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Bad Decisions

Felipe Esparza

Netflix · 2020

A dual-language experiment built on dark family trauma.

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Felipe Esparza performs the exact same set twice, recording one show in English and the other in Spanish to pull off a rare bilingual release. He uses his trademark sluggish, deadpan delivery to turn deeply uncomfortable family history into punchlines. When talking about his parents’ domestic violence, he mimics his mother’s squeaking voice during an argument, compares it to Mickey Mouse, and drops a punchline about how that trauma explains his adult cocaine habit.

Filmed at the Observatory Orange County in Santa Ana, California, the 2020 release caught Esparza during a busy career stretch that included recurring roles on “Superstore” and “Gentefied”. Despite the novelty of the dual-language format, the material itself leans heavily on standard club observations about weight and veganism before turning to grim family dynamics. Critics were divided, with some praising his ability to get laughs out of bleak situations and others finding the jokes about childhood bullying, domestic abuse, and drug use overly cynical and mean-spirited.

He is at his strongest when pushing the boundaries of parenting advice. Explaining how he handles his son getting mugged at school for lunch money, he decides to simply send the kid to school empty-handed. They still kick his ass, but not at his expense.

The set list

5 bits

  1. Guilty conscience of dog owners

    Opens the set discussing caring for dogs and how owning them reflects human neuroticism.

  2. Witnessing domestic violence and family trip to Disneyland

    Balances vivid act-outs and physical imitations of his father hitting his mother and brother with dark punchlines, concluding with a surreal neck-brace trip to Disneyland and transitioning into his history of drug abuse.

  3. Illegal immigration and border arguments

    Counters narratives about immigrants stealing jobs with a punchline about stopping migrants while counting them coming across the border.

  4. Being fat while vegan and donating clothes to Salvation Army

    Self-deprecating one-liners about people disbelieving his veganism and dropping dirty clothes off at Salvation Army just to get them laundered.

  5. The closer (spoiler). Show it

    Almost hooking up with a hermaphrodite after a comedy show closer

    Recounts an after-show sexual encounter; serves as the finale for the English-language special.

How it plays

Tone
Raw, self-deprecating, edgy, personal, and tragicomic.
On stage
Charming, mischievous stoner persona reminiscent of Cheech and Chong; unkempt curly hair, suit with sneakers, and a frilly baby blue tuxedo shirt (orange in the Spanish version).
Pace
Conversational cadence supported by expressive physical body movements; adjusts performance style between languages, adopting higher stage energy in English and sharper punchlines in Spanish.
About
childhood trauma and domestic abuse, drug addiction and recovery, stoner culture and marijuana, parenthood and marriage, immigration, masculinity and self-deprecation

What the critics said

Decider recommended streaming the special, highlighting Esparza's charming stoner persona and raw personal material. The Guardian offered a negative review, critiquing the English-language special as cynical and sexist.

In the room: Energetic and receptive crowd across two distinct room formats: an intimate VIP cabaret-style table layout on night one and larger theater-style seating on night two.

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: deadline.com, specialevents.livenation.com, moviefone.com, theguardian.com, decider.com, vulture.com, screenrant.com, imdb.com, en.wikipedia.org, ramascreen.com.

Backstory

Filmed in two languages drawing heavily on Esparza's childhood emigration from Mexico, upbringing in Boyle Heights, past struggles with cocaine and methamphetamine addiction, and childhood domestic trauma.

Details

Released
Taped
Observatory Orange County, Santa Ana
Where
Netflix
Director
Claude Shires
Topics
Before
Translate This (2017)
After
Raging Fool (2025)

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