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Cover image credit: Thumbnail: YouTube · Raanan Hershberg Comedy

Jokes from the Underground

Raanan Hershberg

YouTube · 2022 · 57 min

Neurotic club stand-up filmed in a New York basement.

Watch it free on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Raanan Hershberg is the kind of comedian who thrives on the nervous energy of a cramped room, and his second self-produced hour shows exactly why his club-set timing works. Filmed at the Comedy Cellar in New York City on April 11, 2022, the special finds Hershberg working through his trademark neuroticism with a loud, aggressive pacing that matches the basement venue’s atmosphere. He avoids the slick, overproduced sheen of typical streamer specials in favor of pure, joke-dense stand-up.

Rather than relying on vague social commentary, Hershberg builds routines around specific absurdities. His best bit tracks the public cancellation and subsequent apology of Jimmy Fallon for an old Saturday Night Live sketch, culminating in a mock statement of forgiveness from Chris Rock that has a fantastic twist. Other highlights include a lengthy, anxiety-riddled breakdown of flying through plane turbulence, a look at his mother’s potential dementia during a painful mobile-banking phone call, and an awkward explanation of pegging.

Originally self-released on YouTube in September 2022, the set earned significant critical praise despite its low-budget presentation. New York Times critic Jason Zinoman named it the funniest YouTube special of the year, pointing to its replay value and Hershberg’s punchy club rhythm. The release capped a breakthrough year for Hershberg, who had made his debut on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon earlier that January.

The set list

5 bits

  1. Contracting COVID-19 late in the pandemic

    Compares getting COVID late to finally catching up on The Sopranos, lamenting how terrifying it is for a hypochondriac to face a disease whose symptoms can include having no symptoms

  2. Hooking up with an unvaccinated woman

    Marvels at how quickly sexual desire caused his anti-vax anger to evaporate, leading him to storm out only after spending the night and having sex again at 11 AM

  3. Critique of CNN and Fox News coverage

    Berates both networks for driving viewers crazy, contrasting Fox's wild diversions with CNN anchors smugly interrogating dying patients over ominous horror-movie music

  4. Early vaccine qualification due to obesity

    Rues discovering his BMI classified him as emergency-level obese rather than standard 190s George Costanza chubby, joking about how the bit fell flat in Mississippi where he was the thinnest man in the room

  5. Dating on Bumble

    Explains that requiring women to message first fails for him because his looks resemble an Israeli John Belushi or Volodymyr Zelenskyy letting himself go

How it plays

Tone
Exasperated, neurotic, and deliriously funny
On stage
Loud, neurotic, self-deprecating comic marked by exasperation and runaway emotions
Pace
High-energy, punchy, and joke-packed
About
COVID-19 pandemic, Hypochondria, Cable news and media coverage, BMI and body image, Dating and Bumble, Sexuality and male anatomy

What the critics said

Praised by The New York Times critic Jason Zinoman as punchy, deliriously funny club comedy driven by runaway emotions, and widely considered his comedic breakthrough

In the room: Packed and lively club room at The Comedy Cellar

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: standupd.com, filmcentrum.nl, nytimes.com, bingebase.com, weownthelaughs.com, leoweekly.com, en.wikipedia.org, raananhershberg.com.

Backstory

Filmed in the aftermath of COVID-19 pandemic club shutdowns as audiences returned to packed rooms

Details

Released
Taped
The Comedy Cellar, New York City
Runtime
57 min
Where
YouTube
Director
Matthew Salacuse
Honors
The New York Times' Best Comedy of 2022 (Best YouTube Special)
Topics
After
Brave (2024)

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