JackTV’s Lafapalooza Finals

And the last comic standing is… wait before I tell you who the winner is, let me give you my fifty cents on each of the final four. After two rounds of competition, the initial 12 contestants were narrowed down to 4, namely, Red Ollero, Uli Oposa, Victor Anastacio, and Ryan Puno. The first two were from La Salle and the last two from Ateneo, just like the memorable basketball game which had the Blue Eagles crying. There were 2 challenges added to finals on top of the 7 – 10 minute standup performance. Each contestant had to do a commercial for a product on the spot and be a spokesperson in a press conference. This is how I feel each fared:

Red – he’s a big curly guy – how can you not find that funny. He did pretty well in the first two challenges. He did a shampoo commercial. He’s got curly hair for Allah’s sake! His standup material was apt as he pandered to both the La Sallites and Ateneans in the audience. Though he put down the other schools, he also put down his own. There’s go to be some credit for self-deprecation. I felt though that he had a better set in his first round.

Uli – the probinsyano did well also. He had some good act outs to some of his bits. Although, I personally wouldn’t have worn shorts and slippers if I were going to be on TV. You got to dress like a winner if you want the gold, but that’s me. He had good premises but felt a bit awkward and never really got anywhere except for a few punchlines. I think with his premises, he can find a goldmine of laughter if he just really worked at it. I felt he relied too much on blue material using words such as “chupa” (blowjob) and “bulbul” (pubic hair). Dirty jokes are allright with me, but for TV and corporate gigs, they won’t go far. I hope he keeps it up because I think he has a lot of potential.

Victor – the natural. He scored perfect in the 2 challenges in my book. Trying to be the mean judge, I called his standup material “corny”. Actually, it’s just that he gets away with anything because he’s just so good with his delivery. With a little more time and some good writing, he can really get up there. He just has to develop his skills. He’s still a bit raw but has perfect timing.

Ryan – the smooth operator. Having the most experience onstage, he was very professional. His standup was very polished and flowed well. However, he didn’t score too high on the 2 challenges for me especially the commercial since he just did standup instead of really trying to sell the product. He did way better in the finals than he did in the first round.

All the contestants were amazing and I respect them for getting up there and doing their own original material. I’m very glad to see the future of standup in the Philippines is in good hands. Of course, there’s still much work to be done and these guys are just at the beginning. Al Manalo and I are very thankful to these guys and JackTV for helping us expand and uplift the comedy here in the country. We will continue to pioneer and push this art form until it becomes a recognized and viable industry not only in the Philippines but in Asia as well. Wow! With all these big dreams I almost forgot t announce the champion. The winner is… you’ll have to watch it on JackTV. Sorry!