I’ve always enjoyed stand up comedians. In my youth the only way I could get a chance to be exposed to this form of entertainment was the records featuring a popular comedian’s stand up act or if I could sneak out of bed late at night perhaps catching part of their act on the tonight show. With rare exceptions the material offered was usually sanitized frequently to the point that the cutting edge of the humor was blunted beyond recognition. True that some of the record albums were able to present more adult material but they were often difficult to obtain since most record stores refused to carry explicit material. Now between the internet, cable TV and DVD there are much fewer barriers to upcoming stand up comedians to gain exposure honing their craft without having to compromise what they consider the integrity of their act or preferred comedic style. One night while engaging in the perennial ‘Y’ chromosome driven activity of channel surfing a standup performance caught my eye sufficiently to prompt me to pause and continue watching. The show I happened upon was ‘Whitney Cummings Money Shot.’ Like most stand up acts the material offered by Ms Cummings is subjectively humorous and an acquired taste. With that noted I admit that I have been a fan of her and have followed her career for several years now. Of course having Comedy Central listed in my cable favorites make discovery of comedians like Cummings a lot easier. With their repeat rat it was also easy to set the DVR to catch the entire performance. Also in typical fashion I knew the show would be released on DVD before the change of the next season. True to form a few weeks later I received a notification of such a release. I also was pleased to be able to revisit this routine on such a lasting format as disc since I know I will want to revisit on future occasions.

It doesn’t take Cummings long to drop the first ‘F’ bomb. It arrives in the second sentence of her act. While she follows the general rule of thumb of peppering such language liberally enough to make You-Tube clips fun but broadcast play come off as Morse code of bleeps much of her comedy does offer something to ponder. The dominant theme of this act is a favorite especially with comediennes; the differences inherent between men and women. She knows the guys are watching the second she walked out in stage so Cummings defuses any potential dislike from the ladies with a self depreciating comment about the over use of her make-up. Before the female laughter can wane she gets in a jab at the former Mayor of Washington D.C. doing drugs moving straight into a jibe that the magazine Cosmopolitan; a training manual for becoming a slut. She notes that there are articles like instructions for turning on your guy; they’re guys just take off a sox. Many of the punch lines here aster fundamentally based on the axiomatic observation that men are driven by the possibility, no matter how minuscule, that a woman would be willing to have sex with him. While this does not make much of a case for my gender I do have to admit the woman has a point and expresses her argument concisely. This one premises carries over into an energetic rant ranging from sexual fetishes to role playing. She notes that in most fantasies it’s the man in charge and dominant, her idea of dressing up as a nurse is making you wait an hour then declining his insurance. When asked to play the part of a stripper she reminded her guy she’s already emotionally unavailable and willing to take his money.

Cummings is responsibly fair in her commentary on the never ending battle of the sexes. She takes aim at her own gender with observations that women have a special sort of crazy that makes it impossible for a man to ever win an argument. This extends to such matters as going through her boyfriend’s cell phone or finding another woman’s jewelry in his pocket. She has a fast pace that hits the ground running and never slows down. It may not be for everybody but if you like your comedy fast and on the mature side this is something to consider.