David Blaine or Criss Angel

Who's a Better Magician David Blaine or Criss Angel

  • Criss Angel

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Apr 3, 2017
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So I'm doing an argumentative paper on Criss Angel vs David Blaine. The conclusion I've came to is that David Blaine is the far superior magician. My reasons are that he is the main reason guerrilla magic is popularized. Without him who knows if Criss Angel would have ever came up with the idea for the show mind freak. Another reason is the authenticity of the tricks. On many occasions Criss Angel has had accusations against him for using paid actors and camera tricks to make his magic more appealing (all of them were proven true). Not to say that David Blaine has not done the same before but there has never been reason to believe so. The main reason for this is that every trick that David does, if it's not done well, you can tell how he does it. He doesn't try to brush it up with cameras he just leaves it for people to see. Another thing to take into account is personality. There has never been a report of David doing anything questionable but on the other hand there has been many times where Criss has used offensive words or acted rudely in general. These are my arguments so its up to you to choose, Criss Angel or David Blaine.
 

Tower of Lunatic Meat

Elite Member
Sep 27, 2014
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Here's the thing. And I'm not sure if this helps in one way or the other. But whenever this debate comes up, it REALLY depends on what you're looking for because both magicians perform for completely different audiences.


The way Blaine's was filmed. His target audience was the people that he'd go up to and do magic for THEM.

Criss would do his for people AT HOME.

When it comes to televised magic, you have a few more methods at your disposal.


You can say 'stooges and camera tricks don't make magic'. Thing is, magic is all about the experience. Criss' way of performing allowed for more camera tricks and stooges. It's preferably not to. But televised magic is certainly a magic medium and he utilized it for what it's worth.

IIRC, Criss still has a show in Vegas. So he's doing pretty good for himself. Thing is, Blaine is more respected by amateurs and pros and seems to push more boundaries with magic. I honestly haven't heard much of Criss since his show ended. All I know is that he's still around in Vegas. Although, the way Criss has constructed his character (that he has 'powers'), I don't think it'll fly very well if he tried to do another tv special.
 
Feb 1, 2017
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235
When doing an argumentative paper, and siding with the favorable side of the argument, it makes the paper weak. If everyone and their mother would agree that Blaine is the superior magician, then why bother writing on that paper? It's not as arguable as a topic such as the legalization of marijuana, the death penalty, should consumers purchase products from countries that practice child labor, etc. Just my opinion, but perhaps you should argue that Criss Angel is/was just as much a respectable and important magician to the magic world and community as Blaine is/was. That's way more arguable and would make your paper a lot stronger.
 

WitchDocIsIn

Elite Member
Sep 13, 2008
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How are you defining "better"?

Angel's net worth (50 million) is far more than Blaine's (12 million). Angel's TV show was on longer than Blaine's, he's done more live stage shows than Blaine, he has more awards than Blaine.

But he's also a jerk by many accounts, and Blaine is a generally considered a nicer guy. I think Blaine is more respected in the magic community as well.

In many ways Angel is more successful of a magician, but it also seems like he flared up and burned out, whereas Blaine is still going strong on his path.
 
Apr 3, 2017
3
2
Here's the thing. And I'm not sure if this helps in one way or the other. But whenever this debate comes up, it REALLY depends on what you're looking for because both magicians perform for completely different audiences.


The way Blaine's was filmed. His target audience was the people that he'd go up to and do magic for THEM.

Criss would do his for people AT HOME.

When it comes to televised magic, you have a few more methods at your disposal.


You can say 'stooges and camera tricks don't make magic'. Thing is, magic is all about the experience. Criss' way of performing allowed for more camera tricks and stooges. It's preferably not to. But televised magic is certainly a magic medium and he utilized it for what it's worth.

