As an American Pickers fan I’ve been jonesing for some good news. The fandom has been fragmented ever since Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz started feuding over his exit from the show. Fans campaigned to bring him back, and the History series responded by bringing in Robbie Wolfe. In the meantime, Fritz’s health has seemingly been declining, mirroring the show’s ratings. But I’m heartened by the fan responses on the recent announcement the reality series made about getting back on the road.
Robbie’s not exactly a newcomer at this point on the show, and he’s been involved with filming a few seasons now. This summer, reports indicate the team is headed places like Wisconsin and Michigan, and a few days ago, the Pickers star himself posted a video of himself, Jersey Jon and the crew getting filming off the ground once more.
In the video, Wolfe explained “we’re starting up a new season,” giving fans a bit of a tour of the large van members of the crew travel in. They goofed around as the camera panned backward, but what I’m most interested about with the post is the fan responses that followed.
For months, we heard Pickers watchers hashtagging posts with comments like “bring Fritz back” and commenting “I miss Frank” or dissing the show’s “loyalty” and more. The ratings declined during this period, though the cast and crew kept filming through it all. Now, it seems things have taken a turn for the positive, as commenter’s on Wolfe’s post are seemingly pumped to see Jersey Jon’s involvement.
- WE LOVE YOU GUYS❤️ and Thanks for adding Jersey Jon he’s so informative on the metal works I’ll be watching and picking from La.
- Mike and Jersey are my favorites. They’re always kind when dealing with sellers. Some of the others are rather rude/ act like experts.
In case you are only casually up on the show, Jersey Jon Szalay is a recurring cast member whose expertise is antique motorcycles, a subject also near and dear to Mike Wolfe’s heart. He joined the American Pickers cast for a 2021 episode and has continued to appear after Fritz’s exit. To note, the positive comments weren’t just about Jersey Jon love, however. Others commented on how much they enjoy the newer version of the cast in general.
- Oh how I miss you when there are no new episodes. Not fond of the repack of old episode contents into episodes. I get why. I just like the current cast so much.
- Good to hear new American Pickers is on the way!!! Be safe!
It seems like fan sentiment may be taking a turn (or at least that the disgruntled fans are just avoiding following Robbie altogether). Meanwhile, if you are still one of those fans who is hoping that Fritz will eventually return, his current health issues may preclude that, as a recent report indicated he is currently under the care of a guardianship and multiple 911 calls have reportedly been made to Fritz’s home in recent months.
American Pickers is already back to work and has plans to hit up Wisconsin in June and Michigan in July. A pastor also recently told local news outlet 12WBOY that the crew was seen filming in West Virginia, so there seem to be a fairly wide swathe of states being covered for the new season. Let's see if the positive momentum continues as the summer wears on.
