Jonny The Kay:

Gxas:
I agree with most points you made but I have one question: Is this thread really how you want people to think of you as you start your Escapist... life?

To be honest I just wanted to get this off my chest I don't really care how I start out. I just wanted my opinion to be heard.

Like Nazi Germany? nah only joking.
I agree with you wholeheartedly, everyone in my school was saying how great he was and they told me thousands of times to watch Achmed the dead terrorist, so eventually I did and i just sat through the whole thing with a puzzled look on my face thinking to myself, "Isn't this a tad racist?"

So far I saw guy perform twice. Dont get me wrong, it was grate and all. I loved the fact that he used stereotypes in his performance, it seems that lately all white comedians misplaced their balls and can only do "redneck" stereotype. But when it comes to variety he does not deliver.

Second show was like watching the same show again, but in different order, with new jokes being flat at best. He really needs to hire some people (preferably of jewish decent) to write him a new material.

Jonny The Kay:
Ok, before every Jeff Dunham fan boy/girl lashes out at me in hatred please hear me out:

I don't like Jeff Dunham for a variety of reasons:

The first is that he is everything wrong with mainstream comedy. He never misses an opportunity for a fart joke or a joke about sex. None of his jokes never strike me as clever and I can always see the punchline coming from a mile away. I'm not bragging about my intelligence either. But every one of his bits seems so predictable. None of his material seems original.

The Second is the puppets. The puppets only provide stale and tasteless stereotypes they would be the extent that they would seem to be off springs of Carlos Mancia. He also leans on his puppets every opportunity he can. For those of you die hard fans who have enough sense to read the whole rant before replying consider this: Have you seen the first part of one of his specials (can't remember the name)? You know the part where he does comedy alone? Wasn't he just making noises for his dog? That was super lame, I know that was just the opener and not the high point of the special, but come on. That was just terrible.

The third and final reason (or last reason I can remember of the top of my head,) is that he takes attention of the comics that are really actually talented. I can name 5 comedians of the top of my head that are better but who's attention has been averted from them to Jeff Dunham. Patton Oswalt, Mitch Hedburg, Dmitri Martin, Jim Gaffigan, and Ron white. It's terrible that those people haven't seen comedy at it's finest.

If you are reading this that means you have read through my hate speech and are going to reply to it intelligently (please).

I agree with everything you said. I mean, when you look at his Wikipedia (which I did for some reason) and see his list of puppets you can really see how simple and clichéd his "characters" are.

wiki:
José Jalapeño on a Stick is a jalapeño pepper with a Mexican personality, a sombrero, and a mustache, whose running joke is adding "on a stick" to the end of most of his sentences.

Yeah, that's some goddamn comedy gold right there, Jeff. You're right up there with Mencia, Cook and Francisco in my book.

Also, I fucking love Patton Oswalt. The guy's my hero, and doesn't get nearly enough credit for his standup.

Hmm, well I agree with your points, however I still like Dunham. This thread made me realize that I didn't really think much of him, which then made me realize that I don't think alot about comics at all. Unless their jokes are completely stupid or offensive or something, I don't care if they're not genius as long as they're funny. And if I do think a comic is bad, I usually change the channel before I can learn or remember their names. Dunham's jokes aren't as funny as it is that he's fun to watch. And as long as he is fun, I don't care if he has faults like those.

Also, does anyone else notice that he spends a lot of time just making sounds or other feats with no point other than to show what a good ventriloquist he is? He may as well yell, "Hey look I can do this without moving my lips!"

Jonny The Kay:

The third and final reason (or last reason I can remember of the top of my head,) is that he takes attention of the comics that are really actually talented. I can name 5 comedians of the top of my head that are better but who's attention has been averted from them to Jeff Dunham. Patton Oswalt, Mitch Hedburg, Dmitri Martin, Jim Gaffigan, and Ron white. It's terrible that those people haven't seen comedy at it's finest.

First, Patton, Mitch, and Dimitri are my second, third, and fourth favorite comics! (In no particular order of course.) No one tops good old George Carlin.

Second, while I can agree that he isn't my favorite comic, not even top 10, I will say that his puppetry takes quite a bit of talent, and the first time I saw his routine I found it enjoyable.

Naterstein:
Yeah Jeff Dunham is getting old fast. I enjoyed the first time I saw Peanut and Jalapeno on a stick about 15 years ago, but now, it is getting kinda silly.

Ron White, really? I enjoyed his comedy the first time I heard it, but he kept up with the same damn material for years during the Blue Collar Comedy tour. It was embarassing.

I was never a fan of Patton Oswalt either.

Mitch Hedberg, if he was still alive, was seriously funny. IMO, Jim Gaffigan and Brian Regan are hysterically funny and probably some of the best standups around today.

Brian Regan is epicly hilarious....as is Jim.

It's funny how people hate EVERYTHING that's mainstream here at Escapist.
Nothing else to say
kthxbye

MaxMees:

Jonny The Kay:

Gxas:
I agree with most points you made but I have one question: Is this thread really how you want people to think of you as you start your Escapist... life?

