Dave Chappelle has released a new Netflix special, The Dreamer, which is full of jokes about the trans community and disabled people.
“I love punching down!” he tells the audience, in a one-hour show that landed on the streaming service today (31 December).
It’s his seventh special for Netflix and comes two years after his last one, the highly controversial release The Closer.
That programme was criticised for its relentless jokes about the trans community, and Chappelle revisits the topic in his new show.
He tells jokes about trans women in prison, and about trans people “pretending” to be somebody they are not.
I haven’t heard Jesselnik’s routine, but the Rickles comparison is not apt because Rickles was an insult comic, which is a form of doing a character, and Chapelle is a topical comedian in the vein of Pryor and Carlin. Much like Pryor and Carlin, his comedy is also a platform to express his actual views. Unlike Pryor and Carlin, he is using that platform to specifically express bigoted views. I don’t think anyone would expect you to divorce Carlin’s or Pryor’s jokes from their politics. They make absolutely profound statements with their jokes. Listen to Pryor talk about why he won’t say the N-word anymore. It’s funny, and at the same time it will make you want to cry because it’s so insightful.
So I think you absolutely can associate the character of a topical comedian with the content of their comedy. Because the best topical comedians out there make their comedy about their personality and opinions.