I am sort of conflicted over Netflix’s latest standup comedy special, Ok, Mister, by observational comedian Deon Cole. There’s a moment in his set when Cole describes what observational comedy is. And yes, it’s quite simple. You observe things, and you find the humor in it. It totally seems like my kind of thing. Yet, I don’t think I’ve enjoyed Cole’s set. Sure, I dug the comedian’s laid-back vibe, but as a whole, Ok, Mister didn’t work for me. I thought (most of) the jokes were unfunny and, clocking in at one hour and five minutes; this was painfully long.
Now the thing is, all forms of art are subjective, and comedy is no exception. In fact, it is quite a profound example. There are many kinds of comedy, and not every kind of comedy is everyone’s cup of tea, which is only normal. That said, something strange happened to me here. I am not targeting anyone or spewing hate, but middle-aged American male comedians—black or white—are sort of a pet peeve for me. Not that I never ever enjoy a single joke said by them, but in general, they don’t work for me on a larger spectrum. And the reason behind that is that these comedians belong to a whole other generation, and all of them are boomers. Again, I’m not using the term as something derogatory but stating it as a fact. Naturally, most of their jokes seem sort of outdated. There’s always the racism bit, which the black comedians do more freely than the white ones; then there’s the borderline patriarchal humor, where the white comedians are usually champions. I’m still talking about Dean Cole’s set, by the way, in case you’re wondering. Cole is a fifty-something black comedian who you’d expect to fall in this category. But not for ones in his set; he attempts the generic racist jokes. Or the kind of jokes where women are demeaned. Even though initially it feels like he’s another of “those” comedians who are basically preaching the wrong in the name of comedy, Cole proves to be the opposite of that. Not that his jokes work out, but I’ve got to give him the credit here for not being problematic at least.
The problem with Cole’s jokes is most of them have the meat but lack severely when it comes to seasoning. Naturally, what you’re left with is pretty tasteless and not at all enjoyable. Let me offer some examples here. There’s this joke about a woman throwing a flying kiss in the air and Cole catching it. The kiss was actually meant for another man, who was, in all likelihood, the romantic partner of the said woman. It’s quite obvious that Cole’s action is offending the other man. This is a beautiful set-up done by the comedian. But then he doesn’t come up with a proper punchline or anything substantial. Here’s another one, and this one is a boomer issue. Cole lets the audience know that some people call him OG Deon, which he doesn’t like. The term OG is obviously the hip version of the word original. Anyway, Cole’s joke doesn’t go anywhere beyond he hates the term. I fail to spot the funny here, other than boomers not getting Gen Z lingo, if that’s what the comedian is aiming for.
Alright, I’m done with the bads. I have already said most of the jokes don’t land. But some of them actually do. One such joke is about a group of black women getting mad about a black man romancing a white woman. In stark contrast, a group of black men doesn’t really care when a black woman gets together with a white man. It’s undeniable that there’s a whiff of sexism in the joke, but Cole delivers here. Another one of the good jokes involves a threesome, with one guy and two girls, with the guy having great chemistry with one of the girls and terrible with the other. It’s an erotic joke, of course, one of the rare ones that lands. Speaking of erotica, I thought he leaned a bit too heavily on it. Especially in the second half, Cole’s entire set solely focuses on jokes centered upon male genitalia, which gets tiresome. Yeah, I know I said that I was done with the bad, but it’s hard not to. However, to compensate, the joke about giving (and getting) head does work; I’m talking about the one where you’re giving it and the person indirectly asks you to stop, if you know what I mean.
There are two standout things I do need to talk about before closing up shop. One of those is the title of the set, Ok, Mister. This stems from a joke, which also doubles as a kind of life lesson for young women. This one is about creepy older men hitting on younger women and how to teach these men a lesson. Cole’s solution is simple yet very effective. All the women need to do is call these men “mister” whenever they get flirty. This is bound to throw them off. The word “mister” is an epitome of aging, as only older, respectable people are called that. Cole’s set doesn’t have a specific subject, but it does deal with getting older. The comedian speaks about it without inhibition. He also doesn’t hold back talking about the insecurities about growing old. The other great thing, which I consider to be the best bit of the entire set, is how Cole freely talks about the importance of a solid friendship over a romantic relationship. And no, he’s not uttering the same preachy crap; he’s actually being honest when he’s saying it’s important to become friends first and take care of that friendship before jumping into a romantic relationship with someone. Because if the romance doesn’t work out, you still have the friendship left, and there’s no bitterness between you and the other person. That’s great advice right there, and I’m glad Cole touched on the matter. Wish he had focused on this part a little more.
