Let's Talk About the New Louis Special

[@TheComedyHistorian]

I think it was some of his best work. He continues to surprise me, and I really appreciate his rawness when it comes to real life insight.

[@adrienkuiatse]

Jar Balt With regards to the 9/11 joke, Louis has mentioned on may occasions that he will intentionally say something terrible just to make sure the audience isn’t blindly laugh at everything he says. He often inserts horrible statements just to keep the audience honest and to create an obstacle for himself.

[@TheComedyHistorian]

Jar Balt Even that joke I stand by George Carlin on his perspective of ‘Shock Value’

[@joshfalk2703]

Where can I watch it

[@ilck-ym-blals7385]

I like louis ....I liked it ...I thought it was his most 'shocking' 😂 not to me but just shocking to be shocking ....but yeah it was good imo

[@thurgrum]

Louis was and is a genius of comedy and I hope he has a long career.

[@jecmeister]

Btw his letter was enough for me... How many times does a person have to say sorry? Once is good enough so long as its sincere

[@heathkish6901]

I completely agree. Louis didn't deserve what they did to him. Yeah, he did something inappropriate... Despite the fact that there were people who abused their power waaaaay more (Weinstein), he didn't use that as a cop-out, he genuinely seems like he regrets what he did. As a father, I can relate to his comedy like no other. #bringlouisback

[@Gordy3000]

@Cfc7ninja 12 He and his manager went out of their way to screw with anyone who was getting the word out.

[@Gordy3000]

@@heathkish6901 wait, because other people abused their power in a grander fashion, louis shouldn't face consequences for similar actions? who cares if he "genuinely seems" to regret it, facing consequences for his actions is the thing. He said it himself at the start, he loves power.

[@enkiitu]

She really expects an apology during a show?? Is she for real? What if Louis was a pianist? Should he interrupt his act to apologize? This girl doesn’t get it, and being a comedian herself is really confusing to me.

[@Gordy3000]

@@montplaisant8677 wait, you think the people criticising Louis also defend Bill Clinton? Are you stupid?

[@ludovicopizzillo6688]

He performed this special in Rome, I’ve never laughed so much. All the theatre did a standing ovation for 10 minutes when he left, then he came back saying that if we wanted to continue we could have a talk so people asked him some questions and his answers where so funny too. I think he is the best comedian in the world. (The questions where about food and louie)

[@LaZanyarr]

What questions and answers were raised??

[@ludovicopizzillo6688]

@@LaZanyarr is louie going to continue? And he said no (I don’t remember how any more), I’m sorry I don’t remember the other questions but I think he talked on how much he likes ice-cream and that he had another show in italy

[@meytecc8601]

I really appreciate your level-headed approach. Very nice work. In this particular case, I'm not sure why you see a disconnect between Louis' letter and his act. I totally see the same person, and in his new special he deals with his story the way he should and only he can. I don't want to say, how I expected, because it's actually better. The man is a true giant of comedy and he takes me for a ride to where it really becomes uncomfortable and lands it safely. Absolutely works for me. Nevertheless, you are doing a wonderful job here - I will watch more of your videos. This is some much needed sensibility on the web.

[@LaroyaFilms]

Making people laugh is one thing, making people smile is another. I think Norm said that, but I'm pretty sure he was quoting somebody else. I personally love the special because there's no shred of an ulterior motive to it. He doesn't try to change my perception of him. No theatrics. No sense of grandiosity. No manufactured authenticity. It is just a bunch of pauses in between unpolished jokes, with silly tags and an immediate acknowledgement of its silliness. In a time like this, the special feels like a reminder of what is familiar. And with its simplicity and non-promotion, it feels dedicated to those who get pleasure out of watching people get in front of a crowd to tell jokes - for people who would go to little open-mics without the intention of performing. The special is for fans of humour. It doesn't have to be comical. It doesn't have to be witty. It doesn't have to be hilarious. Louie is humorous. His intentions are sincere. And I cannot ask for anything more.

[@jacquisartist101]

I freaking miss Louis CK

[@Rithy2105]

It’s 7,99€

[@kelwinkwel]

Yes!!, 😥😥😥.. He's forgiven. And we got 2nd- 3rd rate information.. Anyway, core fans never left.. Louie is a symbol, for sure. Thanks for holding Ck up.

[@Rotyoto]

Me too, the tv show was too awesome as well.

[@shad3slay]

I don't understand why they are angry, as per my understanding he did his thing to a woman that said yes and then he didn't with other 4 that said no. I am miss informed?

