Al Madrigal: Why Is the Rabbit Crying?

I have seen Madrigal like most people – in his correspondent role on the Daily Show. He is someone who has grown on me since arriving and as a result I decided to check out this Comedy Central special. There is some material in here that suggests Madrigal's whole hour is going to the type of material where we get to laugh at Hispanics but it is okay because it is an Hispanic saying these things so it doesn't count; indeed there is a risk of that – that he leads with the obvious thing about him and ends up being trapped by it. This show does not fall into that trap because, although Madrigal of course uses his race/culture as a foundation for his act, it is not something that defines his act. For sure there is no "white guys do this / Hispanic guys do this" material.

Instead what we get is a surprisingly gentle wander through Cholos, a cleaner in a drug induced haze, parenthood, massage and Mexican day workers. Although a lot of it plays on racial clichés, it is never cruel or demeaning but rather matter-of-fact and familiar; even if it is not so to me, he presents it in such a way that it is comfortable and engaging. It would have been nice if he had some of the edge that he can sometimes have on the Daily Show, but it does still work. The hour gives a good hatful of laughs but generally has a good feeling of amusement, which I liked. If you like him on The Daily Show then for sure this special is worth checking out even if it is a bit different from his TDS material.