Aziz Ansari: ‘Dangerously Delicious’ Review

Following in the footsteps of Louis C.K., comedian Aziz Ansari released a comedy special on his website this past week entitled “Dangerously Delicious” that was available for just $5. The special is the second stand up Aziz has recorded after 2010’s “Intimate Moments for a Sensual Evening” and will likely help boost interest in his new stand up tour, “Buried Alive,” which starts in April. As a fan of Aziz’s specials and his work on “Parks and Recreation,” I happily shelled out $5 and sat down to watch “Dangerously Delicious” tonight. Here are my thoughts:
What worked
- Aziz starts things off on a hilarious note, calling some members of the audience out for taking pictures during the show even after they’ve been asked not to do so. Aziz makes light of the whole thing and gives the audience a chance to take photos while he poses in the middle of pretend jokes. It was good audience interaction and a solid opener.
- Aziz gets a laugh any time he mentions Harris and this special is no different. Aziz reads a copy of Harris’ college essay, which of course is ripe for ridicule. The part about the illiterate guy is especially funny.
- There’s a particular sign language gesture that Aziz mocks heavily early in the special. In typical Aziz-fashion, he analyzes the gesture and invents a wild story of how it came into existence and when normal people might use it. You can bet some people walked out of the theater doing this gesture.
- The strength of any Aziz stand up is going to be his ability to relate to activities that normal people do every day. Aziz is a pop culture nerd who understands technology and can connect with the under-30 crowd easily, so when he talks about incessantly researching Joe Pesci or watching the ending to “Saw,” there’s a shared connection that makes the whole thing a lot funnier than it probably should be.
- Being a normal guy, it’s always amazing to listen to Aziz’s stories of running with celebrities he adores. In “Dangerously Delicious” we get stories about Jay-Z and R Kelly, two of Aziz’s favorites. His stories don’t disappoint.
What didn’t work
- There’s a bit about racial slurs that really falls flat. Not because it’s offensive or insensitive or anything like that. Aziz just pokes fun at some lame racial slurs. I chuckled a few times, but much like the audience, I was ready for the next bit pretty quickly.
- Aziz repeatedly references a certain sex act and the punch line loses it effectiveness pretty early.
- While the majority of his jokes are solid, there wasn’t one that stood out to me as a potential viral video. Which is fine, I guess, since Aziz has made it pretty clear that he wants this special to be legitimately distributed for now.
All in all, this was a solid special for Aziz and a great investment at just $5. Having already bought my tickets for his “Buried Alive” tour, I can only hope his comedic palate is even more refined by the time I see him in person.
Reel grade: 80 out of 100.






