John Mulaney is very important to a lot of people. A large majority of these people are high school students, some of which go to Thousand Oaks High School. As a stand-up comedian and past writer for SNL, Mulaney has three standup specials featured on Netflix.
With incredible timing and relatable material, Mulaney is one of today’s most popular comics among teenagers and adults alike. He covers topics ranging from childhood bullying to drug abuse and puts a hilarious spin on each one. Referencing his own appearance, he makes fun of stereotypes constantly and comes close to crossing the line when joking about his own religion, Catholicism. In this story, we will talk about these scenes as we review and summarize all three of his standup specials on Netflix.
“New In Town” is Mulaney’s first big performance and includes some of his most iconic jokes. For example, Mulaney talks about his experiences at a doctor’s appointment in which he hoped to be prescribed anxiety medication after his appointment. Hoping to get the medicine, he faked having a reason to visit and told his doctor that he was experiencing frequent urination. He said that he urinated 11 times a day, which led to a full prostate exam and blood work that causes him to faint. Mulaney ends up never getting the medicine and has to go home empty-handed after several hours in the ordeal. The most iconic skit of his show, however, is a story of a homeless man who approached him on the streets. The man pushed Mulaney and then told him that he is gay, he has AIDs, he is homeless, and that he is new in town. Mulaney makes jokes about the man’s thought process, what he said, and the order that he said it all in, and the audience went crazy. All in all, this is a great show and is filled with hilarious stories.
In his second latest standup, “Comeback Kid,” Mulaney discusses his engagement to his current wife, Anna Mulaney. He refers to the old phrase, “Why buy the cow when you’re already getting the milk for free,” and why it is completely irrelevant in modern times. The metaphor has a basic translation of, why marry a woman when you’re already having sex with her. A blatantly sexist and outdated comment, Mulaney instead focuses on all of the reasons you would buy the cow, only one of them relating to the fact that he loves her. His responses to, “Why buy the cow,” are hilariously accurate. The standup show is filled with hilarious skits and is a favorite for many people.
In his most recent standup show, “Kid Gorgeous,” Mulaney talks about one of his childhood memories as an altar boy in the Catholic church. He tells the audience of the time that his brother and another boy were helping at a wedding. When the bride was unveiled at the altar, the other altar server said, in front of the camera, “aw she’s ugly.” Mulaney makes fun of this statement and the way the new couple will feel when watching the video. He also tells the audience about one of the assembly speakers that would come to his school every year, Detective JJ Bittenbinder. In the school assembly for “Street Smarts,” the detective tries to teach the kids how to survive any attacks on the street and how to be safe. Mulaney tells an exaggerated imaginary story of how seven-year him used the “Bittenbinder method” to fight off a bad guy, making the skit one of his most well-known and loved scenes.
John Mulaney is loved by many high schoolers for his relatable jokes and hilarious stories. His three standup shows are known by so many for good reasons.