Featured Blu-ray / DVD Review: Jim Gaffigan: Obsessed

April 25, 2014

Jim Gaffigan: Obsessed - Buy from Amazon: DVD or Blu-ray

Jim Gaffigan has been doing stand-up for more than 20 years and his first CD came out more than a decade ago. His latest TV special is Obsessed, which airs on Sunday before coming out on the home market on Tuesday.

The Set

Like with most stand-up concert DVDs, I have no idea how to review this one without spoiling jokes. When I sent out my request, I thought I had already reviewed a DVD by Jim Gaffigan, which would have made this review so much easier to do, as I would only have to compare it to the other DVD. ("The jokes weren't quite as sharp, but the energy was solid.") But apparently I was mistaken.

Like just about every other stand-up comic out there, Jim Gaffigan is an observational comic. His delivery is, in a word, sarcastic. He will occasionally do characters, which are usually "Guy with a whiny voice" or "Girl with a whiny voice". I know some people who do not like his work, because of this voice and I think if I had to review a box set, by the end it would grate on my nerves as well. In limited doses, like you have on a single 70-minute routine, it isn't annoying and does help set him apart. A lot of the set is about food, everything from ranch dressing to donuts to high-end food like lobster and Kobe beef. (This does bring up two points I would like to discuss. Firstly, I love lobster and most of the time I don't have any butter with it and never salted butter, because if overpowers the flavor of the lobster. Secondly, unless you've been to Japan, you haven't had Kobe beef. In fact, if you've been to Japan, odds are you didn't have real Kobe Beef.) He also discuses his family a lot, as well as cheerful topics like cancer. It's a good mix and no one topic gets overplayed.

The delivery is excellent. Jim Gaffigan has been doing this a long time and he's a pro at it. The energy level never really drops, which is an issue with a lot of comics. They come on strong and have a great finish, but things slow down in the middle. That doesn't happen here. In fact, this is one of the best stand-up concert DVDs I've reveiwed.

The Extras

There are no extras on the DVD or the Blu-ray. Additionally, the technical presentation is serviceable. That sounded like an insult, but it's not. It's a stand-up concert, so there's no visual flair here. The audio mix is masterfully done with an immersive use of the surround sound speakers. You wouldn't use this Blu-ray to show off your home theater system, but there is absolutely nothing wrong that would distract you from the jokes. The Blu-ray costs $21, which is $6 or 40% more than the DVD. That's not exactly a deal, but it is not a deal-breaker either.

The Verdict

If you are a fan of Jim Gaffigan, then Obsessed is absolutely worth picking up. If you are a fan of stand-up comedy in general, Obsessed is worth picking up. There are no extras on the DVD or the Blu-ray, while neither format is a substantially better deal than the other.


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Filed under: Video Review, Jim Gaffigan