Random thoughts on Banged Up Abroad

1. Why use novices? I'm seriously starting to wonder if, in the majority of these situations, they haven't just chosen these wide-eyed morons as bait. It's been discussed on this board before and I've noticed that quite a few of these people had never traveled before and were completely oblivious about the rules of traveling in another country. It seems like most of the time, they are just the ones who are supposed to be caught as a distraction.

2. It's amazing how some stories seem like complete and utter bullsh**, while others are heartbreaking in their truthfulness. While "The Blind Prophet" and "Son of Saddam" seemed like stories made up by attention-seekers, "Chechnya", "Uganda", and Simon the dork from "Cusco" seemed not only true but made me lose faith in humanity.

3. Do they always use the real names of all the people who are interviewed? I spend hours searching for newspaper articles about the real people (mostly to spot inconsistencies in stories) but most information tends to lead back to the National Geographic series. It seems rather ridiculous to not use your real name if you are going to put your face on television.

4. Who picks the actors and actresses to play these people? Is this THE job for people trying to get into the business, because I never see the actors in anything else?

Just some random thoughts on a show that has completely taken over my DVR.

This is a torch song. Touch me and you'll burn.