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BB pal Alex Ringis says, "A sign of the financial times: Live action roleplaying geeks in full costume with fake weapons and in a reality vortex. Repo-bounty hunters, there to repossess the 'Wizard's' Toyota Prius. BIZARRE video ensues."
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Ugghhh. Staged.
Fake?
Seriously, this show is about as real as Cheaters. I think it started out pretty decent, but then they started to punch up the scripts. My guess is that there just aren't enough compelling stories to be told about repossession without getting all NPR on the subject. And the folks on this show are more WWE then NPR.
THAT IS NO WAY TO TREAT A PRINCESS!
(sorry, but it had to be in all caps)
Not a financial wizard, apparently.
I'm both a LARPer and a Prius driver, so I sympathise. Bonus points for the purple robe and a stupid hat. Every good character concept should start with a stupid hat.
But I have to agree with Seattlepete, this looks hardly realistic, at least I don't know any people as out of this world as these people.
Ha ha, you thought Operation Repo was "real." That's some of the crappiest acting I've ever seen.
"I took the hat off!"
Damn wizard hats all pointy pointy!
ThiNE Prius?
>.>
I recognise this wannabe.Merlin and I are on the case.This kind of quasi-entertainment has become standard fodder for the hoi polloi and is precisely why We switched to the internet. Tweenbot was charming ,this web creative and stimulating a tip of the hat from the Wiz.
Bleh, not funny, boring video. Cable TV is so good.
Clearly fake...
There's a disclaimer at the beginning of the show stating that these are reenactments "based" on actual events.
I have to agree with the Caveat view-or statement in the post. I just finished watching 2 in a row and the last one had a fight at the end that looked so fake, I turned it off. Then I came to Boing Boing to see that I am not the only one who thinks it is slightly staged.
I know nobody likes a grammar nazi, but:
It really should be "thy Prius," not "thine." "Thine" is used when the next word starts with a vowel.
Fake. So... a reality t.v. show is parodying larpers for not being able to tell the difference between fantasy and reality. That's irony.
Fake. No way a girl that hot is larping.
Does this reality show think they're clever?
Just how hard is it to make fun of Larpers?
Gee...big guy covered in muscles makes fun of a gamer. This isn't just staged, he's reliving his glory days from high school.
Wow, it's so real to life! Everyone I know that drives a Prius is a nerd! Or maybe I just only know nerds. My reality, it's shaking!
I'm sorry, i couldn't help myself...
I put on my robe and wizard hat.
Why didn't they just use a lightning bolt?
or shook up a bottle of Mountain Dew and sprayed him?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vChEPj0dXXk&feature=PlayList&p=B30544EDB2A97846&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=3
I really think the wizard needs to re-evaluate his costume choice.
Not only is it fake but from what I recall on the few times I've assisted someone in repo job. When a situation becomes remotely violent you leave and come back later take their car in the night. You don't threaten people as that can turn ugly quickly. The main problem is you can easily be mistaken for some thug trying to steal your car and well then you're just defending yourself.
I can imagine the casting call for this one:
Clueless dweeb types needed. High pitched voice, pasty skin a plus. Esp. need chubbies.
I am not proud to say I managed to watch this show a few times, hoping it would get better only to see it get worse. Many if not all of the repos are stupidly staged and badly acted. This is just one of the more silly.
Wait, SeattlePete,"Cheaters" is staged? No WAY! Didn't the host really get stabbed? If you're right, they have way better actors than this junk... I wanted so bad for it to be good, the premise should have potential, but no, instead of 'Cops', we get 'Springer'.
I guess real repo jobs are probably pretty dull... stakeout in the dark. Drive off with the car. Repeat.
There used to be a show called Repo Men on TLC that was actually well done and interesting with professionals who repo'd everything from cars to construction gear to boats and airplanes...this TruTV knockoff is so bad it's embarassing, the repo company they follow is less than professional...they come across more like a bunch of kids who want to fight than professionals who are just doing a job.
For my money, nothing along these lines is better than Cops.
"The life of a repo man is always intense."
to 25: I said it once and i'll say it again, only an asshole gets killed for a car.
Hey! Gandalf! Nice hat!
also, Jingle - Jangle.
This reality show is fake. Look it up on IMDB. They are actors.
Do people REALLY believe that this is real?
!) How do you find someone in the middle of nowhere?
2) As soon as a repossession of ANYTHING does - or even might - "disturb the peace," by law you have to leave. Go get an order and come back with a sheriff.
3) Need we go on?
You don't call in police when repoing. It's a fun, exciting job. I always loved doing it (San Francisco up to Vallejo). Drive around bored shitless most of the time looking for cars and then swiping them. You get a sheet of paper with possible addresses of where the vehicles are. Once in a while you get a guy coming out with a baseball bat, knife or gun. That's when it gets fun. And yes, we did play the Repo Man soundtrack in vehicles we repo'ed. Cops are rarely involved, even when someone pulls out a gun. It's a civil thing, not a criminal case.
This is obviously staged, the very fact that everyone sounds like they are talking on mic gives it away. The lines are given way too clearly no matter what distance away they are and seem to be rehearsed to some extent.
I don't doubt that something like this could happen, but it is unlikely that anyone, even the great and powerful "repo man," would be able to find someone in the middle of the woods.
Also, one would hope that an entire group of LARPers would not stay in character throughout the entirety of something as serious as this.
I can see some jackass gamers deciding to take the piss out of the normal, hoping that he gets weirded out and goes away. Sort of like small animals pretending to be ferocious (and I say this with much love for my fellow gamers).
But the Mods or GMs would be over there in a heartbeat to intervene. (surprise, not everyone at a LARP is wearing funny hats).
The other possibility is that you get That One Guy deciding to be a Real Hero (TM) and picking a fight. With or without foam-padded boffer stick. Which is probably why the GMs are hurrying over there in the first place...
And don't get me started about that hat.
i hate that show, it makes repo men look like scumbags and jackass thugs. I worked with a repo company once, we would of left and come back to the guys house at night to take it, not swearing and threatening a bunch of geeks, hel, i am a geek too!
Not only staged but a rip-off of a much better bit from Reno 911. If you're not going to be original, at least try not to steal ideas from some of the best improvisers out there.
"I'm wearing Boots of Escaping!"
I have never watched the show, but when I saw the commercial for this episode I recorded it just to see this piece. It was amusing, but yeah, felt so totally staged.
I can confirm this show IS scripted. I know a few people who work on it.
Today's episode with the BMW flipping did it for me. It was so fake that it was funny thinking how they thought they fooled anyone. But its not comedy, so I was laughing angrily. Yes it is possible. Hahaha Arrrr LOL AgRRRR
what about when the cops come?