Originally written January 7, 2019

I recently realized that in terms of my TV viewing habits, I really only mainly watch fictionalized shows. There’s nothing wrong with this, of course, but I think that I’ve disregarded any kind of reality show or anything along those lines, and I don’t always want to do that. So, what happened here was that I finally had a week or so where I somehow miraculously got caught up on all of my shows that I watch. I decided I wanted to use that time to catch something on Netflix that I’ve missed out on. And don’t get me wrong, there’s plenty of good dramas on Netflix that I’d love to get around to watching (like Mindhunter, Maniac, and The Haunting of Hill House, for starters), but I had the realization that I rarely ever watch any non-fiction shows, so I decided to check those shows out, since Netflix has recently started to premiere quite a few of these. However, since I only had about a week or so before shows would start back up, I also wanted something with a short time commitment. That’s when I discovered Magic for Humans. This is a series that, at the time of writing, has only 1 season of 6 half hour episodes, making for a very easy, casual viewing. This was perfect for what I was looking for, and so if you’re looking for something similar, this might be for you too.

So, what is Magic for Humans? Well, it’s a show about magic…for humans. I’m being facetious, of course, but there isn’t really much for me to tell, and that was kind of the whole point in me watching something like this. The basic premise is simply that magician Justin Willman is setting out to perform magic for people. The catch for this being a TV series rather than just a special, though, is that each episode is focused on a different theme, all centered around the premise that Justin wants to perform magic that will help him connect to humanity on a different subject (hence, the title of the show). And so there winds up being episodes with the magic tricks being focused on different themes, such as technology, guilt, and love. It’s one of those premises that’s simple, but effective, and it’s cool to see a set of tricks that all revolve around a set topic.

Like I said, there isn’t much for me to tell you in a review beyond that. My recommendation is easy for you. Do you like magic, and are you looking for something quick and easy to watch? If so, Magic for Humans is a good show for you. From a magic standpoint, you can also be assured that everything on the show is “real” (real meaning a sleight-of-hand style illusion, of course). Justin and the show’s creators have gone on record to state that everything on the show is 100% genuine, from the reactions of the participants to the tricks themselves. What solidifies this for me is that the show is edited in a way where they really attempted to make sure that you could see that no fancy camerawork was done to fake the tricks. The camera stays on Justin and the participants at all the most crucial moments, and so this is what makes the tricks so impressive and entertaining. I’ve always loved magic tricks, so this is an easy sell for me. It might not be for everyone, but if this kind of thing is up your alley, then Magic for Humans won’t disappoint.

4/5