# Penn & Teller: Fool Us (season 5) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 24, 2018, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662 "2018-06-24T12:44:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Oneilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3e96dc/32.png) [@Oneilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oneilla)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2018, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/161 "2018-08-22T16:06:29Z")
> [@Dingbang](#): > > I also wondered if the traps were actually dangerous, because P&T have a rule that they don’t do things that could truly cause serious harm and they don’t allow it on the show either. But maybe the forced selection renders the trick “safe” by their definition. The bones seemed very soft and powdery, so maybe the traps weren’t actually strong enough to cause harm? > > I thought the Dragonfly illusion was all show and little magic, a long way to portray a pretty routine illusion. Don’t the girls just sneak out the back of the boxes, change clothes, and sneak back in when they’re reassembled? Plenty of shadow and backstage area to facilitate that. There is a safety device you can get for a bench saw which stops the blade in microseconds if human skin touches it. Seems a bit too elaborate for an animal trap trick though. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/eiYoBbEZwlk/hqdefault.jpg "Saw Stop - This guy puts a finger into an active table saw blade & comes away without a scratch!") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiYoBbEZwlk) I think he just controls the selection and his actions change depending on what is chosen. ---
**Author:** ![Oneilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3e96dc/32.png) [@Oneilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oneilla)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2018, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/162 "2018-08-22T16:30:35Z")
The camera cuts kind of cover it up but it looks like animal trap guy keeps one of his hands over the safe trap as he’s waving them over. He asks Alyson “which hand do you want to be safe”, Alyson says right hand and then he puts the right hand into the trap. You’d think logically that “right hand to be safe” would mean you’re not going to stick it into a trap but his right hand was over the safe trap. If she had chosen left hand then he would have still put the right hand into the safe trap. Penn says they were real traps. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2018, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/163 "2018-08-22T16:34:51Z")
The SawStop is an entire table saw with a massive brake built into it, nothing you could add to an animal trap. I assume those bones that shattered were fragile materiy and if you triggered the wrong trap it would be painful but not seriously harmful. He also just taps the traps with those bones, I’m sure they could be rigged so that hitting them with your hand as he does in trick will not spring them but based on P&T’s explanation that is not what he has done. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2018, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/164 "2018-08-22T20:15:21Z")
> [@Oneilla](#): > > …Penn says they were real traps. Upon closer viewing I note that the jaws don’t even have teeth, they are flat. Not that I’d want to stick my hand (or anything else) in there. mmm ---
**Author:** ![zombywoof](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/9e8a1a/32.png) [@zombywoof](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zombywoof)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2018, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/165 "2018-08-22T22:35:35Z")
I don’t the the traps were actually dangerous in case the magician made a mistake. On an earlier episode of the show (perhaps from the original British version?) a guy did a trick where he slammed an audience member’s hand down on a paper bag, which supposedly may have contained an upright nail. Penn said that you can watch videos of people failing at this trick and impaling themselves on Youtube - but that any competent magician’s method would be 100% safe, and that they would not allow anything truly dangerous on the show. As others mentioned, the “bone” props he used looked almost powdery when they broke, and were probably very fragile, and while the traps made a lot of noise they were probably quite weak. ---
**Author:** ![Oneilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3e96dc/32.png) [@Oneilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oneilla)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2018, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/166 "2018-08-23T00:46:35Z")
I did some googling of Christian Engblom. He sells a deck of cards called Triple C which has some sort of gimmick in it allowing you to find any card(s). I’d guess he used this deck for his trick. ---
**Author:** ![zombywoof](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/9e8a1a/32.png) [@zombywoof](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zombywoof)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2018, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/167 "2018-08-23T02:38:43Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > I’ve heard this too. But then Penn, during his discussion of this bit, talked about how careful they have to be backstage and during transport when using such dangerous equipment. Didn’t he say something about having to clamp all the traps closed when they are not being used? > mmm The equipment used as props might be dangerous (or might not - keep in mind Penn might be bullshitting!) but that doesn’t mean the tricks as they perform them are. P&T have done tricks where they (apparently) load revolvers and shoot each other in the face, where Penn (apparently) drives a truck over Teller’s head, where Teller (apparently) runs out of air while submerged underwater and drowns, etc…they’re not dumb enough to do anything actually dangerous though. ---
**Author:** ![Gus\_Gusterson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/85f322/32.png) [@Gus\_Gusterson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gus_Gusterson)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2018, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/168 "2018-08-23T13:32:49Z")
Neither of the trap guy’s hands were over the safe trap in the first three positions he moved his hands to. I guess he’s depending on Alison not stopping him too soon, but he must have had a plan for what to do if she did stop him in a position where neither hand was over the safe trap. He probably would have said something to scare her into thinking that she’d made a bad choice so she would switch. ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2018, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/169 "2018-08-23T14:06:10Z")
