x daniel sloss review
it's interesting to see daniel sloss' rise in popularity- much of which is well deserves as he is really a comic who does push himself to create new and interesting material (much like what he mentions in his netflix special: jigsaw), but at some points, straddles the line of a more telling "wake up call" in terms of raising awareness for broader social issues and personal philosophies.
i haven't quite cracked the code for daniel sloss' success - is it the fact that he makes borderline offensive jokes in a easy to understand palatable joke (like a very discount version of frankie boyle, who initially helped him along for his first gigs) or that he simply says what everyone else is probably secretly subconsciously thinking and lets them know that: yes, you are thinking this and yes, this is your only friend who has half a brain (but a fully extensive and flashy vocabulary thanks to both parents with PhDs) telling you to get out of that subpar relationship.
I'll address this now because it's the one thing I really could not ignore for this show:
and if daniel sloss ever reads this, please amend this in your show: that he specifically says, "there is a very famous science experiment a few years ago where scientists worked out if you take a frog and put it into boiling water and the frog will jump out immediately cause it knows its about to die, but if you put the same frog and put it into cold water - if you slowly heat that water up, the frog is unable to detect the changing temperature and it slowly boils to death." - which is not actually a scientific study or experiment, but a metaphor that was popularised by Al Gore in his movie An Inconvenient Truth - although while it's not scientifically valid but is still a really great metaphor for human behavior in a lot of other fields.
sources if youre curious:
http://archive-srel.uga.edu/outreach/ecoviews/ecoview071223.htm
https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2006/09/the-boiled-frog-myth-stop-the-lying-now/7446/
so that aside: let's get into this show X.
i was lucky enough to sit in on the recording of X (not sure who was filming or where it'll be shown but i assume i'll know in due time) with my friend, and it was an interesting experience as about 5% of the show was being obscured by roaming cameras, and also at one point where he flat out forgot his lines and said "good thing there are two recordings" - which is heavily amusing.
on the heels of sloss' two netflix specials, dark- which address his younger sister's death and jigsaw - which mostly talks about the concept of relationships, and basically not settling, X is a new show that filled out the whole enmore theatre, the show is primarily a show for men. it does a lot things that talk about the unspoken when it comes to dealing with topics like toxic masculinity, drawing them out and shining a light on these presumptions, and if there's anything that sloss does successfully, it's bringing out common topics and making them engaging and funny.
sloss shines when establishing and sliding in subtle stories that are tangentially related to the more important overarching theme: he masterfully slides and slips into the issue of exposing and using fun anecdotes, slipping and sliding around building this grand plan to bond with the men in the audience, and while doing so, he still manages to keep the audience engaged in most of the little stories he tells by also ridiculing men - a little tip of the hat to the women in the show too.
it's entertaining to see sloss amp up the ignorant comedic white male persona, playing up all those regressive opinions that straight men have and associating himself with silly mindsets, and there are great moments where he starts shining the light on the men in the room- by embodying the collective response of "most men" and breaking down how those opinions just don't make sense to hold on to through his own experiences.
there are certainly some good jokes in the show : and he really hits his stride around the last third of the show when he starts talking about sex/women - about men generally not knowing what to do with women, his friend taking a finger up the ass, and the routine about moon cups, pads and tampons, and even suggesting better ways for sex ed (which is delightful), and the reverse cycle of a baby being born.
as always: the last twenty minutes is when sloss starts to talk about the more important and less comical topic at hand: sexual assault.
he does so with the greatest of care: he does it through being a great ally, and he outlines in clear detail for all the men in the room: by getting them to relate to liking kids, loving drinking and how confusing women's genitals are, he lulls them into a false sense of security to ask them to reflect on their own behaviors.
so while the energy of the show is definitely less incisive than the previous two, the first half has been dedicated to building up relatable anecdotes regarding the rigid structure of masculinity and how men navigate it in these times of awareness around concepts like "not using the word gay as an insult" and questioning why men still feel uncomfortable with expressing emotion around one another, into specifically calling out men to become better allies, better friends, and better people.
it's a lovely sentiment, and certainly i think, you could feel the tenseness of every man in the room who was genuinely trying to react properly to the situation.
for me: X is a solid show, but not one that i would look back on and desperately find myself rewatching it over and over again - while i have rewatched jigsaw many times for the impeccable delivery.
X it has great moments, and certainly it shows that daniel sloss is more than capable of captivating and audience and delivering insightful messages in entertaining ways, but it was one that i walked away from a little disappointed. and while i have no doubt that i will recommend this as mandatory viewing to every man i know- yet it really has no impact on any of my female or queer friends, as this is a living reality for all of us.
on that point it feels hard to recommend this show as entertainment simply because X is a show that touches on topics that i personally talk about, questions i've already answered myself during my own difficult points in life, but more than anything: it's not a show that I feel is addressed to me.
i would say X is and never has been a show for me: it's for all every man out there who hasn't yet realized what women go through and how to grow up and out of the restraints of toxic masculinity, all done in a comedic way from one of the more successful younger comedians.
personally, i think just in terms of my own relationship with the topics he chose to talk about, i feel very far removed and somewhat alientated from the topics, and out of the three shows i have seen, this was the weakest show and probably the least entertaining as far as stand up is concerned.
that said, it won't stop me from using this as the easiest and most accessible way to explain these issues to male friends.
verdict: would force male friends to watch this but probably wouldn't rewatch for my own amusement.
i haven't quite cracked the code for daniel sloss' success - is it the fact that he makes borderline offensive jokes in a easy to understand palatable joke (like a very discount version of frankie boyle, who initially helped him along for his first gigs) or that he simply says what everyone else is probably secretly subconsciously thinking and lets them know that: yes, you are thinking this and yes, this is your only friend who has half a brain (but a fully extensive and flashy vocabulary thanks to both parents with PhDs) telling you to get out of that subpar relationship.
