If I May

Janeane Garofalo is not interested in delivering a polished sequence of setups and punchlines. Instead, her set begins with several minutes of ‘housekeeping,’ where she stands in front of the audience at The Independent in San Francisco and critiques her own physical appearance, explaining why her shirt is inside out and how much she had to cut off the bottom of her flared jeans so they wouldn’t drag on the floor. It is a self-deprecating, anti-performance gesture that establishes exactly what the hour will be: a series of conversational, loose tangents that feel more like a friendly filibuster than traditional stand-up.

Garofalo was in a comfortable groove in 2016, appearing in series like Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp and Girlfriend’s Guide to Divorce, which allowed her to treat her stand-up less as a career engine and more as a private playground. Originally released on the short-lived comedy streaming platform Seeso, the special relies heavily on her distinct brand of Gen-X cynicism. She apologizes to the younger generation for the aggressive state of modern television, pointing out how many shows contain the word ‘wars’ in their titles, before turning her focus to a deep annoyance with the character Primrose Everdeen from The Hunger Games.

Critics at the time noted that the show’s structure is incredibly scattered, with Garofalo occasionally acknowledging her own tendency to drift off into rabbit holes. While the meandering pace can occasionally drag when she targets well-worn subjects like the Kardashians or fictitious Guy Fieri quotes, her stubborn refusal to adopt a slick rhythm remains her greatest asset.