Will the Funny People Please Stand Up

The Last Comic Standing has aired three episodes so far, it's definitely a pretty entertaining show if you're into new material and comedy in general. As a fan of stand up comedy I find the show to be interesting at points although really not well put together when it comes down to the overall quality. My main beef with The Last Comic Standing is how they only allot a 3-4 minute segment on the worst of the worst. Also each episodes "worst" segment of the show has been mainly directed towards the, needless to say, freakier comics. The second episode included ventriloquists as being the "worst" comics. Definitely would have to agree on that point, although pointed out by one of the judges that ventriloquism is definitely a talent, I personally find this talent to be really freaky. Also noteworthy in regards to ventriloquism, why is that the dummy is always the pissed off one of the duo?

A second major issue with The Last Comic Standing is how they spend the majority of the show focused on a specific group of people. The comics focused on in each episode are the ones, that are obviously the most comically effective, that always indefinitely proceed on to the final showcase. Makes sense though why would a prime time slot on network television show multiple dud comics and save only the funny stuff for the end showcase? You'd probably lose a large majority of the viewers who clearly tune in to get the new jokes and material when they happen to be sick of their regular stand up comedians. My issue with the people that they allot their time to is that every one of them often go on to the showcase at the shows end, but even worse is that almost all of them get a ticket to go on to the next round! They practically give away which comics make it and which won't, personally I'm pretty let down by this factor of the show. What irks me even more is the fact that at the end showcase their showing you all the competitors faces when they're doing the final vote to see who makes it to the next round. I don't know about you but I'm sitting at home going "who the hell was that guy?" Personally there's just some people they show who I don't think are all that funny, not even the littlest bit. So what I really want to know is how exactly they decide which comics their going to put on air in the initial weeding out process. More often than not though the three comic judges do a remarkable job separating the mildly funny from the down right hysterical and I find myself agreeing with their end outcome 9 out of 10 times.

My favorite aspect of the show would definitely have to be the showcase presented in the last two segments of the shows airing. The showcase is great because you actually get to see the smallest bit of a routine that each comic would perform in front of the audience. Unlike the initial audition part of the show each comic performs in front of a live audience. In the New York trials there were two nights of auditions and showcases which were performed at the Gotham theater. When the comics perform in front of live audience and the three judges, instead of just the three judges, they have a tendency to seem more relaxed. You get a much better feel of the material that the person is presenting and almost a little of their personality when they do their routines in front of the live audience. I also like that there's more for the judges to base their overall opinion of each comic on with the live audience present. Since there is a larger demographic for the comic to present to the judges can more fairly score each contestant on their presentation of material and their ability to draw appeal and laughter.

What's definitely crazy is the amount of racism that the comics use in their stand up performances. I'm almost appalled at the percentage of stand up comics chosen by the judges to move on to the showcase that present racism in their performances. If it wasn't so funny I think that there might be many people who would find it offensive. Yet in the same respect most racism used in comedy is being done by the very person who would find it offensive. Also it's comedy, poking fun at things we should normally take with a grain of salt is pretty much in the job description. Last Comic Standing is without knowing it teaching America to stop taking things so seriously and start laughing at themselves.

Things that I really enjoy about this show:
I absolutely love when the camera crew and backstage crew laugh at the jokes being performed by the comics in their first auditions. To me this really tells you who's ultimately going to win the ticket at the end of the showcase. It's like a little preview of what the audience will be like at the showcase. Also, kind of annoying, even though you can hear the crew laughing every single time it happens the judges still feel like it's necessary to mention it.
I really enjoy the background spots they do on some of the contestants. The one's with the kids in them are the best... You kinda start to wonder is this lady really like this with her kid or is she hamming it up for the camera?
My favorite comics are the one's who answer the judges when they give their critique and yes/no at the end of the beginning auditions. These people have balls in the best way possible.
Also how could you not be overjoyed that Craig Robinson is the host? Pretty perfect combination in you ask me. He's got that strange humor that you can't help to love, and since he's been in his fair share of television and movies he's got a pretty good following that would tune into the show to watch him. Good move Last Comic Standing.