LOL WITH IT REVIEW: Norm MacDonald @ Helium, 6/7

MacDonald generally baffles me, because his punchlines make so much sense that they almost seem obvious. But he has a way of putting it; a style of delivery that is uniquely his own.

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LOL WITH IT REVIEW: Norm MacDonald @ Helium, 6/7

POSTED: Friday, June 8, 2012, 2:00 PM

Filed Under: Comedy LOL With It

Every Friday, Ryan Carey covers the people and events that are giving Philly the giggles.

Last night, Canadian-born standup comedy legend Norm MacDonald performed for a jam-packed, sold-out show at Helium. He did his usual ultra-conversational, "laid-back uncle" style of banter on topics like cannibalism and the out-of-control adult film industry (he seemed to do a good half-hour on each). His 2011 DVD, Me Doing Standup was an instant classic, and Norm did the same type of observational material in which he always finds the mundane in the bizarre — or vice versa.

MacDonald generally baffles me, because his punchlines make so much sense that they almost seem obvious. But he has a way of putting it; a style of delivery that is uniquely his own. When you buy a ticket to see Norm MacDonald, you're not really paying to hear jokes, you're paying to spend time with his personality. This is not to say that his writing isn't sharp. It just always seems ... funnier than it should be.

If you're uninitiated, check out the video below from his special, in which he puzzles over why serial killers always seem to bury their victims in a "shallow grave."

MacDonald always sells out in Philly, and this weekend is no exception. Helium even had to a Sunday show at 7 p.m. Head over to heliumcomedy.com for tix. While you're there, pick out a night of Philly's Phunniest to come support local comedians. The seventh annual contest will be running throughout the summer.

(ryan.carey@citypaper.net) (@slackerDIYtoday)

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Featuring everything from event roundups to concert reviews and sex talk, City Paper's Critical Mass is a space for off-the-wall coverage of Philly's A&E scene.

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