[@senshai1267]

Louis CK is a legend :))

[@ralvarezr]

We got the apology in the letter. I don't care about the apology in a performance. I belived everything he said in the letter. But this was a comedy special. His aproach was to joke about it. The people who don't accept the letter, won't change theirs minds if he gets all serious and apology again. I liked your analysis. You got a new subscriber.

[@monicaacinom9412]

Agreed. His letter was his apology. His act is his act. Two different things. As a woman I object to what he did, but he did attempt to apologize. Was the apology sincere? Did he stay quiet long enough? I don’t know if there’s a perfect answer here. A person can either accept his apology or not. And when he stepped back onto the stage we can accept him or not. I fully respect both sides to this, but I’m not agreeing with the narrator’s analysis here

[@owenwilberforce6138]

His appeal was always his edge. That edge meant he was willing to say and do things that pushed back against normalcy. He definitely did things we all not only could not, or would not do. In his standup, Louis was able to show how our dark sides are actually not only understandable, but even laughable up to a point. Tragically, his abuse of boundaries in his personal life are something that is now not generally forgiven. Perhaps we should not expect him to further get on his knees on a performance stage and express yet again some remorseful epiphany, because he always gave an ironic shrug to politeness. To be clear, we should never do what he did, but we can’t expect him to change his stripes regarding pushing back against what are considered appropriate ways of approaching everything. His genius as a comic may not guarantee that he will always do things in conventional ways. Strangely though we expect brilliant comics to somehow be flawless across the board as people. Yet that has never been the case with many geniuses in any art forms, or at least, very few. He is as honest about his flaws as one can be, and perhaps that should be enough.

[@awesomesam101]

Wow. As somebody who's only starting to become a fan of standup, this was an incredible watch. Thank you for sharing this story with us.

[@harryunderhill5041]

Watching the bit about you saying you don't know the difference between Louis CK's letter and Louis CK's act I was reminded of him talking somewhere about a joke he says where his knee is bust and he goes the doctor and the doctor just tells him there's nothing he could do about it. Just nothing, he's old, that's his life now. He talked about how there's always one person who doesn't understand that in real life of course the doctor is going to do everything they can but for the joke it's got to be that the doctor just gives up. So they'll come up to him after the act and start suggesting other doctors. Or another bit about being on an airplane and they're taxiing to take off and are told there's a twenty minute delay and there's a guy on there who gets annoyed. The thing is in reality it's him who was annoyed but he makes another character the annoyed person. So what I'm saying is there's a line between Louis CK on stage and the real Louis CK and you don't have to trust him on stage or on TV doing a skit because it's all an act and it always was. That's never going to be the real person when he's working even if he's talking about his personal stuff because that's not going to be the appropriate space.

[@redram5150]

I used to understand “starting with your best joke” to be for the crowd, as an attention-getter. And it made sense at the time; why not start with your best material? Now though, I’ve come to realize it’s meant as a kick in the pants for the comedian. If you’re gonna start with your best joke, you better give all you have following it because you have the audience’s attention and just set the bar as high as you can reach. Whether it’s by writing before hand or putting yourself in the material on stage, dig deep.

[@timsopinion]

I love the point you made about 'Catharsis Comedy' vs. 'Distraction Comedy' and HEARTILY agree with you on which side we need right now. You're incredibly fun to listen to, and I love when you let little moments of self consciousness slip through and you sort of laugh at yourself without having to digress or apologize. You're a gem! Keep doing what you do :)

[@ashraykotian1]

I think the question you raised about whether Louis had anything really to say through these seemingly unnecessary edgy jokes is a pertinent one. To me i found the answer to this after having watched the special. Even though Louis addressed the incident headlong for only a short amount of the set, i felt an undercurrent almost throughout the entire set which commented on it. The whole special on a subtextual level seemed to be about the effect of letting out perversions within a public space, be it perversions of sexuality or ideas & beliefs, and the contradictions that exist within us as individuals for retaining them within our private spaces exclusively. If you think about it that’s what happened to Louis. His “thing” (as he names it in the special) came out in the public against which his entire personhood has been assessed. As he puts, we are incredibly lucky that world doesn't know our "thing". This has not just to do with our sexual deviances but literally any sort of deviances in thoughts or ideas that we might hold to ourselves hidden from the larger collective, something which becomes such a huge deal especially in the age of social media where every act of expression is filtered through an exercise in navigating through dynamites and eggshells. Since Louis' cat is out of the bag and his elephant is now addressed by the room, all i see him doing through the set was displaying all those rough edged "perversions" of his through the medium of comedy, and in doing so show something about the complexity of the human which often hides under the one dimensional squeaky clean personas which we all invariably put up, and all the contradictions and messiness that is part of that humanness which never really gets to see the light of social space without being flagellated.

