Has anyone been to the Analog on SE Hawthorne? That place is kinda rad for comedy with two floors, good seating, and nice sightlines. If someone would tell those bartendes how to behave during a comedy show—inside voices—it would be dialed in.

I caught the Very Important Show at the Bridgetown Comedy Fest last night. The premise: milquetoast Michael Busch sets out to perform his feelings-filled one-man show about love, only to have a litany of kooks interrupt. Which means lots of comedians playing characters, natch. Character-driven comedy drives some people bonkers, but I love it when done well, and this show managed to mostly succeed thanks to strong characters from Matt Braunger (a self-confident, rootin' tootin' used car salesman with incredible eyebrows; sidenote: I might be in love with Matt Braunger's eyebrows) and the hysterical Emily Maya Mills (she played Michael's former principal and current love consultant Lydia), who was fantatic, the highwater mark as a snaky cougar in a floral pantsuit. Totally stole the show. There were other good cameos from Demorge Brown, Eliza Skinner, and Christian Ricketts.

Then I beat feet to Spicy News at the packed Alhambra Lounge. Photographer Pat Moran warned me that watching comedians eat spicy peppers is incredibly painful to watch. He was right. It's also pretty damned funny when they roll around on the floor groaning, drooling, and snotting while trying to perform comedy. Guh-ross. Gotta say, that's a show that only needs a lineup of four comedians, not the eight that were punished with peps. James Adomian ripped into a Tom Leykis/Myq Kaplan/sports announcer fugue pepper state and bemoaned his fortunes before dashing out to the big-ticket Persona! show. Myq Kaplan fronted cooler-than-thou nonchalance (does that make him a prick of pickled peppers?). And David Zoe Leon is my new favorite human being. Why no pepper-poppin' ladies, though?

I'm a little sad I missed the Persona! show in favor of heading to the Eagles Lodge, but glad I caught Richard Bain's set there. Did anyone check out Persona?

Tonight's docket: Doug Fir afternoon (Harmontown, Jonah Raydio, Set List open mic). Emo Philips at Set List (Doug Fir, 8 pm), the Wahlberg Solution at the Eagles Lodge (9 pm), and then Competitive Erotic Fan Fiction at Alhambra (10 pm).

Pro tip: Need some non-comedy alone time, hit up the divey Watertrough Saloon by the Alhambra. That place is a Portland treasure.

Hit the jump for more of Pat's pictures from the Very Important Show.