{"id":9299,"date":"2016-01-01T14:47:12","date_gmt":"2016-01-01T19:47:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/?p=9299"},"modified":"2016-01-08T15:50:38","modified_gmt":"2016-01-08T20:50:38","slug":"top-50-stand-up-comedians-patton-oswalt-brian-regan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/2016\/01\/01\/top-50-stand-up-comedians-patton-oswalt-brian-regan\/","title":{"rendered":"Top 50 Stand-Up Comedians: Patton Oswalt, Brian Regan"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"pattonoswalt\"<\/a>

Image courtesy of the ‘Patton Oswalt on Die Hard’ video posted on YouTube.<\/p><\/div>\n

20. Patton Oswalt<\/span><\/p>\n

I mentioned earlier in this series that Aziz Ansari was my \u201cspirit animal\u201d but alluded to another. That \u201cother\u201d is Patton Oswalt.<\/span><\/p>\n

There is a fine line between being overly cynical – a critique I would make of some on this list – and just being allergic to bullshit. Oswalt falls into that latter category, so while he decries the absurdities of modern society he never comes off as a habitual complainer.<\/span><\/p>\n

Naturally, I\u2019m drawn to his propensity to imbue comedy with video game and comic book references. I mean, he put Jesus on the Avengers for Christ\u2019s sake. But more than that, I appreciate that his observational humor comes from a place of true frustration over concepts that are confounding as opposed to mocking things he doesn\u2019t understand.<\/span><\/p>\n

A true master of the craft, you will rarely hear Oswalt tell the same joke twice and the perfection in pacing and storytelling are indicative of how hard he works on his material. Some comedians get by on just being naturally funny – and make no mistake, Oswalt is that – but you can\u2019t put out as many quality specials as he has since the 90s without working your ass off.<\/span><\/p>\n

Oswalt speaks for those who were never invited to the \u201ccool table\u201d and decided at some point that meant we lucked out. He was the first comedian I ever heard and thought to myself \u201cI feel exactly how this guy does.\u201d And his comedy will stand the test of time because it is never the result of trying to elicit a knee-jerk reaction based on a moment in time.<\/span><\/p>\n

While other comics were busy writing the equivalent of pop songs that come and go over the course of a summer, Patton Oswalt continued to be the Beck of the comedy world by setting his own standards and producing quality content for those who care about craft and form.<\/span><\/p>\n