All is Fair in Love and Cons

I’m a bona fide by-the-book “good girl” who believes what goes around comes around, and so I play by the rules. Case in point: I once returned an earring backing that I accidentally took from a store. So what is it about con stories that I love? That inspires me? That makes me - an anxious, rule following, conscientious, love thy neighbor, never lie, cheat, steal kind of person want to learn the ins and outs of how to pull the wool over someones’ eyes?

I think it’s the naming of these charming culprits as “con artists,” because an artist sounds so much more forgiving and respectable than criminal. And, I do, throughout their weaving indiscretions, (mostly) forgive and respect them. There is a study to the con, maybe it’s a god-given knack, or born out of necessity, or masterfully trained- but it’s an art. There’s the Fiddle Game, the Pig-in-a-Poke, the Spanish Prisoner, and of course the gold old Ponzi scheme.

If you’re like me and love getting swept up in a good con, whether long or short, you probably loved Catch Me If You Can (2002) and if you love Catch Me If You Can, you’ll get just as caught up in Bravo’s Imposters (2017-2018)

The Chase

As the title of Catch Me if You Can implies, there’s a cat and mouse element to the story. The con artist can usually stay one step ahead, but their webs of deceit can only extend for so long. If you loved the adrenaline rush of watching Frank Abagnale Jr. barely evade FBI Agent Carl Hanratty, you’ll be just as bewitched watching Maddie Jonson outrun her string of exes after taking them for all their worth.

Complex Character Building

Here’s the thing about the con artists: we should hate them. They are exploitative, corrupt, imposing, profiteering swindlers! But, as Catch Me if You Can and Imposters demonstrate, there is a complicated personal history that impels them to take extreme measures to look out for themselves, even at the cost of others.

While Frank was destroyed by his father’s economic hardships and subsequent divorce, Maddie felt painfully bored in her small town and uncomfortable in her own skin. Frank’s father taught him how to charm; Maddie got poached by professional players. Even though Frank and Maddie hurt people, we feel compassionate towards them, and it stretches our ability to understand the mind of a manipulator.

Travel

Because of the chase, we get to travel along with the con artists and their pursuers. These shows have a built-in integration of different settings and backdrops. We watch Carl Hanratty go after Frank in Miami, Georgia, and eventually in France. Likewise, in Imposters we get to watch the super lovable trio of Maddie’s bamboozled exes: Ezra, Richard, and Jules, road trip across America to find Maddie. In Season 2, we get to watch the heartbroken trio get back on their feet in the sultry and spectral backdrop of Mexico City.

It’s a dog eat dog world out there, and these shows can teach us both the why’s and ways of the Art of the Con. As Machiavelli wrote, “One must know how to color one’s actions and to be a great liar and deceiver. Men are so simple, and so much creatures of circumstance, that the deceiver will always find someone ready to be deceived.” These shows open our eyes to the darker intentions of some in a light way.

While we may or may not be rooting for the con artists, justice finds its way in the end. Just as Frank ends up working for the FBI, eventually Maddie and her exes join forces. The con gets the taste of the sweet life until karma catches up, but neither end with overly harsh endings for our sympathetic-villain protagonists. It’s fun to learn the elements of the craft, and while I’ll probably always stick to my ways, I’d probably make a very natural actor for "The Good Samaritan" play one day.

If you loved both of these already, rest assured that all recommendations lay out like a con’s labyrinth. If you are into the underbelly and lies, go for Sneaky Pete on Prime Video next. If you’re hooked on the romantic chase and travel aspect, try BBC America’s Killing Eve.