Mae Martin: Seiva

Mae arrives on Netflix with a characteristically understated live special, with only a sort of semi-meta bit of bumpering with the great Phil Burgers (also in Feel Good) as adornment. I think the direction was similarly bare bones but the material was solid and Mae is so effortlessly charismatic, with their slightly-overwhelmed-to-even-be-speaking-in-public vibe. The comedy is a niche sort of vibe tonally and strikes a strange place between introspective tangents of tremendous earnestness and stabs of surreal bluntitude. Whether they nail "the big message" or not is neither here nor there, this is them fairly unvarnished and I can dig it.

I was excited to see that Mae Martin had a Netflix special; I enjoyed Feel Good and find Mae charming and likable. I thought the special would be an opportunity for Mae to showcase their talents as a comedian because the content of Feel Good was mostly autobiographical. This is a disappointing special. There are some rambling mildly amusing anecdotes, but there aren't any funny lines. I don't think I laughed once watching the entire thing. I still like Mae's style and personality and find them sincere and amusing, but this isn't comedy. This is like watching a monologue of a person who I would find interesting to talk with at a party. It's also sad that Mae calls out comedians like Louis CK and Dave Chapelle in a desperate attempt to score political points when they can't get a laugh from their audience. If you're going toe-to-toe with some of the GOATS then you need better material.

"SAP" is one of those shows where you actually had to be there. Mae is super likeable and has great chemistry with the audience. They are way better to watch live with friends than alone on netflix. Yes, it's true with every stand-up but with some ppl it's more so(ex: if Michelle Wolf is 9.5/10 on netflix then she's 10/10 live. If Mae is 6/10 on netflix, they are 8/10 live).

Writing-wise it's good: Mae is self-aware, there are jokes and there are some good metaphors.

Overall, this special is like a reddit thread where Mae is the op, the first level-commenter, and the jokey sub-commenter. It leaves you feeling good about the community but you're ready to move on to another post.

I've been a fan of Mae's since first seeing them on Baroness Von Sketch Show occasionally. On a recent road trip my wife and I got a lot of enjoyment when we listened to the Don't Ask Tig episode that featured Mae, and who didn't enjoy what they brought to the second season of The Flight attendant?

This stand-however, didn't work for me. My score of 5/10 is solely for Mae, and I feel like this special was deeply hampered by poor direction.

There were multiple moments that could have been tightened-up with some editorial guidance. I wasn't bothered, as some other reviewers were, by "stories within stories" tangents, because I've seen plenty of it in stand-up and as long as it isn't abused (as it wasn't here), it actually helps my enjoyment. It's part misdirection, part timing.

I'm not sure why Mae or Netflix chose Abbi Jacobson (Broad City) to direct this. I mentioned Tig Notaro earlier, someone who actually has experience directing a stand-up special, and a similar person (if not Tig, exactly) might have brought a more editorial approach.

I also feel like Netflix has a problem with wanting to capitalize on talents who are "hot", without evaluating whether someone has enough material or a tight enough set to bring it home in a special. I don't remember the last Netflix stand-up that I actually enjoyed. Thinking more widely, I wondered when I last enjoyed a stand-up and it was 2022's Rothaniel from Jerrod Carmichael. I appreciate that Mae and Jerrod have very different vibes, and I'm not saying Mae needs to be more subdued or that Abbi should have copied the "intimate" feel that Rothaniel had, but maybe there's some space somewhere in-between where this same act, slightly pared down, doesn't fall so flat.

Oh, and the opening/closing segments didn't really add anything to the special for me. They were just there.

Mae has such a charming stage presence. It takes a while to get used to the fact that she's incoherent. She's scattershot. I enjoy the sparkly bits and shimmering shadows she throws out. However, I found myself shifting into the mindset of being her therapist.

That's a weird sensation for me to have while watching a comedy special, but I have felt it before. Like in Jerrod Carmichael's Rothaniel, in shows by the brilliant Hannah Gadsby, in multiple specials by Mike Birbiglia. I am a psychiatrist-psychotherapist.(big mouthful that, I know) so it's my job and my passion and my vocation to listen to people who have learned how to free associate.

Bottom Line: I Love Mae Martin. Her appearance, her whole personality, her storytelling style.... I'm eatin' it up.