Sorry American Pickers, but I have found someone else. I will still catch you in reruns but I will no longer clear my Monday night schedule for you. My new love is someone from your own network: Storage Wars.
My wife and I have been watching this show like addicts, viewing their 3-hour blocks over the last few weeks and catching up on the first season. The second season begins tomorrow night and we will be firmly planted on the couch, waiting to see the treasures our pals, Darrel, Jarrod, Brandi, Barry, and Dave (yeeeeeeeup!) will find.
The premise of the show is that the “stars” attend storage lien auctions and bid on the contents of lockers that have been abandoned. At these auctions, you aren’t allowed to look through the boxes, and you can’t even enter the storage unit. You have a few minutes to view the contents and gamble on what’s hidden in the boxes. And gambling is exactly what it is — sometimes you win, but usually you lose.
I’ve attended storage lien auctions and I can tell you that most of the lockers are filled with mattresses, rakes, tires, and trash. It’s a little dubious to think that the treasures found in every episode are genuine, but suspend disbelief for a half hour and enjoy it for what it is.
There are five “stars” on Storage Wars and their different personalities and objectives make the show so enjoyable. Mostly, they are combative and nasty, but it does make for fun TV. Here’s my take on each of them:
Darrell has been buying storage auctions for years and his biggest score was a locker full of vintage comic books that he sold for $150,000, but in today’s market it would have been millions. He is a dead ringer for the Leon character in Blade Runner. Darrel is always looking for the “wow factor” and has it in for Dave, which makes for some intense auctions, and sometimes they almost come to blows. Darrel is kind of the lovable sad sack you want to win, and sometimes he wins big.
Dave is a class-A jerk when it comes to the auctions, but he is a savvy businessman and I respect him for that. If I was ever at an auction and heard his annoying “yeeeeeeeeup,” I would want to pop him in the nose, but the man knows what he’s doing and he does it very well. He loves to drive up the bids so the others have to pay more than they wanted to spend. This tactic makes their wallets much lighter for the next auction, where Dave swoops in and scores. He owns an upscale consignment shop and has a crew that helps him load and sort through all the goods. Dave knows more than everyone else combined about the value of items, and if I was in the business, Dave would be my idol.
Jarrod and Brandi are a young couple who own a thrift store, and they look for storage units that have items they can sell. These two are fairly new to the auction scene and always bid more than they originally planned. Jarrod lets his emotions rule his bidding, which is a recipe for disaster, but because this is Hollywood, everything turns out okay in the end. Brandi likes her designer sunglasses and is always giving Jarrod a hard time, but usually supports him and his ridiculous bids. Brandi is the only female presence on the show, and according to my wife, is the only one with any sense. Probably true.
Barry is the most entertaining character on the show. He channels Jack Nicholson and attends the auctions for fun. He’s a collector and has some deep pockets, so when he buys a storage unit, all he’s doing is gambling and hoping there is one item that will be worth the money he invested. He goes to the auctions for amusement, while the others are in it for their livelihood, which makes it interesting and fun to watch. Barry is the one character I would like to have over for dinner (but I would definitely keep him away from my wife).
The new season starts tomorrow night on A&E and if you like American Pickers and Pawn Stars, you’re probably going to like this. If you haven’t seen Storage Wars yet, check it out and let me know what you think. Until then, I’ ll leave you with this…
Huge crush on Brandi! I’m still waiting for a Maxim spread of something. AS for Darrell, I’ve seen very little evidence of his “success”. When they showed the footage of the comic score, it becomes apparent that used the money to buy new teeth, but he still just seems like he’s out of his league. I, too, respect Hester for his business sense, even if he does have a chip on his shoulder. I hope Barry’s scores are a bit more successful for him in season 2, as I felt bad for him most episodes, even though he had a good attitude about it all.
