the poker chip stuff was just the way that's supposed to be done.
And the swing set thing, uh it's a really, really goofy idea to levitate the biggest thing you're probably going to get on this show, but that was part of the charm of it.
And I also thought you were getting a little bit more of a groove speaking together and I like that a lot.
So I just loved it.
The second I see you do anything sleight of hand, Marcus, I am a happy, happy person.
Its stunning.
You have a true gift with your hands.
Just it's unparalleled and I love seeing it.
Nathan, you are a joy to watch.
Your interaction together is phenomenal.
The swing set was great.
The magic of the a little flash at the bottom.
It's a weird thing, the swing set.
I didn't want it to move perfectly, I wanted it to be a little off-balance and I wanted it to look like you were struggling a bit.
And it was great.
I thought it was really wonderful.
Way to go, guys.
Truly.
The flash that you're talking about, I don't think it was see, I think the flash could've been completely avoided.
The proof that you threw in there to try to show that you couldn't see anything was what threw you down.
And it didn't need to 'cause it's so awkward and so big and it's flying.
So you got marked down on the deception 'cause you threw in a proof that didn't need to be there.
But the creativity and the showmanship and the likability of you two together is just amazing.
I loved the creativity behind all the pieces that you were given.
That was just awesome.
The name tag sleight of hand, dead on.
The poker chips, dead on.
One of the things I liked about the use of the mirror was the reverse use of the mirror.
And what I mean by that is we see the reflection of the mirror, so we saw the double of the chips that were in the front, but that's where the appearance was.
He was actually showing that the chips from behind the mirror and the appearance was in front of the mirror and that's how they kept multiplying.
Really clever on that one.
I applaud you guys.
Coming up Wow! That's amazing! The Wizards leave their mark on the audience.
Hold out your hands for me.
Just like this.
Will it be enough to smoke the challengers? - Done.
- Beautiful.
Welcome back to "Wizard Wars.
" Were the Wizards feeling the pressure or was it just super hot in the workshop? Let's take a look.
Is there any way to integrate maybe a pack of cards with the poker chip, the swing set? You know what? I think I have a pretty sweet idea.
Whoa! That's amazing.
- Can you do that with a name tag? - I sure can.
- Yes? - Yes.
I can think of a lot of things to do with the poker chip.
Flying saucer.
I like it.
You know what would be really cool? Is if we could vintage this swing set up a little bit.
The swing set that was by my house was red.
- Like, a paint job is in order.
- Yeah.
Do you know what was really fun? Oh, my God.
Yes.
We always used to do that.
Oh! Think we can do a trick with this? The broken seat sparks an idea.
This needs to be wood.
But to pull it off, the Wizards need to build a custom seat for the swing set.
What do we do with the mirror? That's a good question.
Sh - Oh! - Shoot.
Is there any way to save this? I think we can figure something out with this, right? Wizards, time to live up to your name.
What's up, everybody? My name.
- And I'm Justin Flom.
- And this is something out of nothing.
- A gift for you, Justin.
There you go.
- Thank you very much.
This poker chip that Angela made appear is now reality.
And if we were to look in the reflection of this mirror take a look at that.
Judges Penn & Teller, take a look at the monitors and you'll be able to see the reflection in the mirror the poker chip.
That is the illusion.
My job, as a magician, is to take illusion Tand create reality.
.
So the question is: Is it the illusion of one can become two, can the illusion of two become four? Thank you so much.
- Hi there, what's your name? - Erin.
Erin? Hi, Erin.
Would you mind joining us onstage? Give her a big round of applause.
Erin! Erin, take a swing.
Perfect.
Back when I was a kid and I was in my swing set days, I had this uncanny ability to go up to somebody, tell them their name without them even telling me their name.
- That's amazing.
How'd you do it? - Name tags.
Name tags.
That's so simple.
Yeah, that's right, and Justin here has a whole stack.
I have a whole bunch of name tags.
The big key here is that they're all different.
I want the cameras I want the audience to be able to see.
We have Don, Wayne, Hilary, Ian, Ron, Judy, George, they're all different.
And we're going to go through, make a selection.
- Angela.
- Yep, I'm gonna turn away.
Justin's just gonna fan those cards out.
I'm just going to fan them out just like this.