[@HalimaAbshir]

Interesting watch, the reason why I enjoy stand up is for the catharsis. That Carlin brand of comedy is why so many people prefer a Mark Normand that pushes boundaries over Stephen Colbert or insert surface level hack comedy.

[@Mic-Mak]

Had to drop everything I was doing for this! Miss you Katie! LOVE YOUR CONTENT!

[@Superputazo23]

Louis CK is great. I'm so happy he's back.

[@echtdasletzte]

My favorite till now is his 2017 Special, but I can't think of a better comeback after all what was happening before. One of the best ways to deal with this pressure and to get his artistic freedom back.

[@jonahsong7434]

I think part of Louis' thing is that people are living contradictions. You can both feel remorse, and also find it hilarious.

[@mhdqr897]

He made me laugh in the midst of terrible times. I am happy he is back now with new special.

[@angelbaeza2623]

I honestly preferred the leaked set to this new one

[@edgar2dnd]

I just found your review about this Louis CK special (I was looking for some reviews because Louis came to Mexico for the first time while he was trying some of the stuff that ended up on the special) ... anyway ... Personally, I really liked his special ... but I LOVED your take on the whole situation. It was very honest and quite refreshing! You just got a new subscriber!

[@AmericasComic]

Honestly, I think if comedy swings in a different direction, it's not as important to me that it acts as a distraction or is goofy or is a release. I just want something that has a strong call-to-action. That's what I felt like was the problem with the comedy at Louis' height...somes comedy would acknowledge the problems, sometimes it wouldn't but I felt that no matter what it was followed by a shrug and a "whatchu gonna do? can't change the status quo." These are serious times. Stakes are high, and our problems extend well beyond just Trump, or just COVID. I think if comedy doesn't acknowledge those stakes, I'd get angry and set out and make sure that it does acknowledge those stakes.

[@dawsonhighland2025]

Feels like a loss of anger in some ways, which deprives us of a kind of active impulse. Like instead of Carlin or Pryor railing against injustice, you just get this sort of, "Huh, the world is really fucked. That sucks." When anger turns to depression, people just sort of give up.

[@jimmorrison4291]

@@dawsonhighland2025 Carlin had a "Fuck it, who cares" attitude though. Whether right or wrong I can't see him buying into the...arrogance (?) that we live in a particularly harsh time, when that's arguably not the case.

[@AmericasComic]

Dawson Highland I think there’s something very Gen X about that apathy. It’s kinda the end result of a slacker mentality

[@jacobmonks3722]

@@jimmorrison4291 Carlin expressed that he himself had no personal stakes in what the outcome was, but he sure had a lot to say about what the problems were and occasionally gave people some ways to think about how to solve them. His bit on Saving the Planet is a good example. While someone might take away that Carlin doesn't give a shit about people, I take away that people need to be more honest about what they want. It's not actually about "saving the planet," it's about saving humanity's habitat, and people need to stop pretending that they are righteous and altruistic. Focusing on pretending means you are less focused on actually solving problems.

[@entropyfun]

To people who were expecting him to apologize, I would say, why? Why does he owe public an apology for something that happened between him and a CONSENTING adult? Sex is messy. People are messy. Whatever happened between Louie and those women is between them to work out. Public doesn't get to say shit. Because they were CONSENTING adults. Even the women that came out, as far as I know, didn't accuse him of anything, they just confirmed the rumors. And they got their moral satisfaction from it and good for them. And now we can all move on with our lives and stop throwing rocks. For me, I love Louie, and I hope he learns from this experience and becomes even stronger. He's not the guy anyone should be worried about.

[@sadboijokes]

I know exactly what you mean when you say disconnect between the letter and special. I remember being genuinely excited for Sincerely because I was ready to hear this special all about a guy who knows he screwed up, and decides to talk about it. And I know Louie is sharp. He can talk about so many horrible things and get you to say “that was funny” or “yeah I think that too” and that’s a huge reason for why I love him. So when me and my little brother (who isn’t a comedian) were both able to acknowledge that we didn’t get the full scope of what we were looking for, it was disappointing. Louie has such a way of digging into the human psyche and elaborating why things feel the way they feel and when I thought he would do it to himself, in what is probably the most challenging time of his life, it never came out. Chekhov’s Gun was a great way to kind of illustrate the disappointment of it all. I thought his special was fine, but it doesn’t hit the level of his other specials. I remember being blown away by his 2017 special because his last bit sounded like him kind of coming out of the closet, or at the very least, exploring the spectrum of sexuality in males. And I thought it was so brilliant and vulnerable and I really admire that bit. All that being said, I hope he isn’t afraid to look deeper, and try to actually talk about that stuff. Because I think it’s challenging for him. And I hope that it’s not so challenging, he can never talk about it and take it seriously. Well, not seriously, but joke about it fully and maybe get that catharsis he and we need(s).

