[jsqu99]

that was fantastic, but i feel it's cheating a bit when you just make fun of yourself for being fat for 3 straight minutes. If you took away the obesity, i wonder if it'd have been as easy for him to get laughs. The same thing happens when people harp on their ethnic quirks constantly in sets. Take that away and what else do you have?

[hackflip]

I've noticed a pattern in comedians who have a funny set but never make it big. They have a shtick that works, lean into it, then end up using it as a crutch.

It doesn't scale to a funny second performance.

[racl101]

Then you get creative like Mark Normand (who looks like a garden variety white guy) but draws a lot from his settings and surroundings.

I don't blame people for using their physical idiosyncrasies or ethnicity to get their foot in the door. But you're right in that it only goes so far and you gotta evolve.