Aziz Ansari
Fillmore Miami Beach
Saturday, March 3, 2012
One thing about reviewing a comedy show: You're psyched to sit down and watch your favorite TV star pump out jokes faster than a Japanese bullet train. You're stoked to listen to your favorite funnyman curse harder than a sailor hammered on scotch. If you're lucky, they never let you down. But when you sit down to write, you've got nothing. Why? Because it takes a true literary genius to relay the hilarity of a comedian like Aziz Ansari in 12-point font.
Ansari is best-known for his role as Tom Haverford, Pawnee's best underachieving government official, on NBC's Parks and Recreation. As it turns out, his character's crazily recognizable vocal inflection and particular dialect are actually the way Aziz speaks normally. It's a quirk that makes his jokes even better.
"Aziz, I'm having a baby," he explained that one of his friends told him in a phone call.
"Well, why the hell would you want to do that?"
Like any good comedian, Aziz taunted the audience members by demanding to know how couples met, how long they knew each other before getting married, and particularly whether they met through dating websites.
Why? Because as it turns out, a man looking for love doesn't need more requirements than "Jewish and in my zip code."
The only disappointing part of Saturday's show was the crowd. It turns out that Miamians are horrible hecklers. "I love you" and "Cocaine!" are not acceptable things to yell to a 28-year-old man at the peak of his career. "I have 12 hookers and a gallon of tequila at the W Hotel" might have been more appropriate.
Critic's Notebook
The crowd: Young adult meatheads and hipsters. In fact, the entire cast of the Jersey Shore might have been there.
By the way: Aziz Ansari has successfully made me question my entire future. He's only slightly older than I am and probably sleeps on beds of cash of every night. If only I could be so lucky.
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