[@mbunajung]

i'm a korean but i really love louis. i'm so happy when he came back. nice to meet someone like you.

[@vintageviktor]

I stumbled upon your channel today and loved your intelligent, considered analysis of Louie, his legacy and this latest special. I love the other videos I've seen on your channel so far too, and (selfishly) hope you will do something on George Carlin soon!!

[@AvektaProds]

I could listen to you for hours, Katie. You're almost as funny as the comics you critique and often a lot more insightful. Keep talking. I'm listening - and taking notes.

[@zizinnnn]

my country is on his tour list and I cant wait to see him live - finally.

[@cf9844]

There's a different Louis between the letter and the special because one is in November of 2017 and one is in 2020. How you feel when everyone is mad at you for a thing you feel guilty for and how you feel after three years of being publicly spit on and dragged through the mud is different.

[@akiapurpose2402]

So glad you finally did this..been wanting you to tackle Louie’s last special!!! Also, I’m glad you watched it multiple times and let it digest before you reviewed it. That’s great.

[@supermarty564]

I think my biggest issue is not really Louis specifically. But more that it's a real shame the some of greatest stand-ups of this generation spend most of their specials constantly talking about what they can't say and how they are constantly cancelled, meanwhile they're in-front a huge crowd, cheering for them. I know the culture war stuff is a big sell at the moment and people are obviously eating that shit up. But for me, who absorbs so much stand-up, it is so tiring. I'd expect Louis to be introspective coming out of this, but he really wasn't. The optics of going at your own sold out specials to talk about your "haters" in front of your biggest fans feels like total pandering.

[@hambletonorama]

You have good perspective. I'm also a fellow standup enthusiast, and I think the shift toward sketch and improv has come because of big sitcoms like The Office, Parks and Rec, Brooklyn 99, etc. Standup has a sense of realism while sketch and improv aim to suspend reality in a certain way, which is what I think people are looking for right now. I mildly disagree with your assessment of how Louie approached his situation in this special, but I was happy to see someone with a very balanced and logical point of view rather one of the two extremes you mentioned. Good stuff.

[@emirbojadzic1150]

Great review. Louie is my favourite comedian ( with Burr close second place ). I understand what were your expectactions from this special but I just think that he personaly just needed one decent special just to return to his normal routine. I think in years to come we are to expect a more nuanced material from Louie and I think he has a lot more to offer to stand up comedy and art in general ( if health serves him of course ). So it is probably still too early to understand his legacy. It just goes on to show you how big and long life can really be. Sending regards all the way from Montenegro :)

[@kevinm.5939]

How have I just now been recommended this video? I'm late to watch, but great analysis with a lot of thoughts provided. I'm definitely subscribed and hoping to see what your reflections are about comedy now, especially after the brilliant Bo Burnham special, which I feel has broken the next dimension of stand up and truth-telling.

[@scottyarwood8313]

That was a really good video! You were mentioning how a lot of specials are sad and I wouldn't call Gary Gulman's sad (outside of the documentary footage). I feel like the stand up portion actively avoids the "sad comedy" trend that's so popular. The subject matter is objectively dark but I feel like there's punchlines all throughout the show. Normally, I see a lot of comedians and they'll have a sad moment and they'll slow down their voice and speak in a hushed tone and they'll be like "that's when this dark thing happened" and there's never a moment like that in the new Gilman special. Also, I feel like his is very hopeful. It's him saying that it's normal to go through this stuff and I feel like it's really uplifting to see where he's at now and how much better things have gotten for him! At the end, I wasn't sad, it made me feel nice.

[@KarlOsuchowski]

Very insightful, fair and broad-minded commentary, really enjoyed your video. To be fair, I might not agree with improv being in a more interesting place now compared to stand-up, but I see what you mean with the potential behind it, so as a person who prefers stand-up, I love that you mentioned that aspect. It challenges my thinking and there's nothing better than growing as a person and, sometimes, changing your mind. Subbed hard, well done.

