On the Rocks

Brian Regan steps on stage looking visibly older, immediately pointing out that months of pandemic isolation transformed his hair from dyed dark to a natural, shocking gray. It is a fitting kickoff to an hour where he turns a skeptical eye toward his own aging mind and body. While many of his peers spent 2020 raging at headlines or cancel culture, Regan chooses to look inward, discussing a late-in-life OCD diagnosis and how he uses it to escape dreary social obligations.

Filmed in October 2020 at the outdoor Tuacahn Center for the Arts in Utah, the special features a masked, socially distanced crowd. The unusual setup does nothing to dim Regan’s physical delivery. He matches his trademark goofy facial contortions with classic, clean observation. He mocks the existence of marching bands—wondering why we do not have marching taxidermists stuffing otters on the move—and questions the rushed design of the bagpipes. At this point in his career, Regan was also acting on Peter Farrelly’s series Loudermilk, but this hour proves his stand-up remains as reliable as ever without needing to touch on politics.