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Last Comic Standing 2: Episode 2
The New York Semi-Finals
Recap By C.C. McCandless
June 10, 2004
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Wednesday's second episode of Last Comic Standing cut the field in half, from 40 to 20, with many surprising selections. Colin Quinn, Kim Coles, and season one contestant Rich Vos sat in alongside talent bookers Ross Mark and Bob Read, offering up an occasional question or comment to the eager participants. The two hour show was broken down into two halves, with ten tickets to the final round in Las Vegas given out at the end of each segment.
Before getting to the comedy routines, the show decided to cut right to the cattiness instead. As contestants rode to the Hudson Theater in a tricked-out party bus, Ant felt the need to bare his claws, ripping Todd Glass and his cronies for their sarcastic comments about "keeping it real." I'm not sure if this foreshadows later trouble in the house or if it's just NBC's desperate attempt to generate some early conflict where none truly exists before the viewers are force-fed 40 straight stand-up sets. And in the interest of full disclosure, I counted 41. How did this happen? Or why? I don't have an answer.
The first hour featured some very startling cuts. Veteran comics Pablo Francisco and Will Durst both got laughs, but not tickets to Vegas. Paul Varghese was cut as well after exhibiting an acute case of Dat Phanitis-that being a disease in which a stand-up is funny, but only has three minutes of good material, as exhibited by Varghese repeating the exact same routine that got him into the semis. Russian teenager Vladimir Khylnin was sent packing as well, vowing to return next year.
Among those who did advance was leadoff comedian Alonzo Bodden, who delivered a witty set about shopping at Bed, Bath & Beyond. Colin Quinn immediately played the race card with Bodden, a tall African-American, by asking if that same joke would work in "black clubs." Bodden cut him off at once, stating flat out that he is a comedian, not just a black comedian, and he earned a round of applause and some clear respect from the audience for this statement. Familiar faces like Kathleen Madigan and Todd Glass also got their Vegas tickets punched, as did Ant, despite using all the same gay-themed jokes that failed to get him into the house last season.
Attractive blonde Bonnie McFarlane made the final 20, and also got a sleazy proposition from Rich Vos for her troubles. "If you don't make it to the house, would you like to spend some time at my house?" asked Vos, apparently taking a break from his painstaking schedule of ironing. "I'd rather be homeless," she quickly deadpanned. I like her already. Another of the lucky ten from the first group was Jim Norton, who looks like a cancer patient and is nearly as cheerful. A little internet surfing revealed a site where fans can buy his merchandise, including t-shirts with witty slogans such as "you stink and I don't like you" and "it's not rape if she blinks twice for yes." I'm sure this guy will be a lovely housemate if he makes the final ten.
The second hour included more of the same, with some funny stuff and other routines that were simply not worthy of a chuckle. Dan Ahdoot led off the second half with a hilarious set about his parents and their feelings about him pursuing a career in comedy instead of going to med school. As Jay Mohr wisely noted, Ahdoot now needs to update his "comedy calendar," because he is heading to Sin City for the finals. Six foot six inch Gary "that's a lot of Jew" Gulman, hangdog-faced Monty Hoffman, and Shticky Jay London all moved on too, as did Kerri Louise, the less funny half of a husband-and-wife team. Venerable Chicago comedian Jim Wiggins, one of the sentimental favorites, failed to receive a Las Vegas invitation, although he certainly should be inundated with voiceover offers after demonstrating his velvet-smooth pipes on network television.
For the record, Buck Star was nowhere to be found. Apparently his William Hung-like fifteen minutes of fame are already up.
Not much was said about next week's episode, but it is apparent that the field will be halved again in Las Vegas, with the ten survivors advancing to live in a house together in Hollywood.
C.C. McCandless is an independent filmmaker and freelance writer. He has a Bachelor’s degree in broadcasting from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.
You can contact C.C. here: ccmcc33@msn.com
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