When the first season of The Joe Schmo Show aired way back in 2003, it wasn’t the first prank or “hoax” reality show ever aired; but it was the most elaborate one yet. A faux Big Brother sort of show was created as a fake backdrop with mostly actors and one real, unsuspecting victim/contestant. The show was then all about trying to keep the Schmo (Matt Gould), a decent and friendly guy, from figuring out the truth while simultaneously parodying the most ridiculous tropes and archetypes of reality TV. It was original and hilarious, and you legitimately connected with both the actors trying to constantly live fake lives, and the real person of Matt at the center of it all. The second season was more of a Bachelor/Bachelorette ripoff, but things got interesting fast when one of the two contestants realized it was all fake, so she was incorporated into the cast. That was eight years ago.

Finally the Schmo is back, and pushing the envelope yet again. Last year Spike TV held auditions for a bounty hunter competition show called The Full Bounty, attracting real contestants. Of course, as you might suspect, it was all fake. So now we return to the world of mostly actors and one real person (Chase Rogan from Pittsburgh), taking aim yet again at reality shows while trying to pull the most elaborate hoax yet. Things have changed in the last ten years, and reality shows have become increasingly ridiculous. How crazy can they get while keeping Chase in the dark? Will they pull it off? And how offensive is it this time?

Ralph Garman returns as the host (he was also a different character, still the host, the other two seasons), playing a bounty hunter with a trophy wife. His quick wits and charisma keep things on track even when things get a little … out of hand. Although much of the show is scripted, they can’t entirely predict what Chase will do, which is part of the fun and excitement. Considering the subject of the fake show is bounty hunting, it’s not exactly the safest genre either. The actors are all playing various archetypes of varying levels of offensiveness, from “The Over-Achieving Asian” to “The Widow” (yes, she’s playing a woman who lost her husband recently). But the trickiest one is “The Deaf Girl” (and her interpreter), seemingly inspired by people like Marlee Matlin from shows like Celebrity Apprentice. Jo Newman, who plays the deaf girl, is not actually deaf, so it’s both tricky (she may screw up and reveal she can hear) and mildly offensive to actual hearing-impaired people. Oh, and don’t forget Chico, the “Ex-Con”, who literally pretends to have a criminal background.

It’s still TV, so nearly everyone is beautiful of course. Nearly.

The question remains — is Chase really that interesting to watch? At this point, he’s mostly bland, vaguely decent, and fairly competitive. How far can the show push him down a dark path? When will it cross the line from manipulative fun to really hurting someone? After season one, although Matt Gould won a lot of money for his own nonsense, apparently he had a bit of a tough time afterwards. It’s a delicate balancing act where things have already gone wrong. Fire has gotten out of control and damaged props, and the “deaf” girl has already reacted accidentally to a loud noise. The producers and actors are trying hard to keep things interesting and “real.” It’s the sort of reality show that’s a prank to the next level — they aren’t really trying to hurt Chase at all, but comment on the nature of reality shows in general.

I watched every episode of the first two seasons and can’t wait to see what’ll happen next — or if it all comes crashing down.

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