best buy: mission accomplished!

agent scoboco was lucky enough to be included a couple of sundays back in charlie todd and the improv everywhere crew's latest "scene of chaos and joy": 80 pranksters dressed like best buy employees (khakis, royal blue polo; belt, black shoes) slowly infiltrated the store on 6th avenue and 23rd street and proceeded to stand around looking helpful. the full report (complete with video!) can be found here. my report, included on their site, is repeated below...

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Agent Scott reports:

This was my third mission, and the first time I had the opportunity to bring my daughters. For us, it was a HUGE success. At one point on the way over to Best Buy, Agent Co said to me: "My cheeks hurt I'm smiling so much!"

We actually had other plans for Sunday--fortunately canceled by the rain--so we woke up uniform-less that morning. A stop at Old Navy got Bo and Co as close as we could get, and Agent Todd hooked me up with the perfect royal blue shirt. I must say that the anticipation, and the speculation about what we might be doing, was at least half the fun for the kids. And spotting other people in their "prank uniforms" on the way to the meeting place provoked total giggles in all three of us!

I was actually surprised that my kids didn't feel a little disappointed by the prank itself, because there was no, like, "big moment." Keeping on a game face and seeing their dad do something so... i don't know... ridiculous and silly and "daring" was obviously entertaining enough. Some highlights of our time inside the store: the customers who would stop mid-question upon seeing no logo on my shirt and apologize, sometimes pretty profusely, that they thought i worked there (wonder what gave them THAT idea!?); watching my kids massage their cheeks in that classic "don'tsmiledon'tsmiledon'tsmile" maneuver; the dude who seemed genuinely angry at me for wearing the shirt ("what are you guys doing?!! why are you wearing these clothes!!??); and at one point about 45 minutes in wandering from the video games all the way back to the TVs and seeing the scope of our "invasion."

You know, though, having recently seen V for Vendetta and The Inside Man (both of which feature robberies and/or escapes using lots of people in identical outfits, I could definitely identify with the growing anxiety of Best Buy's security and managerial staff. All in all, though, we had a great, truly memorable day, which always seems to happen when I hang with the Improv Everywhere crew! So... thanks.