Not only does Season 2 of Penn & Teller's Bullshit! restart next week, but the show has been renewed for a third season! I've been amazed by how they've topped their already fantastic Season 1 and how they keep finding new topics. I guess the bullshit truly never ends.
Good to hear they are continuing in the same mold and that a Season 3 is on the way. I'll have to wait for the eventual Season 2 DVD release (I don't believe Bullshit! is being carried on any of the Canadian stations currently), but I have my Season 1 set to keep me company in the meantime... I thought the first season was an interesting mix of strong debunking, humourous send-ups, serious discussion and good old fashioned ad hominem attacks... What were some of the topics covered in Season 2?
P&T are really going after some sacred cows in Season 2 and they are well-armed with tons of BBQ sauce. Some of the highlights have been episodes about PETA, the War on Drugs, Recycling, and the Bible. The next two shows look the industry around death and an episode about profanity. (As can be seen, lots of stuff against the forum policy, so I hope this thread doesn't derail into squabbles and eventual closure.)
I will say this though, Season 2 was strong. I sent the episode on Recycling to about 50 different people. We talked about this in college debate, and even when faced with the truth, people didn't want to believe that recycling=bad for the environment. But the science is so slam-dunk, it's hard to deal with it otherwise. Fantastic series.
I share your enthusiasm with the series and particularly liked Season 2 for going after less obvious targets than Season 1. I will admit to having a contrary postition on both PETA and the effects of recycling prior to their episode and it has me doing some research to reform my opinion. I can't say that Season 1 hit any of my thoughts as squarely. Excited to see them finish the season and bravo to Showtime for figuring out the gem they have (along with Dead Like Me).
I was wondering what happened to it. They aired like 7 episodes in season 2 and then it just disappeared.
What did they say in the recycling episode? I know recycling can be more polluting than creating a product in the first place but that was a few years ago in college environmental biology. I have a friend who loves PETA and would love to show her how wrong this group is. Not only that but they are warped to connect eating animals to the holocuast or the death of Jesus. Their leader was abdicating drinking beer over milk because she believes her father got cancer from milk. I know this got them into hot water with a lot of college campuses.
They did definitely touch on the connection PETA did with the Holocaust, as well as other facts, like one of the VPs has diabetes, and insulin is the result of animal testing, to which she only said (paraphrasing): "oh well, I need my life to rescue so many more animals!". Draws a very scary picture of PETA, definitely worth to be seen! -Christian
Most recycling is "feel-good" at best and at worst hurts the environment. The only worthwhile recycling is aluminum recycling (which people actually pay money for - amazing!). Landfills are not the great evils they are generally thought to be and are actually quite benign. P&T are right bastards when then convince people to sort their trash into 8 different recycling trash cans. (I laughed a lot at that.)
Have they announced when season 2 hits dvd. I just finished watching the first season, and the second sounds even better. Unfortunately my cable doesnt have showtime available even if I am willing to pay for it, so the dvds are the only way for me to watch this series.
I'll be getting every Bullshit! DVD released thus far in about two months or so. These guys are priceless. Love 'em.
I think this is the ep, along with PETA, that should be sent to more people. When I was in college and did debate, we talked about this but could never convince people of the truth.. composted paper (that's paper combined with organic material) will degrade and safely break up most modern inks within a reasonably quick timetable in a non-polluting way. Whereas recycling of paper, a process that uses bleaching, dealing with the mucky run off which must be barrelled and stored seperately, is a grossly anti-environmental process. That's not even including the fact you have to truck this stuff around (gas) from point to point and run machines to deal with the muck (electricity).. whereas most newer landfills have methane filters that use the methane gas exhausted by compost and turn that directly into useable energy.. real recycling. P&T:BS is one of the better bits of TV. If only to poke holes in terrible common conceptions because people get guilted into ideas rather then look into the science of the thing.
yeah I side with the "season 2 is as good as, or better" camp, some great eps so far, PETA, The War on Drugs, Safety, great stuff.
Enjoyed last night's show - I had no idea about much it cost to dump someone in the ground. But then, I'm constantly amazed by what people pay to get married, too. I saw season 1 again recently and was pleased at how rewatchable the episodes are. There are also some great extras - the ghost hunter feature would have made a good episode. But as great as season 1 was, season 2 is even better. My favorite so far has been the the Bible episode.
The bible episode dealt mostly with biblical contradictions, scientific impossibilities, and cruelties exacted by a "loving god" in the bible (ie, all first born in egypt, etc.) it also dealt with historical placement, whether or not Jesus was a composite of many people, etc.
Yep, that pretty much covers it except for the discrepancies in the official Elvis Presley fried chicken recipes. (That makes a lot more sense in the episode than it does here, I'm sure.)
The only problem I had with the biblical episode is that there are so many different ways that people interpret the bible, that taking it as literal and then decrying it as apocryphal is a take in and of itself But, it's a good argument for atheists and agnostics. That having been said, I love the science ones, which I find to be so dead on I wish people would send them off to more people to "spread the word"
