Torching 2024: A Roast of the Year

Let me start by saying that I don't ever write reviews. Ever. This was just so bad that I had no choice.

I typically enjoy roasts, and there has never been a year more deserving of a good roast than 2024. Unfortunately, none of the acts were funny. None of them. Ms. Pat never disappoints, and somehow even she fell flat on her face. Even the live audience was unimpressed.

The ridiculous impersonators (P. Diddy, Biden, the Menendez brothers...) were unoriginal, unfunny props that were little more than a distraction from how badly the comics were bombing. Save yourself the headache and find something better to do with an hour of your time.

This Jeffrey Ross joke sums up Torching 2024: "Quincy Jones died this year. His middle name was Delight. That is also what he saw before he died." That's a joke an 8 year old would be proud of telling.

A room full of comedy writers decided something that stale was suitable for a Netflix special. Another comment said this show had 25 writers. It must've been 25 monkeys at 25 typewriters, except they didn't write Shakespeare; they wrote... this.

A few comedians fell back on their own stage material, so there were a few half-hearted laughs there, but most of the 2024 related "comedy" was dire. Shallow, cheap, and obvious dad jokes that people make while watching the news and quickly forget. The comedians should've worked this material over into their own voices, because it needed a second or third pass. The impressions of Diddy, Biden, and UHC CEO were a thing that happened, but again, it's all so corny that even Jimmy Fallon wouldn't pretend to laugh at it.

The one time I genuinely laughed is when a comedian called this the "Temu Tom Brady Roast." That level of self-awareness is commendable. The Tom Brady Roast brought roasts back to life in 2024, and Torching 2024 killed them. I wonder if this show saw Delight before it died?

Nope, still not funny.

Roast of the year?? More boring than a documentary on the life of a rock. I can't believe people get paid to put this kind of material out. Boring, boring, boring ... the comedians were laughing at their own jokes to cue the crowd to laugh. None of these people would have made it past the first 5 seconds on the gong show. I was only able to make it through half of this waste of airtime and that was only because I was too busy doing something else that I couldn't get to my remote to switch it off. Try again next year Netflix and this time you might try to get some actual real talent and perhaps quit trying to pander to a certain crowd and create something that is at least mildly funny.

The Netflix roast special "Torching 2024" unfortunately highlights a significant flaw in the genre: the repetitive inclusion of the same unfunny personalities. This trend detracts from the overall enjoyment and creativity of the show. While Ms. Pat was a refreshing addition, managing to bring some much-needed energy and humor, she was one of the very few who emerged relatively unscathed from this cringe-inducing experience. The jokes often felt forced and lacked the cleverness that typically defines a good roast, leaving viewers disappointed. The reliance on familiar faces who consistently fail to deliver engaging content is a recurring issue in these specials. Ultimately, "Torching 2024" misses the mark, failing to provide the sharp, witty humor that fans expect from a roast, making it a lackluster watch for those hoping for genuine laughs.

This roast was trash. The typical Comedy Central roasts are usually hilarious, so naturally I see the roast master Jeff Ross, and assume it would be more of the same. This was a disappointment. I don't think I laughed once. No one was fluid/natural and it felt like it was a rushed, forced, thrown together money grab. Absolute garbage. And I'm all for up and comers in the comedic game, but these people were not funny. I get the impression Netflix curated their jokes because if this is their best, YIKES. I'm hoping the cast is better than this on their own, because this was not it. Zero out of the ten, do not waste your time.