For a DVD review site, posters on the DIMP forums have spent an inordinate amount of time discussing the use of the word “nigger”.  It’s come up in various threads for various reasons.  If you go looking, you should probably start in the political forum (Bamboo Gods and Iron Men) or the free-for-all that is Take A Hard Ride. 

The discussion generally centers on whether it should be used, who can use it, whether it’s harmful or degrading and whether there should be guilt attached with its use.  Opinions on the subject in those threads range from “it should never be used by anyone” to “I don’t see why it can’t be used by everyone” and everything in between.

Personally, being a white man from the deep south, I have my own history and issues to contend with that make me hesitant to condone its use except in very distinct circumstances.  Really, I see only two.  One has to do with the way a close black friend of mine who lived in our house for three years greets me (literally, “What’s up my nigga?” followed by my similar response). 

The other time I think it can and should be used is when its done in a way that diffuses the word and takes away its power.  Primarily, that’s done through comedy and other than Richard Pryor and Redd Foxx, no one in my opinion has done more to defang that term in American culture than Dave Chappelle. 

Chappelle’s Show was a comedic powerhouse that spent the better part of three years poking fun at American culture, both black and white.  It skewered racists (especially in the debut episode which featured a hilarious mock-documentary of a white supremacist who was actually a blind black man).  It skewered black culture (look at the hilarious news reports in the sketch about slave reparations in season one).  It skewered celebrity (Charlie Murphy’s Stories about Prince and Rick James are laugh out loud funny).  It skewered the Civil Rights movement itself (check out the mock-documentaries on great moments in black history). 

Nothing was sacred and as any good comedian will tell you, nothing should be.  A culture that can’t laugh at itself is a culture that is doomed to fail.  In fact, one of the first things psychiatrists look for in diagnosing mental illness is whether the subject understands humor.  Dave Chappelle went to great lengths to keep viewers laughing and in doing so, he opened a dialogue for many people that wasn’t there previously and in my opinion, inched American culture just a little more toward the “healthy” side.

That I, as a 39-year-old white man, can talk with black friends about the “Player Haters Ball” sketch and recite my two favorite jokes from it without fear of offending anyone says a lot. 

By the way they are, “Buck Nasty, you’re so dark that when you masturbate it’s like black on black crime,” and “Rosie O’Donnell… that woman wears underwear with dick holes” respectively.

It doesn’t mean I want to run around yelling racist remarks at the top of my lungs and it could mean that forum posters who think otherwise will feel I’m inherently a bad person.  That’s fine also. 

The point is, Dave Chappelle is goddamn funny.  Chappelle’s Show Uncensored – The Series Collection proves that.   Anyone who has never seen the show but loves good, edgy comedy should just pick up the entire box because frankly, there isn’t a bad episode in the bunch.  It’s shocking, sly, sometimes outrageously over the top but always, always funny.

It’s my opinion that if more people watched it, fewer people would be uptight about life in America and maybe, just maybe, we could all start laughing with each other and start fixing things together.


Presentation
It’s straight from Comedy Central to you, which means nothing hi-def here.  Dolby Stereo will give you what you need but won’t blow your socks off.  
 

Extras
Since basically, Chappelle’s Show Uncensored – The Series Collection is just each individual season release in one box, you get the same extras as the individual releases.  This isn’t a bad thing though.  Comedy Central has done their best to give maximum Chappelle to fans. 

There is audio commentary for select episodes from each season, featuring Chappelle and series co-creator Neal Brennan.  While not the liveliest it is still a fun back and forth with good stories and remarks about what offended who and what got left out.

Bloopers and deleted scenes are included and many of them fun to watch although this is probably the weakest of the extras.  The Fabulous Making of Chappelle’s Show feature comes on the final disc of the set.

The best extras though are when Comedy Central gives you unaired bits from each season.  You get unaired bits of Ask A Black Dude with Paul Mooney, Extra Standup from Dave, two unaired Charlie Murphy Stories and The Rick James Extended Interview.  All are great and well worth checking out if you just decide to rent the individual seasons.

The Bottom Line
Chappelle’s Show is simply great.  Even the lost episodes shot just before Chappelle decided the series had run its course are good.  There may never be another comedian as good pushing the envelope and making viewers feel okay about watching and laughing.  I know Comedy Central’s attempt to recreate the magic with Carlos Mencia irks way more people than Chappelle ever did and that’s primarily due to Mencia’s delivery.  Dave Chappelle is simply a comedic master.  This set proves it.