Matt Braunger: "Shovel Fighter!" (2012) DVD Review

I first became aware of Matt Braunger when he was on MADtv.  He's also appeared on Up All Night, United States Of Tara, Pushing Daisies, Carpoolers and other shows. And now a special performance of his stand-up act is being released on DVD through Comedy Central. Shot at the Gramercy Theatre in New York, this performance features some seriously funny material.

Matt Braunger opens by talking about how awkward he is, often saying the wrong things. I love that self-deprecating humor, and I think it works to immediately connect with the audience, to put them on your side. At one point he says, "So I am single and live alone - many of you guessed correctly." He then pitches his commercial idea for Lonely Man TV Dinners, which is wonderful.

He also includes the seemingly random observations. Like when talking about driving in L.A., he mentions a truck that had a couch tied to the top, and the couch of course fell off in front of him. He says, "It landed facing me like, 'Have a seat.' And it's the weirdest thing to have a couch speed at you like that, because it's the weirdest mixture of comfort and death." 

His routine on drinking is hilarious, particularly the bit about the sound people make before they vomit, the warning sound. And there is this hard truth: "Hangovers get so much more brutal once you hit thirty." I also appreciate the literary reference, as he says when drunk he becomes Lennie from Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men. And the acid clowns bit completely cracked me up.

When he talks about wanting a panda butler, look at the backdrop behind him. There is an illustration of a panda serving drinks. The stage has several twisted carnival drawings, all related to different moments of his routine.

As a side note, there are some attractive women in the audience, including a beautiful girl with a fur shawl that we see a couple of times. What is Matt Braunger's secret? Does it have something to do with the carnival imagery? Or perhaps this camera guy is just more on the ball.

By the way, Shovel Fighter, the DVD's title, refers to a bit about his worst job (worse than working at a greeting card store).

Special Features

The DVD contains a few bonus features.  The first, titled "Lonely Man Dinners," is a set of three fake commercials. The first is as he described in his routine.  The third is probably the silliest.  The second bonus feature is titled "The Pitch," and is two minutes of Matt Braunger on the phone pitching the idea of the special (and yes, "flame-retarded suit" cracked me up).  The final special feature is "The Making Of The Opening Titles," in which he talks about the backdrop, the carnival images, including the panda butler.

Shovel Fighter! is scheduled to be released on July 17, 2012.  It will also air on Comedy Central on Saturday, July 14th at 11:00 p.m.