While attempting to showcase the funniest men and women in the world of stand-up comedy, PREMIUM BLEND only succeeds at making them all seem excruciatingly lame. This substandard television series begins with an unwatchable segment by the host, who is always somebody so unbelievably unfunny that it is actually painful to sit through. After the host concludes his or her godawful "comedy" routine, the show cycles through about five or six different relatively unknown comedians in a mere twenty-two minutes.
The problem with PREMIUM BLEND isn't that the featured comics aren't funny (except for the hosts--they always suck no matter what); the problem is that none of the performers are really given a chance to shine. They have about three or four minutes at the most, and they only have time to tell the shortest, most outmoded jokes in their repertoire. Most stand-up comedy involves long stories with detailed explanations, as well as occasional references to earlier parts of the act in order for it to really be funny. Since they are only given a thin slice of time, they are only able to tell a few "differences between men and women" or "white people vs. black people" jokes, which have been beaten to death in the past and are seldom funny in the first place. So even if the comics are the most hilarious individuals on the planet, you would never know it from watching PREMIUM BLEND.
The show's only real saving grace has got to be the musical acts. Excellent yet mostly unheard-of bands (like Tuuli or the U.S. Bombs) provide the soundtrack during each performer's introduction and during the show's end credits. But again, not enough of the music is ever really heard for people to form a legitimate opinion on the band.
Despite its shortcomings, Comedy Central's PREMIUM BLEND does have the *potential* to be good, but a few changes must be made first. A) Extend the show's running time to 60 minutes as opposed to only 30. B) Cut the number of featured comedians in half. C) Let the band play an entire song at the end of the show. D) EITHER a) Completely do away with the host OR b) find a host who is actually capable of making another human being laugh. Jim Breuer and Harlon Williams are *never* funny under any circumstances.
