SyFy's Heroes of Cosplay

[Guri]

Sucks when you find out that you just got played, don't it? :lol

Right. We used to watch American Pickers and Pawn Stars - I always knew that Pawn Stars was fake because NOBODY like Chumlee would ever keep a job for long.

But American Pickers got me good - I can't even watch it anymore. I heard that the Storage Wars planted stuff for them to find, but I'm betting that American Pickers does too. Takes ALL the fun out of it.

 

[Riceball]

Right. We used to watch American Pickers and Pawn Stars - I always knew that Pawn Stars was fake because NOBODY like Chumlee would ever keep a job for long.

But American Pickers got me good - I can't even watch it anymore. I heard that the Storage Wars planted stuff for them to find, but I'm betting that American Pickers does too. Takes ALL the fun out of it.

It's obvious that American Pickers is scripted, you can tell by some of the shots they shoot when they arrive on the property. There's been times where they've shot the guys rolling up on the property from the vantage of the property itself and I seem to recall seeing scenes where they have the camera inside the house looking at the guys. All that and the general lack of questioning of who these two guys are and what they're doing on the property makes it fairly obvious that at the very least the producers roll up ahead of time to warn the owners of the imminent arrival Mike & Frank and a film crew and get their consent to be filmed as well as making sure they don't shoot them on the spot if they were to arrive unannounced.

 

[Guri]

I always thought the girl from the store called ahead and they were expecting them.

 

[Riceball]

I always thought the girl from the store called ahead and they were expecting them.

That's the case some of the time but not so when they're "free styling" and just roll up to some random homestead because it looked interesting to them from the road.

 

[Moviefreak]

Even when free styling, they always have camera shots from the property of the guys rolling up. It is all set up ahead of the time.
When Mike and Frank were down here in Florida, a radio station put a on air call out, asking them to call the station. They actually called in.
The radio host asked them if they actually drove here and they said no. They said they actually fly most of the time and the crew drives the van down to where they are filming. They meet up and check out the locations. He said they do freestyle while there and they do drive themselves to freestyle. But producers stop, speak with the owners and get their consent to film.

 

[Guri]

Getting consent to film makes sense...

 

[infymys]

 

[TheNickFox]

And that was the whole point of my little drive by point-and-laugh earlier. The nasty, snarky comments and attitudes on the show are all faked. The nasty, snarky comments on here are real and are being directed at real people, many of whom are on this forum.

It's not a thread until you're here, Oz! :lol

This is definitely a sentiment I've been trying to figure out a way to express here for a few weeks now, and you nailed it very succinctly.

I think it's important to remember that these people are there to fill "roles" and as such the producers will go to great lengths to create or recreate situations that reinforce those archetypes. It doesn't mean those people are actually like that. So you may not like the character you see on TV, it doesn't mean we should attack the person behind it.

...it's like slapping Jack Gleason because you don't like Joffrey on Game of Thrones. He's just playing a role, just like all these people.

Sadly for those of us looking for serious prop and costume-based entertainment, the average viewer needs conflict (The basic unit of story telling) to be more interested, unlike some of us who might watch 24 straight hours of How To videos just because we can, but maybe if enough people get interested in our little world from this show, maybe in time, they too will want less drama and more serious programming...maybe.

Regardless, let's try not to take this out on the people behind the characters the producers have created through scripted situations and editing.

-Nick

 

[EyeofSauron]

yes, but the thing is, even if they play characters, how many people know that? dont you think that being shown like this severely damages their image permanently, or at least for a long time?

for example in the last episode, the 21 year old telling becky she does bad work and she would never work with her, do you think that that will make a good impression on activision blizzard?

and so on.

its just damaging to their persona

 

[Guri]

Someone tell me - Judge Judy is real, though, right?

 

[Riceball]

Even when free styling, they always have camera shots from the property of the guys rolling up. It is all set up ahead of the time.
When Mike and Frank were down here in Florida, a radio station put a on air call out, asking them to call the station. They actually called in.
The radio host asked them if they actually drove here and they said no. They said they actually fly most of the time and the crew drives the van down to where they are filming. They meet up and check out the locations. He said they do freestyle while there and they do drive themselves to freestyle. But producers stop, speak with the owners and get their consent to film.

