New gun shop reality series on Showtime

[Cosmoline]

I'm cautiously optimistic. Frankly there's no way they can milk it enough if they try to make it a cheap shot. They are more likely to concentrate on human interest conflicts between workers and will need to go shooting to keep it fresh. The one good thing about reality TV is the producers are in the same boat as the "cast." If they spend the first episode making everyone look like a hick idiot, then they've just sunk their own boat. Think of it as an embedded producer.

 

[DaveBeal]

so they do a show about a gunshop in a state that is a constant source of jokes about ridiculous gun laws

Other than Denver's assault weapon ban, how are Colorado gun laws a constant source of jokes?

 

[jlh26oo]

What an idiot.

JLH2600: Not much of a story, really. I used to keep bees as a hobby. I kept them at a farm 10 miles from my home, same county, different city. I was asked by the local newspaper to give a phone interview about my hobby. I agreed because I wanted to support and grow this hobby. Reporter screwed up basic facts, like where I lived, kept my hives, facts about beekeeping, etc. I said right then that I'd never do another interview.

BTW, if I witness a crime, or one occurs in my neighbor, or any other event occurs that the media wants a "man on the street" response to, my response is "no comment".

Yeah that's my policy too. Guess you could have emailed the editor (as if anything would have been done about it). Thanks for sharing.

 

[AmishFury]

Other than Denver's assault weapon ban, how are Colorado gun laws a constant source of jokes?

i apparently read it wrong... i thought it was a show about a california gunshop i need to wake up completely before posting sometimes

 

[RP88]

it's not even gonna be about the gun shop. They're just looking for new groups of people to gossip and start drama over trivial, unimportant crap in their lives. Kind of like Miami ink, or whatever, where they would get the employees' opinions on tattoos, show someone getting a tattoo, then go right back into that one girl's battle with alcoholism for 25 out of the 30 minutes of the episode. Yep, real entertainment...

 

[TimboKhan]

i apparently read it wrong... i thought it was a show about a california gunshop i need to wake up completely before posting sometimes

All is forgiven, my friend.

I guess I will ahve to see it before I pass judgement, but it seems like it could be very good or very bad, with very little gray area. I think the crucial part of the show will be how the sales staff deals with the loonies, and you know for darn sure that they are going to show at least one nut per episode. Honestly, what would the interest be otherwise? Just showing the average guy or girl buying a gun is pretty boring, so you know there is going to be a focus on mall ninjas, idiots and dirtbags.

 

[mnrivrat]

The network does not intend the series to take sides in the charged political debate surrounding gun culture.

When pigs fly !

 

[Defensory]

I smell a BIG rat.

Showtime is notoriously liberal.

They aren't doing this to make gunowners look good, that's for sure.

You can bet there's going to be some "manufactured excitement" to make the show a little more interesting.

 

[jakemccoy]

"Manufactured excitement" may be the proper terminology because clever editing is definitely manufacturing a result. A typical reality show is shot over several months. 37 minutes of footage (hour show) appears to cover about two weeks sometimes. The editors could make me look like anybody from Hugh Hefner to a sheltered momma's boy, neither of which describes me at all. Well, maybe the Hugh Hefner part...lol

 

[divemedic]

This may be a good thing. Showtime airs the Penn and Teller show "Bullsh*t" and it has done some pro 2A stuff

 

[burningsquirrels]

one of the number one things i run into is always "why would anyone ever want one?"

my hope is that maybe the show will portray responsible gun owners and offer gun illiterate viewers and understanding as to why people want and/or NEED guns, and help disassociate gun ownership with crime and recklessness.

 

[jason10mm]

I figure this has a 50-50 chance into devolving into a OC Chopper style "show" more about the personalities of the store employees than about delivering intelligent and responsible information to store shoppers.

Or it could turn into a hilarious form of "Taxicab confessions" if the shop owner tries to lead the shoppers into funny confessions about guns, or tells them ridiculous things just to see how gullible they are. Alas, given the lethal nature of firearms, disinformation really isn't in our best interest. Plus the really good jokes would go right over the heads of non-gun types ("you really CAN'T sling a bullet sideways?").

