Jason Beaver / Submitted photoComedian Jim Jefferies tackles topics ranging from airplane etiquette to pornography in his act. He performs at Eugene’s McDonald Theatre Nov. 20.

Australian comedian Jim Jefferies says there’s not really any topic that’s off limits for him — as long as he can make it funny. Now based in Los Angeles, Jefferies’ “Freedumb” tour will make a Nov. 20 stop in Eugene.

His comedy specials on HBO and Netflix, plus numerous online video clips from his stand-up shows, cover everything from sex (he’s for it) and religion (he’s against it), to airplane etiquette (the person in the middle seat gets both armrests). His TV comedy “Legit,” which aired for two seasons from 2013-14, featured potentially controversial plotlines about prostitution, drugs and sex involving various characters with mental and physical disabilities. Yet it was celebrated by much of the disabled community for treating these characters realistically.

The thing that sets Jefferies apart from many of his stand-up contemporaries is that beneath the profanity littering his performances, he’s a skilled storyteller. Each of his seemingly casual bits has a defined narrative arc, and he generally makes insightful points about society and politics through his black, observational humor.

A case in point is his 2013 routine on gun control that became an Internet sensation and is still being referenced frequently by serious news organizations and advocates on both sides of the gun control debate. In it, Jefferies cites constitutional history and correlates gun control arguments with slavery and prohibition, all while getting huge laughs.

A word of warning though: Heckle Jefferies at your own peril. In one audio clip from a performance several years ago in Edinburgh, Scotland, Jefferies pauses his routine after being repeatedly interrupted by a heckler, has the house lights turned up so he and everyone else can see the offender, and then proceeds to mercilessly ridicule the man for almost 10 minutes. It’s really no contest. As Jefferies put it, “This is like a Jedi fighting a quadriplegic.”

Jim Jefferies performs at 8 p.m. Nov. 20 at the McDonald Theatre in Eugene. Due to explicit subject matter and language, audience members must be 18 and over, and photo ID is required at the door. Reserved seats cost $39.50 each, plus fees.

Contact: www.mcdonaldtheatre.com or 541-345-4442 for venue and event details; www.ticketswest.com or 800-992-8499 for tickets.

— Reporter: 541-383-0350, khimstreet@bendbulletin.com