Lamar from Grand Theft Auto 5 is one of the series funniest characters, and Grand Theft Auto 6 should look to the way he was written for inspiration. Lamar's cutscenes form a lot of the game's highlights, and his dynamic with Franklins was easily the game's best. By following his example, GTA's comedy will have a bright future.
In Grand Theft Auto 5, Lamar is Franklin Clinton's best friend, even though their interactions can make that hard to believe sometimes. Lamar is a low-level gangster trying to work his way up, and he often fails to think things through for his plans. This lack of foresight leads to Franklin having to save him time and time again. However, despite how often Franklin has to bail him out, Lamar's appearances are more fun than annoying thanks to his entertaining personality. Lamar's actor even recreated his roast of Franklin, which has become one of the game's most famous moments.
GTA 5's other major comic relief character, Trevor, has almost an entirely different approach to comedic moments. While both are impulsive, Trevor's impulsivity is more focused on making him scary than humorous. Rather, Trevor's comedy comes mostly from him saying or doing outrageous or shocking things in the middle of a scene. Everything about Trevor, right down to the way that he was promoted before the game's release, identifies him as a character who toes the line of good taste. His performance in the game shows that description to be accurate. Even though GTA 5's Trevor does have a good side, it's mostly buried under his bad temper and dreadful behavior.
Lamar Provides Most Of GTA 5's Best Jokes, & GTA 6 Should Take Notice
While Lamar and Trevor can both be funny, Lamar's comedy is much more long-lived. Trevor's jokes mostly elicit laughs from how sudden his behavior is. However, after the player has seen a scene once, the surprise of his abrupt punchlines is diminished, and as a result, the joke loses a lot of its impact. However, Lamar's humor largely comes from his interactions with Franklin, which often take place over whole cutscenes or even missions, and are littered with punchlines. Whether it's Franklin's reactions to Lamar's shortsighted actions, or Lamar's own quick comebacks, the two produce almost nothing but funny scenes when they're together. The existence of Franklin and Lamar's GTA Online co-op missions shows how enduring their dynamic is.
Looking forward, Grand Theft Auto 6 would be wise to focus its own brand of humor on recreating the same sorts of wisecracks that Lamar and Franklin generate naturally. While shock humor can elicit laughs, the audience can quickly get desensitized when it's used repeatedly, creating diminishing returns. However, a well-written punchline or competently-delivered quip has a long shelf life, and will remain funny long after it was initially told. With clever, character-driven jokes, Grand Theft Auto 6 will feel like a much more timeless game. Shock humor dates quickly, and will date the game in turn if it relies too heavily on it, much like one of the things Saints Row's reboot ignored from Saints Row 3, that being the latter's barrage of sex jokes and topical references.
As GTA 5's best character, Lamar is the perfect prototype for what Grand Theft Auto should focus on in the future in terms of humor. Not only will the jokes land more easily when they're based on witty wordplay, but chances are they will be funnier too. Trevor may be one of GTA 5's main characters, but Grand Theft Auto 6 can learn more about comedy from Lamar.