The Definitive Guide to Comedy
Preacher Lawson first got nationwide attention a few years ago on America’s Got Talent, and in 2019, premiered his first full stand-up special on BET’s premium streaming platform. As I wrote then: Lawson puts a smile on everything, despite moving some 20 times as a kid, and not having a …
I love that Lil Rel chose to shoot his HBO comedy special in a school gymnasium in the Crenshaw neighborhood of Los Angeles, as the sun set through the open windows. He spends the bulk of his set talking about how his relative fame has impacted his relationships with his …
For her fifth Netflix comedy special, Iliza focused on her wedding, deconstructing the whole process for laughs. As I wrote last year: Having gone through the process of getting married, Iliza knows firsthand that nobody wants wedding advice, and yet as a comedian who has already “written four f—ing Netflix …
You probably recognize Jeff Garlin from the TV thanks to his two long-running roles, on ABC’s The Goldbergs and/or HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm. But this Second City product also has a long history with stand-up, too; in fact, his first hour, Young and Handsome, directed by Bob Odenkirk, originally streamed on …
Australian actress and comedian Celeste Barber became globally famous for her Instagram challenges, attempting to duplicate glossy celebrity photo spreads to hilarious effect. How does it translate to a stand-up special, though? As I wrote when her special debuted last year on Showtime, she uses Instagram as a prop. But …
Seth Meyers is a better stand-up comedian than you might expect from a late-night TV talk-show host whose previous experience came primarily from sketch and improv. In his Netflix debut, Meyers shines especially by straying away from topical political bits, and focusing on his family. As I wrote last year …
Daniel Sloss has made a name for himself throughout his 20s for making audiences uncomfortable, while always letting us know he’s actually a good guy in whatever story he tells. No matter how offensive it may get. For his HBO debut in 2019, Sloss made waves not only by exploring …
“One great thing about being old and rich is you can do what you want to do!” That’s Arsenio Hall telling “TMZ Live” why money is making him an even BETTER comic — because he can do all the risky material he wants without the fear. “Comics are supposed to …
Jenny Slate, like Gary Gulman before her, also put out a 2019 comedy special that included documentary footage following the comedian into retreat back into the home of his/her parents. But Slate makes this hour her own. As I wrote for Decider last year: For one thing, she’s always wanted …
Deon Cole, who earned a writing gig on Conan based on his stand-up debut there, then later became a recurring character on black-ish, put out his first Netflix hour last year. As I wrote then in Decider: As Cole has done in past performances, he breaks out his joke book …
