Michael Shafar: Well Worth the Chemo

Having been described in his promotional material as a “dark”, “edgy” comic, it feels slightly incongruous to see Michael Shafar bound on stage and make friends with almost the entire audience off the top. Nothing in the rule book to say you can’t be affable and still flirt with crossing the line of political correctness, of course, so we wait to see what topics Shafar will dare to tackle that will presumably have a woke Melbourne crowd squirming in its seats.  

We’re still waiting. The affable Shafar deals in run-of-the-mill observational gear on topics like enjoying a quieter life as he gets older alongside some galaxy brain thought bubbles like how we should allow drunk women to drive themselves home as it’s the statistically safest option or how questionable the term ‘person of colour’ is when you really think about it.

The success of these gambits varies – not helped by tortured logic, unlikely set-ups or punchlines that can be seen coming from a suburb away – and as much as some of the material yearns to be controversial, it’s hard to recall a truly shocking idea or moment of genuine tension that you might reasonably expect from an alleged edgelord. A bit about how evil the queen must have been based on an innocuous fact is well delivered and gets one of the night’s biggest responses, but it’s tough to get past the flimsiness of the premise.

One hopes Shafar can relax a little and play to his strengths. He’s at his best when engaging the audience directly, referencing some effective multimedia, or giving his material the best chance to land without unnecessary recourse to affected delivery. As far as this offering goes, despite technical proficiency and some interesting starting points, this ends up being a lot less edgy, and a lot more middling.

After some more knee-slapping comedy? Check out the regular comedy nights in Melbourne.