httpss://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rB36UGoP4Y

John Mulaney is far from a political comedian, and much of his act feels indebted to an era before America looked to humor as a cathartic release in the midst of social chaos.

This is arguably Mulaney’s best hour special yet, a showcase for his immaculate writing and captivating stagecraft.

Mulaney is deft enough to make the whole thing more about his dad’s cluelessness about human sexuality than it is about “Gay stuff being icky.” It also doesn’t hurt that Mulaney’s old man voice is one of the strongest parts of his whole persona.

Your mileage may vary on whether or not you appreciate Mulaney comparing a university to a sex worker, but this section of the special allows him to also dive into his own peculiar experiences at college, which are hard to imagine.

As Matt Zoller Seitz pointed out in his review of Kid Gorgeous, one might find it hard to picture John Mulaney as anything but an adult – 35 going on 70.

Speaking of getting old, the middle section of Kid Gorgeous heavily mines this idea that Mulaney is an elderly man trapped inside a 35-year-old’s lean, fully upright body.

Kid Gorgeous ends with some material about Mulaney’s wife, whom he uses as a comedic foil in the grand tradition of moldy “Take my wife, please” jokes.