Celeste Barber’s latest comedy special Fine, thanks sees her riffing on topics ranging from sex toys to mental health and more.
Story
Celeste Barber takes to the stage at Sydney Opera House, greeting an enthused crowd, before swiftly delving into the material.
She kicks things off by discussing her marriage and how her dynamic with him has evolved over the years with her husband and children. She also talks about how the pandemic affected her life compared to the lives of other couples.
She then talks about getting off antidepressants and the effects they had on her, followed by her struggles with ADHD. She then goes on to talk about celebrity-branded sex toys.
Celeste Barber then moves on to riff on increasing inclusivity in women’s luxury clothing before talking about the sex scene she had to shoot for her upcoming Netflix comedy series.
Positives
Celeste brings a whole lot of energy into her set, as she staggers right and left on the stage with animated body language that sometimes works and sometimes not so much.
Fine, thanks is filled to the brim with relatable content for the comedian’s target audience, and the jokes on marriage, teenage kids, and sex life are plenty relatable to the audience and it’s evident in the laughs they garner.
Negatives
There’s little originality or fresh content in terms of the jokes and pandemic jokes in a 2023 special feels annoyingly dated and boring.
Celeste’s animated expressions and impressions can be fun but when contending with such copious amounts of them at a rate so harrowingly huge, they quickly become very draining and cringeworthy.
Celeste deals with many topics but never quite makes much out of them before jumping to the next one in the queue. The last portion of Fine, thanks essentially acts as a promotion for Celeste’s upcoming Netflix series and its incorporation feels off and severely lacks jokes.
Verdict
Celeste Barber’s Fine, thanks is low on funny jokes and high on jokes told in ways that are likely to be considered funny by the more loyal segment of the comic’s target audience. While rife with energy and relatability, the special fails to offer original jokes or entertain nuance when riffing on some important issues.
Celeste Barber: Fine, thanks
Director: Catherine Vanderwolf
Date Created: 2023-04-12 12:30
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