During his tenure as Weekend Update anchor on Saturday Night Live, Dennis Miller established himself as a different sort of comic. He didn't perform in skits that much. He stuck with what he did best - giving his straightforward, cynical take on the headlines. He upped the ante with Dennis Miller Live, his HBO show, now in its fourth season, taking on a particular topic every week and seeing just how much celebrities know about what's going on around them. A couple of years ago, that show begat The Rants, a book and set of tapes representing his best opening monologues, by themselves, without the chatter. Since Miller is still ranting, Ranting Again only makes sense.
Miller is a smart ass with a good head on his shoulders. These are not lightweight topics. Heading the list of things Miller takes on are abortion, ethnicity, gun control, immigration, and animal rights. And he's not afraid to go out on a limb with any of them. On abortion, he says, "My belief is that if men were the ones getting pregnant, abortions would be easier to get than food poisoning in Moscow." About our esteemed president, he says, "Bill Clinton treats the truth like your mom treats the good china. There's never an occasion special enough to use it, although you can take it out and look at it once in a while."
Granted, not every topic in the book is likely to burn a rift through every crowd. There are the pet peeves of psychology, the royal family, UFOs, and fashion, some of which appeared in one form or another in the last book. But Miller is no less critical of these issues than the more grave topics.
No one could argue with Miller's intelligence, but sometimes, he goes a bit deep with his references. No one will read Ranting Again without something slipping past them. For those who get it, comparing Deepak Chopra with Oddjob is probably hysterical, but most will probably just laugh at the funny names and move on. Miller's comedy is well worth the effort - it just seems like the payoff drops a little when Miller goes beyond obscure. How does a guy who watches this much TV have any time to comment on world events anyway?
In any case, Miller has proved himself to be one of the most shoot-from-the-too-hip-for-the-room comics around, and you're always in for something different when you encounter his work. Though nothing can really compare to actually hearing Miller perform this material and hearing the delivery, the words are still funny and insightful. If you like Miller, you'll like "Ranting Again."