The problem with all those shows with pawn shops, storage and baggage sales, shipping wars, picking shows, etc, is how much are they scripted? How much is faked? Same with fishing shows, lumberjack shows, gold mining shows...
So, FITS, the question is, is Hester really that evil? Is he scripted to act that way? Do they cut the film to make him look that way? Same with Darrell...can anyone be that obtuse?
I read where some of the captains on the crab fishing show wouldn't renew because they were tired of having the film cut to make some look like jackasses and others to look popular with their crews. What was originally a fascinating show displaying the real dangers of crab fishing became boring so they had to spice it up. Ice Road Truckers is the same thing. How long can you drive across a frozen lake and make it suspenseful?
On Gold Rush I can't believe the Hoffman family makes one horrific decision after another. How do you recruit backers to give you that kind of money and equipment and be so dumb as to make some of the decisions they make?