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    OnyxBlackmanMichael Harriot
    3/29/17 9:13am

    I miss when comedians were allowed to make us uncomfortable.

    The specials were funny, Dave is still immensely funny. The audience was terrible. My favorite joke from the specials got almost zero response from the audience. He was talking about feminism, and how white women compare their suffering to the suffering of black people.

    His line was (loosely) “Whoa, hold on now. You were in on the heist, you just didn’t like your cut.” I rewound that shit like an action movie. Crowd? Dead.

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      DubayaTeeEffOnyxBlackman
      3/29/17 9:37am

      Loved the whole of both specials. If we can’t laugh at each other’s darker thoughts and confusions I don’t know how we can survive this world.

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      EvenBaggierTrousers5OnyxBlackman
      3/29/17 9:41am

      Could it also be subject matter? There are people who probably remember better than me, but I don’t Dave touched too much on gay/trans/LGBTQ issues on his show. I remember one video about a “gay world” (gay landscaper, gay DMV, etc) and “Ask a Gay Man” where an actual gay man would answer questions. But most of his comedy was directed at him or at being black in this world.

      It seems as if people were fine when he was making jokes about himself and his black experience but seemed to be not amused when he stepped outside of that and talked about things they felt were not part of HIS experience. Which is kinda silly, since we all live in this world and all of those things are part of OUR experience. So, yeah, whether the jokes were funny or not is subjective. Whether he should talk about them is not up for debate. He can and he can live or die based on that alone.

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    hocuspocusoctopusMichael Harriot
    3/29/17 9:35am

    I haven’t watched the special. I’m debating in my head on whether to watch it.

    This article kinda reminds me of the big stink Seinfeld raised a few years ago when he complained that college campuses where too PC and comedians shouldn’t go there. I remember him giving an interview where he stated the joke (I believe it was based on someone being gay) and I thought, “that’s just not a good joke.”

    Yes, audiences need to go into a comedy venue and realize these are jokes, but comedians need to realize that not all their shit is gold. And if your joke relies on some 20 year old stereotype that people no longer find funny- then maybe you should evolve with the times. Or keep doing the same old, same old and play Vegas forever.

    I watched Chappelle host SNL. Of course, he is still hilarious. So, apparently, he has some jokes that are old and tired. Every comedian does. I honestly don’t view it as crashing and burning. Maybe I see it as not making a graceful jump or a clean landing. But let’s hope that he doesn’t take this as an excuse to bag on “PC culture”.

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      EvenBaggierTrousers5
      3/29/17 9:42am

      Agreed. PC is generally just another way of saying “Either agree with me or don’t confront me on it.” Which is bullshit.

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      Ugh.EvenBaggierTrousers5
      3/29/17 9:53am

      Eh, I think that the term has certainly become that, but I think that the modern era has adopted the whole “confront” thing as “confront each and every instance, at absolutely every opportunity, even at times in which your voice is neither needed nor particularly effective.” That, to me, is bad.

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    KuttyKartelMichael Harriot
    3/29/17 10:28am

    “The narcissism of social media and the internet leaves no room for nuance, but we do not live in a binary world.” This here is a word and applies to errthing regarding social media and one of the reasons why I limit my exposure to it...

    Everybody loves being offended and telling everybody about it! This is getting really old (or maybe I am). I am black & gay and one of my favorite comedy specials is Eddie Murphy Delirious. He starts that special off by calling gays faggots and being freaked out about them looking at his junk onstage, while he is wearing LEATHER SKIN TIGHT PANTS :eyeroll:.

    But shit, I still cackle at the whole of that concert and even chuckle while rolling my eyes at that part. You know why? Some shit ain’t funny, some shit is hilarious, and some shit is offensive. Especially when it comes to comedians. But damn, it’s ART and it bees like that yo.

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      Ugh.KuttyKartel
      3/29/17 10:38am

      But shit, I still cackle at the whole of that concert and even chuckle while rolling my eyes at that part. You know why? Some shit ain’t funny, some shit is hilarious, and some shit is offensive. Especially when it comes to comedians. But damn, it’s ART and it bees like that yo.

