Self-deprecating good humour but rough and crass

Occasionally, a roast master needs to get out of Dodge, says comedian Jeff Ross… not for ‘Torching 2024: A Roast of the Year’ though, that Ross hosts, and enjoys, most of the time. The last comedy special of the year makes sense, for in today’s times, comedy remains the best bet to bring people together, and to heal. Specially now that the late Brian Thompson is working ‘remotely’ from the hottest place around!

As 2024 nears its end, it’s time to reflect on what we made the year to be. With Luigi, The Menendez Brothers and P Diddy grabbing the headlines, it reflects the sordid times one’s living in.

The ‘Roastmaster General’ Jeff Ross opens the show. Netflix hasn’t learnt its lessons from the ire that a full-frontal exposure in ‘A Man In Full’ suffered, and opens with Ross’ bare booty. From there onwards, the king of roast glides in the company of ‘Squid Game’ guards to open different acts — with Sam Morril and Mark Normand joining forces, followed by Hannah Berner and Patricia Williams.

As expected from a genre based on ‘insult humour’, the show is rough and crass. Joe Biden, Donald Trump and Elon Musk make due and early appearances. Soon, the talk moves to those who dominated the news — Taylor Swift and her billion-dollar Eras Tour, Ellen DeGeneres’ promised move to the UK on account of Trump winning the elections, and Luigi Mangione and his alleged role in the killing of Brian Thompson, the CEO of United Healthcare.

Good humour is self-deprecating. On that count, Jeff Ross and Netflix both win. The new criteria of getting a Netflix show of one’s own is to ‘kill’ one’s parents, says the comedy special, taking a dig at the Netflix documentary on the Menendez Brothers.

Comedy sure brings people together, with most of the acts hyping over the same stuff. The looker that Luigi is, his back problems to Italian descent, if his craze took over the social media, it took over this special too. Joe DeMaio manages to throw light on the biggest moments of the past 12 months, while also pulling off a pretty TV special.

Sleepy Biden jokes haven’t run their course yet. 2024 stays the year that Elon Musk ‘bought’ America, but his cyber truck and ‘tyres’ aren’t spared either. ‘Looks’ remain the overarching joke whether it’s Jeff and his weight or Lizzo and her ‘eightpiece’ bikini. On the downside, some of the jokes are tone deaf. Also, Blake Lively feels a bit dated, most likely because the show was recorded before the Justin Baldoni lawsuit. Overall, it’s a decent goodbye to 2024.