Stand-up comedy is unfathomably difficult.  I know this because about 99% of all stand-up comedians are terrible.  I laugh easily, and it's hard to find a theatrical comedy that I won't squeeze at least a few chuckles out of, but watching stand-up comedy, for me, is often painful.  Last Comic Standing kicked off its sixth season tonight with auditions from New York City and Tempe, Arizona.  I'm coming into this season of Last Comic Standing with an open mind.  When stand-up comedy is good, it tends to be really good.  Here's to hoping that NBC found some diamonds in the rough this year.

Your venerable Last Comic Standing host is once again Bill Bellamy, most famous for his earth-shattering role in Booty Call.  English lass Fearne Cotton (think a less-cute Cat Deeley) is on hand as the co-host, though her role seems wholly unnecessary.  These audition episodes work as such: in each city, open auditions are held for anyone who shows up.  The two judges decide whether to give each act a pass, meaning they go home, or to have them come back for a “showcase” performance the next night.  The showcase performances are in front of a real live audience.  From there, the judges, with the audience's help, decide who moves on to the semi-finals in Las Vegas. 

New York Auditions

Your two judges in NYC are Richard Belzer, former stand-up comic and Law & Order star, and Steve Schirripa, who played Bobby Baccala on The Sopranos.  There were, as always, the herd of awful comics, who we don't need to concern ourselves with.  These are the comics who made it to the showcase:

Adam Sank – a gay, Jewish New Yorker who tells some mildly funny Project Runway jokes. 

God's Pottery – probably the most bizarre act of the episode.  They are a bizarro  Tenacious D/Flight of the Conchords duo.  They “play” two, upbeat Christian musicians who sing songs about abstinence and one about a Jewish holiday called “A Brand New Start with Christ.”  Pretty funny, though weird.

Dan Curry:  Slacker comic, with a methodical delivery.  I liked this guy more than anyone else.  He didn't have any gimmicks, had well-crafted jokes, and was unique. 

Esther Ku: A 24 year-old Korean-American.  She tells a lot of jokes about her ethnicity, but I thought she was pretty good.  Not great, but playful with an easy delivery.

Al Jackson: A likable black dude who used to be a schoolteacher.  Not all that funny, unfortunately. 

Dan Naturman: He plays the big NYC voice to great effect, but I didn't find his jokes all that good.  The judges liked him a lot more than I did.

Marc Theobald: Huge mouth and gums.  Terrifying.

Louis Ramey: Solid comedian.  Reminds of Jay Leno humor.  Well-crafted, safe material.  Nothing ground-breaking or raucous, though. 

Angry Bob:  A horribly fat man trying to be Lewis Black but failing. 

Michelle Buteau: Meh.

Stone and Stone: These are twin Jewish brothers whose shtick is very difficult to explain.  They play off each other insanely well (obviously) and their humor is pretty racy.  I liked them a lot.

These comedians moved on to the semi-finals:  Louis Ramey, Stone and Stone, Esther Ku, God's Pottery, Dan Naturman.  I thought Dan Curry got screwed. 


Tempe Auditions:

Your judges for Tempe are Fred Willard and Kathy Najimy.  As one might imagine, the talent in Tempe was not as good as it was in New York. 

These are the comedians who made it to the Temp showcase:

Robert Mac: Off-beat delivery.  He gave a semi-funny Prince joke.

Jim McCue: Goateed older guy, self-deprecating.  OK.

Chantel Rae:  Not terrible, but the cliché of female comedians.

Bryan Kellen: Nerd wearing a suit.  Good energy, the material wasn't up to snuff. 

Josh McDermitt: Dan Curry-esque.  No frills, methodical joke telling.  I liked him. 

Marcus: OK.  So, Marcus kind of stole the show, but I don't particularly like him.  You see, he's an impressionist.  A great, great impressionist.  All his voices were spot on.  However, he had no jokes.  It was just a lot of “Listen to these voices that I do.” 

Adam Hunter:  He was good.  I particularly liked his immigration stuff.

Christine Patrisky: Terrible. 

Phil Palisoul: A bald, red headed guy who was quite solid.  Very professional, quality jokes.

Bobby Miyamoto: He had a great Vegas hotel joke that was well-structured.

Rob Little: I liked this guy.  Bizarre, manic energy, uber-positive, solid jokes.

These comedians moved onto the semi-finals: Marcus, Phil Palisoul, and Adam Hunter.


-Oscar Dahl, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image Courtesy of NBC)