That's basically what I was trying to say but I don't think that I was very clear about it. To be more clear, whenever they're freestyling is the most telling that things are staged/scripted since they often have shots of them rolling up shot from the property. I'm sure that in many parts of the country that they're in if some camera crew just showed up unannounced and started setting up shot they'd probably get shot at by the owner.

I'm really surprised to hear that they fly in to most places and then meet up with the van but I suppose that it makes sense. Makes me wonder if they get stuff shipped back too since they always seem to buy more stuff than they should be able to pack in their van. Speaking of driving to a location and meeting up, I wonder if the Ghost Hunters crew do that too whenever they go to investigate somewhere really far from the New England area, that is with the exception of Steve unless he really doesn't have a fear of flying.

 

[p51]

That's the case some of the time but not so when they're "free styling" and just roll up to some random homestead because it looked interesting to them from the road.

NOPE. A local guy was filmed for one of the 'freestyle' places, he was not only told to act surprised, they tried to get him to be a gruff person and that isn't in his character, they had a heck of a time trying to act someone he wasn't...

 

[Scareb]

Every time I see a commercial/preview on TV for one of those picker/towing/whatever reality shows and the "unsuspecting" person pulls out a gun, I keep expecting to see a scene like this before everything calms down.

 

[.:MirrorminD:.]

Yaya Han apologizes to Jessica Nigri?? OMG dramu! - YouTube

Haha that was actually pretty cool. Wonder if she's gonna get in trouble because of her contract?

 

[MFP 2020]

My wife is a Bravo "reality" show addict. Normally the DVR is full of that crap, but I manage to record HoC. I was watching the show yesterday and she said, "What are you watching?"

"Zeroes of Cosplay. Finally, there's a reality show for me." You know, sorta.

You know what bugs me most about the show? It's that Jessica M. is very attractive in a lot of her shots, but she's chosen a hairstyle (bangs!) that make her facial features look huge.

 

[dogface]

I think I like the format of Face Off much better than HOC, however, we here all know that you don't crank out a competitive piece in a few days. The part that confuses me is the term "professional cosplayer". Explain that to me without making me laugh. I am no professional propmaker or costume maker by any means. I have a day job and my art is a hobby and that sucks. I've been a professional artist in the past and most of the time is spent trying to get the next gig.

I guess the point I would like to make is that nothing on TV is real. I don't know those people and I don't want to know them. Their drama is contrived and their costumes are not that amazing, but it is fun to watch because they make me laugh. They don't put cosplayers in a good light. If you are a cosplayer, more power to you. Express yourself the way that best makes you happy. I think it is entertaining to see them flounder at simple tasks and when they experience failure, they receive it poorly, like they just lost a limb or something (like the Three Stooges). As features of the program I would think that they would not be happy with the foolish way in which they are being portrayed. If they are using their sexuality to sell themselves, then that is something with which they have to live, and as a result, will have to overcome not being taken seriously.

 

[costumepro]

It's quite likely especially if that video is publicly accessed. NBC/Universal who owns SyFy DOES watch those who have been on their shows for any violation of contract.

Haha that was actually pretty cool. Wonder if she's gonna get in trouble because of her contract?

 

[Ozymandius]

yes, but the thing is, even if they play characters, how many people know that? dont you think that being shown like this severely damages their image permanently, or at least for a long time?...

Of course it does, and I have very little doubt that they are watching every Tuesday night in horror. It was all fun and play acting when they were filming, but now these episodes are airing as "reality TV" with them playing the role of the world's biggest *******.

That has got to be a kick to the gut when you realize that you've just taken part in your own defamation.


Now granted this is all pure speculation on my part, but it's based in what I think is a reasonable gleaning of the inside information we have gotten thus far. But if you want my candid opinion of the show, I think the characters you are seeing are more a reflection of the juvenile and idiotic producers rather than the performers. That's the ******** we should be directing our ire towards. They are the reason we get this and Face Off instead of quality shows on the hobby.

 

[Scareb]

I don't know if they can actually do anything. I mean she doesn't actually name the TV show and she isn't bashing it.

 

[spatcave]

I want to see someone re-edit that video to make it seem like they're fighting!