The world of reality TV has spawned so many strange and unlikely celebrities that by now nothing should come as a surprise. But still… who could have predicted the success of A&E;'sDuck Dynasty, a series about a family of self-described backwoods Louisiana rednecks who make duck calls? The clan is the Robertsons, whose company, the West Monroe, LA-based Duck Commander, has made them all rich. It was founded some four decades ago by paterfamilias Phil, who doesn't have much to do with day-to-day operations anymore; eldest son Willie, who expanded Duck Commander into a big-time enterprise, is now the CEO, with a cast of characters featuring his Uncle Si (a spaced-out, somewhat stereotypical Vietnam War vet), his brother Jase (who provides the deadpan comic relief), and various others, including wives and kids, making the duck calls and working in the warehouse. By and large, this is a wry, laid-back, ZZ Top-bearded, squirrel-eating crew, much bemused by the straight world. But that doesn't mean there's no conflict. Crusty ol' Phil, "a low-tech guy in a high-tech world" who favors living off the land and hard manual labor, doesn't care much for softies who rely on cell phones and computers; meanwhile, the others, besides Willie, would rather be out shooting fowl (one episode has them putting a decrepit RV in a tree to use as a duck blind), catching frogs, or blowing up beaver dams than filling orders, looking at McMansions with a smarmy realtor, or (in an episode entitled "Sauvignon Beard") trying to make wine with no clue as to how it's actually done (the result, says Jase, "tastes like a cross between doe urine and jalapeño juice."). Of course, considering the genre, one never quite knows what's "real" or not--appearances notwithstanding, these folks are neither dumb (they themselves point out that Phil and all of his brothers, except Si, have college degrees) nor completely unsophisticated. But who cares if there's a little truth-bending going on? With each episode clocking in at a tidy 22 minutes or so, and plenty of good-natured high jinks along the way,Duck Dynastyis a pleasure, guilty or otherwise.--Sam Graham