Comedian and actor Adam Ray has been impersonating talk-show host Dr. Phil for years now, even hosting a regular showcase at The Comedy Store as Dr. Phil, and posing as him as a regular guest judge on Tony Hinchcliffe’s “Kill Tony” shows. So what happens when Ray as Dr. Phil finally gets confronted by the real Dr. Phil onstage? Is it all still good clean fun? It’s on Netflix, so what do you think?
The Gist: Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Jelly Roll pop up in the opening moments of Ray’s Netflix debut, which seems extraordinary until you remember that Ray portrayed Vince McMahon in the NBC sitcom, Young Rock, and that Jelly Roll already has appeared as a celebrity guest on Ray’s Dr. Phil show.
You may have seen Ray’s impersonation of Jay Leno, which showed up in the Hulu series, Pam & Tommy. Ray’s credits also have included Welcome to Chippendales, playing a hack comic confronted by Deborah Vance to stop hacking it up in season one of Hacks, voicing Slimer in the 2016 version of Ghostbusters, and even a small part in Barbie.
But this is his first chance to steal the show himself. Even if he’s not quite himself.
What Comedy Specials Will It Remind You Of?: This kind of stunt-casting doesn’t happen as much in stand-up specials as it does in late-night TV, such as on Saturday Night Live, where you most recently got to see VP Kamala Harris side-by-side with Maya Rudolph as Harris.
Memorable Jokes: You’re coming here to see Ray and Dr. Phil mix it up. And mix it up they do.
The real Dr. Phil McGraw enters the stage seven minutes in, interrupting Ray’s crowd work as Dr. Phil, to exclaim and proclaim, “I think I don’t like your f—ing attitude.” The two face each other, and instead of a face-off, execute a brief mirror routine (a la Lucille Ball and Harpo Marx for you old comedy heads).
For a bit, though, this bit does feel like a game of one-upmanship, with Ray telling his inspiration, “I appreciate you being here,” only for McGraw to retort: “I’m sure you do.”
McGraw also keeps trying to turn the tables and flip the interview format back upon Ray, with queries such as: “Why did you start this? Are you trying to get laid or something?” before adding: “It takes more than just the look, right?” McGraw also tests Ray’s bona fides to see if he understands the Texas/Oklahoma upbringing that fed the TV doctor’s persona.
Calves, as they say, shall be licked.
Our Take: You should know, though, that the real Dr. Phil only sticks around for part of the show. Most of the hour involves other comedians either as guests or as characters interrupting the proceedings.
There’s Fahim Anwar as Gabe, who cannot stop distracting Dr. Phil with his dancing and yearns to breakdance in the Olympics.
There’s a fake commercial featuring Ray as himself and starring his longtime podcast partner, Brad Williams, plugging LP Cologne (where the LP stands for Little People).
Patton Oswalt shows up to remind us he served as the narrator for The Goldbergs, and narrates a day in the life of Ray’s “Dr. Phil,” in a classic short-form improv comedy game.
Joe Gatto from Impractical Jokers arrives on the scene with a special GrubHub delivery, which may or may not be a sponsored bit?!?
Jay Pharoah is yet another guest, and Jeremiah Watkins in full Gollum cosplay skulks about the stage as “Dr. Phil” asks Pharoah to help Gollum break out of fantasy typecasting, mostly through fake movie trailers where Pharoah displays some of his impersonations (such as Eddie Murphy and Jay-Z), while both Pharoah and Ray do dueling Robert Downey Jr. voices.
It all goes to showcase Ray in a way that clearly realizes his full comedic potential in a way that his casting in the final season of MADtv for The CW never could.
Our Call: STREAM IT. Several of Ray’s “Dr. Phil” videos have crossed the million-view mark on YouTube, and the title credit montages show just how much fun he, the other comedians, and the audiences have at his Comedy Store shows. It might just be more fun to watch live than on tape on Netflix or YouTube, but these videos certainly do a great job of making you want to be there to see it for yourself.
Sean L. McCarthy works the comedy beat. He also podcasts half-hour episodes with comedians revealing origin stories: The Comic’s Comic Presents Last Things First.