I’m totally onboard the Brandi fan wagon, but being the married man that i am, i had to scale back my enthusiasm a bit. 😉
I think Darrell is probably most representative of the folks who make their living off the storage units, at least from what I’ve seen IRL.
Yeeeeeeeeup … to Brandi.
LOL!
Yeah, I’ve watched it. It’s pretty entertaining. I prefer Pawn Stars which is one of my new favorite shows. I enjoyed the hell out of the crossover episodes they did with American Pickers and American Customs.
I occasionally watch Storage Wars and Auction Hunters. They are both fun. I’ve sort of gotten away from American Pickers.
American Pickers lost me when they went Hollywood and they started picking for William Shatner and the Nascar museum. Picking with a set item in mind isn’t picking.
This is a great show. I have been watching it since it premiered(I still regularly watch American Pickers, if it’s a new episode). Darrell and Barry are my favorites, while Dave seems to piss me off every time I watch. I can respect that he is a very smart business man, but he seems a little bitchy as well.
On your recommendation, I started watching Flea Man. It’s in the same lines as these shows, but is also something fresh at the same time. I’ve only seen the first 2 episodes, and can’t find any more(did it get canceled?).
Did you see the episode where Jarrod and Brandi found a whole bunch of vintage toys? I won’t ruin it for you if you haven’t, but it made me jealous.
Yeah, unfortunately Flea Man got canned. I think it would have been better if it was half hour and on A&E, but oh well.
I did see the mega Mego score that Brandi and Jarrod found. They couldn’t have insulted toy collectors more, but it was fun seeing the goods. Those two really don’t know much about what they find, but give them a few years and they’ll be right up there with Dave.
how dare you sir, American pickers followed by Pawn Stars is the greatest lineup since happy days and laverne and shirley.
Shame on you for deserting.
matt
Ha! Matt, i was the BIGGEST fan of American Pickers, and spent hours doing recaps of every episode. I still enjoy the show but this year I will return to watching Monday Night Football live while the pickers get the DVR treatment. 😉
I’d always preferred Pawn Stars to Pickers as the latter is a little too, uh, rustic, for my tastes. I’d still take Pawn Stars over Storage Wars because I feel closer to the typical stuff they deal in and they way the run their buys, but I must admit being a huge fan of this show. I’d say of this bunch I relate most the Darrell. As a vintage guy I’d expect to say that about Barry, but honestly his antics are bit too much for me at times (mystics and midgets if I recall … how long before they put him in a clown suit?).
I hate to say it but I’m with you in likening myself to Dave, but only insofar as his business style goes. I wouldn’t mind owning Barry’s car collection though!
I love this show and Brandi is not only a pretty gal she is funny and smart too. I would love to see her in Maxim or even better Playboy woot! And yes i keep my enthusiasm down too because am a married man as well when my wife is in the room and this show is on lol.
So you’re not married when your wife leaves the room??? Interesting concept. 😉
I agree, this is a great show! I’ve been watching this from the beginning. Since I’ve seen them all, I’ve stumbled upon Auction Hunters on Spike and really like that one. Focuses more on the items in the units and what they end up getting for them rather than the squabbling during the bidding process. I’d almost say I like that one better than Storage Wars.
Yep, Auction Hunters is another good one. To me, that show seems totally rigged, but it is fun to watch and you learn something each episode.
One thing I found interesting on Storage Wars is that if they find firearms, they have to turn them in to the ATF. On Auction Hunters, they always find guns and love to fire them and sell them. Makes me wonder if the laws are different in their location or if the show’s producers had something to do with making these legal finds. hmmmm.
All of these are good shows, but Storage has to be rigged! You can’t hit the jackpot every week! (as one of them always does)
I’m not going to argue you. Like I said, you have to suspend disbelief to enjoy these shows. 😉
I wanna beat the stuffing out of Dave Hester. Yuuuuuuuuup… I do.
You are not alone on that boat my friend. 😉
Too bad that storage wars, like auction hunters, is set up. Otherwise its good entertainment.