Last Comic Standing Returns Strong & Refreshed

Last Comic Standing returned for its seventh season tonight with newness written all over it. The show has been gone for a few years and with a permanent set of judges and a new host, it feels much fresher and funnier then ever. Although I can't really comment on ALL of the performers that were on the show tonight (they really showed a ton of them) I can comment on the overall show and I hope to do that. One of the major changes I really like is a set of three permanent judges rather then several "guest" judges throughout the show. I'm not sure how far these new judges will go, in the sense of the format of the show, but I hope they keep them around during the actual "game" portion. I think having judges throughout the whole process would benefit the show, hopefully that's how it will work this season.

One of the changes I like least is the new host.... Craig Robinson. He's kind of not there that often but when he is, he's just kind of acting stupid and not all there. I don't see him being anywhere as good as Jay Mohr was, being more of a mentor, because I think he loves the camera way too much and may try to outshine the actual people that make the show: the contestants. It also seems like they are highlighting the judges more this season, having them talk between acts about the overall show, some of the acts they've seen and just being a comic in general. I like the judges this season: Greg Giraldo, Natasha Leggero and Andy Kindler. They really could probably do without a host all together and they'd be just fine.

The auditions were actually pretty good on both "days" even though it seems both sets of comedians performed the same night. They featured mostly good comics while leaving out the bad, stupid and odd people. That's something I give them props for, showing the people we will actually see later on rather then those who are only there to be made fun of. Now isn't that funny... a comedy show focusing on the good comedy rather then the stupid comedy. Sounds like American Idol could take a lesson from Last Comic Standing.

I know in the past that Last Comic Standing has brought in talent that are somewhat tied to the production. It's been a known fact that the producers also seem to push people through without the judges comments, as they actually showed a few seasons ago when Drew Carey stormed off the stage when the final cast he and other judges chose weren't the people actually being selected. That somewhat seemed to be the case tonight as several of the judges were well aware, and probably good friends, with some of the people who walked in. Sometimes the judges would pass them through based upon other acts that they've seen some comics perform, rather then the actual judgement of the audition. I wish that wouldn't happen but I know they want a good show. It's been great so far, I just hope they can actually nail the game play format of the show this season by building from the first and second season and kind of just forgetting all the others that came after it.