To be honest I just wanted to get this off my chest I don't really care how I start out. I just wanted my opinion to be heard.

Like Nazi Germany? nah only joking.
I agree with you wholeheartedly, everyone in my school was saying how great he was and they told me thousands of times to watch Achmed the dead terrorist, so eventually I did and i just sat through the whole thing with a puzzled look on my face thinking to myself, "Isn't this a tad racist?"

No, No not racist at all...unless you define racist as stereotyping an entire ethnic background, which is certainly not what he is doing.

I don't know why I have to make this point so many times (my current count is 19), if you dislike or are otherwise offended by something, don't watch it/avoid it.

Very simple concept really, it can be applied to many things: movies, TV shows, music, adverts, games, comedians, fashion sense, books, the internet and much, much more! If you dislike a TV show, turn off the TV or change the channel, if you think a movie is bad, don't watch it, if you believe that a commedian sucks and is unworthy of the mirth he seems to generate, ignore him and admire the comic genius of another person.

So many problems in the world could easily be sidesteped or solved if more people took this approach, honestly.

I really liked him the first time I saw him...but then every special of his I watched...there wasn't much new material...so I lost interest.

The opening bit for his Christmas special was funny as HELL. (See his bit about daughter filling the car up for the first time)

In response to the rest, I agree - in PART - that he uses the puppets for some cheap laughs. While I found the un-PC Achmed the Dead Terrorist's debut to be hilarious, for the most part it is usually one sex or fart joke right after the other.

On the other hand, aren't those two of the things people most joke about? I'm an evangelical, and heck, I get a kick out of a good fart joke every once in a while. Maybe I'm just too lowbrow.

Other than that, some valid (and good) points.

I only know this guy from the internet and idiots on it quoting that Achmed dead terrorist thing.

Its probably the most unfunny thing in the history of comedy! I've seen some of the stuff on youtube and its almost embarrassing to watch.

To me, he's not AMAZING, but he's pretty good, and I guess it was just his time, comedy ventriloquism hasn't had a figurehead in a long long time, let's just hope he doesn't spawn a bunch of pretenders.

Sure maybe he's getting more publicity than he deserves compared to some, but I get the feeling that some of the escapists would go off their favourites if they became too popular.

I'm also with the guy who says 'hey, he's good, he's not great, but he's good, and that'll do', I'd personally prefer an extra 10 or so hours of good stand up on TV each week over another mediocre reality show like 'my sweet 16'. Damn, they called GTA a murder simulator, I'm sure that show got more people planning violent slow torture and murder more than any video game.

My biggest problem with Jeff Dunham is that he repeats himself more than my goddamn winamp... And I keep it on to repeat the same track all the time... He's ok... He's not a Bill Baley, Dylan Moran or Dave Allen, but he's ok when he's not doing the same goddamn routine over and over and over and over the fuck again... Have some creativity man...

I can bare with Jeff Dunham's comedy but I'd rather see any of the other comics you mentioned.

Patton Oswalt is very funny. He makes me feel good about being a geek. Mitch Hedburg I miss. I wish he was still alive. Dmitri Martin is great. I love clever comics like Dmitri. Jim Gaffigan I can't watch while drinking anything. He's that funny to me. Ron White is funny but I wish he'd stop doing Blue Collar Tours and get some new material. My biggest beef with comics is when they have very little to no new material to bring.

I just looked up one of his videos...

He isn't very convincing is he? His mouth moves XD

Oh god... my head hurts. The amount of intelligence within your thoughts is starting to erode away my sanity. Good on you there mate, not many have actually been able to accomplish that feat of horribleness. The last time that happened, I was watching Grindhouse, possibly the worst two movies ever made. Now onto arguing with you, instead of just insulting you.

While yes, I have seen Jeff's act increasingly sink into the mass media shit hole effect of sex jokes, he still has far more integrity then most comedians that are mainstream. He is far above the levels of Dane Cook and Mencia. On top of that, even Mencia has made more clever points then you have in your post. I distinctly remember the horrid bastard pointing out the stupidity of your average white guy wearing a tribal band. Very clever, if not a tad bit racist. Also, by the by, I'm not defending Mencia. I'm merely pointing out the fact that his one clever comment is far superior to your entire post.

Upon reaching your second point, I feel as though I must reiterate there point. Do you have any idea what the point of a ventriloquist is? It's a person who uses puppets to talk for him. I'm not sure if you have had that meaning sunk into your thick skull yet, but I will spell it out for you as your intelligence seems somewhat lacking. A ventriloquist is going to used puppets, that is the point of his act. That is why people go to see him. They want to see him interacting with something, have an actual conversation with someone and make them laugh. Also, yes I am smart enough to know the puppets don't have a mind of their own. The point is, it gives life to the act, where as if he were alone the level of charisma and life found within his act would not be there. On another point, his puppets are meant to be stereotypes. They are there so people can laugh and identify with them. Walter is suppose to be the grumpy old man that hates life. A lot of old grumpy men exist, so a lot of people know people like that. From that, we concur that a lot of people will want to laugh at the old bastard who has caused them so much pain. Same with the white trailer trash bastard, and black pimp. Both are racial stereotypes that do exist. I'm sorry if you haven't seen these people, however I have, a multitude of times. I live in a trailer park, where I have seen the incredibly stupid and moronic drunk who likes to watch Nascar. I have also lived in an area close to a ghetto, where I have seen black people who act like Sweet Daddy D. Those stereotypes do exist, and people do know of people who are like that. Like I said before, it is something we can laugh at, because reality fucking bites.

