Was he fully intentional comic relief or something?

The audience at the screening I attended made it a point to laugh at his every second of camera time short of the time he was getting ready to shoot up. I didn't find it appropriate to every single time unless they were picking up on something I wasn't.

Is the Early character basically comic relief or is Eddie Murphy simply not a person moviegoers can ever take seriously? If the latter, does he have to do some dark turn a la Robin Williams?