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Post by Nalkarj on Apr 19, 2017 21:29:56 GMT
[Maybe it fits better here...?] Has anyone here seen this show? To be perfectly honest, as a magic buff and an amateur magician myself, I'm quite fond of it. (With Jeopardy, it's the only game show I watch.) Some of the acts are very good, some are quite weak, but they're all fun, and I appreciate how Messrs. Penn and Teller "play fair" by not revealing the secret and only obliquely referencing the tricks of the trade. (Also, Penn tones his whole persona down a little bit, not being as vocal as he was in their previous programs about his political and religious opinions. Now, I disagree with many of his opinions, so I'm biased ipso facto, but I'd imagine even people who agree with him on everything would find his presentation of said opinions to be more than a little rude, obnoxious, and abrasive.) Anyone seen this? Interested in posting a list of favorite acts? Excited for the upcoming season?
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sagenesse
Sophomore
@sagenesse
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Post by sagenesse on Jun 21, 2017 4:54:27 GMT
I have seen a few episodes but Penn comes across as a jerk.
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Post by Nalkarj on Jun 29, 2017 15:41:53 GMT
Anyone have any information about that next season? I'm seeing two different dates—Jul. 10 and Jul. 13. sagenesseI think Penn always comes across as a bit of a jerk! With that said, I think he tones it down somewhat for the show, and the magic is always fun.
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Post by poelzig on Jun 29, 2017 19:44:17 GMT
Penn is kind of a colossal douchebag these days. He should take some cues from Teller. Seriously though how can anyone take multi millionaires with numerous mansions seriously when they smugly inform the less fortunate they should feel guilty over whatever the cause of the week happens to be?
I haven't seen the show though.
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Post by Nalkarj on Jun 30, 2017 1:18:46 GMT
poelzigI agree that Penn comes off as a complete jerk nowadays, especially for those people (myself included) who disagree with his political and philosophical convictions, and that the duo tend to support whatever cause of the week and try to make other feel guilty. With that said, I quite admire Teller, particularly in his ability in and knowledge of magic, and I think that the show tempers most of Penn's more egregious qualities. He is fairly kind to the majority of magicians on the program, whether they fool him and Teller or not.
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Post by Nalkarj on Jul 9, 2017 0:16:15 GMT
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Post by Nalkarj on Jul 23, 2017 13:27:28 GMT
poelzig, sagenesse, Blue, et al. Anyone see the first two episodes of the new season? On the whole, I found them better than Season 3. I particularly liked the former math teacher, whose trick—though not a "fooler"—was a thing of absolute wonder.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 25, 2017 8:04:47 GMT
They recently added the show to Netflix over here, so I watched an episode of season one. I'm not a huge fan. I do like Penn and Teller, even if Penn can be quite abrasive. Did you see the chicken trick? It made news over here, as it was a Belgian magician, and we don't have many, not good ones anyway I simply cannot understand how that works, at all.
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Post by Nalkarj on Jul 25, 2017 11:01:24 GMT
Thanks for the reply, @zieveraar. I agree with you completely that Penn can be quite abrasive; indeed, I find him very annoying at times. Of the duo, I prefer Teller both in the tricks he does and his whole comic persona. I did see the chicken trick, and I'm not sure that I liked the presentation (it was all a bit strained), though the final effect was well-done. I'm also not too sure how it was done; I thought at first it was something in the paper that attracted the chicken, but De Rijck gave them to Penn and Teller. So now I'm thinking that it was something on the fence display--perhaps food or something behind in one of the fence slats? De Rijck said that the chicken "...was the mentalist," but perhaps more of a--er--"collaboration" between the two?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 25, 2017 12:19:15 GMT
Thanks for the reply, @zieveraar . I agree with you completely that Penn can be quite abrasive; indeed, I find him very annoying at times. Of the duo, I prefer Teller both in the tricks he does and his whole comic persona. I did see the chicken trick, and I'm not sure that I liked the presentation (it was all a bit strained), though the final effect was well-done. I'm also not too sure how it was done; I thought at first it was something in the paper that attracted the chicken, but De Rijck gave them to Penn and Teller. So now I'm thinking that it was something on the fence display--perhaps food or something behind in one of the fence slats? De Rijck said that the chicken "...was the mentalist," but perhaps more of a--er--"collaboration" between the two?
It would have to be But even if there is something on the stand itself, he'ld still have to place the paper at the exact right spot where the chicken is going to pick at it. There has to be a marking on the paper somehow, so the guy knows which it has to be. And he just removes it when he picks up the paper.
It took him years of practice, but ofcourse, chickens aren't the brightest fowls
De Rijck was a bit nervous, but as a whole, I thought he did pretty well, his English was decent enough, not always a given for a Belgian
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Post by Nalkarj on Jul 26, 2017 20:17:07 GMT
@zieveraar
Oh, yes, his English was excellent.
My problem was simply the presentation of the trick; I suppose I prefer simpler presentations, in the sense that I like the magicians to present their tricks directly, without running to excess--less gimmicky (in the vernacular, not the magician-speak, sense).
I think you're absolutely right: he had to know which one it was to be, and to have a method (probably in the slats) for having the chicken pick (peck? Pardon the atrocious pun) that one.
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Post by Nalkarj on Jul 29, 2017 13:41:24 GMT
poelzig, sagenesse, Blue, @zieveraar, et al. Anyone see the third episode? Call me crazy, but I wasn't blown away by Shin Lim's return. The man is an unbelievably good sleight-of-hand artist, but it seems like he got by just because P&T are impressed by his skill—which would be fine were it not that others, also very skilled, haven't received the prize. Add to that the fact that I find him more than a little stuck-up and self-serious in his persona and magic, and I was more annoyed than anything else.
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Post by Nalkarj on Aug 29, 2017 16:59:48 GMT
Has anyone seen any episodes this season?
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Post by Terrapin Station on Aug 29, 2017 17:04:25 GMT
I really enjoy the show.
I love Penn and Teller in general, though. And re what I know about Penn's views, I agree with him on most things.
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Post by Terrapin Station on Aug 29, 2017 17:08:34 GMT
I was a bit disappointed that they knew how the horror-oriented guy (who cut the coin out of his side) did his act, just because I thought he'd be a perfect opening act for P&T.
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Post by Nalkarj on Aug 30, 2017 18:40:32 GMT
Terrapin StationNice to see another fan! I will say, though, that I didn't like Sperry's (the horror-oriented guy's) performance. I thought it was obvious and just intended to gross people out rather than providing real entertainment. I thought the rest of that episode ("Something Fishy This Way Comes") was one of the best, though. Here's what I wrote about it on another forum:
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Post by Terrapin Station on Aug 30, 2017 20:05:05 GMT
I'm a big horror fan, so the creepy/gross-out aspects of it are part of what I found entertaining.
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Post by iamnotarobot on Sept 1, 2017 21:42:42 GMT
It's a show I never miss.
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