Taylor Owens saw Jim Gaffigan live:

Many love comedy, comedians and the specials that they create; however, live comedy is not worth your time or money when you can enjoy the same shows in comfort and as many times as you please.

Along with the recent show by Aziz Ansari, Jim Gaffigan recently hit the stage at the Orpheum. His recent special, called “Obsessed,” highlights everything that Gaffigan is known for and does well. Food.

“Obsessed” is filled with jokes about eating food, cooking food, good food, bad food, and kale food. Gaffigan transitions from food jokes about donuts, Chinese desserts, hot dogs and buffalo-wings to hilarious material about the normal things we do every day but never thought to make a joke out of it.

“On a good day, I’ll snort twice, maybe thrice, but Jim Gaffigan has me snorting once every five seconds…and that’s impressive,” Senior Allie Buckmaster said.

However, Gaffigan’s comedy is available on Netflix and Comedy Central, which you can watch in the comfort of your own home and in your favorite pajamas. Actual, live comedy by Gaffigan was a big surprise because it seemed as if I was just watching the television.

Despite Gaffigan’s amazing jokes and one-liners, I could not help but feel that paying to come and see him live was a little bit of a waste. It felt like I was looking at the television screen like a normal day; however, this time, I had to pay money to watch my favorite show.

Live comedy isn’t the way to go if you can watch all of Gaffigan’s great material on Netflix, in your comfiest clothes, and not spend any money to go along with it.

Gaffigan’s comedy changes the way you look at normal things you encounter every day, from ketchup to escalators, and turns it into something so hilarious that you are unable to look at anything the same way again. “Obsessed” and Gaffigan’s other specials are definite must-sees on Netflix or television for all comedy aficionados, or those who just want a good laugh. Despite Jim Gaffigan’s great material and hilarious jokes, live viewing of comedy is not worth the time if you can enjoy it even more at home.

Courtney Harshbarger saw Aziz Ansari live:

Comedian Aziz Ansari visited the Orpheum Theatre in Memphis, TN on September 10. Ansari has always included comments on society throughout his comedy routines that call people out for being offensive, and going out to see the live show is definitely worth the time and money.

Ansari has touched on a wide range of social problems, never skirting around the subject, simply stating how people are much too intolerant in general. Somehow this material remains hilarious when Ansari incorporates them into his jokes.

In his most recent tour, “Modern Romance,” the bulk of Ansari’s jokes refer to vegetarians, being single and men doing creepy things in attempts to attract women. He had the audience laughing throughout the show, even when calling people out for being creepy.

Ansari constantly asks the audience questions and allows random people to speak up, incorporating their personal experiences into his routine. This time he even took a woman’s phone and read her texts aloud to show how awkward it can be to text someone for the first time and ask them out.

His improvising skills are amazing during the parts when he talks to random audience members. Some of my biggest laughs happened when he made up jokes on the spot, showcasing his comedic ability.

Purchasing tickets and attending a live show is definitely worth it. The interactions with the audience and the knowledge that Aziz Ansari was right there onstage made the experience much more personal than watching comedy routines on TV. I look forward to seeing many live comedy shows in the future. This was Ansari’s first time doing a show in Memphis, and fans were extremely satisfied with the performance.