Combines a great, unique delivery with very funny material. His style is often like a throwback to comedians from before the Carlin/Pryor era but his jokes and stories are, in no way stale. There are just so many great comedians with specials out there now and hopefully this doesn't get lost in it because it's a gem of a show. And it's nice knowing that the next generation will have guys like Normand and Morril around for a long time. It's hard to review stand up specials without ruining the jokes, but if you like humor about things like having sex with down syndrome people, you will enjoy this show.
8 Reviews
Very middle-of-the-road fare...
Airman8714 September 2023
In true Mark Norman fashion of speed balling the jokes, Normand fits more jokes into a single 50 minute set than most comedics would have spread across five different specials. The low tone zingers are plentiful, but so is the constant pacing back and forth and flailing hand gestures that become borderline nausea inducing. The jokes are wide ranging, but they never really push the edge or go too far. As social commentary, Soup to Nuts is a safe play. While I never found myself laughing hysterically, those who are removed from watching comedy regularly will probably find it just satiable enough to keep watching.
More clever than funny
lets_play_two13 February 2024
Setup, punchline, setup, punchline. This works great for brilliant, imaginative comedians like Mitch Hedberg and Dimitri Martin, but Mark's payoffs are more at home at a high top in a bar.
You can't argue that Mark isn't clever, but actual laughs are sadly sparse.
The rest of this review is dedicated to the brave men and women who created this special. It was directed by James Webb, who discovered Mark in deep space, tapping his space suit's radio link saying, "is this thing on?" It was filmed in Chicago as established by an early shot of Chicago and the background sounds of hot dogs unwrapping.
You can't argue that Mark isn't clever, but actual laughs are sadly sparse.
The rest of this review is dedicated to the brave men and women who created this special. It was directed by James Webb, who discovered Mark in deep space, tapping his space suit's radio link saying, "is this thing on?" It was filmed in Chicago as established by an early shot of Chicago and the background sounds of hot dogs unwrapping.
King of Zing
MezrichA25 July 2023
Certain eras coin people and elevate them above others forever but when it comes to comedy specials this is not such a time, and Mark Normand, despite his talent, remains derivative of others- particularly Chris Rock (who he practically mimics at one point) and Jerry Seinfeld. He has some great lines but the man/woman stuff doesn't quite work, the "let's go back to fun racial slurs" is the plea of an old man and his unvarying tone and setups lose your attention at times. He remains king of the podcast one liners but even he can't change the fact that specials are starting to look like something from another age.
Must see
Holmiboi25 July 2023
Normand might be the best stand up act of this generation. A challengning thing for many comics who saw a significant increase in audience due to podcasting, is creating original material for the stage, and conducing material to a mainstream audience, thus catering to both hardcore fans, and casual audience members not in the know on inside jokes. Normand doesn't use lazy shout outs and references to fellow comics or podcast bits for cheap applauses. He sticks to the basics: setups and punchlines. Though he is anything but basic. He has a unique voice and hits you with so many jokes per minute i found myself pausing the special to finish laughing and make sure i don't miss any jokes, and even rewinding certain bits multiple times. Although he disagrees and says Out To Lunch was the superior special, i think he keeps getting better and this is his best work yet. Must see special.
An enjoyable show...
paul_haakonsen11 December 2023
I just happened to stumble upon the 2023 comedy show "Mark Normand: Soup to Nuts" while looking for stand-up on Netflix. And with this being a comedian I had never heard about, of course I opted to sit down and watch the show.
Turns out that Mark Normand was a funny guy. His jokes were good and he wasn't scared to cross the line of what would be perhaps considered going too far, in terms of the contents of the material. I liked that aspect of his comedy and show, because he dared to say what we all are thinking, but most people are too scared to give voice to.
Mark Normand wasn't wasting time in between jokes dawdling around with filler material. The delivery of one joke was spot on, and then on to setting up the next already. And there was a good transition between the contents of the material that he delivered.
He feels very natural on the stage, and that certainly added to the overall impression of the show.
There were some good laughs throughout the course of the 53 minutes that the show ran for.
I was adequately entertained by watching "Mark Normand: Soup to Nuts", and it certainly is a comedian well-worth checking out.
My rating of "Mark Normand: Soup to Nuts" lands on a six out of ten stars.
Turns out that Mark Normand was a funny guy. His jokes were good and he wasn't scared to cross the line of what would be perhaps considered going too far, in terms of the contents of the material. I liked that aspect of his comedy and show, because he dared to say what we all are thinking, but most people are too scared to give voice to.
Mark Normand wasn't wasting time in between jokes dawdling around with filler material. The delivery of one joke was spot on, and then on to setting up the next already. And there was a good transition between the contents of the material that he delivered.
He feels very natural on the stage, and that certainly added to the overall impression of the show.
There were some good laughs throughout the course of the 53 minutes that the show ran for.
I was adequately entertained by watching "Mark Normand: Soup to Nuts", and it certainly is a comedian well-worth checking out.
My rating of "Mark Normand: Soup to Nuts" lands on a six out of ten stars.
An original throwback
nicolasburnettdiaz1 August 2023
I didn't like how he recycled some jokes and premises from out to lunch, but overall this special was great. It had me laughing out loud in a way that I haven't been capable of in some time. I'm getting aware of how he forms his jokes, having watched/listened to hours of his material, yet the punch lines remain pleasurable. I can't think of another performing comedian like him. Some similarities to other comics, some similarities to bygone eras yet still fresh. I hope he continues to grow in popularity. I hope this type of comedy continues to grow in popularity. Some of us still want to have fun.
Corny
franksj-22 September 2023
Constantly pacing back and forth, same basic mannerisms for every punchline. How many times is he going to grab his chin? Waiting for the funny, still waiting. Starts a rhetorical question, followed by two to three Constantly pacing back and forth, same basic mannerisms for every punchline. How many times is he going to grab his chin? Waiting for the funny, still waiting. Starts a rhetorical question, followed by two to three Constantly pacing back and forth, same basic mannerisms for every punchline. How many times is he going to grab his chin? Waiting for the funny, still waiting. Starts a rhetorical question, followed by two to three.
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