Jeff Dunham Controlled Chaos pretty chaotic

     Jeff Dunham's fourth concert release, Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, is now available on DVD and Blu-ray from Comedy Central. The comedian and master of ventriloquism returns with all of his popular characters, including Peanut, José Jalapeño, Walter, and, of course, Achmed the Dead Terrorist, each with fresh material. The special is over an hour and a half long, much longer than the television air time, and the DVD includes a number of bonus features.

     By and large, Controlled Chaos does not live up to Spark of Insanity, which is nearly flawless, and easily the pinnacle of Dunham's career so far. While his latest jokes are mostly original and new, they have lost some of the edge and shock factor. Perhaps his act, which remains funny to some extent, but relies on hooks and gimmicks, can only go so far. No one is arguing that Dunham is very talented; he is. But the dummy schtick is growing stale after so much attention and screen time.

     Achmed, in particular, seems a bit neutered, no longer half as hostile as he once appears. He only utters "I keel you" a few times, probably a good thing, because as awesome and popular as his catchphrase is, it's been said many, many times already. Then Dunham introduces Achmed Jr., Achmed's half-blown up, gay, British son, and Achmed doesn't even react all that much. Sure, he isn't comfortable with his son, but he isn't offended or trying to kill him either. This seems like a major missed opportunity.

     Perhaps, as other characters suggest, Achmed has let fame go to his head. Maybe suicide bombing and berating the infidels has taken a back seat to just being loved. But then, Achmed is a doll, not a real person. So assigning these attributes to him means this is a conscious decision Dunham has made. If so, it's the wrong one.

     Not all of Jeff's puppet friends get equal billing. José barely makes it on stage before being placed back in his box. Bubba J is reduced to the video introduction and DVD menus, not getting any time at all during the actual special. Nor does he appear in the cover art.

     Peanut gets the most attention in this newest special. The purple, furry, whatever-it-is is not only permitted to interact with Jeff and José, but also brings out his very own ventriloquist dummy. The special takes a turn for the meta when Peanut's own doll turns out to be a version of Jeff, whom he dubs Little Ugly Ass Jeff. Jeff turns the tables again by pulling out a mini Peanut hand puppet. It's almost too much, confusing, so it's probably good that it stops quickly. But there is something to be said for Dunham's voice talents, which tackle all four, plus José in the box, at once. Plus it takes three limbs to pull off the movements.

     There are quite a few special features, almost all of them around three minutes in length. There are outtakes from Dunham's filming process. A separate feature finds his necklace constantly getting in the way, though he never removes it. Dunham teases and flirts with two of his staff on stage while they resolve issues. Three tour openings from previous shows are included. Jeff is briefly shown performing in a number of countries, and the cameras capture fan reactions. Bubba J takes viewers on a tour of Dunham Winery. A photo shoot gives all of the popular characters brief moments.

     There is a single, 14-minute featurette on designing the Achmedmobile. Or rather, the Achmed-looking head on the front of the car used in this special's opening. It's actually quite neat because the process Dunham uses to craft that head must be very similar to how he makes copies of his popular characters. The first few minutes even harken to how he makes the original designs.

     Check out Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos, on sale now.

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Article first published as DVD Review: Jeff Dunham: Controlled Chaos on Blogcritics.

Nick Swardson's Pretend Time less than satisfying

     I am a fan of Nick Swardson.  I enjoyed his character Terry on Reno 9-1-1 very much.  But I was concerned when I heard he was getting his own comedy central sketch show.  Many great comedians have tried and failed to develop their work into a weekly half hour.  I assumed Swardson would soon join the likes of Louis Black and Jeff Dunham.  But I hoped he would be like Demetri Martin and somehow pull it off.

     Sadly, Nick Swardson's Pretend Time falls into the failure category.  It isn't Swardson himself.  He effortlessly portrays some very different characters, and proves he can handle a variety of scenes.  In fact, he was better than I had dared hope.  My problem is with the writing.  The sketches were just not funny.  From a car that runs on pee, to a botched proposal during a hockey game, where no less than four pucks hit the couple, each bit failed to elicit even a smile from me.

     Three of the segments should have been amusing.  The toddler bucket list, Lady Gaga's cop brother, and the wheelchair cat seemed like good ideas.  I kept wanting to laugh, I truly did.  I can't pinpoint exactly what was lacking in either one of them, but again, it just wasn't good enough.

     I hope Swardson succeeds, I really do.  I will watch again next week in the hopes that perhaps the pilot was just an off episode.  That happens in some shows, though I don't think that would really apply to this one.

     If you'd like to give Swardson a chance, Nick Swardson's Pretend Time airs on Comedy Central Tuesday nights at 10.

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     Comedy Central tends to give most shows only a season or two, and this fall is shaping up to be no different.  Two new shows have premiered, The Jeff Dunham Show and Secret Girlfriend, and neither one is shaping up to be a keeper.  Dunham's standup act is hilarious, but broken into twenty minute episodes with skits that send his puppets to the real world, it just falls flat.  There have been a few laugh out loud moments in the first few episodes, but only a few.  It doesn't appear destined to air for long.  Similarly, Secret Girlfriend, while a novel and original idea, just can't hold interest.  Horny teenage guys may drool over it, but once a boy has had a serious girlfriend, or a few hookups, the show should loose interest quickly.  It's little more than filthy softcore porn.  Traditionally, though, the genre has belonged to women, so it's interesting to see a young male's perspective.  However, one episode is plenty.

     These recent failures are not a sign that the network is down for the count.  It has shows like these every year.  It banks on a string of strong, long-running series that continue to deliver.  Jon Stewart has never been funnier, and for anyone who though Stephen Colbert would loose relevance once Bush left office, they were dead wrong.  The dynamic duo keeps late night funny, and still delivers topical political news stories.  Recently, after Walter Kronkite's death, Time Magazine conducted a poll finding Jon Stewart the most trusted newsman in America, beating even Brian Williams, proving that he is more than fluff.  Colbert triumphed again just this month when convincing followers to support the US Speedskating Team.  Not to mention South Park, which after a season or two of mostly duds, which followed some of the best episodes of the series, is fully back to relevance.  Last week there was a great satire on Fox News, among other things, and other recent episodes tackled the meaning of the word fag, dead celebrity ghosts, prostitution, Japanese fishing, and wrestling.  The Sarah Silverman Program should also be back soon, and though Reno 911! has ended a six season run, the network will be bringing back new episodes of Futurama, six years after Fox cancelled it.

     What will be Comedy Central's next big hit?  Afterall, there tend to be about a dozen or two flops in between each successful show.  Luckily, the network seems to have the resources to keep trying, and part of the fun in seeing what they come up with next, even if you have to wade through garbage to find it.