Penn & Teller are supposedly 'fooled' by tricks that even I can figure out, and I haven't been a professional magician for 40 years. It is obvious that they choose one trick before the show as the one that will fool them and then come up with a rational as to why they can't figure it out. Still, as a magic fan, it is a very entertaining show with a lot of good talent.
shareWell they have very generous fooling criteria. They get one guess and they have to identify the specific variant. They might know all the specific variants of a trick but they could pick the wrong one.
shareI think it's also "rigged" somewhat in that they allow people on who have no chance of fooling them. It's just the producers giving free publicity to struggling magicians, rather than a true contest. At least half of them say "I know P&T know how I did it, but it was nice being here anyway."
If you know you are going to lose, then it's not really a contest.
The contest element is a clever hook. It's more about being an entertaining hour than a 'will they or won't they be fooled.
Do they 'take a dive' sometimes? Hard to believe they both actually missed the guy loading the Oreo in his mouth. . .
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Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
We know they let some slip by because there was one episode where the producers slipped an act that Penn or P&T had idolized long before the pair became famous, and Penn said there was no way they were going to say that they hadn't fooled them. There was one act that he said would have fooled them if the guy hadn't personally showed them how the trick was done some time back, but I can't remember if they gave him the trophy or not.
You know what noone tells you about cooking with the Dark Side? The food is really good!
That was the episode with Greg Wilson, who included his parents, who have been in the business forever and had their own show called "The Magic Land of Alakazam." That was Penn's way of honoring the legacy. Again, the show is really simply about entertaining the audience. It's a classy way to present magic in a different way. It's much better than more of the same, tired "Masters of Illusion" and cheezy Criss Angel approach.
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Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
There are actually a couple of interesting acts on MoI. I'm particularly fond of Barry & Stuart, but Piff the Magic Dragon and Les Arnold & Dazzle are always interesting to watch. But yeah, there's a lot of repetitively driving music with people strutting around the stage waving their arms importantly, while doing the same tricks we've seen dozens of times before.
You know what noone tells you about cooking with the Dark Side? The food is really good!
Right. I love it all and have since forever, but it's really refreshing to have two of the best in the business find a better take on the packaged presentation.
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Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
It is obvious that they choose one trick before the show as the one that will fool them
I think the reason that there's always one trick that fools them is simply because the episodes have been edited that way.
As was already pointed out, they only get one guess. If there are ten possible solutions, and they can't spot a move that proves which one it is, they just have to guess based on gut instinct. And if they guess wrong, the act wins. And frankly, if two of the best magicians in the world can sit there and watch you perform, knowing all the possible ways you can do a specific trick, and they still can't catch you in the act, that's worth rewarding. I mean, the pool table trick from two episodes ago, I was able to spot both moves no problem, and all I ever did was dabble in less than half a dozen simple card tricks almost 30 years ago. Granted, I had the advantage of the camera view, which was a significantly higher angle than P&T sitting in front of the stage, but as interesting as it was to see someone work a full pool table into not just a single trick, but presumably his entire act, his slight-of-hand was just sloppy.
So, yeah, most of the acts don't even show up entertaining the thought of winning. It's free advertising for their acts. And quite a few of them get incredibly sincere praise from Penn even though they know exactly how it was done. Sometimes it's because the trick is performed so well that even though P&T know exactly what to look for and when it happens, they still can't catch the move. Sometimes it's because someone took a stale old trick that's been performed exactly the same way by thousands of birthday-party magicians and put a spin on it that makes it worthy of a TV audience. And, as has happened quite a few times of late, it's pointing out that P&T know for a fact that the trick was done in a really complex and difficult manner because there aren't any trap doors on that stage (except for a heavy freight lift that would be used to transfer large props and scenery from the basement to the stage and is big enough to carry a car).
So, keep two things in mind. One is that the TV audience often has a better angle on the action than P&T, so you might catch a move that would be concealed from their view. Two is that unless they guess right and you can figure out their code speak, you never know 100% for certain what method was used. They've had quite a few times when Penn rolls into his explanation like he's disappointed that it's so obvious, only to have the magician claim that a different method was used (sometimes even one that the magician invented). And each magic act has to be vetted by an off-stage expert, so there is always one other person in the building who knows the truth and can expose any magician who claims they guessed wrong just for false prestige.
