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During a monologue introducing his new Netflix talk show on Wednesday night, the comic John Mulaney said the streamer had given him an hour to introduce his fans to the baby boomer culture that has made him \u201cthe unsettled weirdo\u201d he is today.<\/p>\n
He stayed true to his word. The premiere episode of \u201cEverybody\u2019s Live With John Mulaney\u201d<\/a> included jokes about Al Jarreau, an eccentric tribute to \u201cDeath of a Salesman\u201d and an appearance by Joan Baez, who gossiped about civil rights leaders.<\/p>\n Scheduled for a 12-week run, \u201cEverybody\u2019s Live\u201d is a follow-up to Mulaney\u2019s first stab at the format, \u201cEverybody\u2019s in L.A.\u201d<\/a> That show, also live, aired last May as an eccentric but enjoyable exercise in corporate synergy: It coincided with the Netflix Is a Joke Fest, and it included plenty of Mulaney\u2019s fellow comedy stars as guests, along with call-in segments and offbeat bits about Los Angeles concerns like coyotes and earthquakes. \u201cEverybody\u2019s Live\u201d recreated that show for a slightly wider audience. It\u2019s not quite as Los Angeles-centric; it\u2019s still just as weird.<\/p>\n The show is Netflix\u2019s latest foray into live programming. The streamer has been experimenting with live events like a Chris Rock standup special<\/a> in 2023 and the Jake Paul-Mike Tyson boxing match<\/a> and Screen Actors Guild Awards<\/a> this year.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n So what can viewers expect if they tune in to see Mulaney on Wednesday nights? Here are some clues from the premiere.<\/p>\n Yes. Mulaney explained in the monologue that they changed the title because Netflix did a focus group and \u201cit turns out people around the country don\u2019t like L.A.\u201d Mulaney suggested testing the name again after the wildfires earlier this year to see if opinions had changed, he said. They hadn\u2019t.<\/p>\n Despite the slightly different title, \u201cEverybody\u2019s Live\u201d follows the same format as \u201cEverybody\u2019s in L.A.\u201d Mulaney assembles a group of guests \u2014 a seemingly random assortment of celebrities and subject experts \u2014 to discuss a topic and take calls from viewers. Instead of commercial breaks, there are short interstitial man-on-the-street interviews during the livestream, though Netflix will insert commercials later for on-demand viewers who subscribe to one of the service\u2019s ad tiers.<\/p>\n Episodes of \u201cEverybody\u2019s in L.A.\u201d were centered on things related to the city, like \u201ccoyotes\u201d and \u201chelicopters.\u201d Mulaney has gone broader for the new show. This week\u2019s episode was nominally focused on \u201clending people money.\u201d The guests \u2014 Michael Keaton; Fred Armisen; Baez; and Jessica Roy, a personal finance columnist for The San Francisco Chronicle \u2014 discussed their own experiences with lending and borrowing and weighed in on live callers\u2019 horror stories about giving money to family members and delinquent roommates. <\/p>\n One person claimed he had taken $20,000 from his brother to go to law school but used the money instead to buy a car, which he then crashed. Most of the calls were more uncomfortable than funny.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n He sure was! Thank goodness. The hard-working character actor is back as Mulaney\u2019s Ed McMahon, his boisterous laugh echoing throughout the studio. Mulaney, who recently shared a Broadway stage with Kind in \u201cAll In,\u201d said on Wednesday that he once saw his sidekick steal a six pack of tube socks from a costume closet. This tracks: Kind routinely takes clothing from his jobs<\/a>.<\/p>\n Does a delivery robot<\/a> count as a sidekick? Frankly, there could have been more Saymo gags. Also, Tracy Morgan made an appearance as a character called \u201cKing Latifah,\u201d though it is unclear whether he will be back for future installments.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Since his much chronicled struggle with addiction<\/a>, Mulaney\u2019s standup comedy<\/a> has been generally more revealing about his personal life. Wednesday\u2019s monologue centered on his wife, Olivia Munn, who has undergone multiple surgeries resulting from breast cancer. While this doesn\u2019t sound like classic comedy show material, Mulaney told amusing stories about Munn\u2019s \u201ccancer brain.\u201d \u201cIt\u2019s a sweet wonderful dumbness that happens after all that challenging treatment,\u201d he said, and then shared two loving anecdotes about Munn saying or doing something jarringly profane.<\/p>\n Mulaney\u2019s format can lead to awkwardness between the panelists if the conversation doesn\u2019t flow freely. At first, that seemed to be the case with Keaton telling a meandering story about going to Benihana. Baez\u2019s anecdote about the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. telling dirty jokes was much more entertaining, though she wouldn\u2019t repeat any of them.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n True to form, Baez, known for her activism, had something to say. After confirming with Mulaney that she could say whatever she wanted on the live show, she gave a disclaimer of sorts. \u201cWe\u2019re all here to be silly and have fun,\u201d she said. \u201cAs long as we recognize the fact that our democracy is going up in flames, and we\u2019re being run by a bunch of really incompetent billionaires.\u201d She later told a story about crashing a Tesla.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n There sure was. In a prerecorded bit, Mulaney assembled a focus group of actors who have played Willy Loman in various productions of Arthur Miller\u2019s drama. They included known performers like Anthony LaPaglia, who did \u201cSalesman\u201d in Melbourne, Australia, and Christopher Lloyd, the man best known as Doc Brown from \u201cBack to the Future,\u201d who did the play at the Weston Playhouse in Vermont in 2010; other professional actors; and student performers. Mulaney asked them to react to various topics and images \u2014 child obesity, screen time, \u201cMortal Kombat\u201d \u2014 in character before a grand finale in which all the actors recited the \u201cthere were promises made\u201d monologue in unison. Was it all a commentary on one of the most enduring works of American art and its continued relevance? Sure, maybe. It was also just Grade-A absurdist humor.<\/p>\n Indeed. The camera caught Baez and Kind grooving to the hip-hop group\u2019s \u201cHits From the Bong.\u201d Even better: They have moves.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nSo was \u2018Everybody\u2019s Live\u2019 basically \u2018Everybody\u2019s in L.A. 2\u2019?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Was Richard Kind there?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Were there any other sidekicks?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Did Mulaney get personal?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
How were the guests?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Were there any political statements?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Was there an inexplicable but hilarious sketch about \u2018Death of a Salesman\u2019 featuring Christopher Lloyd?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
Did Baez and Kind dance to Cypress Hill?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n