Dane Cook is one of those stand-up comedians who seems to divide people: they either love him or hate him. Those that hate him think that Cook panders to a witless, drunken frat boy crowd, using the same tired material many others have used before him. In fact, Cook has been accused of downright stealing other comics' material, an accusation that he vehemently denies.
On the other hand, those who love Cook do so because of his delivery. It's energetic, even manic, with a lot of slapstick and sound effects thrown in. And like other successful comedians, Cook's material often consists of taking mundane observations that we all take for granted (like the "Kool Aid" commercials) and presenting them in a humorous light.
I happen to be one of those who like — no, love — Cook. No, I'm not in a fraternity. I'm not even a male. I just find him very, very funny, and I thought that Vicious Circle was a riot.
Dane Cook's Vicious Circle originally aired on HBO and features Cook performing at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston in front of a packed crowd of 18,000. However, while the HBO version was only one and a half hours long, the Vicious Circle two-disk DVD contains not only the original broadcast, but the complete, DANEgerous version, which has an extra half hour of material. If you choose to watch the DANEgerous version, Cook's Superfinger logo occasionally appears on screen, marking when unaired material begins and ends. There is also a trailer promoting Cook's Tourgasm, which I thought was actually pretty boring.
I tell ya, Cook is very, very funny. He touches upon subjects like the occasional need of a good cry; his first time with a girl; why women always win fights against their boyfriends; and his argument with an atheist (Cook is Catholic).
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