      I’d also say that part of it has to do with integrity, specifically the fact that you can hear a comedian say some offensive shit without seeing it as some profound threat to your very existence.

      Good on you, for real. In an era in which “resilience” is a dirty word in some circles, it’s good to see it.

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      KuttyKartelUgh.
      3/29/17 10:45am

      Exactly, and even if I did see it as some threat against my existence...THAT’S JUST ME. I don’t have to project my individual feelings about it onto others. It’s very narcissistic to complain about it for 5,000 words and then go off when folks are like...”chill, it’s not that serious.”

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    scowlybrowspinster---Not just grey, NOW INVISIBLE!Michael Harriot
    3/29/17 10:18am

    What’s not funny is punching down. Article example: Tracey Morgan saying he’d stab his kid if he were gay.

    Since gay kids DO get beaten, stabbed, ostracized and killed, it’s not funny to them or people who care about them. Using “killing your kid for being himself” as joke material falls flat for good reason. No, we don’t know TM.

    Comedians: Punch the fuck UP. Make jokes about the people who are assholes to gays. Make jokes that fuck up rapist mentalities, not rape victims.

    Chappelle’s Pepe Le Pew joke was right on time back in the day.

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      Ugh.scowlybrowspinster---Not just grey, NOW INVISIBLE!
      3/29/17 11:55am

      I’d also add other types of punching down in there. Main reason I can’t get into David Cross’s stand up. It’s like, “Yep, rubes sure are stupid, boy howdy. Anything else...?”

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      scowlybrowspinster---Not just grey, NOW INVISIBLE!Ugh.
      3/29/17 5:29pm

      I have turned off so many Netflix stand up comedy shows right in the midst of the rape material, the slagging women’s looks (etc) material, the racist material and so on, that I seriously hope Netflix keeps track of the exact moment when people bail forever on some of their terrible shows and let their comedians know where they fail and their viewers essentially “walk out.”

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    Ugh.Michael Harriot
    3/29/17 9:51am

    More and more, my response to people who want to police (shut up, you know what I mean) comedy is to tell them to fuck off. Tired of it.

    If you don’t like an artist’s material, there’s one valid response to it (IMO): do not consume that material. Walk out. Ask for a refund. Don’t expose yourself to it.

    EXAMPLE: The Tosh thing from a few years back. He responded to a heckler (and yes, saying “That’s not funny,” thereby shifting focus from the performer to yourself, is heckling) in stupid fashion, but I was more pissed at the heckler. No one gives a shit whether you personally think that a comedian is funny or not. Don’t like the act? Walk the fuck out. I don’t care if we’re talking Bill Hicks or the bottom of the comedic barrel that is Daniel Tosh.

    The narcissism of social media and the internet leaves no room for nuance, but we do not live in a binary world.

    A good portion of the online community/Twitter rage sphere could stand to have these words tattooed on the insides of their fucking eyelids.

    There seems to be this unspoken understanding among the most vocal of armchair critics that art needs must be constructed in accordance with their desires, proclivities, and sensitivities in mind. This, IMO, is bullshit, and anathema to the concept of artistic expression (which comedy is).

    If Chappelle offends you, don’t watch his shit. Simple as that.

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      EvenBaggierTrousers5Ugh.
      3/29/17 10:49am

      but I was more pissed at the heckler.

      Agreed. I got into a little tiff with my SO and her friend over that incident. I said that anyone who goes to a Tosh show knows what kind of jokes he tells. Not that he’s right for telling the joke, but that THAT’S the kinds of jokes he tells. They somehow construed it that I was saying he was right and the woman who objected was wrong, which was not the case. Sure, there’s a possibility the woman was dragged there with her friends and had NO clue who Tosh was or his type of humor, but I’m operating on the assumption she paid money to go see him.

      I ended up dropping my attempt at explaining my stance to my SO and her friend since they weren’t getting it.

