#30: Dan Sperry (Season 5)
Unlike Cast In Bronze, Dan Sperry actually did well during the Youtube roud. Though much like the seventh season Youtube round, it didn't offer much in the way of competition.
Sperry had only one real contender for that round: Jackie Evancho, the eventual runner-up. The rest who advanced into the semifinals pretty much did so by default.
To be fair, most viewers saw this coming. Magicians have one of the ugliest reputations on America's Got Talent -- many like Elliot Zimet and Shimshi were bumped from the previous list, and many more are still yet to be named.
In contrast to the professional illusions of Michael Grasso and the mega-illusions of Murray Sawchuck, Sperry performed magic which utilized breath mints and dentil floss. There was no comparison.
That said, America did vote for Sperry -- did vote to put him in the semifinals. Having earned America's vote once before, it was hard not to be hopeful that Sperry would deliver, or at the very least that he would succeed in freaking out Howie Mandel again.
He did no such thing. Instead, he performed a trick that employed one of the dumbest, most blatant "illusions" possible.
The trick was supposed to make it appear that Sperry was autographic Nick Cannon's arm by sawing it off, tattooing it, and then reattaching it. Which wouldn't have worked by itself since the prosthetic arm he was using was so obviously plastic, but the act was made even more painful to endure by the cover Sperry used to make the switch.
Usually, a magician wants the moment of the switch to be brief and subtle. Sperry opted for the opposite. While he was making the switch, his assistant suddenly strutted right in front of him, slowly and deliberately.
It was so obvious what she was doing and why that it's a wonder the judges even let him finish.
Going into the semifinals, we all knew that Dan Sperry was in over his head, but nobody expected him to suddenly sink straight to the bottom.
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