Russell Peters – Red, White and Brown (DVD + CD)

Comedy Central has really stepped up their game when it comes to having some of the best up and coming comedians on the circuit. I remember back in the middle to late nineties, when Comedy Central seemed to show all the specials from the lower rungs of the comedy ladder; that is simply not how the current iteration of Comedy Central works. That is a good thing; “Red, White and Brown” is the best comedy release that I have seen since Katt Williams’ “The Pimp Chronicles”.

Riffs surrounding Peters’ travels around the world (particular to India) and body hair represent two of the many pinnacles that viewers will find while watching this hour-plus (18 minutes) special. The 18 minutes are special, ensuring that viewers that may have already seen the original cut of Red, White and Brown will have something new with which to cut their teeth on. Comedy Central has sweetened the deal considerably, by including a CD featuring the best parts of Peters’ comedy routine. Where a number of the comedy releases do not have much in the way of additional material, Comedy Central have ensured that there are enough bonuses to make this DVD set an incredible bargain. The deleted scenes are hilarious because the show a more human side to Peters, one in which ey can screw up or have a joke fall flat, without being particularly perturbed or otherwise thrown off.

The two featurettes that have commentary beyond the feature presentation – “White Jacket Bootleg” and “Support The Troops” allow individuals to really key into what Peters was trying to get at with eir humor. I find that the most interesting part of a comedian’s act: what does the comedian eirself feel is the funniest part of the joke and how does that differ from how I as a viewer feel about what is funny. If Peters’ brand of humor is something that you can get into, purchase “Red, White and Brown” and wish every night that eir Fox deal is turned into something tangible in the next few years.

Rating: 7.5/10

Russell Peters – Red, White and Brown / 2009 Comedy Central / 78 Minutes / http://www.comedycentral.com