"Comedy Bang! Bang!" is Great. "Comedy Bang! Bang!" is Greater Live.

Last night I had the pleasure of seeing a live recording of Comedy Bang! Bang!. As many of you know, I have been on the bandwagon of this podcast from the jump. It was the second pod I came to, and I have been listening ever since. I was a fan before I had kids, a fan after having kids, a fan since I have been married, basically Comedy Bang! Bang! has been in the majority of my adult life. My cousin, who is also a fan, came with me, and it was awesome. There are few shows that I want to go to now. I have seen a lot of bands I have wanted to see. I have seen a good amount of comedians I wanted to see. I have gone to poetry readings, live talks and gospel shows. I have seen a lot. So when something comes along that I haven't seen, I will go without a second thought. COVID be damned, I was going to this show. They were also pretty COVID safe in the venue as well.

Anyway, this show was amazing. There is something special about Comedy Bang! Bang!. Improv comedy is such a tough balancing act but these guys are pros. They are the absolute best at what they do. Scott Aukermann is a masterful host. The way he guides the conversation, how he goes from one guest to the next, how he rolls with all the punches, he is such a pro. I can think of no one better to host. He also happens to be very funny and very quick witted. He knows the game and he plays it so very well. He also had total control of the crowd from the jump. It was great. Second only to Aukermann is Paul F Tompkins. He doesn't host, but for all intents and purposes he may as well be the co host. He is so excellent at playing along with Aukermann. The way the two of them play off one another is magical. PFT is also very good at character work. He is so good at taking some random character and making it memorable. Last night we were treated to Brock Lovett. This character is based off of Bill Paxton's character in "Titanic". Obviously he takes a lot of liberties. He also makes it hilarious. The whole wet treasure thing is comic gold. This was also my first time seeing PFT live and he did not disappoint. Dan Lippert was next on stage and he played Bill Walton. I was pumped. Dan Lippert is newer to me, but Bill Walton is one of my favorite characters on CBB, and he was hilarious as ever. All of the weed talk, the psychedelics talk, the way he couldn't string together a proper sentence, it was all wonderful. He did some great stage work. The whole "Ring" scenario was incredible. At one point he called PFT by name and was told to run laps by Scott Aukermann. He had to do crazy stuff with his headband and the stuff in his pocket. It all worked. Carl Tart was the final guest, and being a big fan of his, seeing him live was an absolute treat. I was so pumped when he was announced. Tart is a great podcaster, a very good actor and one of the better improvisers in the game right now. He played the lead singer of the band Cameo last night and it was as funny as it got. He and Aukermann play off each other almost as well as PFT and Aukermann do. Tart kept trying to lead Aukermann into jokes, and that was awesome as well. There were so many special things about this show last night. When they all did stand up that was great. Hearing them sing a bunch of different songs done like the band Cameo was amazing. The way they tried to make each other laugh was perfect.

I am so very happy that I got to see this show last night. It was a "bucket list" thing for me and it more than lived up to the hype. I cannot recommend seeing CBB live enough if they come to your town, or even close to your town. It rules and is one of the funniest things I have ever witnessed. What a great, great night of comedy.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Watches "Grand Crew"

Back when RD and I did the what we are looking forward to pod for this year we talked about TV. One of those shows started in early December, as an early premiere, but the series did not officially start until this month. That show is "Grand Crew", and it is really good so far.

They have done six episodes so far, they have ten ordered, and each one has gotten better and better. When they did the first two episodes back in December they were good, but looked like they needed a little work. As with all pilots, they usually start slow. "Grand Crew" was no different. But unlike other shows, "Grand Crew" has blasted away as one of the best new shows on TV in some time.

First and foremost, the cast is incredible. They have wonderful chemistry. They play off one another. They play their characters to perfection. They are so goddamn good. The cast is led, in my opinion, by Nicole Beyer. She is so, so, so good in her role. She is funny and smart. She likes to hook up with dudes, but she always finds a silver lining. She is the funniest, looks the best and just crushes her role. She is so good. So is Echo Kellum. He is the first billed in the credits, so I guess he is the "star" of the show. He is almost as amazing as Beyer. He is the typical lover boy. He wants to find love. He loves romantic comedies and tries to live his life as if he is in one. Kellum is really good at portraying this, and he does a good amount of lifting. Carl Tart is hilarious. I am a big time fan of his as you all know. I love that he is getting a real shot to star on a network sitcom and he is crushing right now. Every time he goes off on a rant on the show I find myself rolling on the floor with laughter. He is so good at controlling the room and owning the scenes he is in. Aaron Jennings is the responsible working one of the group, but he has his comedic moments as well. There was an earlier episode where he thinks he is going to get a promotion, but they are just using him because he is a minority. This was some heavy stuff, but Jennings did a great job making it real yet comical at the same time. The most recent episode, where he is learning chess, is a great masterclass in subtle comedy from Jennings. Grasie Mercedes was an excellent addition. It appeared as if she was going to be a love interest, but they scrapped that and it has worked perfectly. She fits in seamlessly with the rest of the cast. And then we have Justin Cunningham. He is the married one, the settled down one, the one who may or may not have kids and he is so good. He is so funny and relatable. I see a lot of myself in him. My wife and I have said multiple times that he and his wife are us. I love the way he plays his role. The cast is wonderful. They have the same chemistry that the cast of "Happy Endings" had, and that is one of my all time favorite shows. And like I said before, they seem to be finding their groove. They have the relationships all figured out. They are connecting on all fronts. Everything they are doing is working right now. I laugh out loud while watching and none of it is forced.

I hope this show gets its due. I do not want it to leave after three seasons. They have a great thing going, and if they keep up at this pace, "Grand Crew" can become a mainstay. It is that good. Check this show out if you have not yet. It is more than worth your time, even if you just watch it to see this amazing cast. "Grand Crew" is excellent.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.