Kevin James’ “The King of Queens” further validates my pop culture rule: comics with good standup tend to do bad shows, and comics with good shows often do bad standup. While I continue to think that “King of Queens” is one of the most consistently funny shows on the networks today, I caught a Kevin James special on Comedy Central recently and was unmoved.
I loved “Seinfeld,” (at least until the last two seasons when the show went wildly off the rails) but couldn’t stand the man himself on stage. In fact, when they dropped those annoying standup segments, I cheered. “Ellen” was a groundbreaking show, but rarely all that funny except in those few brilliant episodes where she came out. She did some great standup, though, including a bit about waiting for the elevator that still makes me laugh when I think about it.
I absolutely love “KofQ.” I realized watching tonight that one of the main reasons I love it is Leah Remini as Doug’s wife. Sitcom wives are a dime a dozen, and often seem to come from the same playbook. But Remini’s Carrie is different – just as funny as her husband while still being a perfect foil. I also enjoy the fact that she seems to be the only gorgeous TV wife who is such a perfect match for her mate, you don’t question why she would be with him. The show is a pleasure.
I agree with you 100%. I like the show and I was really excited to see his standup special. I was amazed at how bad it was. Not funny at all. The show must have an excellent writing staff, because it’s great and I know he’s not really the cause.
More evidence in support of your theory, Adam: Margaret Cho is one of the funniest standups I’ve ever seen, but her show sucked.