So it turns out this is Natasha Leggero’s world and we’re all just living in it right now. While the comic/actress has been around for several years, we might just look back at 2015 as the year she grabbed the American public by the collective neck and made them take notice. Starting with her epic takedown of Kevin Hart at the “Comedy Central Roast of Justin Bieber”, which was followed by vicious slams of Shaquille O’Neal, Chris D’elia, Snoop Dogg, Jeffrey Ross and others while peppering in a few more shots at Kevin Hart before finally turning her attention to the Biebs himself, Natasha has been on quite the roll. If you’ve been living under a rock and didn’t see that roast, you might want to check out this video. Do it. We’ll wait for you.
https://vimeo.com/123794189
Natasha followed that performance up with the premiere of “Another Period” on Comedy Central, the show created by Natasha and her equally brilliant friend Riki Lindhome. This show has been the number one reason for me turning on my television this summer. Just imagine “Downton Abbey” on acid. Or don’t. Just watch the show. You’ll thank me later. Natasha’s portrayal of Lillian Abigail Hitler Schmemmerhorn-Fish is nothing short of hilarious. I mean, she’s in a tiara most of the time! Who can’t relate to that? Oh, just me? Never mind then. But seriously, watch this show. The cast is amazing. The jokes land in barrages, so much so that you might need to watch more than once to get them all. And there is biting social commentary in there as well, if you’re into that sort of thing. It was just announced last week that the show will get a well-deserved second season. In the meantime, catch up on Comedy Central’s website here.
That brings us to her Comedy Central standup special last night, “Natasha Leggero: Live at Bimbo’s”. Starting off with a rap video send up called “Diamond Pussy” and featuring the always amazing Tom Lennon, Natasha wastes no time going after sacred cows as half the video takes place in an abortion clinic. My favorite kind of comedy is type where the audience is laughing while at the same time looking around thinking, “Did she really just say that?”. She did and she killed. The audience laughed. I laughed. You’ll laugh too when you watch this (Disclaimer: If you’re voting for Mike Huckabee or any of his ilk, you might want to skip this one before it besmirches your fragile sensibilities.). Covering topics ranging from Costco, Yahoo answer boards, Oprah, how good a deal marriage is for men, Martin Lawrence pussy jokes and much more, Natasha absolutely crushes in this hour special. Case in point….
“I don’t know which causes me more stress, not being about to remember my Apple ID or growing up without a father.”
“I would rather walk in on my boyfriend jerking off while hanging himself than having him have one of those “Call of Duty” headsets on.”
“I have a question. How did an Armenian family of whores capture the heart of America?”
“Every foreign cabbie is in such a good mood, you think his wife just miscarried a girl.”
I’ve been a fan of Natasha’s for several years now but she really feels like she is hitting the peak of her comedic powers. Considering that Comedy Central has lost Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert and John Oliver in the past year, they’re clearly in the business of looking for new stars to be the face of the network. I would argue with her performance in the past year, they have found one in house.
