This is, without a doubt, the largest and best compilation of the work and mastery of Tony Slydini, a true artist in the world of magic. Archival footage, interviews with Slydini's students, explanations of Slydini's classics... it's all here and it's all marvelously done.

I'm not going to go on and on about how great Slydini was -- his mastery of the basic principles of magic, his powerful use of misdirection, his sheet brilliance at creating a feeling of magic -- except to say Slydini was the total package as a magician: creative in his thinking, precise in his execution, and an entertainer of the first degree.

And I'll try not to go on and on about "As I Recall", the two-disc set featuring virtually everything in existence having to do with Slydini on video, but it's going to be hard.

First thing's first: the material. These discs are packed with Slydini's most popular routines. Have they seen the light of day before? Certainly, but -- and here's where this set outshines everything else prior to it -- here you see the routines Slydini made famous performed by Slydini himself and then explained by the students who learned the routines from Slydini. This is a huge thing, a colossal thing, because it is as close as we're going to get to being taught by the master on video.

And brother, it works. I'm going to quote Cellini on this one (Cellini appears on the discs, teaching a number of Slydini's routines): "You can look at a book. You can read it. You can hope to understand what the principles are... but, to not see the creator perform it, there is something missing, until you have the opportunity to see the master perform. And then, you say to yourself 'Oh'! I understand something now,' something that you can't interpret or get from a book." And Cellini is dead-on accurate in that assessment.

With this set, you see how the creator performed the routines, learn the ins-and-outs of them, all the while seeing and learning how the creator intended the routines to be done. It makes a world of difference when it comes to mastering Slydini's creations.

As for the routines themselves, Slydini's classics are all here. The routine of Slydini's that made me a fan for life, "Coins Through the Table" is here (taught by Cellini), as is his torn-and-restored cigarette routine and his "Two Cigarettes From One". Bill Brunelle teaches "Slydini's Sponge Ball Routine" and "Interlude With a Paper Napkin". Charlie Cambra takes on "The Illusive Four" and Bob Yorburg teaches "Slydini's Linking Pins". And there is more, because, like I said, this set is packed with material... almost three hours of material.

But the main thing here is not the completeness of the material; it's the completeness of the presentation. Whoever had the brilliant idea of coupling the performance videos of Slydini with his students explaining the routines deserves an award or at least a standing ovation. Everything just seems to click with this, and makes it easily one of the best DVD sets around.

Yes, the set costs more than the latest "50 Things To Do With An Artificial Plant" disc, and yes, this is Slydini's material so you're not going to be doing it five minutes after you buy this, but if that's where your magical tastes run, then this set isn't for you anyway. It's for the serious student of magic, the one who wants to go beyond the latest plastic-clad gimmick, who wants to learn more than the newest way to reveal a selected card.

For that student of magic -- no matter the age or experience level -- "As I Recall" is one of the few "must-have" items on the market.