I love Chris Rock. And if you read my recent list of 25 things about comics, you’ll remember that we hardly like anyone. It’s a hazard of our business to dissect comedy with a more critical eye than the guy who has a couple of beers and watches it from his Lazee-Boy. So let the Critical Eyeing Commence.

I did not love his new XXX rated HBO special filmed in Johannesburg, London and New York. Starting with the editing. What has editing got to do with comedy? In my case, plenty. Roller coaster cuts interspersed with close-ups where you could see his bicuspids  takes me out of the experience. And the edits rock you mid sentence from one town to another. A sentence begins in New York, jumps to London and ends in Johannesburg. One sequence is repeated over and over and OVER in each town, I suppose to look clever. Instead I just prayed for the editor to die.

Most comics will tell you there is nothing funnier than the word ‘fuck,’ unless you use it 20 zillion times in 85 minutes. And when Chris adds the words ‘nigger’ and ‘motherfucker’ and ‘faggot’ and ‘pussy’ ad nauseum the jokes were lost in an ocean of needless swearing. The entire last 4 minute bit is about using ‘pussy’ as a bargaining chip. Not clever and not funny. I was sorry that I knew he had two little girls at home.

There’s nothing funny about the word ‘nigger’ or ‘faggot,’ words he tries to demystify with this statement “It’s not the word that’s bad, it’s the context in which it’s used that is bad.” Uh. No.

Did you read about the Florida 7th grade teacher who wrote this on his backboard about Barack Obama? C H A N G E. Come Help A Nigger Get Elected? He got suspended with no pay for 10 days whereas that idiot Imus got fired. Where did this teacher get the idea that language would work in front of CHILDREN?

Chris mentions that racism is alive and well in America. Ya think?

To be continued tomorrow. It does not get prettier in case you’re wondering.

CYA tomorrow.