IIRC, Criss still has a show in Vegas. So he's doing pretty good for himself. Thing is, Blaine is more respected by amateurs and pros and seems to push more boundaries with magic. I honestly haven't heard much of Criss since his show ended. All I know is that he's still around in Vegas. Although, the way Criss has constructed his character (that he has 'powers'), I don't think it'll fly very well if he tried to do another tv special.
Thank you for the reply. I guess what I'm defining as who's a better magician is who is more authentic, who makes magic better. I understand TV magic is a new form of magic, but at the same time all it takes is some person with video editing and some video to make a trick of this standard. Magic is really about personal connection, fooling a person to believe in the impossible. Paying actors and making magic with unique camera angles takes that away. Also if you were to make the argument of the person is who makes the magic, you would rather someone more friendly and less of someone who can tend to be more offensive if that makes sense. If you have anything else to add that'd be great information to have. Thank you
 
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Apr 3, 2017
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How are you defining "better"?

Angel's net worth (50 million) is far more than Blaine's (12 million). Angel's TV show was on longer than Blaine's, he's done more live stage shows than Blaine, he has more awards than Blaine.

But he's also a jerk by many accounts, and Blaine is a generally considered a nicer guy. I think Blaine is more respected in the magic community as well.

In many ways Angel is more successful of a magician, but it also seems like he flared up and burned out, whereas Blaine is still going strong on his path.
Thank you for the reply. I guess what I'm defining as better is who can preform it better in a better way. Magic is all about the connection with real people, the idea of doing tricks on a person without their mind and actions influenced is amazing. This can get ruined when you use actors or camera angles and video editing to make a trick look well done when in reality that personal connection is not there anymore. If you have anymore to say on the topic that would be wonderful and I'd love to hear it. Thank you
 
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WitchDocIsIn

Elite Member
Sep 13, 2008
5,886
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Are you using any form of real evidence, or the opinions of those in the magic community?

Blaine has his own unique kind of performance, and several people I respect say he's great to see live. While he hasn't really depended on the kind of camera trickery Angel is (most likely) guilty of, his crew does tell the audiences that the folks who react better will probably be featured on the show. Does that count as a camera trick?

Angel has had 3 separate stage shows. One was Off Broadway and ran for over 600 performance between 2001 and 2003. Then his show with Cirque, and now his own show in Vegas. He's had more air time than most other magicians combined.

So clearly both magicians have skill and are capable of sustaining a career. The only way to accurate judge who's better by your criteria would be to ask people who have seen both perform. Considering Blaine has only just now announced his first live tour, that's probably going to be tricky.

The problem here is that you're asking a notoriously jealous group what they think of someone who is undeniably very successful, and also (apparently) not very likeable. The data is going to be skewed.
 

Tower of Lunatic Meat

Elite Member
Sep 27, 2014
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Thank you for the reply. I guess what I'm defining as better is who can preform it better in a better way.

Look at it this way. Neither magician really does the same stuff because both magicians portray COMPLETELY different characters who do different things. If you were to compare 'who does X better', you'd be better off with comparing different magicians doing the same types of tricks. Even then, with how wildly different how magicians can present the same trick, it'd be hard to pinpoint who does what better. If you're shooting for what magician has EARNED more income-wise, that'd be a bit more solid for argument sake.

Magic is all about the connection with real people, the idea of doing tricks on a person without their mind and actions influenced is amazing. This can get ruined when you use actors or camera angles and video editing to make a trick look well done when in reality that personal connection is not there anymore.

I think you're walking into this with the bias that camera tricks are less magical. Keep in mind, Criss, on his show (I don't know what he does in his live shows), was making the magic for the people viewing at home. So even if the entire segment is 'set up' with camera tricks galore, is it still not magical or entertaining?
 
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CWhite

Elite Member
Jul 22, 2016
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These "who's better" threads are about as useful as "how's my pass?"..Its all relative...same as any comparison..football, hockey, soccer, acting, pro wrestling etc etc
It's pointless.
They are both amazing...period...
 
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Nov 24, 2016
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I feel that David Blaine has a much more mature style. Criss Angle is still a good magician however I feel that the way he performs is much more juvenile. David Blaine has far better merchandise especially his playing cards.
 
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