Comedy

Punching Down: Why Netflix Deserves Some of the Heat for Dave Chapelle’s Transphobic Comments

Stand-up comedian Dave Chappelle speaking into a microphone on stage in a black leather jacket
by Dr. Jon Paul
October 14, 2021 at 2:28pm
Focusing the blame only on the comedian is no longer enough.
Michelle Buteau, who has light skin and curly hair parted down the middle, stands on stage in a glittery blazer during her comedy special.

BitchWatch: 9 Comedy Specials to Help You Feel Less Alone This Holiday Season

by Rachel Charlene Lewis
December 1, 2020 at 11:41am
Because we all deserve a laugh right about now. Read more »
Jacqueline Frances, a white woman with short, blond hair, bends at the knees while standing on a stage with a microphone

Sex Workers Are No Longer the Butt of the Joke. They’re Making Them.

by Sascha Cohen
May 6, 2020 at 9:00am
Sex-worker comedians allow audiences to see erotic labor through the lens of the people who actually do it. Read more »
Grace and Frankie, two old white women, kneel on a beach

“Grace and Frankie” Expands Its World, but Loses Insight into the Women at Its Center

by Rachel Charlene Lewis
January 15, 2020 at 3:15pm
Grace and Frankie is at its best when it follows its tried and true formula. Read more »
Tiffany Haddish and Rose Byrne sit next to each other at a table, Haddish wears a t-shirt and leather jacket with a high ponytail, while Byrne wears her hair short and bleach blond and holds a coffee cup. They are speaking to each other animatedly.

“Like a Boss” Takes Down a Girlboss, But Loses Its Sense of Humor

by Rachel Charlene Lewis
January 15, 2020 at 8:55am
Like a Boss has a message that’s both confusing and unfunny. Read more »
Hannah Gadsby in Nanette

Woke Jokes: 7 Comedy Specials That Transformed Stand-Up in the 2010s

by Marina Watanabe
December 18, 2019 at 2:12pm
The 2010s were a transformative time for comedy, both for better, and for worse. Read more »
Jenny Slate, a Jewish woman with curly, brown hair, stands on a stage during a stand-up comedy special

Scared Silly: Jenny Slate’s “Stage Fright” Gives New Meaning to the Phrase “Standing up to Fear”

by Noa Azulai
November 13, 2019 at 12:27pm
Stage Fright is a distillation of how we live with and confront fear, and the lifelong process—and joy—of overcoming it. Read more »
A photo of Tuca, a toucan, and Bertie, a small bird, who are animated characters on Tuca & Bertie.

A Heartbreaking Loss: “Tuca & Bertie” Gave Trauma Survivors a Road Map for Healing

by Mary Retta
August 2, 2019 at 2:02pm
While Tuca & Bertiei s light and comical, featuring meat drawers, edible grandmas, and runaway boobs, it’s ultimately an ode to female friendship, healing, and survival. Read more »
an older white woman and an Indian woman embrace in Late Night

In “Late Night,” Comedy’s Whiteness Is a Backdrop for a Love Story

by Jourdain Searles
July 5, 2019 at 1:14pm
Mindy Kaling holds onto her affinity for caustic, negging romance, focusing this energy on the creative partnership between two very different women. Read more »
an Asian couple walks through San Francisco together in Always Be My Maybe

Love, Factually: “Always Be My Maybe” Updates the Rom-Com Formula with Cultural Specificity and Heart

by Aline Dolinh
June 19, 2019 at 1:47pm
The best rom-coms make their predictability feel not like a weakness, but like a giddily essential pleasure. Read more »
an Asian couple dressed in a gold dress and a tattered, checkered suit attend a gala together

“Always Be My Maybe” Lets Its Asian Characters Simply Exist

by Bitch HQ
June 17, 2019 at 11:48am
Always Be My Maybe features characters that are only incidentally Asian. Read more »

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