The second episode of Action the 3-part docu-series airing Sunday evenings on Showtime was, as I predicted, a much tougher slog.
It also might turn out to be the most interesting episode of them all.
It centered around losing, problem gambling, gambling addiction while ironically not making a strong case for or against. Yes, you heard (several times) the old adage that "Only about 1% of people win long-term" and this is true. You also got to see the 1% living opulently in the Versailles Villa at Westgate. (It should also be noted that the professional gambler highlighted there was correct on ALL three of the bets they aired.)
The rest of the story was addicted gamblers, and con artists, talking about how they "went to gambler's anonymous" but that it didn't work for them. They then went on to tell you how they "weren't like anyone else there" which is probably not true.
If you were like me you walked away from this thinking that the only difference between a professional bettor and an addicted won is the win/loss column.
They did have one line, from bookmaker Jimmy Vaccaro, that was true regarding pro gamblers never "chasing" while amateur gamblers did that quite often. Bill “Krack” Krackomberger again looked the best of all with his advice during dinner to never try and get it back. In her one good moment on air (more on this later) Kelly "KellyinVegas" Stewart wisely provide the "live to bet another day" adage.
Dave "Vegas Dave" Oancea again came across as slimy and dishonest, and a man who might potentially have serious mental issues when it comes to dealing with the truth.
The biggest flaw in the series so far is two-fold.
1. An over-reliance on industry 'professionals' to tell the story and..
2. Just getting some basic things wrong.
The anti-gambling activist was just one part. After he stood up and basically stated "government-sponsored, legalized gambling is bad" there was no recognition that the prohibition of the same, along with the prohibition of alcohol, directly led to the rise of the mafia in the United State, just as the prohibition of scheduled drugs has led to increases in gang activity, and a flourishing of the cartels.
Brent Musberger pointed out, accurately, that most betting "cheating" scandals were busted because the above-ground bookmakers noticed, and reported, unusual betting patterns. The house wants a clean game, they understand that they are the beneficiaries of this, why would they want anything different?
But still, acting as if the absence of legalized gambling means that there will be no gambling is a disingenuous argument. It should be presented as such but in many cases the producers of this show seem content to allow people to make false, or partially false, statements, and then only offer tepid response to it without asking any follow-up questions whatsoever.
Vegas Dave put out two "whale plays" one of which barely covered, and one which covered easily, he then teased a third "whale play" that we were never allowed to see. The whale of Westgate offered 3 plays that we know, now that the season is over, were winners. But we never were allowed to see anything else. We haven't seen much of anyone else's picks, except the Dallas over New Orleans pick of Kelly Stewart.
Which brings us back to Stewart, who was displayed in this episode as a sexual object more concerned with her appearance and age than anything else. She's being held up as an oddity in the industry to be gawked at, not as someone with any discernible gambling edge as was hinted at in the first show. It's not overt sexism, it's more latent, and to be fair they did bring up Winshev's appearance as well.
I'll close with Todd Winshev, who is both the most tragic character that's being highlighted as well as the most sympathetic, and the most sad. All that said, I like Todd Winshev, there but for the grace of God go we. His bare apartment with no furnishings and little life outside of sports betting and his "day" job should serve as a caution to us all.
He also mentioned that he's alone, which appears to be the focus of the next episode. The loneliness of gambling is odd to me because I have a wife and friends who enjoy it to.
Gambling is entertainment. When it stops being fun then that's when you should walk-away. What this week's show illustrated is just how few actually do.
