‘Last Comic Standing’ review: Joe Machi, Monroe Martin, Tracey Ashley rock semifinals
Tonight on “Last Comic Standing,” 14 comics faced off to be the five who made it to the next phase of the competition. Some rose to the occasion, and some didn’t.
This episode also presented executive producer Wanda Sykes and former contestant Amy Schumer as “advisers,” though we are not entirely sure at the moment how much they really brought. We blame most of that on the editing, which made them feel very weird and unnatural, given that we’re sure they provided way more practical help than we saw. Note that we’ve ranked the performers below in order from our least favorite to our favorites on the night.
Mike Vecchione – There were some good lines in here, but there is something about Mike’s delivery that is very stale. Maybe it is just the way he perceives and talks about himself that comes across as arrogant and uncomfortable at the same time.
Yamaneika Saunders – We didn’t really love her the first time, and feel relatively the same way here. The material was okay, but there isn’t a single quality here that we don’t find better in the other comics.
Chloe Hilliard – Probably one of the least-memorable people of the entire night. It’s not that she was terrible, but there is nothing that stands out about her.
Karlous Miller – What is with this guy? His attitude to comedy is very strange. We don’t know if he didn’t like Wanda and Amy just didn’t like him, or if he just doesn’t want to give production anything.
DeAnne Smith – Thankfully, Deanne did not yell “tell it to my balls” again. Unfortunately, her musical number tonight didn’t have the payoff we wanted. Basically, we want to call her “evil Kate Micucci.”
Mark Normand – Clearly, his bit about Puerto Ricans is something that plays better in his everyday set than it did here. This all felt very rehearsed, almost too much so. He didn’t pivot when some things weren’t completely nailing.
Tommy Ryman – He was funnier in the auditions, and while his “my mom wanted me to be gay” bit was humorous, we wouldn’t classify it as “hilarious.” We know now why he hasn’t got a ton of airtime.
Aida Rodriguez – She’s from Puerto Rico, so we guess Mark wouldn’t like her, now would he? We kid, we kid! She is a very bold comic, but we wish that she did touch on some subjects that extended beyond some of what we have seen from so many others.
Nick Guerra – This routine about horror movies really made us laugh, mostly because it was so true how useless most of these found-footage movies really are.
Mike Gaffney – A really funny guy from the first round, and he mostly delivered here with his run about Facebook and how people should just talk to themselves. We really only wish there was more of it here.
Jimmy Shubert – Very, very funny. This guy seems like someone who would have literally been on a plane with a useless therapy cat, and then came home and complained about it so much that it found its way into an actual set.
Tracey Ashley – One of the funniest comics of the entire season. Her entire story about the woman from the woods delivering her was hysterical, and she just has a very interesting point of view that references her past.
Joe Machi – Amazingly funny. Joe may be one of our favorite people ever, not just on this season. His delivery is so fantastic and unpredictable, especially the way that he brings bits back around to where they start.
So who advanced? We had Joe, Karlous, Monroe, Jimmy, and Aida! We’re really surprised about Karlous based on his package with the advisers, and we feel like Aida or him over Tracey Ashley is a huge mistake. We’re always disappointed with at least one result a season with this show; this one just happened to come a little earlier than usual. Grade: B.
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Photo: NBC