This list is to help you save some time when scrolling aimlessly through the rows and rows of entertainment Netflix has to offer, we all know it can be a frustrating process. I’m always on the hunt for a good comedy special and I’ve rounded up my favorites just for you!
1. John Mulaney: New in Town + The Comeback Kid + Kid Gorgeous
Photo Courtesy of The Comedy Bureau
The ex-Saturday Night Live writer is making a name for himself with three stand-out stand-up comedy specials all debuting on Netflix. You can watch his transformation from New in Town to Kid Gorgeous, for which he won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special. Enjoy his awkward demeanor and funny one-liners!
2. Bo Burnham: Make Happy + What
Photo Courtesy of New On Netflix
Discovered on Youtube and now signed to Comedy Central Records, you can watch both of Bo’s comedy specials on Netflix. Burnham is a high-energy personality on the stage, including musical and sound elements into his jokes and acts. Tune in for a tense relationship as Burnham skillfully alternates between making you laugh and insulting you.
3. Sebastian Maniscalco: Aren’t You Embarrassed?
Photo Courtesy of New On Netflix
Sebastian Maniscalco is being called “the comedian’s comedian” and hangs out with comedy royalty like Jerry Seinfeld (even appearing on Seinfeld’s Netflix Series, Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee). With a huge focus on his Italian-American family, his jokes center around generational differences between him and his father and cultural differences between him and the rest of the world. Maniscalco is headed out on tour soon for his new special, Stay Hungry, with four sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden.
4. Dave Chappelle: Chappelle + Equanimity & The Bird Revelation
Photo Courtesy of Youtube
Recognized as one of the most important American comedians of the last 20 years, you can watch Chappelle’s new material on Netflix after a brief hiatus from the comedy world. As controversial as ever, the specials center around current events like the transgender community and the #MeTooMovement.
5. Neal Brennan: 3 Mics
Photo Courtesy of Eponymous Review
Neal Brennan, Chappelle’s Show co-creator, defines the art of multitasking in his new Netflix special, 3 Mics, which showcases Brennan, comedian, alternating between three microphones on stage that symbolizes three different styles of comedy. This stand-up special might feel like a 3-for-1 deal as you get served witty one-liners, regular stand-up, and “emotional stuff” as he puts it, all in one package.
6. Iliza Shlesinger: Elder Millennial
Photo Courtesy of iliza.com
Iliza Schlesinger, female comic veteran, in her new special, Elder Millennial, shares with the audience the roadmap of how she has gotten to where she is today. The recently engaged comic references her revelations about life as a woman and what it’s like being on the end of the millennial spectrum. She has four specials on Netflix and is the only woman to have one NBC’s reality competition, Last Comic Standing.
7. Daniel Sloss: Dark + Jigsaw
Photo Courtesy of New On Netflix
Daniel Sloss is a Scottish comedian, actor, and writer who regularly appears on Conan to share his talents. Sloss has a two-part Netflix special which is credited with breaking up 5,000 couples and counting. If you want to know more, you’ll have to watch.
8. Jimmy Carr: Funny Business
Photo Courtesy of Comedy Central
British comedian, Jimmy Carr, is the man with the funny jokes but with the even funnier laugh. Comedian and TV personality, he hosted a show called The Big Fat Quiz of the Year, Carr knows how to work an audience. With mostly one-liners, you’ll need a strong stomach to be able to handle all the crude things that come out of his mouth for 62 minutes.
9. Donald Glover: Weirdo
Photo Courtesy of Yahoo
Donald Glover plays comedian in his Netflix special, Weirdo. He’s more famously known as rapper, Childish Gambino, and as producer and star of the TV show, Atlanta. In Weirdo, Glover’s storytelling abilities are highlighted on stage as he takes you along some of the most pivotal moments in his young life.
10. Ali Wong: Baby Cobra + Hard Knock Wife
Photo Courtesy of Just News
Performing pregnant for both of her specials, Ali Wong is a powerhouse, proving she can do it all. Catering to a niche market, Wong’s maternal comedy delivers an equally funny and filthy look into her life while intertwining a feminist attack on the double standards of parenting. She’s funny, she’s tiny, and she’s growing a baby inside her. She’s a must-watch.
11. Judd Apatow: The Return
Photo Courtesy of The Good Men Project
Returning to the stand-up stage after 25 years, Judd Apatow, the famous writer-producer-director, is back where he started. This time around, he is classic dad. Focusing his comedy around jokes about his much hotter wife (Leslie Mann, actress) and impressions of his two teenage daughters, you’ll think you’re watching your own dad on stage- everything is very relatable.
12. Amy Schumer: The Leather Special
Photo Courtesy of The Comedy Bureau
American stand-up comedian and actress, Amy Schumer is not shy on stage. AT ALL. In this special, she is unapologetically Amy, a quality that has driven her career forward and has become her trademark. The 60-minute set features everything you would expect from Schumer, heavily detailed descriptions of her sex life and bodily functions and other aggressively raunchy stories and jokes. I loved every second of it.
13. Trevor Noah: Afraid of the Dark
Photo Courtesy of The Comic’s Comic
Trevor Noah, South-African comedian-writer-producer and host of The Daily Show, released a new comedy special on Netflix in 2017. Featuring a conversational style and mastered accents, his special covers everything from race in America, immigration politics, international relations, and more. This comedy special is just what you would expect from a passionate political commentator and serves best as an extension of his personality and performance on The Daily Show.
14. Hasan Minhaj: Homecoming King
Photo Courtesy of Peabody Awards
A former senior correspondent for The Daily Show, Hasan Minhaj is an American comedian and actor known best as a featured speaker at the 2017 White House Correspondents’ Dinner (a Trump-bashing comedic set of pure excellence). In his first stand-up special, Hasan shares his life story as an Indian-American Muslim and does so while teetering back and forth between humor and heartbreak. He speaks about things like racism, bullying, and the unreachable demands set upon him by his immigrant parents. Minhaj shares both humor and his story in this extremely dynamic special.
15. Michael Che: Matters
Photo Courtesy of New On Netflix
You might be familiar with Michael Che, co-anchor-writer on Weekend Update on Saturday Night Live. Che is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer and most recently, Emmy host with his partner-in-crime, Colin Jost. In this 2016 stand-up special, Che covers hot topics like inequality, gentrification, and homophobia while also tackling religion, race, and guns. Similar to Trevor Noah or Dave Chappelle, his special doesn’t shy away from current events or politics in an attempt to bring humor to the subjects. This special is sure to keep you woke.
**Special mentions: Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee, The Standups, The Comedy Lineup