During these trying times, it is important to remember that we need to make room in our lives for laughter and joy. You got to be a member of the service.
The O.G. of streaming services is one of the best places to laugh. While would-be customers have an ever-growing number of streaming options to choose from, the steady stream of high-profile comedy specials is a selling point.
From hours that made our favorites famous to recent routines from comedy vets, here are 27 of the funniest stand-up specials on the internet.
Some of the best comedians have many specials. To avoid any one performer dominating this list, we've applied a one entry per comedian rule, but shouted out other performances of theirs that we loved.
Tiffany Haddish has an unparalleled performance energy. Haddish makes coming-of-age anecdotes with effervescence and physical comedy that just can't be beat. She pees in an taxi. Adult stuff! If you are looking for a pick-me-up and the greatest ponytail to grace the small screen, you are in the right place.
Tiffany Haddish: Black Mitzvah is available on the streaming service.
It was only a matter of time before Saturday Night Live fave and hot celeb gossip Pete Davidson swaggered his B.D.E. onto the stage for a proper comedy special. Pete Davidson: Alive from New York is a special on the streaming service. The comedy sometimes feels rough and unformed like Pete. The SNL star finds his humor in the end, by mining humor from his life.
Pete Davidson: Alive From New York is available on the internet.
Credit: Netflix
The comedy of Eric Andr is front and center in Legalize Everything. The Eric André Show is a top-tier internet meme and the comic kicks off his special with a sketch. A cop dressed in uniform parades through the streets of New Orleans with a bong and drugs. It is an appropriate introduction to a stage show where altered states and absurdity are the order of the day.
Legalize Everything is now available on the internet.
The second special by Wolf is everything the comedian does best: humblebragging, self deprecation, and commentary about sexism that doesn't feel pedantic, all delivered with a smile. Wolf's greatest comedy weapon has always been that she doesn't seem like someone with the power to ruin the audience with words alone, but she absolutely nails it.
You can watch the show on the internet.
One of those comics who doesn't need an introduction is Sarah Silverman. You have probably heard of her because you have. The outspoken SNL veteran has built her brand of humor around finding the jokes inside of challenging topics and speaking about them candidly and with a heavy dose of irony. A Speck of Dust finds Silverman in a more reflective mood as she balances her ribald flavor of jokes with thoughtful and thought-provoking acts of self-reflection.
Sarah Silverman: A Speck of Dust is available on the internet.
Comedy's favorite father of five has a lot of works on the internet, but we just keep coming back to him. In his fifth one-hour special, Jim Gaffigan meditates on the birth of his fifth child as well as the changing political climate. We get a lot of great Gaffigan moments, including his look at binge-watching.
Jim Gaffigan: Cinco is now available on the internet.
Credit: Atsushi Nishijima / Netflix
We need her guidance now more than ever, because Wanda Sykes is a legend for a reason. In Not Normal, Sykes explores topics like the medical care biases and the current administration. She talks about her own experiences with aging, introducing us all to Esther.
Wanda Sykes: Not Normal is available on the internet.
Act Happy is a hilarious stand-up special because it features a live band on stage with Todd Glass, and the way he plays off that band and uses it to accent his jokes and stories makes for his best special yet. His fast, dynamic, stream-of-conscious comedy is on fire here as he digs into the details of life and the backing band is icing on the cake.
Todd Glass: Act Happy is available on the streaming service.
The broad likability that drives Late Night host Meyers' talk show has kept him prominent in comedy since his days on Saturday Night Live. His takes on married life are not revolutionary, but they are personal and absurd enough to make an impression. He has an option for anyone who wants to get through a comedy hour without hearing a word that rhymes with grump.
Lobby Baby is now available on streaming services.
Credit: Ben King / Netflix
It is a masterpiece by nanette. This one-hour special examines why self-deprecating humor can be damaging to comedians already in the margins. A mic drop for the ages is what Gadsby is planning to do after leaving her first show with a mic drop for the ages.
Hannah Gadsby's show is now streaming on the internet.
Her appearances on 8 Out of 10 Cats, Your Face or Mine?, Taskmaster, and more shaped her into British comedy personified, even though she was born in Canada. Ryan will provide a breath of fresh air to any American streamer. The second hour of the Glitter Room is just as good, and shows more about her life as a single mom.
There is a new movie called "In Trouble" that is streaming on the internet.
For a while, it seemed like Adam Sandler's best days were behind him. 100% Fresh arrived on the streaming service. Filmed in various venues of varying sizes with absolutely no structure or structure at all, the film shows that the man still has some of the best comedy chops in the business, and that he is still capable of surprising all kinds of audiences with his humor.
Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh is available on the internet.
Credit: Allyson Riggs / Netflix
Fans have known about Taylor for a while. She has made all of the other companies of the internet proud. Tomlinson offers a painful and real look at what being in your twenties means today. It can be enjoyable. But also, it is a nightmare? You understand. If you enjoy her hour special, be sure to check out her debut on The Comedy Lineup.
Taylor Tomlinson: Quarter-Life Crisis is available on the internet.
