Hasan Minhaj: Homecoming King

This is more of a one-man show than your typical stand-up comedy special. Instead of 25 different bits, Hasan tells different stories about his life, both hilarious and heartbreaking. It wouldn't work if his storytelling ability wasn't so brilliant, but his timing and ability to connect with the audience at each point are spot on. Even if you didn't grow up with immigrant parents, anyone who has ever felt like an outsider will identify with his stories.

Someone once said that satire occurs when one faces an absurdly unjust scenario that can't be changed but only laughed at. For those who find Homecoming King boring, the white suburbia must've been a perfectly normal place to be themselves. So congrats for not being able to enjoy the show.

For those of us who have different skin color and are possibly immigrants, Hassan Minhaj told our similar experience with veracity and gut. Being the "others" has helped colored immigrants developed a third-person's perspective to look at ourselves, or specifically the ability to see ourselves as the exotic and foreign creatures from white people's perspective. If you don't find Hassan Funny, probably you've looked at yourselves in the first perspective your whole life.

As a Chinese immigrant who went to high school in the suburbs, I'm drawn to Hassan's story even though I know little of Indian culture. After all, who doesn't have that "white princess(or prince)" complex?

Minhaj's recent turn at the Correspondent's Dinner made me check out this special, although I was wondering if he would simply be taking political shots, which at the moment is very much like shooting fish in a barrel. Before seeing him in this special I had quite liked him as a correspondent on The Daily Show, even if he didn't manage to break out of the shadow of some better than him – plus if memory serves me, he came in at the end of Stewart's time, which was not long before I stopped being a regular viewer. All that said, I was surprised by how much and how consistently I enjoyed this special.

Delivered in his hometown, Minhaj has constructed a personal show that moves through a lot of ground, that serves as somewhat of an emotional roller-coaster, puts a lot of issues on the table, but remains consistently accessible and funny for those such as myself who do not have this frame of reference. Minhaj's timing and polish is of a very high standard, and he makes the show feel really professional and slick, but still keeps that sense of it being an honest performance with freshness and emotion. And it is a 'performance' more than a normal stand-up show. He moves around the stage well, and items such as screens and lighting are well timed around his performance. In the context of a filmed special, I also enjoyed the camera-work, as it knew how to move around him, when to go close etc – it was very well filmed and edited.

Main thing though is that it engages and is funny throughout. Very much one worth seeing.

Even though I am white and only immigrated to the US when I was 27, I found Hasan's story extremely compelling and relatable. He is not only extremely funny, but a superb storyteller that keeps his audience engaged and entertained. The show has plenty of moments when you laugh your butt off while also giving important lessons through personal experience about life, love, bigotry, and trying to learn from our mistakes. I really, really hope we get to see more from this amazing comedian and I feel very sorry for the people who gave this 1 star.

This comedy special is Hassan's best work by far. The use of the screen behind him to aid in his jokes was helpful, and his storytelling is interesting.

I can definitely see how this would not be as funny for those that are not South Asian or have limited exposure to this community, but you have to view this from a different lens to appreciate it's comedic humor.

For South Asian-Americans, it is a validation that their stories are part of the American fabric. For those not from this community, take this comedy act as an educational tour in the intricacies of living a dual life as an American born immigrant child.

It doesn't rely on the classic "Apu-dad Indian accent" humor that Russell Peters is well known for. It is simply a story, and one that is told excellently.

By the end of it, maybe you'll see that his goal isn't necessarily to Americanize his experience, but to share it as authentically as possible. It is up to the viewer to take the humor as it is, and to perhaps see comedy from a new lens.