Keeping It Clean

Stand-up comedy often gets the reputation for being vulgar with its topic choices. Michal Jr. is a unique comedian who keeps his humor clean yet is still very funny. Jr. is a Christian and what is particularly funny to me about him is that he will joke about Christian terminology and actions in church without having the air of superiority like other comedians. Instead he takes on an air of ignorance through questions. In one of my favorite routines by him, “Prayer”, Jr. asks why people feel like they have to “out pray” others. He uses the example of praying in a group in church with a lady who must be “John the Baptist’s little sister” because of her knowledge of the Bible and he goes on to say that he was not going to let her “out pray him”. Michael’s fearlessness of bringing up topics such as this is one reason why he is s good comedian because his main topic is one that many comedians ironically consider taboo: religion. He is able to do this without offence because he is part of the group of which his is making fun. His delivery of the routine is also comedic and is a little similar to that of Dane Cook. In the performance mentioned above, Jr. is able to keep a straight face the whole time. This method encourages the audience to laugh at him rather than with him. Michael’s technique for creating laughter will not appeal to everyone because many people who do not share his faith will not find him funny due to their lack of ability to relate to what he is speaking about. However, he tries to explain many of his biblical references and one sometimes feels as if they are having a humorous Sunday school lesson. Although this is not the type of humor that one might want to listen to all of the time, it is a breath of fresh air when it comes to stand-up comedy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkqDpMUu6Yg&NR=1