Staff Picks: Best Comedy of 2018

It took us seven years, but, for the first time, the staff and volunteers behind the comedy programming at ArtsQuest have put together their lists of the best comedy of 2018. Some of these lists are only or mainly standup specials – the two most popular being John Mulaney: Kid Gorgeous at Radio City and Hannah Gadsby: Nanette – while some others feature TV shows, podcast episodes, web series, and even an album of Bill Murray reading poetry with cello & piano accompaniment. Netflix is about to drop 47 new specials on New Year’s Day, so get to these recommendations before your ‘My List’ explodes.

If you’re a comedy nerd like us, you’ll love LIVE COMEDY every Thursday, Friday & Saturday at SteelStacks and the 6th Annual SteelStacks Improv Comedy Festival January 25-26!

RYAN HILL, ARTSQUEST PROGRAMMING DIRECTOR

(This is a list of standup specials only)

1. Hari Kondabolu: Warn Your Relatives

The laughs per minute are off the charts. Yes, the comedy is political, but Kondabolu doesn’t want applause for the premise, he wants laughs for his brilliant punchlines, of which there are no shortage.

2. The Standups: Aparna Nancherla

The best use of a PowerPoint you’ll ever see.

3. Hannah Gadsby: Nanette

If you made up your mind on this special without watching it, it’s your loss.

4. Todd Glass: Act Happy

My main complaint with taped specials is that there is no way they can capture the energy and thrill of live performance. Glass, a known perfectionist regarding the atmosphere of his shows,
employs a live jazz band to do more than just rimshots, and the effect allows for one of the liveliest yet intimate specials you’ll ever watch.

5. John Mulaney: Kid Gorgeous at Radio City

More brilliance from one of the best comedy writers working.

6. The Degenerates: Liza Treyger

This 30-minute set – as part of a Netflix collection featuring ‘dirty’ comics – gives us a young comic who, unlike other young comics, isn’t sacrificing a damn thing to get her message across.

7. Ali Wong: Hard Knock Wife

Powerhouse keeps powerhousing.

8. Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh

I didn’t see this coming. Who saw this coming? Save for a couple moments that remind us why his movies are completely tone-deaf, this shows us a performer who I bet really misses doing standup as his main gig.

9. The Standups: Kyle Kinane

Kinane’s got the rhythms of jazz in his delivery, if the jazz was being performed by Tom Waits.

10. James Acaster: Repertoire (Recognize)

The imagination is off the charts with Acaster and all his gambles, however big, pay off.

ADDYSON YOUNG, ARTSQUEST CINEMA & COMEDY COORDINATOR, PERFORMER: SPITFIRE

1. My Favorite Murder

A true crime comedy podcast. Check out Episode 137 (Gloogle – yes, with the extra l there on purpose) about the guys who lived inside a family’s house for weeks, making them think there was a haunting!

2. Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

The musical comedy sitcom that advocated for mental health in a way I’ve never seen before on television. Favorite moments include the “Heavy Boobs” song and the “Miracle of Birth” song.

3. Why Won’t You Date Me?

Nicole Byer is a truly wild human and I love listening to her podcast about the confusions of the dating world. While you don’t need to listen in order, the very first episode with Will Hines is crazy and really gets you right into what this whole podcast is about.

4. Glow
This series made me genuinely consider changing my whole life to be a pro-wrestler. The second season “promo” video they make in the episode where Alison Brie aka Ruth Wilder aka Zoya the Destroya rides a goat to from Russia to America is so terrible it’s wonderful.

5. John Mulaney: Kid Gorgeous at Radio City
“And also with your spirit.”

6. Iliza Shlesinger: Elder Millennial
“Who’s the baby?!”

7. Jack Whitehall

British comedian whose arch nemesis is Robert Pattinson.

8. The Good Place

Such a great cast and a forking bonkers show. Definitely watch this show in order, but the last episode of this season with D’Arcy Carden playing all the characters (“Janet(s)”) was incredibly enjoyable.

9. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

A show about standup in the 1950’s by the creator of Gilmore Girls. The first episode of this season – where Susie experiences a delightful kidnapping – was both hilarious and beautifully shot.

10. Queer Eye

Get out your tissues and learn to french tuck. The first episode of the second season with Mama Tami will make you cry your eyes out. I’m not sure most people would count this as a comedy, but this show brings me joy so I just thought I should let everyone know about it in case there is anyone who has yet to discover this Netflix masterpiece.

JON LUNGER, ARTSQUEST MARKETING DIRECTOR, PERFORMER: SPITFIRE

1.-4. James Acaster: Repertoire:
S1:E1 – Recognise
S1:E2 – Represent
S1:E3 – Reset
S1:E4 – Recap

If you haven’t watched these 4 hour long stand-up specials, you’ve wasted your life this year. Dude has 4 hours of material and they’re all incredible.

