Poll: Why all the Dislike for Jeff Dunham?

[Murais]

Ever go to one of his shows live?

The audience delivers the punchline before he does.


(Also, he relies way too heavily on extreme stereotypes. Pretty negative ones at that. And not like "Lazy Mexican" negative [which he also does], but "Homicidal, Incompetent Arab" negative.)

 

[TornadoFive]

His jokes might not be as funny as some of the other stand up comedians out there, but lets be honest. Do you watch Jeff Dunham for hilarious jokes? No! You watch him for some top-quality ventriloquism! There were several points during his special that I had to remind myself that there WAS only one guy on stage.

 

[Julianking93]

Because he's unfunny and somehow popular.

There are reasons to his unfunniness like how all his jokes make it seem like he's trying way too hard but essentially... it's that he's not funny, yet popular.

Like Dane Cook.

Only with puppets.

Making him worse.

 

[samaugsch]

I'm gonna come right out and say that I really enjoy stand-up comedian and ventriloquist Jeff Dunham. ...Wait! Before you click the "back" button, let me say this:

As of late, I've been noticing that some people really don't like his stand-up comedy. While I admit that not all of his material is... excellent, to say the least, I do enjoy this comedy styling on some level.

But then, I tend to like stuff other people don't, so... yeah.

So, fellow Escapists, tell me if you like Jeff Dunham and what you like about him (I don't wanna feel like I'm in the minority here), and if not, why you don't like him. But please try to be civil about it, okay?

I understand that some people just don't like him, and I respect that, so please respect that I can have an opinion as well.

Wish me luck.

EDIT: Okay, this is pretty much a thread asking people what they think of this one guy... and considering the replies so far... maybe I was better off not asking...

He's pretty good, though there's only like 2 puppets that I find him funny with (Walter and Achmed).

 

[Something Amyss]

Protip for life: Not everyone's going to like what you like, some will even hate it. That alone doesn't qualify for a whole thread about it.

Jeff Dunham is okay, he doesn't do anything special at all.

The hate for him does seem rather disproportionate. Actually, it seems kind of extreme.

I'm not exactly his biggest fan, and I'm till rather surprised.

 

[samaugsch]

Because he's unfunny and somehow popular.

There are reasons to his unfunniness like how all his jokes make it seem like he's trying way too hard but essentially... it's that he's not funny, yet popular.

Like Dane Cook.

Only with puppets.

Making him worse.

He doesn't swear as much as Dane Cook, either.

 

[inFAMOUSCowZ]

Really he has only two acts that are funny. Walter the old guy, and the terrorist. (cant remember name) I actually laugh at those but other then that avoid at all costs.

 

[Jonluw]

I've never met anyone who didn't like him.

I find that his stuff is enjoyable, but I wouldn't know anything about what he's been doing these last years. Maybe he has really declined, I dunno.

 

[Faladorian]

I think for the same reasons people didn't like early Dane Cook. Overwhelmingly popular but undeserving of his fame. His video of Achmed the Dead Terrorist has over one hundred million views, and based on that number it's hard to see why. He's a great ventriloquist, and an alright comedian, but the humor just seems 'safe for everyone', like the kind you'd see in an Adam Sandler movie. If you want to see 'safe for everyone' done well though, look up Brian Regan.

I can do nothing more than to second this. I love dirty, crude, offensive humor, but Brian Regan is absolutely hysterical. Definitely Top 3.

Another one would be Jim Gaffigan.


OT: Jeff Dunham isn't very funny. I liked his first act, but after that, it's all the same crap over and over. He was compared to Dane Cook, but it's just the delivery of Dane Cook that's the same, and his high energy does actually make his jokes funnier. Dunham's delivery is the same, but his jokes are also often repeats of each other.

It's sort of analogous of Daniel Tosh. His first stand up special (I thought) was side-splitting. His show is entertaining and funny.

However, his stand-up specials started to collide with his Tosh.0 jokes, in the same way that Kevin James recycles jokes from King of Queens to be a part of his stand up also. As somebody who watches a lot of comedy, hearing the same joke told twice by the same person almost entirely kills my mood, and detracts from all other jokes told by the person, as I begin to question their originality.

 

[Harry Mason]

When your central joke is "Look, I'm being RACIST! Aren't I funny and edgy? Hur hur hur..."

You honestly think all his puppets are racist?

To be fair, no. The two puppets out of his entire lineup that don't rely on racial stereotypes are as follows: a stereotype of the elderly and a monkey. Not good odds.

 

[penguindude42]

When your central joke is "Look, I'm being RACIST! Aren't I funny and edgy? Hur hur hur..."

You honestly think all his puppets are racist?

To be fair, no. The two puppets out of his entire lineup that don't rely on racial stereotypes are as follows: a stereotype of the elderly and a monkey. Not good odds.

You forgot Melvin.

He's a superhero.

~TOM

 

[Dfskelleton]

I used to absolutely love him, now I'm just kind of "meh".
I'll still laugh at his jokes, and I can admire his talent, which isn't the hardest thing to learn, but it takes a while to get it perfect.

 

[jbchillin]

he was funny the first time. every act he has seems the same to me. hes not the best with jokes and he just gets dull over time. i tried watching his TV show and that was just awful.

 

[Harry Mason]

When your central joke is "Look, I'm being RACIST! Aren't I funny and edgy? Hur hur hur..."

You honestly think all his puppets are racist?

To be fair, no. The two puppets out of his entire lineup that don't rely on racial stereotypes are as follows: a stereotype of the elderly and a monkey. Not good odds.

You forgot Melvin.

He's a superhero.

~TOM

OK, you're right. I forgot the stereotype of mentally challenged people.

 

[end_boss]

Sorry, misread the original post.

 

[LITE992]

I think he's a better ventriloquist than he is a comedian. I found myself trying to like his show, but IMO his stand-up acts are much better.

 

[Stammer]

Personally, I found his jokes funny the first time I saw him.

But then I ended up watching him a couple times after that and realized that every single act was the exact same as the last.

And comedians that fall-back on shouting at the top of their lungs with an offensive accent as a last-resort joke in every show REALLY lose their edge to me. I swear if I hear "Silence! I keel you!!" one more time...

 

[k-ossuburb]

He's just dull, if I'm honest. It's obvious he's run his course and there's not much else he can do with his act since it has just reached the point where everyone has seen it and pretty much run it into the ground.

 

[Jake the Snake]

I actually used to think he was funny before he got his own TV show (dear god was it awful). Now I think he's repetitive and stale.

 

[Skoosh]

My problem with Jeff Dunham is that he's a gimmick. It's a bunch of stale jokes in bad taste said through puppets. It's worse than when comedians take mediocre jokes and mediocre music to try and make an act.

I mean come on, caricature of a dead terrorist saying "I'll kill you" is what he's known for, that's pretty bad. I'm unimpressed with his delivery and unimpressed with his puppets. That just leaves the jokes, which are dated, racist, in poor taste, or simply unfunny. I don't hate the guy, just dislike his act.