Now onto your third point, which really makes my hands want wring your neck. Jeff Dunham in no way takes attention of other comedians. He has just streamlined his act to where a wide variety of people can enjoy his act. This in no way makes him a worse comedian, it in fact makes him better. Instead of making jokes that are going to make a small number of people laugh, he makes it so almost an entire nation can look at his jokes and giggle. This means that even though someone may not have ran into a black pimp like character, they can still laugh at Sweet Daddy D. It's god damn hard to make something funny, and appealing to a wide range of people. You also said that people recommending Jeff over other comedians somehow makes the other comedians left out. Fine, true. This happens because people prefer him over other comedians. This also does not make it so fans of his work will not recommend other comedians. This just means the fans are recommending their favorite comedian. Jeff has worked hard to get his large fan base.

Also those comedians you listed appeal to niches. They appeal to small audiences. This is why they are not as popular as other comedians.

Wow we've moved on from bashing his act to bashing his talent.

(BTW Good on your Amund I totally agree)

For those of you saying "How hard is it to do this" or stating he should simply yell "Hey look I can do this."

I'd like to see YOU do what he does. I bet you any money you fail...constantly.

What he does takes IMMENSE skill. Not ONCE does he accidentally mix his acts together not ONCE does accidentally screw up what hes trying to project (location may vary but quality is still there.)

His song with Jose for example with the varying volumes and tones all at once. That takes IMMENSE skill without getting caught out.

You guys re simply bashing him because hes made a living from a very difficult trade. Get a life ffs.

I'm pretty sure the reason Jeff is so popular is quotability. So many quotable comedians gain popularity. They allow people in the know to continue conversation, or even strike up conversation. This isn't to say that the only reason Dunham is liked is because of "Silence! I kill you!" but it definitely played a big role. I think Dunham is hilarious, but quotability obviously had a lot to do with his fame. Look at movies like Anchorman, and Superbad. They're being quoted non-stop, and they're ridiculously popular.

One morning I was watching Chris Rock Stand up vids on YouTube from his last special and laughing my ass off. Then I remembered some people at work told me about Jeff Dunham and how funny he supposedly was, so I cued up some of his videos. What a stark contrast. It perfectly illustrated the difference between a real comedian and a hack. Lame and unfunny. Chris Rock speaks truth while Jeff Dunham revels in tired stereotypes.

From the way it sounds, before his more cliched puppets he had a lot better shows. From what I've seen he's got some OK stuff, but I have to admit that he is a quite talented ventriloquist and at the very least deserves a plus for doing something that few do. He's made me chuckle a few times but I respect him more for his unique talent than for his joke-telling ability. His ability to simulate, for instance, Jose's emergence from the box with a subtle but recognizable change in volume shows he has excellent voice skills. He also, if I understand correctly, designs all his own puppets. Again, I am in awe if this is true (I barely have the urge to check on Wikipedia to find out so I'm just going to believe it for now).

Of course, possibly part of the problem here is that he shouldn't have tried to run a comedy act, but at the same time, who is going to take him seriously? It's not a profession renowned for its dramatic side, and even if he made his puppets lifelike with human personalities, at the end of the day they're still tiny fake people with an orifice made for a human hand. So here's what I say. Praise him for something different, and if he doesn't advance, he's had his 15 minutes and well earned it.

I'm willing to admit he's a good ventriloquist, considering I couldn't do ventriloquism if my life depended on it. I'm saying I don't like his comedy or sense of humor. I you like him: cool, I just don't see why.

jasoncyrus:
As for fart jokes, obviously you didn't pay the slightest bit of attention to any of his shows. He makes at most 3 fart jokes in one hour long show. three at most out of over FIFTY. Real objective there, Good Job *thumbs up*

Three jokes about farting from a "comedian" is far too much.

"I'm going to tell jokes about Current Affairs!"
"I'm going to tell jokes about Society!"
"I'm going to tell jokes about gas expelled from your rectum!"

He's okay, in my view, some of the things he does is funny, but others isn't. And you're right, he tries to squeeze in every little joke possible. The puppets are reaaaaally stereotypical.

Jonny The Kay:
Patton Oswalt, Mitch Hedburg, Dmitri Martin, Jim Gaffigan, and Ron white.

Only THE best.

I also enjoy Kyle Cease. He's so awkward and funny.

Edit: I can't believe I forgot Brian Regan. Example.

Totally, Kyle Cease is in my top 6 LOL :)