5. The Good Place S3:E9 – Janet(s)

The Good Place is easily the best comedy on television right now. D’Arcy Carden is amazing and this episode proves it. We don’t deserve her.

6. Peter Rabbit
Not a joke. This movie was a friggin’ delight. Surprisingly funny and surprisingly violent, it may be the movie I enjoyed the most this year.

7. Hannah Gatsby: Nanette

Duh. This is great and I’m sure you’ve heard that from like everyone by now.

8. Astronomy Club S1:E2 – Relationship Status – Uncensored

I’ve been in love with Astronomy Club’s improv since I saw them at UCB-NY and I’m in love with their web series too. Come see them at the SteelStacks Improv Comedy Festival on January 25th.

9. How Did This Get Made ep189 – Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow: LIVE! (w/ Joe Mande, Tawny Newsome)

Paul Sheer, Jason Mantzoukas and June Diane Raphael’s podcast is a national treasure.

10. Off Book: The Improvised Musical Podcast ep71 – Flula Borg in Throwing The Robot Planet For A Loop

Off Book is easily one of the silliest best times you can insert directly into your ears. Pair that with the absurdly delightful Flula Borg and you have pure comedic joy. You can also see them at the SteelStacks Improv Comedy Festival, but on January 26th!

BEN YOUNGERMAN, ARTSQUEST MARKETING MANAGER, PERFORMER/DIRECTOR: HOCKEY FIGHT 2

1. Gritty

Mascots are just furry, non-speaking versions of comedians. Nobody – or thing – had a more epic 2018 than our favorite orange fuzzball with googly eyes.

2. Tenacious D’s Post-Apacalypto

The D returned with a the greatest concept album and YouTube series that ever existed (so they’d say). Jack Black’s hand-drawn cartoons make this project look childish and genius at the same time.

3. “Diner Lobster” sketch on Saturday Night Live

I’m just sad this sketch never made it out of table read while John Mulaney was a Saturday Night Live writer. It’s the weirdest but best sketch SNL has produced in many years.

4. Conan in Japan

Conan O’Brien’s travelling segments are must-watch content. His latest trip to Japan was no exception.

5. Late Night with Seth Meyers, “A Closer Look”

The news is a daily horror show. Seth Meyers’ daily segment is one of the things that’s kept me laughing through the darkness.

6. John Mulaney: Kid Gorgeous at Radio City

John Mulaney is at the top of his game and only getting better.

7. Hiking with Kevin Nealon

This low-budget YouTube series features former-SNL star Kevin Nealon hiking in L.A. with his famous friends. Funny stuff and great insight into many of their careers.

8. South Park, “Dead Kids”

Since transitioning from fart jokes in the early seasons to social commentary in recent years, South Park has always had spot-on critiques. In season 22, though, Matt Stone and Trey Parker came out with their most biting episodes yet, beginning with the incredibly funny and sobering episode “Dead Kids.”

9. A President Show Documentary

Anthony Atamanuik is the best Trump satirist in the world. It’s a shame Comedy Central didn’t give the show a full second season of episodes, but this special hour was bigly.

10. Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh

Pun kind of intended, this was a breath of fresh air from one of my early comedy heroes. I haven’t been fond of most of his recent work, but Sandler looks reinvigorated (and is hilarious) in this Netflix special.

RICKEY NEGRON, ARTSQUEST CINEMA & COMEDY ASSISTANT

1. Hannah Gadsby: Nanette
2. John Mulaney: Kid Gorgeous at Radio City
3. John Leguizamo’s Latin History for Morons
4. Vir Das: Losing It
5. Gad Elmaleh: American Dream
6. Chris Rock: Tambourine
7. Trevor Noah: Son of Patricia
8. Ali Wong: Hard Knock Life
9. Tig Notaro: Happy to be Here
10. Ricky Gervais: Humanity

GLEN TICKLE, ARTSQUEST COMEDY COMMITTEE, HOST: NERD NITE BETHLEHEM

(presented in no particular order)

Seth Rogen’s Hilarity for Charity

I think comedy makes the world a better place in like, an abstract way, but it’s also nice to see people using it for concrete, measurable good, like this sixth-annual Hilarity for Charity variety show to raise money for Alzheimers. With appearances by Michelle Wolf, Tiffany Haddish, John Mulaney, and a bunch more people, it’s a great watch.

Hannah Gadsby: Nanette

This special sparked a lot of debate about what is and isn’t stand up, and I’m glad it did. And to be clear: It is stand up, but more importantly, let’s all stop trying to force taxonomy onto comedy. I’ll admit that the first few minutes aren’t really anything special. But after seeing the thing as a whole I think that’s by design. Gadsby lulls you in with some softballs, gets into some genuinely brilliant jokes about art history, and then just lays the audience out with the turn.