As for me, I also watch Masters of Illusion and find that a lot of those tricks are boring to watch because I've seen the same basic trick so many times, and the whole choreographed dance routine set to driving music is the most overused gimmick in the business. With P&T:FU, they've had people who invented new tricks just to perform for this show, or who have put a completely original spin on it. 90% of the tricks shown on MoI wouldn't even qualify to be on this show, and most of the rest would probably just get a quick explanation and be dismissed.
You know what noone tells you about cooking with the Dark Side? The food is really good!
On top of the episodes being edited together from multiple tapings, it should also be pointed out that not every act that gets filmed, actually airs. Take this pÑ–ss poor segment that thankfully didn't air:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EShv3OLLJDU
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The New Number 2: "Are you going to run?"
Number 6: "Like blazes. First chance I get."
The David Masters segments is like a comedy movie parody of magic.
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Shooting has started on my latest movie: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5531336/
Not sure if the rules state one guess only. Remember the balloons guy? Teller guessed he had a hidden helium tank, and the guy said No. Then Teler guessed again, and the guy said They got it.
Clearly, Teller had two tries.
Someone said that there's a "fooler" in every episode and there's not. There's plenty of episodes where they don't get fooled at all. And the only way it might be a little rigged is when there is a magician on that they idolize. They usually let them go home with the trophy even if it's not a hard trick. Otherwise as someone else said, they have one chance to figure it out and if they don't the person wins. I don't think it's rigged beyond what I said.
"The saddest thing in life is wasted talent." ~ A Bronx Tale (1993)
The way it works is you have a fixed number of episodes per season (S3 has 13). There's a fixed number of acts per episode (I'm reasonably certain every episode in the series has had four acts plus P&T doing the closer). All you have to do is record 52 acts with the three recurring cast wearing the same outfits. The first 13 times someone fools them, have Alyson close it out by saying something like, "We have one fooler, let's see if we can get another." Time each segment plus the 13 P&T acts to even out the length, and make sure that no episode gets more than one fooler until every episode has at least one. If you only get ten, then you have ten eps with one fooler and three with none. If you get 15, then two get a second fooler and the rest get only one. The first benefit from doing it this way is you have much more control over runtime without having to carve every last spare second out of one episode while leaving lots of padding in the next. The other big benefit is you don't risk having stupid stuff like your first episode is stacked with all foolers and the rest of the season goes without. With a show like this, you don't want them to clump up very much, so the TV audience gets to see a little payoff in just about every episode, and there's never an episode where P&T look like washed-up hacks who can't keep up with modern tricks.
You know what noone tells you about cooking with the Dark Side? The food is really good!
They don't pick one act on each show to fool them, all the acts are taped then the order is assembled afterwards. That's why she wears the same dress and P&T wear the same suit and ties, so they can mix acts and allot one "fooler" into each show.
shareCan't speak about the american version, but in the UK game shows that involve a monetary prize (like the trip to Las Vegas) are heavily regulated, it would be illegal for the judges, the production or the host to give an advantage to the contestant.
shareU.S. shows with cash prizes are regulated, too. But FU doesn't give a cash prize, just an FU trophy award.
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The New Number 2: "Are you going to run?"
Number 6: "Like blazes. First chance I get."
FU does give a cash prize. The Fooler gets to perform on Penn & Teller's stage at the Rio Hotel and Casino. They get paid for this performance. That constitutes a cash prize.
shareThe prize of performing at the Rio was apparently only the first season. It hasn't been mentioned since.
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Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
The prize is getting to perform there. You get paid to perform. It doesn't mean it's part of the prize. But it could be, yet we'll never really know unless somebody involved in the production comments on that.
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The New Number 2: "Are you going to run?"
Number 6: "Like blazes. First chance I get."
We know they get to perform there. Has it been explicitly stated anywhere that this is a paid performance? If the prize is the chance to perform, in theory that should be desirable enough that they don't have to compensate you for accepting the prize.
You know what noone tells you about cooking with the Dark Side? The food is really good!
I don't think it's rigged. I haven't watched the show as much as I have wanted, but I've watched episodes where nobody fooled them. The one guy I was surprised he food them. He was messing around with milk and an Oreo, and he ended up with the Oreo in his mouth when it looked like he had already swallowed it. They couldn't figure out how he got it in his mouth. I watched it back, and you can tell that he stuck it in when he lifted a napkin to his mouth. I'm surprised they didn't notice that.
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