It feels like every talk show that’s out there is focused on a certain figure in American politics (whose name I don’t feel the need to mention) and every night, they all tend to convey the same message and share similar jokes on what his administration’s done wrong that particular day. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with doing that! I happen to really enjoy watching Stephen Colbert, Seth Meyers, Trevor Noah, and others take him down a few pegs, but I do eventually get tired of that, which is why I’ve come to love a new show on Netflix: Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj.
Hasan became my favorite comedian after his 2017 Netflix standup special that was really more of a humorous one-man show, Homecoming King. I loved the way he wove his life experiences together, coming from a family of immigrants and growing up in America that way, with just the right amount of humor and poignancy that not many comedians have. His method of humor, using storytelling to convey his point, is what makes him so unique and separates his new show from the rest of the other political talk shows out there.
Unlike most other shows, Minhaj selects one topic to cover per episode, essentially making the show a series of funny Ted Talks that cover some very topical issues that get overlooked by the mainstream media. So far, he’s covered a whole range of topics—from affirmative action to Saudi Arabia, to Amazon—deeply researching each one and presenting them in a way that makes these complex issues much easier to understand and explain to others.
I now watch his show every Sunday, when Netflix releases the episodes. His decision to focus on one topic at a time combined with his humorous storytelling makes him so compelling to watch and listen to. All twenty minutes of his show is just him talking, with the occasional graphic being projected on the screens behind him, but it’s near impossible to take your eyes off of him. Hasan Minhaj is a rising star on the comedy scene, and this show is only projecting him further.