This comedy special debuted Saturday, August 25 at 10:00pm. HBO tags it as follows – “stand-up comedian and former Weekend Update SNL writer Drew Michael stars in his first, hour-long HBO special.” I personally did not know a whit about the entertainer and one wouldn’t likely for a person of his ilk. I mean, come on, how many people do you know by name working in the writing rooms of you r favorite TV shows? It isn’t until they break out of that writing stint and become popular in front of a camera that you notice them.
You’ll notice Drew Michael now because he offers something different. Right away, sorry to say, a couple of aspects irk me about this performance and it has nothing to do with content but with the format. I admit a part of this grumble is over semantics, but the debate can be taken on whether this is “stand-up comedy” or something else. To me, I see it as “performance art.” And it is not because of the lack of audience so much as it is a monologue rant with filmed interludes with actress Suki Waterhouse.
All this is actually ironic because Drew Michael, in watching his set, seems the type of guy that wants you to call something out for what it is, not pussyfoot around it. HBO & Michael market this as “stand-up” to be edgy & bold; I say call it what it is – “performance art.” Still edgy & bold.
The other thing that tripped me up is his reasoning for not doing it in front of an audience. In the clip shown above he states that it is “too personal and it cut to close to the bone.” Well, okay for you, but other comedians took just as personal a bunch of baggage to the live stand-up stage before. What comes to mind is CHRIS GETHARD: CAREER SUICIDE about his mental health and EVERY BRILLIANT THING about suicide. It appears that it can be done but you can’t shoot down Michaels for doing something different, but cite a better reason is all.
This all leads up to my biggest grumble. The above irks distracted me from immersing in Drew Michael’s routine. I spent the first few minutes wondering if I liked his format or missed the audience. For the record, the audience was not necessary but it did kill that level of interaction that plays between a comedian & his/her guests. But time evaluating the format took valuable time away from the content. Sadly, the video interludes didn’t add anything for me either. They proved inane banter that distracts even more. The actress’s words don’t hold any impact until the end, so stick it out until then.
However, once I drifted back to the content it was unique and well presented. Drew Michael admits that his brain ponders some offbeat stuff and it is quite evident here. You should have cut the video moments and filmed the gig in front of an audience so that the quirky thoughts had bounced across the room offering up gasps & giggles. It still would have been edgy & bold.
Find DREW MICHAEL across all of HBO’s platforms and then come back here to weigh in with your opinion. Is it stand-up?
2 comments
I didn’t approach it as a stand up show because I caught it in the middle. It seemed like a one man show much like John Leguizamo’s Ghetto Klown. The part about herpes was ridiculous and mind blowing at the same time. This is a must see, not as a stand up but as a thought provoking mind f*ck.
By all means, watch it in its entirety and come back with a comment.