Even though an average (human) adult brain weighs only 3 lbs. and barely generates more than 12 watts of power, it's certainly a mighty complex mass of "grey matter" that can readily store and retrieve a million bits of information and help an average person to perform all sorts of tasks, some surprisingly complicated, some not.The 2-disc set that I watched contained 3, 1-hour episodes from the best of TV's "Brain Games" in its first season of 2011.Set in Las Vegas, Nevada - This is a very slick production that plays "perception/memory" games with its audience in order to find out if the viewer is, indeed, really paying attention (which, in most cases, we aren't).For the most part - I found Brain Games to be actually quite entertaining - But, when trying to get its point across - This show did, sometimes, resort to a fair amount of superfluous "hocus-pocus" type stuff.

I'd heard about the show here and there. I've seen the Nat Geo announcement on TV, suffice it to say, it piqued my interest. The show came with a promise: "You watch it, you'll learn stuff!"What unquantifiable disappointment that was...Watching it, I couldn't help but feel cheated, belittled and robbed of my time. I'm not basing what I'm about to type on 1 or two episodes I've watched, no. I bore with it... for a whole season, including the start of this year's latest batch.You see, the problem with this show is that it is founded on the basis that you, the viewer, MUST be stupid. And quite frankly, I do feel stupider upon watching it. I haven't watched the very first episodes, from what reviewers say, they were the best. But it doesn't take a rocket-scientist to tell you that they are trying way too hard to keep this show afloat. It all feels stretched WAY out of proportion. I have yet to watch a single episode where I learn something and don't facepalm (literally) every second, where the host and his band of "experts" aren't so pretentious.Now that's another great problem: The pretentious cast. Once you realize how none of what you see or hear actually "fools your Brain" (as they claim it will), or whatever the hell they thought it would do, it starts feeling like a grand scam. It's a show, on TV. It's not live, sure, and a wide variety of profiles are watching it... But then, WHY have this pseudo-interactivity, with their puzzles and games? I get it that it's supposed to engage the viewers, you aren't just passively watching the show... But when all your stupid easy 'games' (which are supposed to be corroborated by what mumbo-jumbo of a scientific explanation you throw next) all end with the assumption that WE got it wrong... Woah the anger. Really, this show makes me angry. And I've no anger issues whatsoever in general.It could be that I'm not part of the targeted audience (although I have no pretension of knowing everything that there is to know about everything), but then WHAT is that target? Watch at your own risk if you have a shred of self conscience. Hell, if you have a shred of anything... I'm not going to judge you like that show does.

I loved this show until I found out they lie. I just watched a segment about 3D where they brought out a plate of food, and a cheese plate and a glass of water with flowers in it. They then tried to convince you that the stuff they brought out was actually printed on paper (2D).. and that your brain had been "tricked". The problem is, the stuff they brought out WAS real, and through not so clever editing, they LIED to make the illusion seem legit. I know this because the water in the glass moved around slightly, impossible for "printed" water to do. There are all other giveaways that segment was rigged if you look closely.... shadows that are present on the real plate of food become much less pronounced on the "image" that is supposed to have tricked you.

This show should be used by every HR department. My biggest problems with new employees can be revealed through some of these shows. Ex not noticing double words in common sayings or over compensating knowledge. If I could screen new hires on just these two skills it would save thousands of dollars. What I have always blamed on reading comprehension, may be the way people's brains work In my area of responsibility millions of dollars can be decided on detailed review of contract language, which can sometimes be compared to an illusionists slight of hand. It's very difficult these days to find candidates that can focus quickly on the text at hand. It's like no one has the focus necessary to perform this task. I have asked new employees to review hard copy text to find a specific string of text and after hours they cannot. This is the product of online education which renders old logical thought useless.