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MSRP $19.98
RATED NOT RATED
STUDIO Entertainment One
RUNNING TIME 92 minutes
SPECIAL FEATURES
– Dead Man Walking
– Whiteboard
– The Wrist
– Photo Shoot
– Interview
– What I Forgot
The Pitch
Not quite the last comic standing after all.
The Humans
Alonzo Bodden
The Nutshell
Alonzo Bodden delivers confident, safe stand up special that should please just about anyone.
The Lowdown
When I was younger, I used to watch Last Comic Standing religiously with my parents. I hadn’t had much exposure to stand up beforehand, so this show was fascinating to me. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to listen to explicit material at the time, so my love for comedy didn’t truly develop until I was older.
I remember Alonzo Bodden very well, though. He was always one of my favorites on the show, as he was confident and displayed a natural talent that many other contestants simply didn’t have. He was super family friendly, which is probably what made him such a hit with audiences, but I didn’t care. At the time, his material was original to my ears, and I was fairly excited when he ended up winning the grand prize in season 3.
If nothing else, the man’s a snazzy dresser.
Since then, I have become a rabid fan of stand up. I haven’t listened to much of Bodden’s current material, however, as my tastes have changed quite a bit since the Last Comic Standing days. I jumped at the opportunity to review Bodden’s newest special, Who’s Paying Attention, as I was curious to see where the comedian had ended up.
I’m happy to report that Bodden is still a fine comedian, though he isn’t breaking any new ground here. He covers a broad range of topics, never allowing the routines to get too personal. I prefer comedians like Louis C.K. and Mike Birbiglia, who’s specials are like hour-long looks into their lives, but that’s more personal preference than it is a dig at Bodden. None of this material is offensive or terribly vulgar, and while he does occasionally use some explicit language, I’d have no problem showing this special to my parents, which is more than I can say for most comedians I enjoy.
Just like the television show that launched his career, Who’s Paying Attention is geared towards a pretty broad audience, which unfortunately means regular stand up listeners will have heard some of this before. Jokes about airport security and Irish drinking habits aren’t terribly new, but those who aren’t accustomed to them will find plenty to laugh at. Bodden’s stage presence and confidence go a long way towards making even his blandest material enjoyable, and he does find some new ways to spin old ideas.
Dat head-glare.
This is a special that’s easy to recommend. The material, while a bit generic, has been worked to perfection and provides consistent chuckles, if not laughs. Bodden commands the stage and doesn’t let up once, even when jokes don’t completely land. It’s also a special that just about anyone can enjoy, as the broad range of topics and the family-friendliness of the whole thing are welcoming to newcomers, while stand up vets will find a few routines to latch on to. It may not be the greatest special I’ve ever seen,but you could certainly do much worse.
The Package
There are a couple instances of shimmer on Bodden’s shirt, and interlacing occurs on occasion depending on your device, but overall the transfer is just fine.. The audio is a 2.0 Stereo Mix, which holds up perfectly fine for a stand up special.
There are a surprising number of special features on this disc, all of which are fairly funny. The majority of them, such as Dead Man Walking and Whiteboard show Bodden having fun backstage and messing around with his own routines. The interview is probably the most informative, as Bodden is forced to answer questions such as “Who’s funnier than you”? Overall, a really solid package.
Rating: 
Out of a Possible 5 Stars