I'll be mainly quoting in this post, but just to clear everything up.
I think magicians of all kinds don't like him just because he's claiming this and that and is making a fool of himself to us while he only fools laymen, and himself. I wouldn't have any problem with a stooge or two as I used them that way myself as well, when at least the rest of my crowd is bigger than 10 others (for 1 stooge in max 2 tricks), but, full fake audiences? Having let's say 10 stooges to fool only 2 real spectators? Simply unacceptable in this world.
Yes, the shows are about entertainment, but that's not what Criss says. He claims that he never used camera and video trickery and that what you see is what you get. He could've solved the whole thing by performing it slightly different from the very beginning, but he now got it rolling and now it's way too late to stop it. Unlike David Blaine, who lifted simple magic to a whole new level, and now and then uses real audience reactions and merges those with what the audience believe they saw (like at his levitations), Criss doesn't have much of a value to the world of magic. His team on the other hand, do.
Also Criss says that so called cut scenes were only done to add misdirection to the whole thing, the way the audiences experienced it in real life. Seriously, come on. No needs to say such thing if it's complete bullocks. Any magician could've answer doubts better than that, as a magician, not a liar.
And then trying to expose others who do have an amazing act, turn their whole life into that act, and having others believe that they are real? Isn't that the audience their own choice (or fault as some of you might call it)? If I ask any psychic spectator (and believe me, I asked a lot), all of them say they made the choice to believe it, and they realize they made that choice. It's the same choice people have when watching Mindfreak, yet those people choose to watch a liar, and the others choose to watch something that's very valuable to them, and it works for them.
And about the stage shows, fine, he gets my props to that, even while there are tons of performance flaws and he has done better back in the days. But.. if it's the most expensive magic show, then I think he let's everyone down big time. Do you realize that if you had so much money you could've bought every illusion to make the perfect shows? I think you may have done better than he did.
"There is a difference between lying and manipulating. And Criss is a liar."
And I personally hate him for doing the impossible and making people believe we magicians are able to do such things. If ever one invents methods to those TV illusions, it still won't be "as good as Criss did it".
'Nuff said.
