They say things get better with age and having had the pleasure to attend the Ottawa, Canada portion of Robin Williams current tour – Weapons of Self Destruction I know that statement is true.
I have been a long time Robin Williams fan and have CD’s (and DVD’s) of every major tour he has done, some of them are upgrades from VHS tapes and albums, you probably get the picture. While the topics, look, environment, and age has changed, there is one constant: Robin Williams is one of the funniest men alive.
One of the best things about Robin is his old school nature, he actually researched Canada and Ottawa specifically and the first 20 minutes of his show was local flavored. In light of the recent Canadian election, he was sure to mention that, unlike the United States, when we have elections nothing in the government changes. He proceeded to discuss our close proximity to Quebec and their separatist nature and how incredibly boring our Prime Minister is.
This opening segment really pulled the audience in and for the rest of the nearly two hours none of us stopped laughing. Nothing is safe from Robin’s sharp wit, he of course focused on Obama winning the recent election and wondered if he would surprise us all and get all gangster at the inauguration. Hillary and Bill Clinton, George W Bush, John McCain, Dick Cheney and especially Sarah Palin were speared, roasted and eaten on stage in Robin Williams’s classic style.
Moving with the times and his age Robin also focuses on technology, Viagra, prescribed drugs, and his experiences in the past. A few of his jokes were from previous sets, but he always added a new twist, a new dimension that made it even funnier then the past versions.
Article comments
1 - Logan Lamech
He's a brilliant comic, no doubt about that. I hadn't hear he was on tour again. This is great news.
Logan Lamech
2 - Sean
Went to see it last night
3 - sean
A bit of a 'meh' reaction to be honest.
4 - Ken
When a comedian uses cursing as a tool to please the crowd-it ususally means only one thing-he is out.Shame.He did not get over the surgery scare.It is natural-but........Take a break Robin.Learn to live starting from the scratch.Not all show sucks-but the best moment was late Cronkite's joke.
5 - Herm
Robin Williams can be the funniest man on earth, and he doesn't have to use one curse word. This particular tour and show I saw changes all of that for me with his non-stop cursing. Will someone please tell me why he thinks it is necessary or, as poster Ken says, maybe he is on his way out. Too bad.
6 - Michael Prince
Interesting comments...when I saw the first iteration of the tour last year he swore (he always has)but not constantly. My friends and I laughed from the moment he took the stage to hours after as we repeated his jokes. I wonder if he changed the show once he restarted it? If he tours in the area again I will see it to find out.
7 - JaySin420
I am not a Robin Williams fan at all, but that was a great special. The part about how the penis and vagina were created was just brilliant.
8 - MattKlomp
I've been a longtime fan of Robin's comedy and his new stuff is brilliant. Definitely plan on getting the Weapons of Self-Destruction DVD.. check out 4 clips from the show here - www.robinwilliams.com
9 - Richard Choffe
Robin Williams as Seymour Heller, Liberace's manager in the Michael Douglas, Liberace biopic. Everything Robin has done to date has prepared him for that role. Robin Williams would bring critical acclaim and make everybody a ton of money even if he only did it for a small percentage.
10 - Jeff
Hilarious. All the people who are offended by swearing should just go see Carrot Top or rent a Disney movie.
11 - kaylynn hammond
live on broadway was better he had more energy
12 - Phil
You would feel ripped off with the Brisbane Entertainment Centre offloading empty seats for Robin Williams at $65 when you donated $130 for them to invest for weeks/months.
Can’t understand why one guy with a microphone and video screens costs so much when U2 can offer $39 seats and spend huge amounts creating an amazing spectacle.
On top of that, the cost of travel to the venue, tolls, parking, premium priced food and drinks, lack of public transport.
I won’t go to an R/X rated Robin Williams concert even though he has amazing talent.
I don’t need to hear him trivializing drug use and any other number of issues he pushes the boundaries on for a laugh.
Next time around, if he is doing multiple shows I would love promoters to experiment with a ‘family’ show.
While he would still sell out the "dark" adult version some parents would take kids to see such a talented man, working clean and still hilarious.
If he can talk to his family and friends without being a guttermouth he is clever enough to do if for one show in a series.
13 - phil is gay
phil's just mad about the U2 reference and how bono's a dweeb.
14 - dregj
it was pretty pathetic to be honest
he dies at least half the time the audience was kinda lost by him pretty early on
poor lamb