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Cover image credit: Thumbnail: YouTube · Raanan Hershberg Comedy

Brave

Raanan Hershberg

YouTube · 2024 · 56 min

Loud, neurotic stand-up about early-relationship surgery and codependency.

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Raanan Hershberg brings a loud, neurotic intensity to the stage, transforming a personal nightmare into a comedy centerpiece. The heart of the hour is a detailed, anxious chronicle of his girlfriend undergoing open-heart surgery just three months into their relationship. Hershberg thrives on this kind of high-stakes, uncomfortable vulnerability, mining the terror of early-relationship commitment and the claustrophobia of codependency for jokes. Filmed at the Comedy Cellar in New York City, the 2024 self-produced YouTube release showcases Hershberg’s rapid-fire delivery. Beyond his romantic life, he tackles his overbearing Jewish mother, the American political divide, and his own physical insecurities, including his lisp and weight. This third hour follows his 2022 breakout, Jokes from the Underground, and continues his streak of receiving critical praise from the New York Times, even if his screaming-into-the-mic performance style divides some casual viewers.

The set list

6 bits

  1. The concept of being a 'brave comedian'

    Riffs on how online trolls applied the label to him due to his jokes targeting both political extremes, arguing that dogma blinds people to reality.

  2. Liberals encountering a mugging

    Examines how liberal worldview assumptions break down when confronted with a real-life street mugging, using dark humor to dissect political ideology.

  3. Gun control debate compared to shark attacks

    Frames the extreme viewpoints of the American political left and right on gun control as ridiculous strategies for managing shark attacks.

  4. Viewing romantic interest as a red flag

    Draws a modern parallel to the Groucho Marx club membership paradox by viewing anyone who is attracted to him as displaying an immediate red flag.

  5. Girlfriend's open-heart surgery

    Explores the anxiety and chaos of having a partner undergo major surgery three months into a new relationship, conflating love with feeling trapped.

  6. Hitler in horoscopes

    Weaves Adolf Hitler into a routine examining astrology and horoscope logic.

How it plays

Tone
Acerbic, biting, candid, and satirical.
On stage
Loud, high-energy, raw, self-deprecating, and brutally honest; characterized by shouting and unapologetic transparency.
Pace
Rapid-fire, relentless, breakneck speed with rapid joke transitions, barely stopping to breathe.
About
Dogma and extreme political thinking, Political divide and tribalism in America, Hypocrisy of online outrage, Physical insecurities, weight struggles, and speech impediment, Relationships and fear of commitment, Jewish background and overbearing mother

What the critics said

Praised as a bold, fast-paced, and sharply written hour that skillfully tackles political tribalism and personal neuroses, though some reviewers found the shouting, high volume, and heavy reliance on body-image jokes occasionally exhausting.

In the room: Intense and responsive, with the comic visibly sweating through a fast-paced set.

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: deadline.com, primevideo.com, standupd.com, letterboxd.com, threads.com, medium.com, en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com.

Backstory

Inspired by online trolls labeling him a 'brave comedian' for targeting both sides of the political spectrum, alongside personal turbulence including his girlfriend undergoing open-heart surgery three months into dating.

Details

Released
Taped
Comedy Cellar, New York
Runtime
56 min
Where
YouTube
Director
Jason Katz, James Webb
Topics
Before
Jokes from the Underground (2022)
After
It Could Have Been Better (2024)

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