Nick Cody returns for his third year at the Fringe after successes with
It seems Cody needs to bring back the ingenuity that made his first show such a success.
Cody is above all else a good, nay – great, raconteur. He is charming and a little goofy and reels off story after story – the time he pissed in an elevator; the time he tried vegan pulled “pork”; his dream stag do. Every anecdote is funny, and he gets a lot of big laughs from the audience. Of course he does; he’s Australian, a bit of a ‘loose unit’ and he appeals to some universal loves and hates. Everyone can relate to gorging on chocolate after all! Cody certainly pushes it a little with his comedy, some of his comments running dangerously close to offence but he pulls it backs with plenty of self-derogatory digs and little anecdotes from his mum which lightens the mood. Still, it’s not comedy for the faint of heart, although Cody clearly knows this and plays up to it.
However, when it comes down it the comedy can feel a bit basic. Most of his punchlines seem to be rather obvious metaphors and petty grouches that don’t have the punch behind them to elevate it from amusing to raucous. It works on the drunk Saturday night crowd but it’s nothing revolutionary.
Beard Game Strong, his debut show, was fantastic. Come Get Some, his 2016 show,was a good time. On Fire fails to make any significant impact. It’s funny for sure, but there are plenty of funny things on at the Fringe. It seems Cody needs to bring back the ingenuity that made his first show such a success.
