James Acaster: Repertoire

This is more of a performance piece than what is traditionally a "stand-up" comedy routine...well, four routines. Highly intelligent, written with precision and masterfully acted, James Acaster reinvents the genre and gives a radically new take on the stand-up. While it's wide-ranging, it all seems to be of a piece and each episode could stand alone, but there are references to what's come before that invite the audience to join in the joke. The persona Acaster gives is someone who may be a little dim, but his ponderings--sometimes with one sentence or sometimes a lengthy story--sharply illustrate today's modern culture. He/she will recognize situations if not necessarily brand names (Pret a Manger) or the finer details of Brexit. Eschewing what's typically become a ribald forum for shocking the audience, this (these pieces) are at a much higher plain using language to unmask the viewer rather than berate us with the obvious. Thoroughly entertaining and fresh.

James Acaster is my favourite comedian of all time. I've seen every TV appearance he's made, all his live clips online, listened to all of his classic scrapes and read his book. I LOVE this man, he has the ability to make me no matter what. So when I heard that 4 hours worth of his material was going to be put on Netflix, I was ecstatic to say the least.

Every part of this four-part comedic masterpiece is hilarious. The show is made up of new and old material. The old stuff still lands as well as it did the first time I heard it and the new stuff was amazing to see.

Each episode has James (colour coordinated with the stage background) seemingly rambling about unconnected topics for 55 minutes at a time, but by the end you realise that you've seen an perfectly plotted show that managed to somehow get a very strange plot across.

Gags like James playing us his comedy podcast, talking about jury duty, massages, pictures-you-put-your-head-in, folding boxes, Google logos, Dr Pepper, conga lines, Mexican restaurant cutlery and how to break the ice sound like they don't connect but by the end of all four you're aware you've seen something special.

The final episode especially manages to tie in in-jokes from all three other episodes as well as some more new material that manages to cap off the whole show and make you feel like you've seen one 4-hour set rather than four unrelated shows.

It's unlikely, but I hope that more of Acaster's work makes it to Netflix as more people need to be exposed to his genius. If you love Acaster like I do, this will be the highlight of your year so far. If you've never heard of him then do yourself a favour and check this out, you'll love it.

The scope of these specials is defiantly something to be amazed by. The first three shows are loosely connected, with the final show, Recap, linking them all. It's an interesting idea and allows for intricate call backs and helps create some jokes that wouldn't have been possible either.

Each special stands up on it's own (however Recap will be less impactful if you've not seen the previous) and within it, there are plenty of absurd observations and enactments. The only stipulation is that if you're a fan of James Acaster you may have heard quite a few of these segments on various panel shows. There's still a ton of stuff you won't have seen and lots of the stuff you would have heard is more confidently delivered here, but that is something to consider.

As an aside, a common topic with US vs UK comedy is that US comedy is just jokes where as UK comedy tries to also have a narrative, which leads to US comedy being much more joke and laugh oriented, but perhaps not as personal. UK comedy has more of an arc so feels more like a 'complete' piece of standup (rather than a series of funny 'bits') and this seems like the perfect example of this. It's all connected but only uses that to elevate the comedy. Well worth a watch.

***Hints of jokes, but no punchlines spoiled***

I found James' special on Netflix, randomly browsing. I had no expectations and was equally prepared to be surprised or disappointed.

Instead - I found myself thoroughly entertained by a master storyteller who manages to fuse the mundane and absurd so well that you almost it.

Elements such as jury duty, retail strategies for honey, and kitchen mirrors were used to deliver delightful chuckles at the sheer idiocy of we humans.

My favorite bit was the existential ponderings triggered by a visit to the dentist. Bravo James.

This is a fellow to keep an eye on.

My favourite comedian of the moment! Finding the funny in the most mundane of things and bringing a unique angle to the current comedy circuit.

Acaster is timeless, original, out there and the king of bringing older jokes back in without anticipation.

Refreshing and clever!