The Comedy Central Roast of Denis Leary

Denis Leary is an asshole. He’s been admitting as much since he first burst onto the scene, chain-smoking cigarettes and cheering for cancer. Maybe that’s why Comedy Central’s Roast came off a bit tamer than most mean-spirited romps through a well-worn celebrity’s career. Some big names pay tribute—Michael J. Fox, Rene Russo, Conan O’Brien, Jon Stewart—except all of their messages are taped. Those who did show up—Lenny Clarke, Adam Ferrara, Colin Quinn, and a host of other Boston buddies no one’s likely heard of—deliver some good material, but regretably little of it comes at the expense of the man of the hour and a half. If the bleeped-and-blurred main event isn’t hurtful enough, you can turn your schadenfreude toward those in the crowd. Guests of honor of the guest of honor—Keifer Sutherland, Elizabeth Hurley—display a score of discomfited reactions after being mercilessly panned by guest comedians for no good reason (they attended as a favor) that prove just as amusing as anything going on front-and-center. Before the show’s close, Leary himself gets in his digs, delivering some of the funniest material of the show. Good times, indeed, but there should have been more friendly fire directed at the asshole himself.