Last Comic Standing: Nothing Says Funny Like The Plague Episode 8 Recap by CC McCandless
August 9, 2007
We're down to eight comedians left on "Last Comic Standing" and some of the performers are very happy to have dodged the showdown altogether the first time out. "I'm very happy to have avoided it for the first week," admitted Matt, the smart, young Brit. So what's in store for the comedians this week? Apparently Doug has watched this show before, as he noted "out of nowhere someone could say, Here, put on a dumb costume and look like an idiot." That's some pretty heavy-handed foreshadowing.
The comics met the short bus outside their hotel, and I'll say it: I really miss the porno castle. No snappy quips from a gorilla at the wheel this week; instead, the comedians were immediately whisked off to Medieval Times, a restaurant immortalized on film brilliantly in "The Cable Guy." Host Bill Bellamy freaked everyone out by posing inside a suit of armor. It wouldn't be the last time today that some of them were terrified. Upon being led into the arena, Gerry was very blunt about his feelings. "I'm not going in that ring," he declared. "I'm not riding a horse." No, he was looking at a fate much more painful than a quick little jaunt atop a pony.
The contestants were treated to a quick feast, and then Bellamy broke down the challenge at hand which, in this case, was simple enough: Last Jester Standing. Each comedian would perform a 90 second set of medieval themed comedy. Because nothing says funny like mead, serfs, and the black plague. In addition to the impossible subject matter, they were forced to wear-of course-ridiculous jester outfits. "I looked like a giant beach ball," said Lavell. "Horrifying." The outfit wasn't enough to stop the big boy in the first round, though as he dispatched Doug, who wasn't at all distraught at the defeat. "I won't mind if I have to go head to head because I can do my act in normal clothes," he said.
Jon actually enjoyed the attire. "I liked the jester's outfit," he said. "I looked like some sort of redneck pimp." Perhaps the outfit inspired confidence, as Jon easily knocked off Ralph. Amy then trounced Gerry, who didn't have anything positive to say about his own set. "Nothing worked," he admitted. "It was terrible. Absolutely terrible. I've never heard 1100 people boo in unison." Debra then narrowly edged Matt in the final pairing of the first round. Jon and Amy advanced in the second round, and the redneck pimp took home immunity by winning the final round as well. "He clearly won," said a gracious Amy. "I was pretty proud of myself for making it that far." And she should be, as the conditions for comedy seemed just horrible. Every comic deserves kudos for gamely battling through and giving it their best effort.
This week's voting took place inside a torture museum, which probably felt comparable to the Medieval Times ring to the comics at that point. Jon held immunity, which meant that when two votes were cast for Debra, including his, she was left with only one potential showdown opponent: Matt, whom she beat in a very tight vote earlier that day. Back at the hotel, there was, once again, a painful lack of arrogance or smack talk. Instead, we saw Amy helping Matt craft his set while the two nervous showdown participants said nice things about one another. It's as if they actually like each other, which is nearly unacceptable for this show.
At the big showdown, Debra led off with a bit about shopping for lingerie. You'll have to surmise on your own where it went from there, since all I could manage to write down from that point on was "loud and unfunny." So, if Matt couldn't beat that then he deserves to go home. His coach Amy was slightly fearful because of Matt's cerebral brand of comedy. "I don't know that the audience is going to get him," she said with trepidation. And considering his set contained a tangent into the always-hilarious realm of homeopathic medicine, these concerns were genuinely founded. However, he was still funnier.
But would the audience agree? After the votes were cast we learned that this was the tightest margin ever in the history of the show. And by a 55-45 margin, Matt emerged victorious. I even felt a little bad for Debra, who seemed legitimately crestfallen at her defeat. But I won't miss her braying laughter at her own punch lines any more, and I do look forward to seeing Matt's act evolve as he gets more experience. Next week we're lined up for another three-way head to head that will finish off the "challenge round" and leave us with our final five. None of the potential match ups left looks like a cake walk for anyone, so the show should only get more interesting next time out.
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: cc.mccandless@gmail.com
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