I'll address this now because it's the one thing I really could not ignore for this show:
and if daniel sloss ever reads this, please amend this in your show: that he specifically says, "there is a very famous science experiment a few years ago where scientists worked out if you take a frog and put it into boiling water and the frog will jump out immediately cause it knows its about to die, but if you put the same frog and put it into cold water - if you slowly heat that water up, the frog is unable to detect the changing temperature and it slowly boils to death." - which is not actually a scientific study or experiment, but a metaphor that was popularised by Al Gore in his movie An Inconvenient Truth - although while it's not scientifically valid but is still a really great metaphor for human behavior in a lot of other fields.
sources if youre curious:
http://archive-srel.uga.edu/outreach/ecoviews/ecoview071223.htm
https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2006/09/the-boiled-frog-myth-stop-the-lying-now/7446/
so that aside: let's get into this show X.
i was lucky enough to sit in on the recording of X (not sure who was filming or where it'll be shown but i assume i'll know in due time) with my friend, and it was an interesting experience as about 5% of the show was being obscured by roaming cameras, and also at one point where he flat out forgot his lines and said "good thing there are two recordings" - which is heavily amusing.
on the heels of sloss' two netflix specials, dark- which address his younger sister's death and jigsaw - which mostly talks about the concept of relationships, and basically not settling, X is a new show that filled out the whole enmore theatre, the show is primarily a show for men. it does a lot things that talk about the unspoken when it comes to dealing with topics like toxic masculinity, drawing them out and shining a light on these presumptions, and if there's anything that sloss does successfully, it's bringing out common topics and making them engaging and funny.
sloss shines when establishing and sliding in subtle stories that are tangentially related to the more important overarching theme: he masterfully slides and slips into the issue of exposing and using fun anecdotes, slipping and sliding around building this grand plan to bond with the men in the audience, and while doing so, he still manages to keep the audience engaged in most of the little stories he tells by also ridiculing men - a little tip of the hat to the women in the show too.
it's entertaining to see sloss amp up the ignorant comedic white male persona, playing up all those regressive opinions that straight men have and associating himself with silly mindsets, and there are great moments where he starts shining the light on the men in the room- by embodying the collective response of "most men" and breaking down how those opinions just don't make sense to hold on to through his own experiences.
there are certainly some good jokes in the show : and he really hits his stride around the last third of the show when he starts talking about sex/women - about men generally not knowing what to do with women, his friend taking a finger up the ass, and the routine about moon cups, pads and tampons, and even suggesting better ways for sex ed (which is delightful), and the reverse cycle of a baby being born.
as always: the last twenty minutes is when sloss starts to talk about the more important and less comical topic at hand: sexual assault.
he does so with the greatest of care: he does it through being a great ally, and he outlines in clear detail for all the men in the room: by getting them to relate to liking kids, loving drinking and how confusing women's genitals are, he lulls them into a false sense of security to ask them to reflect on their own behaviors.
so while the energy of the show is definitely less incisive than the previous two, the first half has been dedicated to building up relatable anecdotes regarding the rigid structure of masculinity and how men navigate it in these times of awareness around concepts like "not using the word gay as an insult" and questioning why men still feel uncomfortable with expressing emotion around one another, into specifically calling out men to become better allies, better friends, and better people.
it's a lovely sentiment, and certainly i think, you could feel the tenseness of every man in the room who was genuinely trying to react properly to the situation.
for me: X is a solid show, but not one that i would look back on and desperately find myself rewatching it over and over again - while i have rewatched jigsaw many times for the impeccable delivery.
X it has great moments, and certainly it shows that daniel sloss is more than capable of captivating and audience and delivering insightful messages in entertaining ways, but it was one that i walked away from a little disappointed. and while i have no doubt that i will recommend this as mandatory viewing to every man i know- yet it really has no impact on any of my female or queer friends, as this is a living reality for all of us.
on that point it feels hard to recommend this show as entertainment simply because X is a show that touches on topics that i personally talk about, questions i've already answered myself during my own difficult points in life, but more than anything: it's not a show that I feel is addressed to me.
i would say X is and never has been a show for me: it's for all every man out there who hasn't yet realized what women go through and how to grow up and out of the restraints of toxic masculinity, all done in a comedic way from one of the more successful younger comedians.
personally, i think just in terms of my own relationship with the topics he chose to talk about, i feel very far removed and somewhat alientated from the topics, and out of the three shows i have seen, this was the weakest show and probably the least entertaining as far as stand up is concerned.
that said, it won't stop me from using this as the easiest and most accessible way to explain these issues to male friends.
verdict: would force male friends to watch this but probably wouldn't rewatch for my own amusement.
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