[@Kewteepoi]

“I’m not an expert in sexual misconduct or any of these things, that’s not my field.” Also: Comedy in the Era of #MeToo: Masking and Unmasking Sexual Misconduct in Stand-Up Comedy by Patrice A. Oppliger and Kathryn Mears

[@PassengerMX]

The algorithm sent me here and I am grateful. Great video. I wish we all get thru this and become wiser.

[@mortifactorsmiko4668]

I think the important thing to remember about the letter and the special is they're both very different contexts. The letter is a prepared response to allegations and is meant to be very serious. The special is partially improvised and meant to be funny. I don't think either of them were not louis, they were different sides of the same person dealing with different situations.

[@dnddmdb642]

Great video, Katie. My lizard brain was craving some "discourse" and it was nice to take a step back and just analyze the special from a more rational view. I think you hit the nail on the head with the "trust" behind the jokes. But it was also helpful to think about why I had originally liked Louis so much.

[@cloudcorby420]

He says it himself. He enjoys saying something that bothers people. Which as someone who loves comedy as much as anyone I've known and respect the craft. I have total admiration and respect for his dedication to being authentic. Most people would suppress that feeling for the approval and acceptance of those around you. Which by all means is a proper response. Were social creatures. But there is no question that just using authenticity as a weapon is the most brilliantly funny trait. He knows it bothers some people . But he knows the massive advantage someone has when they dobt have to play by the same rules you think you have to so people arnt upset at you. and hes ok with that. That really bothers people when your 100% living as you disregarding opinion . Say what you want about him but hes always honest to a fault, the guy is absolutely not perfect, but hes a legend for authenticity. And that's a good cross to die on that's at least honorable. Those who dont think so probably cant comfortably being themselves unapologetically.

[@charliesheen3019]

Louis is one of the greatest comedians ever lived. It's impossible not to appreciate his perfect balance between being obscenic and hilarious. Absolutely amazing.

[@bruhhh._.150]

Good review👍 How come you don't have review on Dave Chappelle's 'Sticks and Stones' or Ricky Gervais's Golden Globes Monologue? I'd say those two were pretty big moments in past couple of years.

[@whitmerthomasyoutube]

Thanks for the shoutout Katie! You're right about the alt thing.

[@ntutino1980]

His new special coming out on Hulu is a lot better than this hour, which I think isn’t as polished as his other work. I seen him this past weekend in Reading, PA and the show was fantastic, a lot of great material in that

[@mrkvrm]

seeing the comment section really reminded me about what you said about forgiveness, everyone seems to be so desperate to be right about what they're saying without ever questioning their own judgment, or really let others make mistakes. While i have opinions that are different from yours it still felt great to listen to someone else's point of view that wasn't forcibly shoved down my throat or act in the pretense of being morally superior but to solely look at his work within the context of what he did. I agree that after what he did, the perverted jokes or even watching his older material is a little cringe inducing. Nevertheless I will still watch whatever he puts out whether it be a comedy special or an eight episode series about an old pub. I hope he makes more stuff. subscribed.

[@gilly2540]

Katie Mears: this was the most outstanding, articulate and very insightful! I really appreciate you taking the time to thoroughly explain your point of view while simultaneously not shaming either side of the isle. This is the most intelligent video and showing the art of comedians. So much respect for and such courage you have to sharing this.

[@buddypowe]

I completely agree, i do not think people understand where comedy/humor is going because i feel like there are so many things off limits, also mixed with how producers decide who gets the spotlight that things are going to become very toned down. I also LOVE your mention of Lenny Bruce!

[@kevoh7168]

Really liked the video! However! I dont agree that an apology was needed during the performance. He adressed it already...if I expected something it probably was that he was gonna joke about it and be...well...louis 🤣 I dont like the idea that is going around, that people who fuck up (not defending his actions btw) have to go around apologizing over and over again. Like the Kevin hart thing with the Oscars...i fkn hated that... Anyways! Good video! It opens up conversations and keep up the good work! 🤘

[@relyks8645]

I respected the hell out of Kevin Hart for standing his ground on that and I respect Louis now for handling things the way he has.

[@bc-dd9qp]

the algorithm finally pointed me your direction after going on a rory scovel bender the past few days. thank you algorithm, but damn what else you hiding from me girlfriend?? Andy Daly did some interesting things when he was a stand-up for 5 minutes years ago - his Dalton Wilcox character is one of the funniest things going at the moment, though in the podcast medium. As for Louis? Always preferred Maron.

[@codybolo7803]

How can you compare louie and maron, they are not the same type of comics

[@isaiahcyr2226]

I'm so fucking happy that this girl exists thanks sooo much been needing to know about loui

[@aquamarine99911]

Uh, Chappelle? Although Dave has sort of transcended the need or desire to tell jokes. But three years, Louis and Dave were the two horsemen of the stand up apocalypse.

