I defended Tiffany Haddish when her show bombed in Atlanta and when Jaguar Wright; a prolific naysayer of the music industry brought doubt that her relationship with Common would survive after her 'me too'-oriented allegations about him/her boyfriend. I did the same thing for Leslie Jones drew harsh criticism in her role in the Ghostbusters remake which stung a little more than a little bit when it came from Dan Aykroyd, a member of the original cast and comedic royalty. I was torn on that one because Aykroyd and the rest of the cast were an absolute paradigm to my budding, adolescent sense of humor, just as were countless other comedians, most notably Eddie Murphy, Dave Chappell, Gild Radner (God Bless the dead); her husband, his friend, and other sisters of comedy, like Monique and Luenell, who even though I sang all of his songs growing up, made so much fun of Biz Markey, I cried real tears from laughing so hard because it was relatable; jokes I would expect to hear at a roast for him and see him crying tears too.
However, this show didn't feel that way, from the first line to the last, my heart sank deeper and deeper inside of myself, waiting for the next seemingly editorializing zinger would drop. I am used to being the baseline for unity, If not personally, generally speaking but I got to say, nothing is quite as disappointing after finding that you and/or who you are as a person, whether that be a single mother pregnant with "more children", or a "Bad mom" like Mika in the movie of the same name, or Police Officer now navigating unprecedented conditions, both at work, at home and in the public eye, are fodder for comedic relief within a celebratory, 'homecoming' context and to the accolades of an admiring viewership as well. I did not find this 'tongue and cheek' but 'tears on cheeks' and not in a good way. I would have been pleased to listen to Dave or good old Bernie Mack come back from the dead to handle this topic, putting 2020 to rest, or perhaps more appropriately to death. In the first few weeks of the George Floyd tragedy Dave Chappell spoke to everyone, as only he can, and shared in our collective sense of humor, raised up our sports and voices effortlessly and seamlessly; this, more than pales in comparison to that grace. Congratulations Tif looks like you roundly found your place.
