This Week In Comedy: How I Learned To Stop Roasting And Love The Bomb

Happy first day of Spring! Well the radio weatherman told me it was officially spring today, then again I could have misheard considering the snow hitting my windshield was louder than I expected. Weather musings aside, the talk of the water cooler in the past week (aside from music videos from 13 year old pop stars) has been Tuesday’s Roast of Donald Trump on Comedy Central.

I wish I could say that everyone has been about spreading the word of Anthony Jeselnik’s standout performance, Gilbert Gottfried’s ballsy set, or at the very least how blindingly white Seth MacFarlane’s teeth are. No, it seems that pretty much the entire conversation has been about Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino’s epic bomb. I shouldn’t be surprised by America’s reaction given our fascination with train wrecks, but I think it is worth remembering something that is rarely mentioned when talking about Sitch’s blunder; he is not a comedian.

He is just a guy with enough business acumen to turn what should have been fifteen minutes of fame into a bank account with 5 million dollars (currently 5 million more than is in mine) and a media franchise. Him being invited to The Roast is both a testament to his cultural relevancy, and the fact that he is a pretty easy target to make fun of.

For anyone who might not know already, executing standup comedy (successfully) falls somewhere between disarming a bomb and making a souffle, that is to say, it’s doable with practice – just don’t expect it to get it on the first try. The Situation learned the hard way that stand-up comedy is much more than getting on stage and parroting some jokes.

In the man’s defense however I give him credit for sticking through his set to the bitter end. One of the cardinal rules of stand up comedy is “if you are bombing, don’t give up. Finish your set.” Even when Jeffery Ross came out as an act of mercy, Sorrentino stuck to that sinking, making sure to recite every last joke. As far as I’m concerned, to do something like that you either have to have brass balls or be a complete moron. Either way The Situation lives up to the adage “Dying is easy. Comedy is hard.”

COMEDY IN STORES THIS WEEK
Aries Spears: Hollywood, Look I’m Smiling (DVD)
Bill Cosby Show – The Best of Season 1 (DVD)
Ernest Double Feature: Ernest Goes to Camp & Ernest Goes to Jail (Blu-ray)
Michael J Fox Comedy Favorites Collection (DVD)
Natasha Leggero: Coke Money (CD)
The Venture Bros.: Season 4, Vol. 2 (DVD)
The Venture Bros.: The Complete Season 4 (Blu-ray)
Yogi Bear (DVD)
Yogi Bear (Blu-ray)

COMEDY ON TV
Monday, March 21st
Dana Carvey on Late Show with David Letterman
Lisa Lampanelli on The Tonight Show
Denis Leary, Kathleen Madigan on Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
Steve Martin on The Colbert Report
Natasha Leggero, Matt Braunger on Chelsea Lately
Jim Gaffigan on The View
Jimmy Fallon on Ellen

Tuesday, March 22nd
Rainn Wilson on Jimmy Kimmel Live
Bill Hader on Last Call with Carson Daly
Chris Hardwick, Jo Koy on Chelsea Lately
Rainn Wilson on Ellen

Wednesday, March 23rd
Ben Stiller on Late Show with David Letterman
Trey Parker, Matt Stone on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
Chris Franjola, Loni Love, Greg Proops on Chelsea Lately

Thursday, March 24th
Rainn Wilson on Late Show with David Letterman
Jim Norton on Chelsea Lately
Kyle Kinane, Pete Holmes on John Oliver’s New York Stand-Up Show Season 2 Premiere

Friday, March 25th
Natasha Leggero on Comedy Central Presents

Saturday, March 26th
Russell Brand (host) Chris Brown (musical guest) on Saturday Night Live

Sunday, March 27th
Lisa Lampanelli Tough Love premieres