> [@Gus\_Gusterson](#): > > Neither of the trap guy’s hands were over the safe trap in the first three positions he moved his hands to. I guess he’s depending on Alison not stopping him too soon, but he must have had a plan for what to do if she did stop him in a position where neither hand was over the safe trap. He probably would have said something to scare her into thinking that she’d made a bad choice so she would switch. Easy. He’d just say something like, “Okay, Alison, you’ve chosen to eliminate these two traps.” And set them off. Then he’d move his hands over the remaining traps and have her pick again, with the odds more in his favor this time. Repeat as necessary. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2018, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/170 "2018-08-24T22:39:37Z")
> [@StarvingButStrong](#): > > Easy. He’d just say something like, “Okay, Alison, you’ve chosen to eliminate these two traps.” And set them off. Then he’d move his hands over the remaining traps and have her pick again, with the odds more in his favor this time. > > Repeat as necessary. Correct. Put another way, he had “outs”. mmm ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2018, 10:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/171 "2018-08-28T10:42:45Z")
This week’s episode was really good. Simon Pierro - this guy has been on before, doing film-to-life stuff with iPads. The main trick was pretty obvious: between the time Penn says the number 42 and when he gets the phone, the program on the phone is triggered to move Marie Osmond to spot #42. The 3D printer was the most impressive part. 🙂 Great presentation though and a clever bit. Nicholas Wallace, Oreo cookie guy. No idea how he did it. I assumed he stashed the razor cookie somehow, but he said it was not sleight-of-hand. I enjoy any act where Allyson gets tortured. Darcy Oake. Also completely blown away. I assume the box-within-a-box is significant somehow. Alex Geiser, coin magician. A riff on a classic, but it made Teller emit a very odd noise. Beautifully executed. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2018, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/172 "2018-08-28T16:03:59Z")
I know they probably film more than 1 show a day , but why does Alyson not change outfits for each show? Her shoes are great so she can keep those. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2018, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/173 "2018-08-28T16:33:13Z")
Same reason P&T wear the same suits every day - so they can edit episodes together from acts shot on separate days. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2018, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/174 "2018-08-28T16:37:56Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > Darcy Oake. Also completely blown away. I assume the box-within-a-box is significant somehow. Rewatching it, I realize that Darcy forced the five of hearts in some clever way, since Penn didn’t actually know what card he turned over. Still no idea how he gets it to appear in the bottle. Is there a duplicate bottle already in the box perhaps? ---
**Author:** ![zombywoof](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/9e8a1a/32.png) [@zombywoof](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zombywoof)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2018, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/175 "2018-08-29T00:45:08Z")
The notion that a contemporary audience member asked to name “a celebrity” would come up with “Marie Osmond” broke the suspension of disbelief, LOL. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2018, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/176 "2018-08-29T01:04:29Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > Nicholas Wallace, Oreo cookie guy. No idea how he did it. I assumed he stashed the razor cookie somehow, but he said it was not sleight-of-hand. I enjoy any act where Allyson gets tortured. Well, I think he knows the cookie that has the razor by feeling it. It must be different in some way. I think all the spinning and “shuffling” of the cookies is real, but he is able to tell by touch. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2018, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/177 "2018-08-29T01:16:01Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > Darcy Oake. Also completely blown away. I assume the box-within-a-box is significant somehow. He forces the 5 of Heart and Penn did not write his name on it. So…I dunno know how he gets it in the bottle, but the original sticks to the back of one of the Jokers. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2018, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/178 "2018-08-29T01:18:18Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > Alex Geiser, coin magician. A riff on a classic, but it made Teller emit a very odd noise. Beautifully executed. Magnets? Seasons change? I have no idea how he did that. Especially the third one that went into Teller’s hand. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2018, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/179 "2018-08-29T02:34:19Z")
The box that held the bottle has to be a trick box with some sort of hinge action that swings away and plops the 5 of hearts bottle in place of the empty one. I thought the performer, when placing the empty bottle in the small box, moved his hand/wrist in an unnatural manner. I dislike iPad magic, and the Marie Osmond part was very underwhelming. I would have been more impressed if he produced a 3D printer version of, say, Dan Rather. 🙂 The coins through the table were incredibly impressive. Turtles? mmm ---
**Author:** ![zombywoof](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/9e8a1a/32.png) [@zombywoof](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zombywoof)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2018, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662/180 "2018-08-29T02:37:43Z")
Not sure how Darcy Oake’s trick worked, but I think it’s safe to assume that after putting a-bottle-in-a-box and a-box-in-a-box he somehow has a-card-in-a-different-bottle ready to retrieve, and it’s basically a force from there. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/penn-teller-fool-us-season-5/816662.md?page=10)