George Lopez, Paul Rodriguez, Cheech Marin, etc. are names that probably the US might know very well. The “Latino” comedy is one of the most demanded nowadays in the United States.
Mexican comedy and Mexican-American comedy, though they share many characteristics, are remarkable different and have their special kind of humor. While in Mexico the comedy is based in impressions, pun and wordplay; in the US the Mexican-American comedians base their humor in the auto-critic, the adaptation of the Hispanic societies and the stereotypes of the Mexicans in general.
Beaners, laziness, wetbacks, drunkenness, cholos and a lively use of the Spanglish are constant topics on the Latino Comedy shows. Even when it all started big in the 70’s for the Hispanic comedy, I personally think that George Lopez is the guy who put Chicano comedy on the billboards and gave a big impulse to it in the last years. Thanks to him, millions consider the Mexican-American comedy one of the funniest.
For Mexicans it’s no problem to make fun of ourselves, we do it all the time. However this Chicano comedy is not often appreciated in Mexico, most of all because it is done in English.
Gabriel Iglesias is “a comedian that happens to be latino” as he describes himself. He is an extremely funny guy if you are already familiar with the Chicano comedy and if not… well, he is still funny. In his case, due to his excess weight, he makes fun not only of his Hispanic heritage but also of his overweight and does it in a really amusing way using all the available sources.
Of Mexican descent, the US citizen comedian gives an accurate and funny impression of the difficulties that a Mexican-American use to have in the daily experience in the US. He is one of those talents that are always worth to watch, even for the European audience, who want to have another impression of the minorities living in the country of the junk food, as Gabriel properly shows calling himself “Fluffy”, a polite way to avoid “fat”.
The sound effects, the impressions, the funny faces, the high-pitched noisy voices and the sometimes tipsy talks are his hallmarks and he uses them with a mastered talent for comedy. This cake-lover is also known because of his simple personality and his approachable character, where nobody is free of his jokes and nobody is avoided to know him personally.
I just can not stop watching his videos.
Mayitzin 