Top Ten Comedy Specials of 2024: Streaming
Top Ten Best Comedy Specials of 2024
Welcome to the 2024 Best of Everything in Comedy Awards!
BEST COMEDY SPECIAL is one of the most coveted awards every year, and for many, even more meaningful than Comedian of the Year. In recent years, comedy specials have exploded. Networks- both streaming and broadcast- have upped the number of specials they air, and there are so many more networks than ever before. At the same time, the audio-only comedy album is disappearing. Hardly anyone records an album without also putting out a video version- typically on YouTube. With the number of specials growing exponentially, and the disappearance of the audio album, we’ve decided this year to reorganize our categories to better reflect the comedy world.
So this year, we’ve split our specials into two separate categories- one for specials bought by a network or streamer, and another for specials self-published on YouTube and Video On Demand services.
That means you can vote for TWO specials this year! To vote for best self published/youtube/video-on-demand special, click here!
PAST YEARS WINNERS: Now, before listing the nominees, let’s take a quick look back at the winners of the last 10 years. In 2014, you picked Jim Jefferies “Bare” as the comedy special of the year. In 2015, the honor of best special went to Jim Norton’s “Contextually Inadequate.” In 2016 the late great Barry Crimmins took the award for “Whatever Threatens You.” In 2017 our champion proved to be the World Champion Judah Friedlander, for his Netflix work of art “America is the Greatest Country in the United States.” In 2018 you chose Gad Elmaleh’s “American Dream.” In 2019 you overwhelmingly voted for Dan Soder’s “Son of A Gary” as the best special of the year. Mark Normand “Out to Lunch” was voted the best special of 2020. In 2021, you voted Shane Gillis “Live in Austin” as your #1. In 2022 Chris Distefano “Speshy Weshy” took the top prize, and last year, Kathleen Madigan won for “Hunting Bigfoot”.
Go through our list and vote for the Best Hour Special of 2024! Voting is open!
Don’t forget you can vote for Comedy Movie of the Year! Vote for Comedy TV Series of the Year! Vote for Best Book by or about A Comedian or About Comedy and coming soon, Comedian of the Year!
KEITH ROBINSON. DIFFERENT STROKES. NETFLIX. Executive Produced by Amy Schumer. This is Keith’s first hour special and despite his challenges, he takes the stage and owns it from jump. Keith Robinson has long been thought of as the top of the NYC comedy pyramid, and his strokes haven’t diminished that title. Keith could have drawn on his entire career of material for this hour, but he themes it, and crushes it. He talks about his two strokes, how they affected him, his experiences trying to do everyday things- like order at Popeyes, and yes, even the lessons he learned (if you want to kick someones ass, don’t wait). Filmed at Sony Hall in New York City.
RACHEL FEINSTEIN. BIG GUY. NETFLIX. The big focus of this special is Rachel’s experiences being married to a New York City firefighter, and raising a daughter while she’s still raising her husband. Rachel is hilarious and knows exactly what’s funny about the world she’s married into. Her stories are killers, and she’s just skimmed the surface here. To sum it up, she tells the audience that her kid was asked what her parents do for a living at school: “My daddy’s a hero and my mommy’s sarcastic.” Her husband calls HER Big Guy. Her mother is aggressively liberal. And she brings us into her firefighter family world – which is nothing like yours. Perfect. Filmed at Sony Hall in NYC.
Directed by Gillian Laub.
DAVE ATTELL. HOT CROSS BUNS. NETFLIX. Dave is the comedian every comic wants to be someday. Every comedian wants his approval. And he’s the one every young comic tries to sound like when they are starting out. Hot Cross Buns is a perfect special, perfectly translating what we all love about Dave to television and he hasn’t lost a step- he’s at his best. Whoever you think is the GOAT, they know its Dave. Taped inside Cobbs Comedy Club in San Francisco and near Fisherman’s Wharf, Dave is a killer and Hot Cross Buns is a modern classic.
Directed by Scott Gawlik.