Drew Michael: Drew Michael

I’m including this special on my list even though I didn’t actually like it very much. Michael performs in a weird black void to no audience, with occasional interruptions by a woman on a Skype call that only kind of pays off at the end. Directed by Jerrod Carmichael, it’s beautifully shot. It makes bold choices that I don’t necessarily agree with or even enjoy, but they’re made intentionally, and I think it’s definitely worth your time.

Demetri Martin: The Overthinker

Here’s another one that takes a few shots at breaking the standard format of a standup special. Demetri Martin performs his usual style of absurd one-liners, music, and drawing, but leaves ample pauses while on stage for added voice-over jokes. It feels a little gimmicky, but what it does manage to accomplish is to make the finished special a very different experience than having seen the live show. Sometimes it can feel like you’re missing out on the experience of seeing live comedy when you watch something that was filmed, but the voice-over technique adds an element for the home viewer that the live audience didn’t have.

W. Kamau Bell: Private School Negro

W. Kamau Bell is doing some of my absolute favorite material about parenting right now. It’s hilarious, but he also blends the day-to-day aspects of being a parent with trying to raise a kid in the nightmare hellscape that is the year 2018. Bell even manages to make it seem like there might be a little bit of hope out there.

Hasan Minhaj: Homecoming King

Minhaj uses one story and a slideshow presentation to try to summarize his life as an immigrant to the United States, and all the racism that entails. It’s a carefully scripted performance that doesn’t feel as loose as most standup, but both the jokes and the serious moments land well.

Bill Murray, Jan Vogler, and Friends: New Worlds

This one isn’t actually a comedy album, and it came out in 2017, but I need to round out this list, so I’m including it. New Worlds is an album where Bill Murray reads poetry over classic cello and piano music. Parts of it are funny, like when Murray recites the lyrics to “I Feel Pretty” from West Side Story, but his reading of Whitman’s “Song of the Open Road” and a few other moments on the album are genuinely very moving. The pairings of music and poetry are put together beautifully. It’s also incredibly relaxing and I frequently put the album on as I’m falling asleep.

Jason Brown: Jokes Through the Bathroom Door

Full disclosure, I produced this album on my label Circus Trapeze Records, Jason is one of my best friends, and the album was recorded at SteelStacks. All that said, it’s a really good album. I met Jason at the first open mic I did, so I’ve seen him grow as a performer a lot in the nine years we’ve been doing comedy together, and this was one of the best sets he’s ever had. It’s available to buy and stream everywhere you get albums.

John Mulaney: Kid Gorgeous at Radio City

I don’t know. John Mulaney is just really good at standup comedy and I like watching him do it.

Adam Sandler 100% Fresh

Listening to Sandler’s early albums as a kid and watching Billy Madison 500 times had a big impact on my life in comedy. I’ve always been a fan of Sandler’s, and I’ll even go to bat for his later, less-loved stuff (turns out your sense of humor changes as you get older and have kids) but 100% Fresh feels every bit like throwing on What the Hell Happened to Me? at a sleepover after the parents went to bed. I could have done without the gay-panic Rob Schneider astronaut song, but the bit about Chris Farley absolutely wrecked me.

LAUREN KELLY, ARTSQUEST COMEDY COMMITTEE

(presented in no particular order)
The Standups: Aparna Nancherla
The Comedy Lineup: Aisling Bea
Tig Notaro: Happy to Be Here
Todd Glass: Act Happy
Iliza Shlesinger: Elder Millennial
Hannah Gadsby: Nanette
Natasha Leggero, Moshe Kasher: the Honeymoon Standup Special
Daniel Sloss: Jigsaw
The Standups: Kyle Kinane
Comedy Bang Bang Podcast – ep 574 November 19, 2018 – Scott Aukerman, Conan O’Brien, Lauren Lapkus, Paul F Tompkins, Mary Holland

LEEANMERIE ROUSE, ARTSQUEST COMEDY COMMITTEE

(presented in no particular order)
John Mulaney: Kid Gorgeous at Radio City
Katt Williams: Great America
Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh
Ali Wong: Hard Knock Wife
Chris Rock: Tambourine
The Comedy Lineup: Tom Dillon
The Comedy Lineup: Sam Jay
The Comedy Lineup: Taylor Tomlinson
The Comedy Lineup: Phil Wang
The Comedy Lineup: Michelle Buteau

ERIK PARKER, ARTSQUEST COMEDY COMMITTEE

(presented in no particular order)

Hannah Gadsby: Nanette
The Comedy Lineup: Sam Jay
Any time Julio Torres is on the Tonight Show
The ‘House Hunters’ sketch on the Liev Schrieber SNL
Ali Wong: Hard Knock Wife
The Comedy Lineup: Phil Wang
Detroiters (RIP) – Trevor
John Mulaney: Kid Gorgeous at Radio City