Customer Reviews

It's Bad for Ya

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

In hindsight George Carlin's final stand-up routine is a little eerie as he spends a good deal of the show discussing aging and dying. For this show Carlin has cut back on the scathing social commentary (there is some but not to the extent of "People Who Ought To Be Killed" to poking fun at social clichés we all encounter.

The show starts with Carlin slamming both Lance Armstrong and Tiger Woods. It's not that he has anything against these athletes he's just tired of the media telling him who his heroes should be.

Carlin then moves on to discussing the advantages of getting old. He jokes about not having to carry heavy objects anymore, being able to get out of social obligations by simply saying he is too tired, and being able to freak out his family members by feigning Alzheimer's Disease. He also speaks of losing control of his bodily functions just for the sake of doing so.

While speaking of death Carlin mentions several meaningless sayings that are spoken when a person dies. These including, "He died? I just saw him yesterday!" to "I am sure he's up there now, and he's smiling down on us" and of course, "If there's anything you need, anything at all, please don't hesitate to ask". The answer to this one is hilarious. He also goes into the superstitious beliefs that dead loved ones have nothing better to do than hang around Heaven and help the living.

Back to the social commentary Carlin once again brings up that fact that children are not the center of the universe. He is one of the few comics would would dare state that "Children are our future" and "Every child is special" are meaningless sentiments and those that repeat them have some sort of self-serving agenda.

At one of the funnier points of the show Carlin goes on to admit that after all these years of being negative he really does like people. Then he goes on to explain how they annoy him in about a minute. He gives great examples of people being annoying including those who don't know how to shut up in person or on the phone and those who insist on showing pictures of their children.

This isn't his best routine but it is a blast. I am sure with George Carlin gone there will be a group of fifth rate comedians who will try to make a career out of providing social satire. Truth is there will never be another George Carlin. And sadly, the truth is there will never be brand new George Carlin material. To this all I can say is ($&%, #%$*, and @%$#.

I'm a life-long Carlin fan and have all of his recordings. While I enjoyed his hate-filled rants of the late 90s and 2000s, I longed for more of his classic commentary on everyday life, last heard on his mid-90s "Jammin' in New York" with his now-classic skit about flying on planes.

"It's Bad For Ya" is truly the return of the old Carlin. Politics is barely touched on and instead Carlin, somewhat eerily, points out the finer parts about getting old and dying. His thoughts are relevant, clever, and at times roll-on-the-floor funny. I am saddened that this is the last we will be hearing of this comedic genius, but he left us with an album to rival his best from the 70s and 80s.

George didn't go quietly....his previous effort LIFE IS WORTH LOSING is a particular favorite of mine as he really nailed the fat overfed and lazy public that has turned this beautiful jewel of a country into a sea to shining sea SHOPPING MALL! In this last effort he again takes on sacred cows like CHILD WORSHIP and our own complacency as he says Americans are never going to get in gear as long as we have cell phones that make us pancakes and rub our balls!! This isn't the hippy dippy weatherman, baseball/football or a place for my stuff...but a wake up call from a man who knew his time was coming to an end and was simply telling us its a rigged game, the table is tilted and its all BS and its bad for ya! Oh and his references to Governor Bush (the only office he was truly elected to) are spot on. He may hurt some feelings busting the whole SELF ESTEEM movement the way he does and it seems those that think his best years were the 70's-80's just don't get it..he's not complaining he's calling it the way it is or to put it another way SHINING A LIGHT on the situations , but that is hitting too close to the bone for MOST of us! George wasn't a bitter/angry/ old man...he cared and tried to use his humor and audience to remind us where we were going ....and he's right...its not good.

Oh..and signing off George suggested if you really believe you DO have rights...Google Japanese Americans 1942...nuff said.

You don't have to agree with Carlin's views about God, religion, politics in order ot enjoy his standup. Carlin, even at his worst does not resort to streams of dirty words just for the sake of saying them. Instead he explores why we classify words as network censored. His dialog is complicated and always entertaining. I don't know how some of today's comedians have a career by just yelling and trying to shock everyone. Carlin's brand of humor is provacative in he jams a lot of ideas inot a few sentences. This is his true gift, the way he uses English to convey complex thoughts, yet make it humorous.

Great way to end a great life. This was a return to the old Carlin. He will always be one of the greats of comedy. We will miss his unique outlook toward life and his insightful thoughts.

This is vintage Carlin and what made him unique.

I enjoyed his wit and will miss hearing the new jokes.

Carlin used to be the master of pointing out the absurdities of modern American life, culture and language. He genuinely seemed puzzled and annoyed by it and made for some hilarious bits. Now he's just flat out angry. And unfortunately, it makes him come accross exactly like one of the people he despises....an arrogant blowhard. Too bad. Not a fitting end to a fine career.

I have always seen him as more of a commentator than a comic. Much of his observations are right on point. The world needs far more honest appraisals, like his.
This was a continuation of that honesty.

4.5 stars

Even George couldn't help but steal from Bill Hicks! His bits here about "children aren't that special", overpopulation and a few others are almost direct lifts from Hicks; check out his classic Rant In E Minor, the originals are all there. Then again, almost every comic now working has lifted from Hicks, so why not Carlin? Still, the fact that a peerless writer like GC would tread over another comedian's ground so closely, along with the many mentions of aging and death here, says to me (a lifelong Carlin fan) that George knew his end was nigh.

There are some great bits here, but nothing to rival his intensity on the previous HBO show, Life Is Worth Losing. There are more jokes here and less vitriol, which is good to some extent, but GC's timing is slipping at moments and the writing is on the wall. Nonetheless, by anyone else's standards this is killer, but as George was one of the best ever his standards are a different matter.

Despite some great bits a lot of it feels rehashed. And how did he ever do so well in Vegas, as he did the last decade, with material this dark and dour? More power to him for bringing this much truth into Lost Wages, in any case. Unfortunately, I didn't laugh as much as I usually did with GC, and having seen all 14 of his HBO specials and heard every one of his records, I have some perspective.

What IS perfect on this dvd is the interview with him. For over thirty minutes he describes the history of his comedy and writing, and makes dozens of solid points about how we live and what he's had to deal with as a comedian and truth-teller. That interview is a true gem, the best I've ever seen him do, and well worth watching if you're a fan. (It may be online; look around for it in the usual places). There's also a 1969 bit from the Jackie Gleason show, not bad but a long way from his later genius; funny to see him in a suit and tie, though.

So, four stars for the routine, plus half a star for the interview, and rounded up because this is after all George Carlin, and his okay routines are easily equal to most comedians' best. A good way to go out, and as usual Carlin's timing was crisp: he did a career retrospective interview, a show about dying and how we're all doomed due to the way we treat the planet, and boom, off he goes.

One of the great modern comic careers, no doubt.

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