Editor’s Note: This post has nothing to do with 2019, the New Year, or anything related to the Earth completing an orbit around the Sun.

Author’s Note: I do not actually have an editor because if I did these “reviews” would be much more streamlined and coherent. I, myself, don’t even edit my own self because it’s much easier to just word vomit onto the page.

Does seeing a stand up comedy show on Broadway really differ that much from seeing it in a theater in Orlando? After doing a rigorous experiment comparing the two, I think it’s safe to say that there isn’t much of a change. Granted, in only one version do you get to see a hundred props fall from the ceiling onto the stage and are able to witness Mike Birbiglia demonstrating the use of his handmade, homemade sleeping contraption. Plus, I got a chance to sit in both more comfortable chairs and closer to the stage. I don’t think that has anything to do with a local theater vs a Broadway theater other than the fact that I paid about the same price and got more comfort via Broadway. So there ya have it kids, if Mike is touring in your city, instead fly to Broadway on the off chance you get a nicer seat! Mike, if you’re reading this, you’re welcome for both the promotion and I will accept any form of free stuff that you offer. Thanks in advance.

Mike Birbiglia’s, The New One, is around a 90-minute story/comedy set that is essentially about his experiences of becoming a new father as a man who never wanted kids. I don’t expect this review will create a giant influx of new viewers to check out his show currently running on Broadway for the next month, but in case I do have a widespread appeal and influence that’s unbeknownst to me I won’t divulge many more details of the plot. It’s also because yet again, I saw this show like two weeks ago and have had so many holidays in the time since then. Plus, it is still a stand-up comedy special so it’s more specific jokes I’d have to remember compared to explicit plot points so it’s harder to recap in general. If anything, the main takeaway of this review, or really to sum it all up would be that I paid for me and others to see it six months before and then I paid for myself and others to see it again. It’s not like it changed, it’s not like it was a new story compared to what I already knew. Did I get the more comfortable seats and the props falling from the heavens? Yeah, I got that but I just wanted to see it again because I laughed so much the first time. I laughed so much and thought to myself, this is really relevant to one of my best friend’s who just got married and is now expecting a baby. Now I saw it again and thought, this is really relevant to one of my best friend’s who’s been married for almost a year and has a new baby. As a not new parent, or parent, or someone who isn’t expecting to be a parent until he adopts his son, Reginald, as a 35-year-old single father, this show might not directly pertain to my life. However, Mike Birbiglia’s knack for storytelling and jokes, in general, is what draws you back in. I can think of the concept of the jokes, I can think of the gist of them, but if I tried to actually quote them it would just bastardize them and make them sound painfully unfunny. Which isn’t the intention because again, I’ve been a big fan of Mike (I say this because I pretend we’re friends) for years and I don’t want to do him any disservice.

Look, don’t expect these reviews to be less rambly and brambly than before or don’t think I won’t have tangents that are completely nonsensical because this is a little more polished. It could be the fact that I wrote this in essentially one sitting, or the fact that it’s much harder to review a stand up except by saying it was hilarious, I laughed a lot, and my eyes teared up as well. It’s poignant, it has a sense of beauty to it, and it’s a comedy experience that few comedians can rival. Mike can both tell jokes and tell a captivating story and you’re enraptured either way. See his movies, watch his specials, read his book, and well, get yourself tested for testicular issues because they’re more common than you think! So it goes.