A handsomer-than-average nerd, Demetri Martin emits brainy, humorous observations with effortless poise. In one set, he said, &ldquo;I feel like there&rsquo;s a parallel world right in front of us that&rsquo;s revealed with a small shift in perspective.&rdquo; Those words could stand as Martin&rsquo;s mission statement. He scrutinizes the mundane activities and thought processes humans engage in every damn day and forces us to reassess them in ways that make you think, &ldquo;Wow, I&rsquo;ve never looked at it&nbsp;<em>that</em>&nbsp;way&mdash;but he&rsquo;s totally right! Now I need to adopt this worldview in order to live a much more entertaining life.&rdquo; Martin excels at slyly making the ordinary seem surreal. by Dave Segal