[@AxL456]

what is the name of the special that you referred to as the best special of the decade? (at 7:49) English is not my main language so I couldn't understand the title. thanks Katie, really enjoyed the video.

[@pthompson2113]

Ugh ... He's just honest... And yes people will always crave that. I know I will.

[@dhiahassen9414]

I cant relate to her

[@adrianmcallister8511]

Wow! I really got to say that you articulated a lot of my feelings about Louis CKs post cancelation specials. The humanism that you pointed out is kinda missing, but you can still absolutely tell he's still got "it". I also feel like he's progressed a little from "Sincerely" to "Sorry". Would love to hear your thoughts on "Sorry" as well. Just found the channel, but I'm hyped to watch more. Cheers!

[@bustedrav]

I think you're looking for something that isn't owed if I'm honest, and he probably would have lost respect from me if he had started crying and apologizing, he's a comic, not a politician or moral leader, if anything more of the opposite. He is just doing what he's good at, he addressed it, take it or leave it I guess. If people are still hung up on it then they won't buy into any media that includes him in it, if they can deal with it then they will, that's what free will is all about.

[@c0r1nth14n_]

Well that's just one of the many possible paths he could have taken. He chose not to speak about it in an "open and serious" or apologetic way, he did that in the letter and nowhere else, so it be. Why would we even expect him to do that? To do his stand-up in a way that pleases the crowds? Does that necessarily mean his letter was not honest? It is more about our capacity to take the two attitudes or aspects of a person(ality) that feel so different to us, but that's just our problem if we can't handle it. And life offers us plenty of challenges of this type exercise every single day as we deal with people who we like to some part, we have more favourite parts of them and those that we can't even stand, and what do we do? It's not that much different here.

[@mmb2211]

Watched LCK since ever, but learned plenty of stuff about him here. Great video. Cheers from Brazil!

[@billybang00]

Katie, I just found your channel. I appreciated your considered and thoughtful video about the special. I read the Slate article you suggested and that thing is trash in comparison. I think your view of Louis CK probably depends on how much you like his comedy and how offended/outraged you were by the sexual misconduct. I don't know if there is much that will shift people from one side to the other at this point. Great video. I look forward to going through the backlog and seeing what else you have!

[@leslielembcke8073]

For me the letter is Louis formal and, hopefully, sincere statement. The comments in the special are part of a character.

[@Rambam1776]

I also have been wondering why this special hadn’t been the topic of much discussion. If you are ever feeling retro, I’d be interested in hearing your take on Richard Jeni. He seems to have been forgotten.

[@hklinker]

Were you expecting him not to joke about what happened when he made his return? I thought he owned what he did, and in the years-long run up gave a lot of hints (just an act?) that he actually did/does have demons.

[@adamjondo]

First time viewer. Very impressed. Great analysis and reflections.

[@ryanmuskin729]

Wow what a great channel, I really enjoy your take on things. Very well spoken and thoughtful

[@pstover991]

He didn't do anything to me so I dont need an apology. Just keep doing amazing bits like the whole religion bit which was fucking hilarious

[@minkusingh4681]

It's really tiring to hear you speak ...you put so many unnecessary words between the actual material and the start of the line......just feels like a waste of time unnecessarily.

[@pronemanoldbutyoung5548]

Good for you Katie. That can separate the private person from his/her performance on the stage.

[@loueneu]

I agree with Katie on the disconnect between the letter and the special. I am afraid Louis CK is pulling some sort of trumpian non-apology whereby he would reluctantly apologise and then pivot to how much PC culture sucks (and it sometimes does) and how it is in fact the real problem. Katie didn't go into the politics of it, but what made Louis CK so great was precisely the fact that he brought together lefties and libertarians. An easy knee-jerk reaction to his "Me too" problems would be to indulge in becoming a right-wing/masculinist icon. It would be the end of what made him so great and unique

[@jpadila7]

I can understand the sentiment behind not recording comedians in case they are working out their material. However, Comedy as an industry needs to evolve to accept the fact that people have recording devices and are free to use them as they please.

[@jonmarko6594]

Wow this is not what I thought it was gonna be. Great video

[@gradyrostenmusic]

I saw him do that set in Nashville last May about ten feet away from him and I cried laughing the entire time.

[@d4sp1d3r]

Louis is somebody. Millions want to listen to his jokes and are willing to pay for it. On the other hand, hundreds of people passed the first 10s of your free opinions about him.

