Seth Meyers: Dad Man Walking

I like Seth Meyers and have enjoyed his show and his time on SNL . But I feel the problem with a lot of standup specials like these they tend to drag on for too long. Yes it has its moments but when a majority of the jokes are about being a parent it just gets really repetitive. I found myself looking to see how much time was left and even though it's an hour and some change I felt like it was even longer than that. I go back to my original point. Some specials have a good flow to them but over the last few years these standup specials are a chore to watch. I know it will never happen but maybe they can be trimmed down some/edited for time to be more enjoyable.

On SNL Seth Myers was one of the very weakest cast members. Even though he was there for what seemed like years, he never carried the show or even found his way into any highlight reel. After leaving SNL he found yet another paycheck on late night television where he was watched by absolutely no one. In all this time he may have never even caused anyone to laugh and yet NBC still employs him and I have to assume, pays him well. This is a mystery on par with Lena Dunham. Now comes an HBO special watched by a virtual handful of deluded leftists whose boredom threshold could dam the Mississippi River. A far more entertaining special would be a documentary exploring how and why this was made.

These days I find myself sort of rooting for people, even in non-sports environments. I sort of felt that way during this special.

It could be that I'm just the target audience for these "I'm a parent but I'm still funny" standups, actually I'm a bit past that expiration date. It could be that during the pandemic comedians spent waaaay too much time with their kids. Actually I'd argue that hosting a late night show hurts comedians much more, and could call all the Jimmy's to the stand to testify.

Maybe it could be as Seth points out, he needs to find a way to pay for future college expenses (and let's be clear, I'm assuming his young un's will need personal gamelan instruction and a nanny fluent in Klingon, neither of which grows on trees). There's the old cliche, insanity is hereditary you get it from your kids. Maybe there's some modern corollary where you need your kids to help prepay for their exorbitant future. Never mind your tax dollars for a future UBI?

Cool that it was produced by Neal Brennan, I enjoyed Neal's most recent stand-up a lot more, and you might too. Pretty sure Neal was denied a breeding card by the government - so he should be safe for a while.

Is there a youtube video essay on how different stand-up comics use their bodies for gags. Seth liked his parade of privilege walk, and I thought his "looking on the floor" bit was well done. Recently we saw Jerry Seinfeld and going in I thought maybe he was just a straight standing up dude, but was wrong. Ali Wong, whole lotta body going on in her special. Tom Papa mostly lets his eyes carry the load in his recent (a bit sharper take on parenting, granted his nest is emptying out, and Myers still feathering).

I don't have kids but am a fan of Seth Myers's late night show. If you like "A Closer Look" you'll probably like this. Yes, there's plenty of family comedy but hilarious offshoots, such as his take on that family heritage show with Henry Louis Gates. I was laughing like crazy but my taste must be different from the other people here. And maybe because I live out in the Midwest, I was pretty amused by stories of his kids growing up in Manhattan. Not the political fare common now, but charming, inventive, and often surreal. I actually find Myers more imaginative than many comics working now. He's somewhat like John Oliver or Colbert. These comedians are my favorites. If you like them, you may like this.

This wasn't good and I was very much so looking forward to it. I don't normally have an issue with parent humor but I didn't find any of the jokes about having kids or a terrible wife funny or entertaining. I think he knew it was sub-par material - he gave a heads up 2 minutes in that it was mostly about having kids and said at least we don't have to go home to children, basically acknowledging he knew we were not going to laugh or enjoy it. I did finish watching it but it never pulled me in and only got 2 maybe 3 light chuckles out of me. When he finally got around to a topic other than kids it was an out-dated joke about living in the pandemic. I was checked out and struggling not to pick up my phone for some entertainment. The joke about his brother was the best of the set. Then it just circled back to stale jokes about being married with children. Skip it and just watch an hour of Corrections.