What I'd like you to do, just grab one out.
Make sure it's a free decision.
Take it out.
- Very good.
- And I have my eyes closed.
I'm gonna look away.
I want you to show the audience.
Don't show me.
Make sure everyone in the audience gets a real good view.
And once you've done that, I want you to just hold it between your hands.
- Put it in your hands.
Hide it.
- So that neither of us can see a thing.
- Done? - Done.
- Beautiful.
- Okay.
Look at me.
Hold out your hands for me just like this.
And just focus on this name.
Be completely honest with me here.
Is the name that you're holding in your hand, is it Larry? - It is.
- Go ahead, show the name tag.
Ladies and gentlemen, give Angela a big round of applause.
Would you be comfortable right now - of thinking back to your first kiss? - Sure.
- Do you think you could do that for me? - Yeah.
Okay, since we're in front of all these people, let's stick with just the first and last initial.
Do you think we can do that? - Mm-hmm.
- Okay.
Focus on that for me.
In fact, think of it kind of like when we were kids when we'd carve a name into a tree.
Just think of it carved into a tree.
First initial, last initial.
And look at me.
Am I right that you were something like 13 or 14 when this happens? You were - 14.
- 14 years old, very good.
Keep focusing on Angela's going to write them down on those two name tags.
Now she's committed.
She can't change her mind.
This is what I've come up with.
Right here.
- In a really loud voice.
- Erin, for the first time, - what are the initials? - They are T.
Z.
- How did she do? - T.
Z.
Ladies and gentlemen, a big round of applause.
Let her hear you.
But we wanted to use the swing set in a special way.
That's why we had her think of almost carved into a tree.
There's something very interesting that you'll find on the bottom of your seat here that was here the whole time.
It's a heart that we carved into the swing.
I want you to watch the heart.
You can actually see it carved all the way into it.
That's not a sticker.
Come close.
I want you to feel.
That says T.
Z.
That is for you to keep.
Ladies and gentlemen, another big round of applause.
That's amazing.
All right, Christen, we're gonna start with you.
Justin, you're so comfortable onstage.
I feel like I'm a guest in your home.
It's great.
I love it.
Angela, it was wonderful to see you do what you do.
There were a couple little things.
You used a very small mirror Actually, our mirror, it shattered in the workshop and we salvaged a piece of it to try and bring a nice, classic piece of image duplication through a mirror there.
That's very nice that you were able to do the trick anyway.
I would've liked to see something bigger with the swing set.
I do like that it's a very touching story, but I didn't feel like that was something that you could've only done with a swing set.
I do think it was beautifully wrapped in this bow that I felt made a lot of sense.
I enjoyed watching this very much.
Well, first of all, I love how you guys blended everything together because the creativity of trying to combine random objects together into a storyline that feels like it fits is a talent in itself.
I do agree with Christen that the swing set was underused, but I do like the location of the reveal, that the person's been sitting on it the entire time.
Very, very cool.
I would've started off bigger.
The beginning is the strongest moment you're gonna have.
I would've liked to start off with bigger than just a poker chip appearance, but all in all, I really do like the blending of everything with the story.
So thank you for that.
A lot of very good stuff.
The mind reading premise I would like there to be more of a magical cause to that.
Some sort of make-believe that we all played along with.
Like some willing suspension of disbelief.
And I also would've liked something much bigger on the swing set, although carved into something for a prediction is always really, really good because there's the feeling of no backing out and I liked the fact she was sitting on it.
It's playful.
Who will win tonight's "Wizard War"? The answer to the $10,000 question right after this.
Welcome back to "Wizard Wars.
" This is the moment of truth.
Which team is the winner of tonight's "Wizard War"? Penn.
Well, you know, you go over creativity, deception, and showmanship they're all, all four of them, wonderful show people.
And the deception, they were all good.
So we've come pretty close to a stalemate.
And we've got on both of these teams, they're forced the creativity.
They have to come up with great stuff.
The difference is that our challengers knew how to use the swing set big, so, I think unanimously, we're going for the challengers.
All right.
Congratulations, Nathan and Marcus.
You just won "Wizard Wars.
" You're going home with $10,000.
Thank you all for a phenomenal evening.
Good night from "Wizard Wars.
"