I’m surprised there’s been no discussion of Dave Chappelle’s “Sticks and Stones” Netflix special. Chappelle plays whack-a-mole with controversial topics, including the LGBTQ community, Louis CK critics and Michael Jackson victims. He takes a couple of whacks at Jussie Smollett as well. My assessment is that it is politically incorrect, but also funny. Chappelle is a skilled comedian and just the way he tells the jokes, with changes in tone and inflection in his voice, makes them funny. At least to me. I have problems with the way he dismisses the victims of Louis CK and Michael Jackson – I do hope Louis CK returns to comedy eventually, by the way – but my problems with the show do not undermine my appreciation of it. Many professional writers not been kind to the show. Vice: You Can Definitely Skip Dave Chappelle's New Netflix Special 'Sticks & Stones' https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/59ngpb/you-can-definitely-skip-dave-chappelles-new-netflix-special-sticks-and-stones Daily Californian: In ‘Sticks and Stones,’ Dave Chappelle takes an all too expected swing at a world rapidly leaving him behind https://www.dailycal.org/2019/09/04/in-sticks-and-stones-dave-chappelle-takes-an-all-too-expected-swing-at-a-world-rapidly-leaving-him-behind/ Salon: What happened to Dave Chappelle: The cruelty of "Sticks & Stones" is a sign of the times https://www.salon.com/2019/09/05/what-happened-to-dave-chappelle-the-cruelty-of-sticks-stones-is-a-sign-of-the-times/ Forbes: Dave Chappelle’s ‘Sticks And Stones’ Tries Too Hard To Offend https://www.forbes.com/sites/danidiplacido/2019/08/28/dave-chappelles-sticks-and-stones-aims-to-offend-and-fails/#7653cec8774c The Guardian: Shock and bore: how Dave Chappelle lost his comic touch https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2019/aug/28/shock-and-bore-how-dave-chappelle-lost-his-comic-touch The subhead on the Guardian article is: In his controversial Michael Jackson-defending, trans-attacking Netflix special, the once-groundbreaking comedian shows his power has been diminished As I said earlier, the reverse is true. Chappelle uses his skills to make the jokes work. He’s a comedian at the top of his game. Joe Rogan noted at one point Rotten Tomatoes turned off fan ratings and only listed five unfavorable reviews, which gave it zero stars. Since they have allowed fan reviews and added other professional reviews, it rates 25 percent among the pros and 99 percent among fans. https://youtu.be/TucGdMXGzWw In an interesting twist, the most supportive stories for Chappelle tend to come from conservative web sites. Chappelle is a skilled comedian. His politically incorrect barbs don’t sting me, so I can enjoy the show, while I see others may not. But like the best comedians, he’s also a skilled observer of our culture and there’s much to be appreciated for that.
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