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      Ugh.EvenBaggierTrousers5
      3/29/17 10:56am

      Yeah, they won’t. I’m coming at it from a performance perspective.

      I’ve been heckled. I’ve stopped shows to call wannabe MST3Kers out and tell them to shut up. Fuck hecklers. Don’t care if they’re frat bros screaming “RICK JAMES BITCH” or people who think they’re “fighting the good fight.” If you’re in the audience, and insist on staying there, you have two jobs: watch the show and shut the fuck up.

      I had the Tosh argument multiple times. My take was that if I had been Tosh, I’d have had security remove her from the venue, same as any other heckler.

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    Hoyo AfrikaMichael Harriot
    3/29/17 9:50am

    “crying every time Cartman dies on South Park.” Kenny dies at the end of every episode. Cartman is the childhood version of Trump.

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      Papa DocHoyo Afrika
      3/29/17 9:54am

      Came here to say exactly this.

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      MitchellByron1983Hoyo Afrika
      3/29/17 11:30am

      Beat me to it. It’s “Oh My God, they killed Kenny!” not “Oh my God, they killed Cartman!”

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    Kyo Soma A.Michael Harriot
    3/29/17 9:56am

    I watched it as soon as he got to the issue of Bruce Jenner. I was like Uh Oh... shakey ground. However, if people actually listened to what he was saying he told the audience that he was shocked that America progressed to be a little better. Now without going into the semantics of Jenner ( white, famous, rich), the point was that people accepted and moved on. And that he was happy that happened. It was a power up for Americans. That’s at least what I received from that bit.

    “You were in on the heist, you just didn’t like your cut.” That honestly was awesome and too truthful. Look people need to understand something. I personally do not see the issue, comedy when done in a format that makes you think is doing it job. He is making you think. If it’s only insults with no context to show the folly of man it’s not a comedy show. If I’m going to a Paul Mooney or Dave Chappelle show I better know what I am getting into.

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      Ugh.Kyo Soma A.
      3/29/17 10:03am

      If I’m going to a Paul Mooney or Dave Chappelle show I better know what I am getting into.

      Yep, this.

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    BS-BryantMichael Harriot
    3/29/17 11:54am

    Watching the specials I couldnt help but have that “it’s like the good old days” feeling. Ive come to miss raw comedy. A, lot. A whole fucking lot. Comedians can see society from angles most don’t. Doesn’t mean theyre right or wrong. Doesn’t mean we are either. But it’s an art, and art always makes you take a second to look around and take in the world.

    I think we all just need to take a step back and cowboy the fuck up folks, let the artists work, laugh at yourselves, it’s healthy.

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      Ugh.BS-Bryant
      3/29/17 2:17pm

      I think we all just need to take a step back and cowboy the fuck up folks, let the artists work, laugh at yourselves, it’s healthy.

      Yep, this. Put away the “problematic elements” scorecard and just fucking experience it.

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    Charl-EMichael Harriot
    3/29/17 10:38am

    I saw the special. Dave took me to the very edge of my comfort zone and I loved it. He is nothing short of an artist. I can understand people’s offense but I was there for the ride.

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    maijinbuddhaMichael Harriot
    3/29/17 12:45pm

    Go back and watch Eddie Murphy’s two classic stand up movies or ‘Trading Places’ and ask yourself if any of them could be made today. All were filmed at the zenith of Murphy’s brilliance, and all have more than a few cringe-worthy moments laced throughout, from liberal use of the word ‘faggot’ to Dan Akroyd in blackface. Times change, and what we find funny in one decade can become ugly in the next.

    One of the most brilliant craftsman of the last century was Marvin Gaye. He and his collaborators penned songs that, from “Let’s Get It On’ to ‘What’s Going On’ are relevant to this day. Very few comics can say the same of their material.

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      Ugh.maijinbuddha
      3/29/17 2:21pm

      I’ll go you one better: Bill Hicks, Richard Pryor, Eddie Murphy, Sam Kinison, etc., wouldn’t have had careers. They’d have been picked to death by the living tabloid that is Twitter in record time.

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