Let's hear it for David Blaine!

I wasn’t going to watch. I swear.

But walking home from PopWatch HQ last night included a required stroll by Lincoln Center, and seeing the man in person, floating over Broadway in his watery globe, piqued my curiosity. So, like many of you, I thought we’d be treated to 50-odd minutes of contrived drama followed by the most boring nine minutes of television. I mean, watching a man hold his breath? Come on.

But here’s the thing: His magic tricks — the ones that take place on dry land — are pretty cool, aren’t they? Watching him remove a woman’s canine teeth in, of all places, a casino, and then replace them with a quick puff of breath was so inexplicably compelling I had to see the program through to its, um, last gasp. While I won’t deny that Blaine’s monotonous voice and less-than-subtle narcissism irked me, I found myself in the odd position of rooting for him. Magic or not, it is a pretty impressive feat of endurance, and as I watched them drag his spent, pickled body from the water, I felt his disappointment.

It’s official, PopWatchers: David Blaine’s greatest trick last night was draining the blogfather of any hint of edge.

addCredit(“David Blaine: Stuart Ramson/AP”)