[@thereviewartistrrp5493]

I like hearing your perspective but hears mine. He apologized in a thoughtful letter. Ok rule number 1 never apologize on a stage as a comedian. It makes you look weak. Louis is a comical genius. Everything you said louis already knows what people think of him. That's why sincerely Louis is so amazing. He's actually messing with the haters on purpose. If you pay attention to his jokes in this special. He is purposely trying to make you uncomfortable. I believe he is secretly sending to the haters. If you cant handle the heat get out of the kitchen. I never had a problem with what he done. He got consent. What more could you ask for that is the kicker. I would of subscribed but since you clearly misunderstood the point of the special. I cant do that now, sorry but its like you want Louis Ck to bow down before us. If he did that I would lose all respect for him. He's standing tall that's what makes him so great. Long live Louie

[@SeanMillea]

This was such an awesome analysis. Immediate subscribe

[@matanmosheboaz9434]

Me too

[@themichael3105]

Great insight. Just found this channel. Thanks!

[@DanielMartinez-uv6hy]

I laughed throughout the standup show. It was raw and way too honest. He did a fantastic show, and I think that he wrote that comeback show not hiding from his past.

[@krisvallejo74]

I don't need apologies from Louis I need comedy and he's given me plenty. Sincerely had me on stitches. I dont need Louis crying with regret on his sketch.

[@oozboy]

Amazing video. Subbed! Love this analysis!

[@pat_mcooterski]

The chick in the beginning isn't a youtube ad

[@clbazar]

Katie, could the dissonance just be due to the fact that we’re always changing? I’m not the same person that I was 2 years ago, and you yourself offered the incredibly insightful comment about the 2 poisonous voices that he’s likely been dealing with during the time between his apology letter and his special. Could it just be that? Also, he’s not done changing and processing both his actions as well as the response to them. I kinda wish we didn’t live in a time where we feel entitled to not only the work that creators make, but their whole selves as well. We make snap judgments, we want easy answers, we’re all dealing with our own stuff so much that, I don’t know. I guess I’m saying that there’s a whole lot of stuff that shouldn’t necessarily be ours to participate in. It demeans the experiences of the actual people involved in those situations and ultimately doesn’t begin to matter in the bigger picture. But what do I know? I don’t know that I’m smart enough to listen to your commentary, let alone comment on it, so if you even read this comment on a video you made 9 months ago, or 127 KZbin years, please take it with a salt grain or two. Happy note: You. Just found your channel and holy smokes, you’re freaking awesome. I love your honesty and willingness to question yourself. I have been a longtime listener of Maron for the same reasons. Thanks for putting yourself out there. I feel like I found a hundred in an old pair of pants. Cheers, L

[@TheDiscrepator]

Actually I think it was the most honest he could get for this. Like, there were consequences for what he did but he was charged as a pack with other cases of the me too movement. That makes you a target of a kind of hate that doesn't fit with your actions. That's why you aren't charged the same for getting in to a fight, even if you're clearly bigger than the other person, as what you're charged for murder. He asked for concent and, as everybody was saying at the time, even in that possition your name could force the other person to accept. I belive he meant that apology, but as the case went by, and they started to treat him like a rapist as any other metoo case, he got bitter and literally lost almost everything. Let's remember the film wich never aired where he put most of his money and what his daughters may be going through. I could see my self saying fuck it, I wanted to make amends with my wrongs but if you're going to make me pay for this other way, way diferent FELONIES that I didn't do, I guess that nothing that I do is going to be enough so I don't care any more. And I belive that that's an honest human response, and in part an statement, like if you're trying to change the reality of what I did, I'm going to remember you what I really did. For me, all of "Sincerily" went that way, we were waiting for his come back, but we're the fewer. Most of society what actually wanted is for him is to never come back and be misserable for the rest of his life, and if most of the people is going to hate him anyway, he's going to say whatever he wants, with no apologies whatsoever.

[@MEGAsporg12]

Holy shit your content is so good! Keep making videos!

[@pongovinc]

Maybe what you where expecting will still come in another form. I feel that his standup wasn’t the most heartfelt or humanitarian part of his work.

[@sophiafrancis7436]

Something that is currently in progress, is creating systems of accountability. We are going trial and error, and plain instinct and some professional opinion. We've begun to acknowledge that problems exist and that they are actually in fact problems. And now we are deciding what to do with them. It will have to find a place between denial-culture and cancel-culture. Louie can't hope to reach his same heights, and will probably have to look into different aspect of his art. Like you mentioned, catharsis culture is not what's trending right now. And I will add, that in the current political climate, some of the dominating dark opinions dont need catharsis or influence into legal legislature, and that's kinda where the line should be drawn. Along with what's happening in comedy as far at that goes, we should also peep to see what the trends in horror films are doing. Catharsis culture right now is doing it's best work bashing white power structures. Louie himself has jokes on the privilege of living in a first-world country and the couch cushion that has been America. Dave Chapelle's rants hit because of all the things that were once too controversial for button up white TV networks.

