"Chappelle's Show" Episode #3.1 (2006)

User Rating:

8.6/10   

Director:

Rusty Cundieff

Writers:

Neal Brennan (creator)
Neal Brennan (writer)

TV Series:

"Chappelle's Show" (2003)

Original Air Date:

9 July 2006 (Season 3, Episode 1)

Genre:

Comedy | Music

Plot:

Plot Keywords:

Sketch Comedy | Culture | Social Satire | False Advertisement | Masturbation

Cast

Dave Chappelle	...	Various
Elon Gold	...	Steve Barker
Spike Lee	...	Himself
Yoshio Mita	...	Various
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Vernon Campbell	...	Dave's Bodyguard
DJ Cipha Sounds	...	Himself - D.J.
Ronnie Farer	...	Jerry Jacobs 2006
Nicole Leach	...	Dave's Ex
Julia Pace Mitchell	...	Mrs. Wack Arnolds
Charles Q. Murphy	...	Host / Various (as Charlie Murphy)
Orfeh	...	Showbusiness' secretary
Donnell Rawlings	...	Host / Various / Announcer
Blake Young-Fountain	...	Various

Movie Connections:

References "106 & Park Top 10 Live" (2000)

New Episode: Worth Your Time

Yes, we're all cynical about this "new" season of Chappelle's Show. I understand that, against Dave's wishes, Comedy Central is airing the scraps of material that he had shot before his exodus. Are such actions dishonorable on the part of Comedy Central? That's for you to decide. Politics, business, and preconceived notions aside, this new episode is hilarious.

I'll admit it: I found it very strange that Charlie Murphy and Donnell Rawlings were hosting the show. Their presence, although unsettling at first, became acceptable and even welcome by the show's conclusion. If the hosting torch had to be passed to anyone, I'm glad it was them. Hosting aside, the show was spot-on.

The genius of Chappelle's Show is that Dave's comedic style on the show has evolved as Dave Chappelle the man has evolved as a person. Dave does not pretend that he is still a "street" comedian. On this new episode, he accepts the fact that he is now a celebrity. He has accepted it, and he's ready to move on. By acknowledging his celebrity status - nay, celebrating it - he has voided any discomfort on the part of the viewer. We're on the same page with him, ready to progress forward.

For me the highlight of the show had to have been the "Revenge" segment. With each successive person he crossed off the list, the revenge he exacted became more and more extreme until it reached a bloody climax with the murder of a former, wheelchair bound comedy club owner.

Equally funny was the Tupac segment. Not only did Chappelle make the observation that the music industry has picked Tupac's legacy apart by scrounging up his old recordings and inserting them into new, pre-fab songs, but he's also making a tongue-in-cheek statement that maybe Tupac isn't dead. All of which done in the unique, laid-back style of Chappelle. I also found it quite ironic that the segment would be about a corporate entity cannibalizing the material of an artist who is no longer producing material, when essentially Comedy Central is doing the same thing to Dave Chappelle.

Overall, I'd say these "new" episodes maintain most of the magic of the original two seasons. Knowing that Dave didn't want them to be aired, however, takes some of the excitement out of the experience.