Review and news hub for movies, music and video games

Show:		8.0
Picture:		7.0
Sound:		7.0
Extras:		6.0
Score:		7.0

Director(s):	N/A
Starring:	Corey Harrison • Richard Harrison • Rick Harrison
Genre:	Reality
Website:	http://www.history.com/content/pawn-stars
Release Date:	January 26, 2010

List Price:	DVD - $14.99
Amazon:

Of all of the shows that have come along since the major cable ‘educational’ networks (TLC, Discovery, etc.) switched from Hitler’s dietary regimen and time-lapse storm footage based programming to a guys your dad thinks he can relate to regimen, Pawn Stars has to be one of the best. Not only does it feature a solid cast of characters that you don’t mind going back to episode after episode, but it does the thing that these networks were originally started for (learning you something) so surreptitiously that you almost forget that you’re doing it at all.

Pawn Stars takes place in the Gold and Silver Pawn Shop in Las Vegas, a family business owned and operated by three generations of the Harrison family: grizzled old grandpa Richard, his son Rick (who started the store), and one day successor to the two Corey. Day in and day out, they deal with customers who are either desperate for cash or inflated with unrealistic expectations of the kind of money that they could receive for their old antiques (admittedly, a lot of the appeal for this show comes from the pure schaudenfreude of the whole situation). Naturally, like every business, there are some hits and some misses. Occasionally, somebody walks through the door with something really cool (a pilot ejector seat was my favorite), and sometimes it’s just hilarious to watch people try to barter their way into a good deal when it’s clearly not going to happen. Along the way, we get to see the ins and outs of the pawn shop industry, going along with the guys as they have experts evaluate specialty items and deal with restorative artists who make items such as guitars and cars ready to be displayed on the showroom floor. This being a family business, there are also a fair amount of good-natured spats between the Harrisons, sometimes originating from financial disagreements (pretty much every price is based on well-educated guesswork), although enough of them emerge from their differing personalities (a swear jar has be instituted in one episode).

The first thing that struck me upon watching this was just how smart these guys have to be to do this. The art of evaluating a price (not to mention bartering with people) incorporates knowledge of not only industry, but also history and practical application, as well as a wide base of trivia, in a way that few professions really do. Over the span of the season, the Harrisons take a look at cars, civil war memorabilia (a surprisingly large amount of civil war stuff actually), celebrity autographs, a Native American totem, and medieval weaponry among other things, each of which is evaluated at length, with some helpful pop-up trivia giving additional info. Such is the breadth and variety of what they look at that the show never feels like its going stale, even if we are essentially watching the daily routine of a small business.

But the front and center stars of the show are the Harrisons, with the main protagonist being Rick, who originally started the store back in 1988. While they’re all smart (although it appears that they could all easily get into an argument as who knows this business best), they’re also likeable, and have a good dynamic together that helps to carry the show when they’re not off evaluating things. For better or worse, it makes the show feel like a workplace sitcom at times, if only because the characters are so well-defined and the situations that they find themselves in are simultaneously natural and amusing. For a reality show, that’s no mean feat.

DVD Bonus Features

The DVD set also contains the short featurettes “Meet The Pawn Stars”, “Real or Fake?”, and “Additional Footage”.  They’re all competently made, but don’t give you any information that you couldn’t get by watching the show.