Day One Hundred and Sixty-two - TEDTalks: Artistry and Illusion, Episodes 1 & 2, "David Blaine is NOT a magician... here."

I watched the first two episodes of Artistry and Illusion and was a bit disappointed with both.

Not that they weren't mildly interesting lectures by Marco Tempest and David Blaine, one being on the essence of "magic" as delivered deception and the other a personal journey to break a world record, but there was never any "wow" factor for any of it.

I can easily believe that three iPhones can be programmed to help deliver a multimedia presentation and I can also believe that a man can break heretofore unheard of records of physical endurance. There's nothing "magical" about that... and while they were both okay, neither presentation was suitably impressive.

Especially since one was just a matter of timing with a little sleight of hand and the other... well, the other played out its final moments on Oprah.

OPRAH.

Your works of endurance are impressive physically, Mr. Blaine, but not impressive on other levels, including tact and grace.


Usually I am very happy with TEDTalks, but not everything is golden or even that thought provoking. Marco Tempest's Three iPhone Monty routine was just something to pass the time for me. Cute, in its own way, even if its core message was unexciting and even the occasional addition of props like the fake butterfly on a wire were boring as all get out. While Blaine's mammoth breath-holding is alright in terms of what the human body can be stretched to do, making it a publicity stunt and then bragging about it at TED is just... ugh.

I'm going to give Artistry and Illusion one more chance to show me something thought-provoking or I'm done with this particular series and going back to the other TEDTalks.