Every once in a while I flip through the channels looking for stand-up comedy. However, what I see can hardly be called that. It seems that the flare and substance that once characterized stand up have been replaced with tasteless jokes.

Example:

Why are they all clapping? I can have more fun plucking a chicken on a rainy Sunday than watching that. His manners and way of talking make him a caricature rather than a comedian. I have no problems with listening to something different and original, but Mencia’s presentation just turns me off. Show me some ingenuity, make me laugh and think about what you are saying, but don’t be so blunt. This is what I call “fast good” comedy, or comedy meant to entertain and disappear. It provokes no after thoughts and questions – just a few beeps and cheap tricks. It seems that most of today’s comedians count on playing a role in order to be funnier – the dummy, the fat guy, the brotha’, the Hispanic. What I want, however, is someone who speaks the truth and makes me think while pointing the irony. Someone who actually believes in what he says.

It’s cool to be dumb nowadays, so they act dumb or say extremely dumb things and we laugh at them. Don’t get me wrong, spurious comedy can have some wit; I enjoy comedians like Steve Byrne and Mike Birbiglia, but most of the time I just watch it with a straight face…and a dead chicken.

I will end this post with one of the true comedians of our time – Bill Hicks.

Popularity: 4% [?]