In Continuum.

As my English lecturer from the second semester would say, there are comedians and then there are comedians. There are the funny comedians, and then there are the comedians who try to be comedic. I am a fan of stand up comedies, I try to watch them on YouTube every once in a while when I have the time, and to me it is more than just a man standing on the stage to tell jokes. It has somehow evolved into a form of art to me, to way you have to plan your routine before the act and at the same time, be flexible about it and to react and interact with the live audience. It is not something that can be done by just any guy out there with a knack for telling jokes, and comedians are a group of entertainers I genuinely respect from the bottom of my heart. With that said, however, there are comedians and there are comedians even for the more famous one working in the industry today. Of course, you can always argue that perhaps this man's brand of humor is just not your cup of tea, but there are times when comedians are just trying too hard to be comedians. You cannot blame them at times, since being a professional comedian you are forced to come up with ideas even if you have ran out of them completely. It'd be like squeezing blood out of a rock, when all you are doing is squeezing blood out of your brain. It know how an inspirational dry-spell feels like, and it certainly doesn't feel good.

The kind of comedians whom I admire the most are the ones who can improvise materials on the spot without a script or a routine to follow. That is probably why I still think that despite all the television shows I have watched over the years, Whose Line is it Anyway still remains the best comedic show ever. You can't help but wonder in awe how those four grown men have the ability to come up with such hilarious things on the spot when common people like ourselves can't even tell a joke in proper most of the time. Anything that they do on the show is funny no matter who you are and what kind of jokes you prefer. Perhaps it is how quick they are when it comes to jokes and how natural they are in the delivery. You cannot fake a talent like that, that is something that you have naturally. Comedians like Chris Rock deliver scripted routines, and he delivers them very, very well. Still, when it comes down to it, I still prefer the kind of comedy that involves improvising, simply because it is the epitome of comedy, it is the pinnacle of all funnies.

Eddie Izzard is a comedian I respect with all my heart, because you know he doesn't go up onto the stage with anything pre-planned. He probably has a rough idea of what he wants to talk about, but then he probably begins with that topic and just sort of flows from one topic to another naturally. You won't feel like he is doing a routine for the most part, but more like a two hour long ranting session on his part - but I am not complaining, because his rants are just hysterical. You are not going to watch a show by Eddie Izzard and know what he is going to talk about, because he himself doesn't know what he is going to talk about for the most part. The fact that he cross-dresses is just a gimmick most of the time, it's what he talks about that is just so downright hilarious. The best part about his comedic routines is the fact that he does it with his trademark British accent, and everything is just so funny in the British accent somehow. Nobody can recreate his routine with the same effect, because that is how original and unique he is. He can say an ordinary sentence like "I ate cheesecake this morning with bacon and eggs" and make it funny somehow. That's a natural comedian right there. 

Now, I used to like the comedian Russell Peters a lot, I am sure everybody is familiar with his routine on Comedy Central a couple of years ago, the one that really skyrocketed him to worldwide fame. There is no questions about the man's comedic genes, he is a genuinely funny man. I was introduced to Russell Peters through Harrison last time, and his comedic routine just floored me the first time I saw it in my bedroom. It was just the funniest stand up I have seen in a long time, the way he has such a unique perspective on race and sex was really interesting to watch. The problem with him, however, is how he banks most of his shows on the same kind of jokes. If you take your time to do some research of his over the internet, you'd realize just how much of his jokes are recycled in different shows. They are funny materials, but then even jokes can get old overtime, and that is when your credibility as a comedian really drops like a cannonball. I still think that he can be funny if he wants to, but he really has to start coming up with new materials in order to be funny.

Comedians are also a reason why I like most of the talk shows in America. They love to have comedians as their hosts most of the time, and they are the only qualified entertainers to host a show - no others. You cannot find a replacement for someone like Stephen Colbert, or Conan O'Brien, or any other of the famous talk show hosts out there in America. Of course, those talk show hosts are the more famous and widely acclaimed comedians out there, but for some reason I am tickled mostly by the host of the Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson. This Scottish comedian just has a funny way with everything, although he tends to overwhelm the guests on his show sometimes. Conan jokes can get old sometimes, and Letterman isn't really all that funny anymore (we are not even going to consider Jay Leno here). Craig Ferguson's show is relatively new as compared to the others, but his monologues are always so hilarious to watch. I can watch his interviews with various celebrities all night and not get bored out by it. It must be the Scottish accent, or maybe just how he is very physical with his jokes most of the time. I love Craig Ferguson, though I am probably in the minority here. 

Like I mentioned, script routines are fine as long as you can do it in a natural manner. Chris Rock is hilarious, no questions about that, and there isn't anything wrong if you are going to base your entire routine on a script. One of my favorite stand up comedians, George Carlin, probably had everything planned out before a show. Still, what interests me the most about George Carlin is probably his view on things. He talks about the politics, religion, and many other social issues around the world in his routines, and his views are usually unique only to himself and very interested to look upon most of the time. He denounces religion, but he worships the sun. He doesn't pray to the sun however, he prays to his friend Joe Pesci. It is amazing how an old white man such as himself still has the ability to be pissed off and funny all at the same time. 

With that said, there are the other comedians whom I dislike quite a bit for one reason or another. I am not entirely familiar with the works of Carlos Mencia, but I have watched a couple of his routines and found them to be, well, too vulgar for my taste. He tends to think that being vulgar is also how it is to be funny. It may work for some people sure, but when you are using vulgarities like punctuation, it begins tiring to listen to and very repulsive after some time. As a comedian, his stature dropped even lower after I watched the following video that involves his confrontation with Joe Rogan at the Comedy Store last year about how he tends to steal jokes from other comedians blatantly. The worst part is probably how he actually earns money from these stolen jokes by putting his shows on HBO, and that has caused quite an uproar in the comedic community in America. It is completely alright if you are unfunny, but not so cool if you are going to steal jokes from others. It is bad enough that he is vulgar in his routines, but worst if he is merely repeating the routines already done by other comedians. 

Sarah Silverman is probably another comedian whom I don't like all that much. There aren't a lot of female comics to begin with, and she can be a little offensive at times. Some people may think that Ellen Degeneres is too tamed to be a comedian, but I derive more satisfaction in watching her talk show than to watch a routine by Sarah Silverman. Like Carlos Mencia, she banks too much on vulgarities and sex all the time, when there are more to those aspects of comedy in real life. It gets tiring hearing about the same old issues over and over again, especially when you aren't even all that funny after being stripped of the vulgarities in the first place. I'm not sure why people like her are famous in the first place, but I guess humor just works differently in different people. I'd rather watch Bobby Lee get slapped by John Cena than to watch her routines, really. 

Of course, I have probably only touched on the tip of the iceberg in the comedic community. There are a bunch of other comedians whom I probably don't know about. Still, from what I already know, it is clear enough that there are comedians and there are comedians. At the end of the day, it is all about which comedians make you laugh harder, which comedian appeals to you more. If Carlos Mencia appeals to you more, then go right ahead with him. I do believe that Eddie Izzard isn't for anybody out there, but then he is the kind of comedian whom I respect and admire. It comes right down to the audience in the end, and what you like with your coffee - sugar and cream?