What A Day!

Tom Papa has built a career out of being the mild-mannered, sourdough-baking optimist of mainstream comedy, but his best moments happen when the cozy facade slips. That slip comes when he details the sensory nightmare of sleeping next to his wife, who climbs into bed wearing a glowing blue mouthguard, headgear, and eucalyptus ointment. His description of her walking to the bathroom with popping ankles (sounding like Darth Vader trapped in bubble wrap) is the kind of specific, unvarnished domestic observation that keeps his cozy observational style from rotting your teeth.

Filmed at the Wilbur Theatre in Boston, the 2022 Netflix release found Papa comfortable in his role as a middle-aged suburban dad who has surrendered to the modern world while occasionally poking at its absurdities. His set tackles the sheer panic of leaving the house without a smartphone, a scenario he compares to Benjamin Franklin wandering around thinking about kites and syphilis. He also discusses the bizarre anatomy of his rescued pug and the silent hostility of his teenage daughters, who judge him for how he chews granola.

It is a comfortable, well-crafted hour that plays directly to Papa’s strengths. While some critics felt his routine about tech and passwords trod overly familiar ground, his physical comedy and domestic complaints have a charm that works for anyone who has ever been exhausted by their own family.