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Promotional art for Best Time of Our Lives
Cover image credit: via TMDB

Best Time of Our Lives

Adam Devine

Netflix · 2019 · 58 min

Frantic physical comedy and goofy Hollywood stories from Omaha.

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Adam Devine brings the same loud, manic, physical energy that defined his run on Workaholics to his first Netflix stand-up special. He doesn’t just walk out from the wings; he enters through the main lobby of the Orpheum Theater in Omaha, high-fiving fans along the way. Once on stage, Devine relies heavily on elastic facial expressions, silly vocal sound effects, and physical act-outs to punch up his material about growing up, getting older, and living in Hollywood. It’s a performance-first hour that prioritizes goofy charm over structured joke-writing.

Filmed in 2019, the 58-minute set captures Devine at a point when he was trying to re-establish his stand-up credentials after years spent writing and starring in Workaholics. The highlight of the special is his self-deprecating story about his Pitch Perfect audition. As a self-admitted stoner, he only read the subject line of the email and showed up to the casting office in full baseball pants, doing stretches in the parking lot under the impression he was reading for a sports film. Other bits focus on his fear of teenagers, his hatred of the names Chad and Derek, and a running gag where he mutters “stupid” to himself after his own punchlines.

Critics and audiences were split on the special. Some reviewers noted that while Devine’s frantic pace and rubber-faced delivery carry the show, the actual material can feel disjointed and thin, occasionally relying on loud noises and mugging to fill the space where a punchline should be. Others found the goofy, high-octane stage presence a welcome transition for an actor best known for television work.

The set list

6 bits

  1. Underprepared audition for Pitch Perfect

    Devine mockingly recounts how completely unprepared he was when auditioning for the musical film.

  2. Mistaken identity with Adam Levine

    Jokes about Netflix viewers clicking on the special thinking he is Adam Levine from Maroon 5 and wondering why he let himself go.

  3. Origin of 'tight butthole'

    Explains to Pitch Perfect fans how he conceived the phrase on Workaholics as slang for 'cool', admitting he was basically a 9-year-old writing his own show.

  4. Sign-language interpreter interaction

    Admits to purposely inserting the word 'blowjob' dozens of times into his routine after noticing a sign-language interpreter at a prior performance.

  5. Almost dying on his 21st birthday

    Recounts traumatic and absurd milestones from growing up, including nearly dying on his 21st birthday.

  6. Imaginary friends Chad and Derek callbacks

    Uses recurring jokes and callbacks featuring two fictitious characters named Chad and Derek to loosely string together disparate topics.

How it plays

Tone
Goofy, raunchy, juvenile, self-deprecating, and nostalgic.
On stage
Frenetic, cartoonish, juvenile 'overgrown kid' with high exuberance, self-deprecating bro humor, and exaggerated physical expressiveness.
Pace
High-energy and bouncing rapidly between topics, marked by yelling, exaggerated facial expressions, and sudden stops punctuated with muttering 'stupid.'
About
Teen awkwardness and puberty, The perils of growing up, Celebrity encounters and levels of fame, Body image and getting older, Relationships

What the critics said

Received mixed reviews; critics noted that the special lacked narrative cohesion, transition polish, and substantive depth, but found Devine's infectious juvenile energy, physical comedy, and enthusiastic self-deprecation entertaining for fans of his style.

In the room: Energetic, packed hometown theater crowd of devoted fans.

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: en.wikipedia.org, pro.imdb.com, themoviedb.org, decider.com, wherever-i-look.com, vulture.com, standupfrance.fr, today.com.

Backstory

A homecoming performance filmed in front of fans in his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska, reflecting on his career, turning 35, and his four-year relationship.

Details

Released
Taped
The Orpheum Theater, Omaha
Runtime
58 min
Where
Netflix
Director
Jay Karas
Topics

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