KATT WILLIAMS. WOKE FOKE. NETFLIX. Katt recorded Woke Foke at the Netflix is a Joke comedy festival, and it aired live on on Netflix. Bold movie. Katt pulled no punches. He talked about his Club Shay Shay appearance, and dropped a lot of names, calling out Washington, Hollywood, and everyplace in between- including the Alabama Riverboat Brawl. He roasted Trump and Biden, and said that Nick Cannon has the same number of kids as Abraham, which will make him Biblically, the progenetor of entire cities in the future. Taped at the YouTube Theater in Inglewood California/
Directed by Troy Miller.
ADRIENNE IAPALUCCI. THE DARK QUEEN. NETFLIX. We’ve been waiting for this one. There are many comedians throughout history who have put in a claim to be the darkest comedian on the stage, but Iapalucci gives every one of them a run for their money. Iapalucci is fearless- deadpan and dark, sarcastic and blunt. And so funny. Throughout the hour, she covers hot button topics like Israel, Gaza, and Ukraine- and she has solutions (give Palestine casinos) and issues you never knew were issues like the relative health of dog vaginas. She likes the GOP because they’re honest about not caring about poor people. And honestly she has no time for either side. Taped at the world famous Comedy Cellar, The Dark Queen is the darkest hour on our list.
Directed by Louis CK, Executive Produced by Ari Shaffir
FORTUNE FEIMSTER. CRUSHING IT. NETFLIX. Fortune has hit a new phase of her life. She’s no longer being her mom’s stand-in husband, and a big part of Crushing it is devoted to her “romantic” honeymoon with her wife in a place where same-sex sex is illegal. Feimster is hilarious in her new Netflix hour covering all the changes in family dynamics as she reaches a certain age. Like how to know when its time to take the car keys away from your parents. Fortune always crushes on stage, and Crushing It delivers. Taped at the Moore Theater in Seattle
Director: Kristian Mercado Figueroa.
SAM MORRIL. YOU’VE CHANGED. PRIME. Sam’s fifth hour special is proof positive that Morril has ambitions and the chops to pull them off. Morril’s got a lot of irons in his fire- producing, commentating, sports- but his focus is right here, on the stage and it shows. Morril hits social media, corporate presence, the perils of going viral, growth, and one of the best ex girlfriend stories ever recorded. Taped at the Wilbur Theater in Boston.
Directed by James Webb
NIKKI GLASER. SOME DAY YOU’LL DIE. MAX.
Nikki is determined to be the queen of the comedy world, and every year she proves that she knows what shes doing. In her new hour special, she is as blunt and sharp and funny as ever talking about how not only is she not having kids, she’s disappointed when her friends get pregnant- and has a plan to stop her friends from going the mommy route. As the title suggests, even though she looks stunning, Nikki is already talking about the harsh realities of aging. And of course, it wouldn’t be a Nikki Glaser special without some sexual fantasies- this time hilariously sharing stories about role playing with her long time on again off again boyfriend.Taped at the Moore Theater in Seattle Washington.
Directed by Hamish Hamilton.
TOM PAPA. HOME FREE. NETLFIX Tom Papa is comedy comfort food- and that’s not saying he’s less sharp than the other comedians on this list. It’s just saying that you always feel better after watching Tom perform. He’s an empty nester, but he’s not sad about it- he’s celebrating. “Nobody tells you,” he jokes, “how hard its going to be…pretending to be sad.” He also talks about why he doesn’t need therapy, shoplifting on the reg, and why people should stop showing their feet in public. Not only does Tom make you laugh, but he also makes you realize that you don’t have to be freaked out all the time about everything. When Tom’s on stage, laughter is medicine. Taped at the Warner Theater in Washington DC.
Directed by Troy Miller.
TAYLOR TOMLINSON. HAVING IT ALL. NETFLIX. In her third special Taylor doesn’t understand why people claim you can’t have it all. And she clearly can, including being hot and funny, touring and on television, and selling out the biggest venues in America. And she’s only 30. In Having it All, Tomlinson jokes about being unprepared for meeting Hugh Jackman in real life, and her new 30’s relationship with her friends- living vicariously through their married sex lives, and giving her married friends someone to live vicariously through- a single friend. Taylor also just delivered the best idea to happen to healthcare since the hospital- the AR- an anxiety room across from the emergency room for people just having panic attacks. Filmed at Capitol One Hall in Tysons Virginia.
Directed by Kristian Mercado.
Read more comedy news.