 

[.cheese.]

on the up side, this show should once and for all end all of the threads here about "This guy at the gun shop was so dumb that....."

because I'm sure they'll be highlighting all of the bizarre, stupid, and just plain crazy things that some people do/say in gun shops.

 

[burningsquirrels]

last night this one newbie lady walked out of the range with a loaded revolver asking how she should aim it and pointed it around the room. man, that was not a pleasant moment in the shop.

 

[JohnMcD348]

I was watching Penn & Teller BS on Showtime and saw the promo for Lock and Load. It didn't give me the "warm fuzzies". The people they showed on the promo did not appear to be the type who would put firearms ownership in a positive light. The question: How do guns make you feel? Anxious, Hot, Powerful. Some of the answers were good. Connected, Free, Work(lady was a Police officer). I guess we'll find out if there's more of one than the other when the show airs.

 

[Wildyams]

Did it say when it started?

Would be interesting to see

 

[bigfatdave]

This may be a good thing. Showtime airs the Penn and Teller show "Bullsh*t" and it has done some pro 2A stuff

That gives me some hope for rational editing ... but reality TV is almost entirely crap. Any show with a "confessional camera" devolves into petty personal disputes and manufactured drama rapidly.

 

[WinchesterAA]

Call me crazy, but I'd instead rather view that as a publicity stunt..

What if instead of doing the usual thing and act shady and suspicious, we instead said.. "TV? Guns? I'm there!"

What if that business had SO MUCH business that they could not continue with the show? The camera was clogged.. All you could see was the short people's faces, and the taller people's arms. T shirts of every flavor, people of every color, sector, religion, etc..

AMERICA goes to shop at the shootist, just so we can go home and see how many other people there are out there just like us.

We should hit that if we believe the things we say.

 

[Davek1977]

Call me a fool, but rather than make baseless assumptions about what I think the show might be like, I'll reserve my judgement until I've actually seen it. Nothing like putting the cart before the horse, guys.

 

[memphisjim]

i volunteer to buy a barrett on the show
pending funds
pm me for the address to send certified checks to support this cause
ill dress how the largest contribution pleases

 

[Westermeyer]

Having been to The Shootist a few times, they're definitely not the type of gunshop I would want representing "gun people". Located in probably the crappiest "near Denver" area I've been to since moving here, the shop is run by a family who as best I can tell live in a trailer behind the shop. Most of the people I have seen working there are missing a few teeth, come to think of it there's probably only one guy I have seen there with all his teeth. Their selection itself is really small, they probably have 20 total rifles/shotguns for sale. Maybe 30 handguns. The ventilation on their range downstairs consists of a big fan and it's essentially unsupervised, more than once I've had guns pointed at me down there. It seems to be a popular place for new shooters to go screw around with guns they don't know how to use yet. They have a big sign on the door to their range that says "NO RUSSIAN AMMO". If you ask them about the sign they'll tell you about how wolf is steel cored and damages their backstop and how it'll break your pistol. I'm 99% sure they just want to get people to buy their (actually decently priced) ammo.


I have no clue why they'd do this show at the shootist when Firing Line is like 20 minutes away and is nicer in every way - employees more knowledgeable, MUCH larger selection, better range, etc.

 

[THE DARK KNIGHT]

If only I was a CO resident. I'd show up in full Soviet army surplus gear and buy an AK. Horrible accent and all. Oh and I'd use Smirnoff for cologne that day.

Oh, the possibilities are endless.

 

[BossHaug]

Just guessing here, Westermeyer, but if you wanted to make a TV series that portrayed gunowners and gunsellers as backward redneck nuts, which business would you choose to film at? The Shootist or The Firing Line? Just wondering...

 

[bigalexe]

Honestly reality shows somehow consistently show things worse than they really are. If the show American Hotrod had shown that shop in its reality it would have had alot more welding and wrenching and much less shenanigans. If I owned an auto shop with a bunch of guys that pulled that crap as often as they showed on TV they'd all be gone in a week.

Im not holding out hope for this show.

 

[Dravur]

I know this store...

and have been in it many times. The firing lines are in the basement.

And knowing the people who run the shop, the TV show will not be flattering to gun owners.

Im just saying.....