What Are We Doing?

There is a distinct flavor of frustration to a John Crist set, one that focuses on the minor indignities of waiting in a slow-moving CVS pharmacy line or ordering food at a McDonald’s drive-thru. He plays the suburban skeptic, taking the mild inconveniences of middle-class American life and escalating them until they reveal a deeper collective nonsense. Whether he is arguing over the exact rules of grocery store parking spots reserved for expectant mothers or mocking the logistics of a tourism-friendly baptism in the Nile River, he builds his set on the sheer exhaustion of navigating modern social norms.

The hour serves as Crist’s first independently released special, arriving on YouTube in 2022. It was originally taped in late 2019 at the historic Lyric Theater in Birmingham, Alabama, intended as a Netflix release before allegations of sexual misconduct derailed his career and put the project on hold. Following a multi-year hiatus and a stint in rehab, Crist bypassed the traditional gatekeepers to put the material out himself. The set captures the polished, rapid-fire delivery that built his massive online following.