TVSquad

(S05E03) My reviews of Last Comic Standing are going to be a bit different from Jay's so be forewarned. First of all, the entire premise of LCS is flawed both as a television production and as a talent contest. The main problem is that the show (like all reality shows) is so heavily edited that you only see what the producers want you to see. Now, that's fine for Big Brother or Survivor, but for a show that is supposed to be looking for talent it defeats the purpose. It would make more sense if the show were more like American Idol with performances from all the comics in every show, but to ask any comedian to come up with a new ten minutes every week is unfair, therefore it is what it is.

The other difference between me and Jay is that I have no problem calling out someone who I don't find funny. LCS has given the spotlight to way too many shitty comics for me not to say anything. Which is not to say that there aren't great comics involved. For instance, Alonzo Bodden and Kathleen Madigan are two of the funniest and cleverest comedians I have ever seen. Ant, on the other hand, is a hack of the worst kind.

Now that we're all clear on how this will go...

The first half of the show is the Hollywood auditions at the Improv. The afternoon gave us all the standard comedy archetypes; the hillbilly, the urban comic, the sassy older lady, the older single female and so on. My biggest critique of the show thus far is that the audition rounds show far too much of the judges. I don't need to see them laughing hysterically to know whether or not someone is funny.

I always have a problem watching the Hollywood auditions because I see so many people that really have no business in what is promoted as an amateur talent show. Sean Rouse is already a very successful comic and for good reason. He's a very funny guy but seeing him try to pretend that he may not make it into the next round is insulting.

There were a lot of funny comics. Glickman, Dwayne Perkins and Dante were all very funny. The worst of the night, however, had to be Thea Vidale. Not only is her material tired and boring but she really has no business being in this competition. I know nobody remembers this but she already had her own sitcom on ABC. It was called THEA! It lasted less than a season which was more than it deserved. Thea's best line was when she closed her set by saying, "Thanks for letting me be myself." She left out, "Unoriginal and unfunny."

The next round of auditions took place in Australia and I loved it. It was refreshing to see a crop of comics that I had never seen before and the thing that made the terrible ones so bad is the same thing that made the funny ones so great. Clearly, Australians have a distinct sense of humor and it was a lot of fun to watch. Most of the comedians in the night time performance were all really funny but the best joke of the night had to Sam Bowring's bit about burning a copy of a new car. I laughed out loud.

According to the preview of next week, more well known comics will be auditioning, including my good friend Doug Benson. When Doug was a guest on my podcast he told me all about how his initial audition in Hollywood was not a good experience. More about that in my next review.