Chris Rock returned to stand-up after a decade-long hiatus. Tamborine provides a snapshot of a moment not soon to be forgotten, full of pitch-perfect takes on his personal and professional evolution as well as the changing times. Rock's perspective is valuable, but his insights are always funnier.
Chris Rock: Tamborine is available on the streaming service.
Watching Amy Schumer perform in Growing was wonderful. Schumer talks about how she has changed since first entering the public eye after the birth of her first child. It is a raw, feminist laugh fest that provides touching insights on the role we play in our growth. She talks about what hyperemesis is like for someone and it's very real.
Amy Schumer: Growing is available on the streaming service.
The comedy sweet spot of Jay's debut special is being both hyperspecific and universal. She hits on traveling with her girlfriend and white leisure activities. They get lost in the woods for no reason. She adds her own insight to topics that have been done before, and manages to joke about trans people. Don't try this at home, other comics take note.
Sam Jay: 3 in the Morning is available on the internet.
Credit: Netflix
The brilliant hybrid of standup comedy and live storytellers was created by Hasan Minhaj and developed for stage with The Moth and a national tour. Minhaj talks about his childhood, his family, his experience as an Indian American and an emerging comedian, all with equal measures of contemplation and lively humor. The sequence present through out his career is one which, by any indication, is just beginning.
Hasan Minhaj: Homecoming King is available on the streaming service.
Is it possible to dislike the family? Ryan Hamilton's Happy Face is a stand-up special for you, your kids, and your parents. This sharp, quotable, and silly special is the perfect hour-long break for just about anyone, with observations about big city life, hot air balloons, and being single. It is sweet! It is very sweet. It is very funny.
Ryan Hamilton: Happy Face is available on the streaming service.
Tig Notaro brings an unbelievably deep level of vulnerability with her special Happy To Be Here and mixes it with some of the most casually delivered jokes. While bringing the audience into her life, thoughts, and feelings in what should feel like a uncomfortable invasion of privacy, Notaro's mastery of comedy and being on stage keeps everything welcoming and warm. The final 15 minutes of the special is a single joke that is a masterpiece of sustained suspense.
Tig Notaro: Happy To Be Here is available on the streaming service.
Hari Kondabolu's comedy is pointed and relevant. Kondabolu manages to get laughs out of some of the most frustrating aspects of life in Warn Your Relatives, with jokes about racism, Indian stereotypes, and observations of all the mind-numbing things going on in the world right now.
Hari Kondabolu: Warn Your Relatives is now available on the internet.
Noah inadvertently uses his specials to flex the charisma that got him a talk show host gig in the first place. He cheerfully dismantles Western society for all its quirks and frivolity, but never without a degree of affection for the bizarre world he now calls home.
There is a documentary called Afraid of the Dark that is streaming on the internet.
Credit: Elizabeth Morris / Netflix
It is impossible to separate the moment when Annihilation arrived from the moment when it arrived. After an emotionally devastating year that included the death of his wife, the traumatic presidential election, and the release of a film, Oswalt hits the stage ready to share and then share some more. The naked honesty he brings to that stage lands like a form of therapy. It isn't wall-to-wall laughter as we watch Oswalt working through trauma in front of a crowd, but it is raw and emotional, and a testament to why he is still one of the most talented comics working today.
You can watch Annihilation on the streaming service.
Marriage is not for everyone. In his special My Girlfriend's Boyfriend, Mike Birbiglia breaks down the ins and outs of the institution as he recounts his decades of dating experience. This hour of intimate stories will make you laugh and cry at the same time. His special The New One is about parenting.
Mike Birbiglia: My Girlfriend's Boyfriend is available on the streaming service.
In her first stand-up comedy special, Ali Wong brought a fire with her onstage that tore down the theater in Seattle and spread across the world, grabbing the attention of millions with her unabashed stories of her pregnancy, her relationship with her husband, and eating ass. One of the most famous stand-up specials of all time is her comedy routine with the seven-month-old fetus growing in her stomach.
Ali Wong: Baby Cobra is available on the streaming service.
Kid Gorgeous is a comedy special by John Mulaney that has become part of pop culture. The instant Mulaney performed the bits, they were instantly popular. Mulaney tells jokes like he was an early 20th century radio commentator who was dropped in the middle of our insane times and found what was funny in just about every aspect of modern life. Have some street smarts. Stream Kid gorgeous.
John Mulaney: Kid Gorgeous at Radio City is available on the internet.
The Comedy Central hour Weirdo is the best of the best, even though Donald Glover only had two specials. A cohesive journey that feels like hanging out with the cool friend you've ever had is formed by the talents of Glover. You are missing out if you are not still quoting this special.
Donald Glover's Weirdo is now streaming on the internet.
Credit: Netflix
Bo Burnham: Inside is an unconventional comedy special that takes a painfully precise look at the traumatic experience of social distancing during COVID-19. In it, he takes musical aim at everything from aging to Jeff Bezos, with his characteristic wit and self-depreciation.
It is not an easy watch. If that is the kind of viewing experience you can manage, then you should cue it up. We understand if you need to sit this one out. The scene of "I am not well" is hard to watch.
Bo Burnham: Inside is available on the streaming service.
The entry comes from a previous list.
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