Show Snob
Fansided

Stand Up and Away! with Brian Regan season 1 finale recap

By Wade Wainio

facebooktwitterreddit

The season finale of the Netflix series Stand Up and Away! with Brian Regan examines lost luggage, sidewalk etiquette, infomercials, and early a.m. dog noise.

Stand Up and Away! with Brian Regan once again focuses on everyday situations. For example, it seems many people lose their luggage at the airport. Regan uses it as an opportunity to riff on so-called “essentials kits” they give out to pacify angry travelers. How essential are their bag’s contents, really? This sketch contains one of the best lines from the series so far: “Surely I will perish!”

At its core, the sketch exemplifies what Brian Regan is about: Simply making people laugh. He usually doesn’t make it more complex than that. On that note, his “everyman” approach shines in his “stupid answers to simple questions” segment. Similar to an idea from late night talk shows (like Jay Leno), Brian Regan hits the streets to see how uneducated random passersby are.

What’s refreshing, though, is that he flips the idea on its head, by featuring people more knowledgeable than him (or at least “Brian Regan” as a character). There is something a little annoying about average Joes and Janes constantly made out to be uneducated fools. In fact, I think most people like to see a “Joe Sixpack” outshine some sort of celebrity big shot. I know I appreciated this segment, personally. You also have to remember that, ultimately, when these real segments do occur, people are usually put on the spot, and they probably don’t consider themselves foremost experts at trivia anyway.

More. Stand Up and Away! with Brian Regan season 1, episode 3 recap. light

More from Show Snob

Honest infomercials and sidewalk etiquette

Next, Stand Up and Away! with Brian Regan actually takes a nice dig at late night infomercials, with a pitchman who’s a little too honest about his interests in pure profits. Obviously, this style of humor has been done before, in places like The Simpsons or Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! However, Brian Regan keeps it on the lighter side, avoiding the overtly sardonic approach and going purely for silliness. It seems that, if Regan were to have a recurring character in his sketches, this would be a good candidate. (Of course, we don’t yet know if the series has a second season.)

Next, Regan discusses “sidewalk merging” with strangers. This is another awkward scenario we have all been in. How do you avoid awkward timing with strangers as pedestrians? While it’s not the deepest topic one could address, there’s something to it. It’s relatable, and Regan’s solution to the problem is just as absurd as the common scenario itself. If you really want to examine this topic, think of what it really gets at: Our fear (or potential fear) of offending strangers, or maybe even interacting in general.

UPS weight and the girth issue

What else does Stand Up and Away! with Brian Regan examine? Well, it looks at his difficulty at measuring the girth of a UPS delivery to a customer service specialist on the phone. He also tells a few jokes about animals. What makes a dog bark at 3 am? What ideas are they trying to convey when they do that? Do they really believe barking randomly to the world accomplishes anything? Yes, the closing monologue by Regan perfectly zeroes in on his approach to comedy. It is always approachable, and always intended to make his audience smile.

Next. 6 major times The Act strayed from the real story. dark

One may not laugh at every joke, but this stripped down, meat-and-potatoes variety of fun comedy is much needed in this world. He’s also more topical than given credit for, It’s just that someone has to put the jokes under a microscope. The only problem is, that’s not even the point of this kind of humor.

What are your thoughts on Stand Up and Away! with Brian Regan? Let us know in the comments!

Home/Netflix