Wizard Wars

[Armitage72]

Has anyone been watching Wizard Wars Tuesdays on SyFy?

It's basically the Food Network show Chopped, but for magicians. "Create a routine using these four random objects."

Two pairs of magicians compete against each other in round one, and the pair with the most impressive act then competes against a pair of the show's in-house magicians (the Wizards): Justin Flom, David Shimshi, Angela Funovitz, and Gregory Wilson. If the competitors beat the Wizards, they get $10,000.
The judges are Penn & Teller, Jason Latimer, and magic critic Christen Gerhart.

It seems pretty interesting to me. They don't say how much prep and rehearsal time they get, but it doesn't seem to be much.
Last Tuesday, the first round used Tarot cards, sparklers, and a radio-controlled helicopter. Round two used a rocking chair, a pirate costume, salt and pepper shakers, and a chess set.

I guess it's a good sign when a trick leaves Penn & Teller with their mouths having open in amazement.

Spoiler for those who might watch later:

In round two, one of the challengers was sitting in the rocking chair while they performed tricks using the chess set and shakers. At the end of the routine, they "realized" that they hadn't used the chair in a trick, bent down, grabbed the chair, and crumpled it into strips of paper.

The audience shouted in excitement and, from the look on his face, I honestly though Teller was going to break character and say "Holy ****!!"

 

[Garrette]

I've seen one episode twice, the one where they used a mannequin, sunglasses, a sword, and blackboards. The one you describe sounds better.

With the caveat that I would not be able to do anything remotely approaching the deceptiveness or quality that even the losers manage, I was a bit disappointed in the final acts and in the manner of judging, possibly more so in the judging which is a bit too Paula Abdul-ish in that even criticism is cloaked in "but you're still wonderful." Even more, there was too little discussion, except by Penn himself, of presentational style in how a lay audience would perceive it.

But with all that, I hope to watch it more.

 

[Armitage72]

The judges also seem to be making an effort to work around the limitations of the concept itself.

Paraphrasing from Episode Two:
"Let's face it, when you're working with an untrained animal, you're pretty much only going to be able to do box tricks. That said, you did a good job in the situation."

(Round one was packing crates, dog treats, and a puppy. Round two was a kimono, a rainbow golf umbrella, a bag of hard candy, and an armoire.)

 

[steve s]

I've been watching. The rocking chair trick was really well done. I'm trusting that they're not resorting to camera edits to make these tricks seem more impressive than they are.

Steve S

 

[lylfyl]

I've been enjoying the show with my family --- especially Teller's reactions when he is amused or impressed by a trick.

I'm really curious how long are the contestants really given to prep their acts. Certain props look like they would need special prep time. I'm sure the show sometimes says the first round have already prepared their act, but then the winners go against the house 'wizards' and the implication is that the audience is sitting around for that.

I'm assuming that both teams prepare a second act against the 'wizards' beforehand as well? Or is the filming staggered, and the audience reconvenes on a later day (in the same clothes).