[@davidjd123]

id argue hes one of the best of all time.

[@peterbandyk2462]

Great video. I agree that stand up way too sad now. Keep pushing for more absurd fun to come back.

[@jeff2235]

Louis didn't start the hour a year ethic- that was the Great George Carlin. Louis has acknowledged this himself. Don't misunderstand me- I'm a big fan of both of them.

[@BrendanCescon]

One thing I don't ever see mentioned is that all of the misconduct events took place 12+ years prior to the New York Times article. Meaning he had already stopped the behavior. That paired with his apology is all you need honestly to believe him. The fact that he explained why it was wrong AND had already stopped doing it. It would be a totally different story if he had still been doing it. Then his apology would seem obviously insincere.

[@philsebastian7667]

"Here's how you know how big Louis was." Thought she was going to tell us that we had to have been an aspiring female comedian sitting across from him

[@BartSimpson-jd2vs]

I think Louis CK is probably the best contemporary stand up comedian, and one of all times best

[@stevenmccart709]

Louis is absolutely hilarious. This girl is nuts.

[@zacharychapman6691]

What do you think of his other 2 new specials.

[@sophiafrancis7436]

One of the things that surprised me about Louie's fall was just how hard it was. He wasn't peaking, his stocks were strong, and yet the crash was still hard. Many other stories in the MeToo movement with much less nuance didn't have the strong professional crash that Louie did. It made me feel like networks were looking for a reason to cancel contracts? Think about how BIG louie got and was at the time of his fall, when it had taken him SO Long to get that big. His contemporaries had already been big without novelty. Two ways women can be affected by harassment are physically: an attack to their personhood; and financially: an attack to their careers. And the sexual misconduct of his was disgusting, but like his comedy, an indulgence of his id. Like a hypocritical college boy who acknowledges the right things to do, but is simply an asshole and a bad boyfriend. Like Bojack Horseman's character. He apologizes sincerely because he feels bad, but also indulges his id because That feels good (and nothing holds him accountable). So I see the Special and his newsletter as both true, and two sides of the same hypocritical person. The story by Pete Davidson about Louie bad talking him about smoking weed shows another side of hypocrisy and selfishness; and the other side of power abuse. That made me feel worse about him. Not because it's worse than sexual misconduct (which has a whole culture behind it that's much bigger than louie); but because it is more than bad impulse control or indulgence-- it was active vindictiveness and throwing his weight around.

[@puremercury]

Hard disagree that there is not a lot of overlap between fans of Burr, Rogan, and Mulaney. I think that perspective might be a little skewed because of how people behave communicating online and via social media.

[@zachharris3040]

No matter how objective a person claims to be, you can always see their biases peeking their heads in.

[@akshayde]

I thi k the reason his statement and his special don't feel like the same person is 1 - you want and expect him to be the person you want and expect him to be, which he doesn't need to be unless he wants to be. 2 - time. A lot of time passed and people question everything that happens and recollect stuff and that changes their opinion. Plus he did say.. "thats all im ALLOWED to say legally" so who knows what the story is. I completely buy that he did the things he was accused of but i am not sure I completely buy the whole story of how they say it all went down. Human sexuality is tricky and consent is seldom given verbally. We have taken nuance and body language out of the equation in today's times. So who knows... I guess the fact that he didn't rape anybody or even touch anybody makes it easier.

[@hanifibrahim460]

Weird how comedians get so much grief when they get canceled and try to come back. They are treated so differently! Actors (Mel Gibson), Singers (Chris Brown) and Athletes (Kobe) can come straight back, but comedians are held to a different standard. Despite the fact that they polish a version of themselves which is an ACT, they are judged as though they are presenting THEMSELVES. Burr, Jeselnick, Godfried are lovely people in person, but they are presenting an act that can be so harsh and costic. Look at some of the things LCK got us laughing at before (murder, pedophilia, rape!) because we signed on to the journey and he crafted a space where we could contemplate those awful thing ironically and laugh. He did that with skill, and that skill can only be honed on the road, and he hasn't been able to get the reps in that he normally would. Give him time....

[@ianselman5033]

I'm undecided on this guy. He does look so familiar.