When people say they love nerds, they typically don’t mean the ones like that kid in class who knows all the answers and talks way too much. They mean people like comedian Demetri Martin, who now has his own show on Comedy Central called “Important Things with Demetri Martin.” Martin’s knack for puns, palindromes and labeling coupled with his one-man-band joke accompaniment and “large pad” drawing routines make him a candidate for the most lovable nerd ever.
“Important Things” has a different theme for each show, and the theme for the first show, which aired on Feb. 11, was timing. The show started with Martin in a studio with a live audience, where he told a few jokes like, “I think the worst time to get amnesia would be Halloween. ‘What is your name?’ ‘I don’t know, but I’m pretty sure I’m a hobo … who’s got a sweet tooth,'” and “I was in this building and there was a door, and on the door it said, ‘This door must remain closed at all times.’ I was like, ‘Dude, you’re thinking of a wall. That is a waste of a door.'” This was a great start to a show I had very high expectations for, and, with that, I knew the show would be excellent.
The show continued with a sketch called “Anger Management,” featuring actress Amanda Peet, who, for whatever reason, really irritates me. But she couldn’t ruin the sketch. Martin played an actor who can’t act angry for his role but gets incredibly angry in between takes at his inability to be angry for the role. Another sketch later on in the show was the very funny “Jerry Pappas: Time Gigolo,” about a janitor who stumbles upon a time machine and goes to the past to hook up with women.
Martin also did a few bits with his “large pad,” a huge notepad on which he displays graphs, drawings, and other funny things. He took the same technique to a television screen and told the difference between a millisecond, a Millivanillisecond and a Millenivanillium: “OK, we know what a millisecond is. But a Millivanillisecond … that’s the amount of time Milli Vanilli was popular. And a Millenivanillium is the amount of time during which you can do Milli Vanilli jokes, which we may have just exited.”
Martin added music to some of his jokes by playing the guitar, harmonica, keyboard, tambourine (on his foot), and foot bells, a truly impressive feat while changing the pages of the notepad.
One of my favorite parts of the show was the mini-sketch featuring Martin as “a guy way too early for a rave.” Martin dons several ponytails, a pacifier and goggles as he dances around the city midday with a beach ball. Another was his slam poet bit, where he talked some more about timing and acted as a human clock.
Toward the end of the show, Martin said in a reflective tone, “‘Timing is everything’ … is a cliché now. But if I said that a long time ago, I’d be original. Think about it.” This is a huge reason for my love of Martin’s humor. He says funny things in a tone so serious it does actually make you think … and then laugh.
“Important Things” is hilarious, and I would expect nothing less from Martin. I’m excited for all the upcoming episodes, and I know I will not be disappointed by any of them. Martin’s unique brand of comedy is refreshing in a time of so many Dane Cooks (one Dane Cook is just fine, but the world doesn’t need any more than that). Comedy Central shows a lot of dull stand-up specials, but “Important Things” will join the ranks of the great shows the channel offers.
“Important Things” airs on Wednesday nights at 10:30 p.m.