Tokyo Comedy Bar (TCB) — Restaurant in Tokyo

I always watch comedy shows on Youtube but I thought it would be nice to see a live comedy show sometimes.

I was disappointed to find that Nori Reed could not make it because she fell ill but I was enjoying the show until I realized that there is something odd about the host's behavior.

The host was a Filipino American guy from Texas. He asked everyone their names, where they are from, and chitchatted with them so that "everyone will know each other by the time the show ends". But apparently I was not included in "everyone".

The host acted as if I don't exist the whole time.

There were only eight attendees: a group of three young Chinese people who just moved to Tokyo from San Francisco, a tourist from Utah, a Norwegian couple visiting Tokyo, a Japanese man, and me.

And I was sitting in the front row, so the host could not have missed me by accident.

The host even greeted two attendees who arrived late immediately and started talking to them.

It was apparent that the host was ignoring me intentionally.

I had never even met him so I don't know what I could have done to deserve such a hostility.

I felt unwelcome and isolated and left the show early.

This is not what I expected from a...

I have never left a review before but felt the need to this time as the 4.9 review for the TCB is unjustified.

I am not too sure if it was just the night we went (albeit it was a Saturday), but it was the lowest standard of comedy I have ever paid for.

When the first comedian’s first questions were is ‘anybody drunk?’ or ‘what alcohol do people like?’ - it was the sign of a desperate night.

The comedians seemed unprepared and absolutely winging which is fine if you can back it up. The English fella was the ‘new’ guy but at least he had some material prepared and was pretty funny. The Kenyan lad was clearly the best by a mile as the other seemed like it was the first time they had ever done stand-up.

I feel harsh writing this but this is my honest review of what the evening was. If you’re making people pay for 3000 yen for something there has to be a standard to uphold. Not just desperately asking people for 5 star review at the end of the show. It wasn’t 1 star but as you banged on about your algorithm I feel like it...

Comedy is my new favorite travel tip. I caught English-language standup abroad for the first time when I went to see Vickie Wang at the 23 comedy club in Taipei. I was delighted by the way the jokes gave new light to local context, and how the local context helped make the material really fresh and funny.

Tokyo Comedy Bar was just as delightful. The only time we could go was Wednesday night, which was a small crowd - but all the better, because we got to be part of the show. The crowd work was excellent, and by the break we felt like friends. It was a mix of expats and tourists, which also made for a fun exchange. The comedy was at its best when the comedians engaged with local material - heckling us for our visit to akihabara, for example.

We went to the 7:30 show, which was very funny, and then stayed for the “hot off the fax” show, which had a few groaners. But by that point, the crowd and the performers had connected, so it felt like we were all in...