It looked like the real thing: a pervert sprawled out on the seat of an uptown C train as angry straphangers filmed him.

“Are you f–king recording me?” the creep roared, seemingly drunk. He lunged forward and grabbed at the women — who fought to control him by holding his hands ­behind his back.

That changed the man’s mood.

“Great job, guys,” he said. “But ­remember, don’t be afraid to be ­aggressive.”

The man the women tackled was Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa, who was training an all- ­female group called the Perv Busters. Their mission: Finding and shaming subway perverts.

“You know the signs that say, ‘See something, say something’? Well, we’re doing something,” said Sliwa, 62, who founded the Guardian Angels in 1979.

After the MTA backed out of a plan to deploy eight MTA cops to battle a recent surge in subway sex crimes, Sliwa decided to take matters into his own hands.

“I’ve got eight girls doing what the transit cops apparently can’t do,” he said.

His crew gathered at Columbus Circle at 8 p.m. Friday for their first night of prowling for “weenie ­wavers.”

Lauren Rius, 26, is a brand-new recruit.

“I thought the Angels were dead until I saw a sign on the 6 train that they were ­recruiting. I was really excited when I found out it was for real,” said Rius, who lives in Sunset Park, Brooklyn.

Rius decided she was sick of subway creeps’ tactics and wanted to make a difference.

“We all know what it’s like to be harassed and followed. But you don’t have the right to complain if you don’t do anything about it,”

she said.

The team’s youngest member, 13-year-old Veronica Pagan, is a third-generation Guardian Angelette. She sported her grandmother’s beret.

“I joined because I wanted to make them proud, but I also did it for myself. I want to show guys that we are not weak, we can step up just the same,” Pagan said.

After a demonstration on how to handcuff, the girls lined up in formation on the subway platform.

Silwa ordered everyone to board, break off into pairs and stand in the doorways on lookout.

“The first thing we have to work on is the look. If you’re standing there all smiley, people won’t take you seriously,” Sliwa said.

Sliwa then instructed the Angels to hand out the official Perv ­Busters flier.

Rider Daniel Martinez, 33, was excited that the Angels were back, and asked Sliwa how to join.

“I just think it’s beautiful. It’s about time that we see women step up and be warriors. We need more Joan of Arcs in our city,” Pagan said.