Bill Cosby: Far from Finished

I do not and can not know the truth behind the accusations against Bill Cosby. I do know that there is no one on earth who has never done something they may be ashamed of. If the claims against Bill Cosby are true, then of course I agree that those actions were totally wrong and I speak out against them boldly. But I am not perfect either, and Bill Cosby has done amazing things to bring joy and racial unity with his career.

I have been doing stand up for 12 years and I can tell you that watching and listening to this man do what he does is pure art on stage. By the end of this performance you know you've just witnessed something special. How he does this is a mystery to us all. I've seen the other 2 negative reviews and I couldn't disagree more. Obviously these two have never attempted to get on stage and hold an audiences attention with their "witty banter". There is a reason that every comedian or comedienne goes to see him perform and we all still wonder the same thing. How the heck does he do that? He has an uncanny skill to grab an audience and take them on a journey with his words, facial expressions and movements like no other before him and no other after plus he does it sitting down. Maybe to truly appreciate this one would have to be a comedian/comedienne but when I listen to a great band play music I don't critique I do my part and enjoy in their talents. You should do the same. To the critic who said that he doesn't tell jokes, you are so late to the party Bill Cosby does not tell jokes. Bill Cosby paints a picture that you can see. Watch it more than once and you will truly appreciate that every word and action is carefully scripted to keep the audiences attention and involvement. It is in a word, brilliant. I would recommend all viewers to watch this without commercials because you are doing yourself a disservice to view it otherwise. And watch it with other people its impolite to not share laughter.

I have been looking forward to Cosby's return to the stage, ever since Comedy Central began advertising the hell out of it weeks in advance. However, upon viewing, I couldn't help but to feel sad for the ol' legend himself. Unfortunately, most of his jokes were either so incoherent that didn't make sense and couldn't land a genuine laugh, or they simply weren't that funny. As a good friend of mine said "he's telling life stories... amusing anecdotes at best". Of course he elicited the occasional laugh or giggle in me, but the atmosphere throughout the entire thing just felt uncomfortable.

In contrast, the audience was often losing it with laughter. It genuinely makes me wonder: Were the laughs cued? Did they simply laugh in respect? Or even pity? I'm really confounded, and unsure of where it went wrong. Bill Cosby is a very funny man, but it seems something was lost in translation. In the end I question comedy central more than anyone, after all, I can't see any other reason to air this with so much publicity other than to exploit him.

On a positive note, it was great to see the man back in the spotlight and on the stage! I really appreciate his performance as well as his willingness to perform, because if it failed in every other area, it at least succeeded in satisfying that thirst fans like myself have for some more Cosby.

2/10

This is Cosby at his best. Those saying this is a departure from his other stuff must not remember his other stuff.

Saying people will be offended by this is not knowing his other material. In "Bill Cosby: Himself", he "accuses" both his wife and his parents of abuse, his dad of loving his son more than his daughters, a wife of husband abuse in full view of an airplane full of passengers, pretty much everyone is an alcoholic/drug user, etc.

You can't believe Cosby has no respect for his wife of 48 years or his kids, or a lady at the security company. (Edit: Although based on his actions that have come to light, it might be easy to think he has no respect for his wife, or any woman.)

If you want to laugh, watch this show. If you want a tear in your eye, read the shirt he puts on the back of his chair.

Bill Cosby has been an artist who has always been around who I never took the time to familiarize. Growing up, he was always the Jello guy and then later the host of the hilarious Kids Say The Darndest Things. A few Youtube clips aside, I have not seen any of his standup specials in completion.

The simplicity and universalness of Cosby's comedic material is the price of admission. Most of the act is themed towards dissecting love and marriage. The highlights for me were his opening bit about people's expectations of him swearing on Comedy Central, a bit about chess, and another where Cosby uses audience interaction to build a surprise twist.

Cosby's drawled out diction makes it hard to focus on what he's saying. I zoned out a few times because he took so much time between words. Maybe this is a case of me not being previously familiar with his past stand up specials, but there was much rewinding on my part. It is ultimately something one just tunes to or doesn't.

Cosby's persona and ability to act out his concepts makes up for it. His facial expressions are world creation; they instantly transport the viewer and place them where he wants to them to see the absurdity of his jokes. His persona is likened to an senile man trying to prove that his mind is still working. Don't be fooled, he's still very sharp. There's one noteworthy hilarious moment where he barks at the audience for finishing one of his punchlines. It still boggles my mind how he can rouse that much energy on stage sitting down.

Anybody who wants a laugh for an hour, I recommend it. Anybody can enjoy it.

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